On This Day, August 25: Police Woman (Arrid) and Jean Shepherd (WOR)
Also featured: Count of Monte Cristo.
August 25 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, serial multi-part narrative arcs, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 25 across American network, Betty Garde starring as NYPD Policewoman Mary Sullivan on Police Woman for Arrid, George V. Denny Jr. moderating a heated debate on post-armistice Korea on America's Town Meeting of the Air, two classic late-night Jean Shepherd monologues live on WOR (avoiding 'The Real World' in 1965 and Shea Stadium bedsheet banners in 1972), Kate Smith welcoming Woody Herman's Thundering Herd for Jell-O, and Carleton Young as The Count of Monte Cristo foiling Venetian assassins (1944–1972):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Case of the Hallway Murder (Betty Garde as Mary Sullivan — Arrid)" | Mutual (WOR) 1946-08-25 5:45 PM EDT |
Carter Products Arrid Deodorant Cream |
Betty Garde (Mary Sullivan), Bill Zuckert | Philips H. Lord, Jesse Butcher, Jerry Sears | ["Detective", "Police Procedural", "Crime", "Women", "Docudrama"] |
"Police Woman, based on the actual true crime case files of Mary Sullivan, Director of the Policewomen's Bureau of the New York City Police Department, brought to you by Arrid Deodorant!" Policewoman Mary Sullivan investigates the strangulation murder of a young garment worker found in a brownstone hallway, tracking down a spurned suitor who tried to fabricate a phony subway alibi. |
| "What Next in Korea? (George V. Denny Jr. — America's Town Meeting)" | ABC (WJZ) 1953-08-25 9:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining Town Hall Debate |
George V. Denny Jr. (Moderator), Sen. Robert Kerr | Town Hall Inc., Gene Hamilton | ["Public Affairs", "Political", "Debate", "Historical", "Talk"] |
"America's Town Meeting of the Air, originating live from Town Hall in New York City!" Following the July 1953 signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, prominent congressional leaders and political analysts engage in a fiery public debate examining the geopolitical future of divided Korea, international diplomacy, and the threat of Communist expansion in East Asia. |
| "Staying in School and Avoiding 'The Real World' (Jean Shepherd — WOR)" | WOR New York 1965-08-25 11:15 PM EDT |
Sustaining Late-Night Monologue |
Jean Shepherd (Storyteller) | WOR Radio Manhattan | ["Comedy", "Talk", "Americana", "Philosophy", "Satire"] |
"Live from WOR in New York, it's Jean Shepherd!" Jean Shepherd riffs on the timeless existential art of prolonging graduate school and piling up useless university degrees purely as a brilliant strategy for avoiding 'The Real World' and avoiding adult corporate responsibility. |
| "Signs at Shea Stadium (Jean Shepherd — WOR New York)" | WOR New York 1972-08-25 11:15 PM EDT |
Sustaining Urban Humor & Sports |
Jean Shepherd (Live Monologue) | WOR Radio Manhattan | ["Comedy", "Talk", "Sports", "Americana", "Humor"] |
"Excelsior! It's Jean Shepherd on WOR!" Jean Shepherd delivers an affectionate, riotous monologue analyzing the bizarre handwritten bedsheet banners hung by lunatic New York Mets fans across the upper decks of Shea Stadium during the 1972 pennant race. |
| "Guest Woody Herman & His Orchestra (Kate Smith — Jell-O)" | CBS (WABC) 1944-08-25 8:00 PM EWT |
General Foods Jell-O & Jell-O Puddings |
Kate Smith, Ted Collins, Woody Herman Orchestra | Ted Collins (Producer), Jack Miller | ["Music", "Variety", "Big Band", "Swing", "Vocal"] |
"The Kate Smith Hour, brought to you by Jell-O and Jell-O Puddings!" America's beloved songstress Kate Smith welcomes jazz bandleader Woody Herman and his Thundering Herd for blistering swing numbers, delivers an emotional wartime ballad, and talks with producer Ted Collins in support of the home-front war effort for Jell-O. |
| "The Venice Gondola Plot (Carleton Young as The Count of Monte Cristo — Mutual)" | Mutual (WOR) 1953-08-25 8:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining Swashbuckling Classics |
Carleton Young (Monte Cristo), Parley Baer | Alexandre Dumas, Richard Sanville, Jaime del Valle | ["Adventure", "Classics", "Historical", "Drama", "Swashbuckler"] |
"The Count of Monte Cristo, starring Carleton Young as Edmond Dantès, based on the classic novel by Alexandre Dumas!" In the mist-shrouded canals of Venice, the wealthy and enigmatic Count of Monte Cristo thwarts a midnight assassination attempt orchestrated by a corrupt Venetian magistrate, turning the conspirators' own poisoned dagger against them. |