On This Day, August 24: Mr. District Attorney and National Lampoon
Also featured: Skippy Theatre.
August 24 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 24 across American network, syndication, and 1970s counterculture radio history (1946–1974):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Summer Reruns Best-Of (John Belushi, Gilda Radner & Chevy Chase — Lampoon)" | Lampoon Synd. 1974-08-24 (Show #39) |
Regional Advertisers Record & Stereo Stores |
John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Chevy Chase, Christopher Guest | Bob Tischler (Director), National Lampoon Staff | ["Comedy", "Satire", "Sketch", "Parody", "Counterculture"] |
John Belushi, Gilda Radner, and Christopher Guest star in an anarchic showcase of counterculture sketches, featuring biting parodies of 1970s commercial consumerism, pop rock interviews, and absurdist soap operas. |
| "The Case of Bon Voyage (Starring Jay Jostyn as Mr. D.A. — Vitalis)" | NBC (WNBC) 1949-08-24 9:30 PM EDT |
Bristol-Myers Co. Vitalis Hair Tonic & Ipana |
Jay Jostyn (Mr. D.A.), Vicki Vola, Len Doyle | Phillips H. Lord, Edward A. Byron, Fred Cole | ["Police", "Procedural", "Legal", "Detective", "Crime"] |
District Attorney Paul Garrett investigates a ruthless confidence ring preying on elderly cruise passengers embarking from New York harbor, uncovering an international jewel-smuggling syndicate operating aboard luxury ocean liners. |
| "The Case of the Man on the Ledge (Starring Jay Jostyn as Mr. D.A. — Bufferin)" | ABC (WJZ) 1952-08-24 7:00 PM EDT |
Bristol-Myers Co. Bufferin & Vitalis |
Jay Jostyn (Mr. D.A.), Vicki Vola, Len Doyle | Phillips H. Lord, Edward A. Byron, Fred Cole | ["Police", "Procedural", "Legal", "Detective", "Crime"] |
District Attorney Paul Garrett and investigator Harrington race to a 20th-story hotel ledge to talk down a terrified bank clerk who claims corrupt syndicate loan sharks threatened his family after he refused to embezzle municipal bond funds. |
| "The Canary Yellow Message (Starring Les Tremayne & Alice Reinheart — Helbros)" | Mutual (WOR) 1947-08-24 5:30 PM EDT |
Helbros Watch Co. "The Watch of Celebrities" |
Les Tremayne (Pat Abbott), Alice Reinheart | Frances Crane, Howard Merrill, Himan Brown, Frank Gallop | ["Detective", "Mystery", "Comedy", "Crime", "Couple"] |
Husband-and-wife sleuthing team Pat and Jean Abbott vacation in Santa Fe, where they are drawn into a dangerous mystery involving a cryptic blackmail note written on canary-yellow parchment found in a murdered art collector's studio. |
| "Operation Monsoon (Host Robert Young with John Beal — Skippy Peanut Butter)" | MacGregor Synd. 1946-08-24 (Skippy Theatre) |
Rosefield Packing Skippy Peanut Butter |
Robert Young (Host), John Beal, Martha Scott | C.P. MacGregor (Producer/Director), Frank Goss | ["Drama", "Adventure", "Aviation", "Anthology", "Romance"] |
A courageous commercial cargo pilot flying a perilous emergency medical relief mission through a violent South Pacific monsoon fights treacherous tropical storms and engine failure to deliver life-saving serum to an isolated island outpost. |
| "Detour (Starring Tom Drake & Jeff Chandler — Skippy Peanut Butter)" | CBS (WCBS) 1950-08-24 10:30 PM EDT |
Rosefield Packing Skippy Peanut Butter |
Tom Drake, Jeff Chandler, Joan Banks | C.P. MacGregor (Producer/Director), Frank Goss | ["Drama", "Noir", "Suspense", "Anthology", "Thriller"] |
In a gripping radio adaptation of the classic film noir Detour, a down-on-his-luck nightclub pianist hitchhiking across the desert to California becomes ensnared in a web of accidental death, extortion, and terrifying blackmail by a ruthless grifter. |