On This Day, September 4: Big Town and Mysterious Traveler
Also featured: Robert Dollar.
September 4 Update
This report documents the historical provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, serial story arcs, and pure narrative synopses for broadcasts transmitting on September 4 across two hard-hitting newspaper crusades on Big Town starring Edward Pawley as Steve Wilson for Ironized Yeast (1945) and Lifebuoy Soap (1951), Maurice Tarplin narrating Death Has a Thousand Faces on The Mysterious Traveler, the biographical saga of shipping pioneer Robert Dollar on Captains of Industry, Curt Massey on The Gulf Spray Show, and California Gold Rush songs on How the West Was Sung, Edward Pawley & Fran Carlon (1945, 1951), Maurice Tarplin (1951), and Robert Dollar (1937–1974):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Tattle-Tale Gun with Edward Pawley" | CBS (WABC) 1945-09-04 8:00 PM EWT |
Sterling Drug, Inc. Ironized Yeast |
Edward Pawley & Carlon | Jerry McGill (Dir./Writer) | ["Drama", "Newspaper", "Big Town", "Edward Pawley", "Ironized Yeast"] |
Managing editor Steve Wilson uses advanced ballistics evidence to prove that a corrupt councilman was murdered with his own custom firearm. |
| "The Protector with Edward Pawley" | NBC (WNBC) 1951-09-04 8:00 PM EDT |
Lever Brothers Co. Lifebuoy & Rinso |
Edward Pawley & Carlon | Jerry McGill (Writer) | ["Drama", "Newspaper", "Big Town", "Edward Pawley", "Lifebuoy"] |
Steve Wilson launches an Illustrated Press crusade against a fraudulent private security protection racket preying on small merchant shopkeepers. |
| "Death Has a Thousand Faces with Maurice Tarplin" | Mutual (WOR) 1951-09-04 8:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining Suspense Anthology |
Maurice Tarplin (Traveler) | Robert A. Arthur & Kogan | ["Horror", "Mystery", "The Mysterious Traveler", "Maurice Tarplin", "Mutual"] |
A fugitive plastic surgeon disguises a wanted killer with a new face, only to find himself entangled in a deadly double-cross. |
| "Robert Dollar and Pacific Steamship Lines" | Syndication 1937-09-04 |
Sustaining Business Biography |
Dramatic Repertory Cast | Syndicate Production Staff | ["Biography", "History", "Captains of Industry", "Robert Dollar", "Shipping"] |
The inspiring biographical rise of Scottish immigrant lumberjack Robert Dollar who founded the globe-circling Dollar Steamship Lines. |
| "Oh What a Beautiful Mornin' with Curt Massey" | CBS Radio 1947-09-04 |
Gulf Oil Corporation Gulf Spray Insecticide |
Curt Massey & Tilton | Jeff Alexander and Orch. | ["Music", "Vocal", "The Gulf Spray Show", "Curt Massey", "Gulf Oil"] |
Curt Massey and Martha Tilton perform Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oh What a Beautiful Mornin' alongside cheerful summer vocal serenades. |
| "The Days of '49 (Part 10) with BBC Radio 2" | BBC Radio 2 1974-09-04 |
Sustaining Folk Heritage Series |
Folk Balladeers | BBC Radio 2 Producers | ["Music", "Documentary", "How The West Was Sung", "Gold Rush", "BBC Radio 2"] |
A musical exploration of California Gold Rush folk ballads, prospecting lore, and frontier saloon songs composed during the turbulent year of 1849. |