The Globe Theater Program #12 1944 - Part 2

Music director Bernard Katz goes over music cues with Lionel Barrymore.

So, that 1944 episode of "Globe Theatre" featuring an edited version of Lionel Barrymore's "A Christmas Carol" adaptation from is "The Mayor of the Town" series is an interesting thing.

The question, though, is what episode of "The Mayor of the Town" is this? As I undertand it the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) would record the Christmas episodes of various shows (Crosby, Hope, Benny, etc.) then use them the following December for their transcriptions.

This would seem to indicate that this is the 1943 episode of "Mayor" used by the AFRS in 1944, as they wouldn't have had time to edit the 1944 show into the "Globe Theatre" format.

But we were just listening to the 1943 recording, weren't we? This version is extremely similar, but it's not the same performance. Some of the actors are different. I don't think Marley's Ghost is played here by Hans Conreid. This actor doesn't roll his Rs in that theatrical manner.

The Cratchit kids sound a bit different, but I think Mrs. Cratchit sounds even more like Agnes Moorehead!

The biggest difference as far as the story itself goes is that this 1944 "Globe Theatre" show does not include the scene with Belle and her husband. I presume this scene was edited out for time constraints.

The AFRS guys had to do a lot of editing with the network shows they recorded, as they needed to get rid of the commericals. This was especially hard for a show like "Fibber McGee and Molly," where our friend Harlow Wilcox would sneak the Johnson's Wax commercials into the conversation!

In any event, I think they do a good job with the show here and Herbert Marshall as the host gives it an extra touch of class!

One thing I feel the need to mention is that I recognize the theme song of "Globe Theatre" as "A Handful of Stars," which was a hit for Glenn Miller and his Orchestra in 1940. This song actually has a couple of connections that are somewhat interesting.

It was introduced in the MGM movie "Hullabaloo" in 1940. I've seen that movie on TCM and it's a very forgettable B-picture starring Frank Morgan, but it was directed by Edward L. Marin, who had directed the 1938 movie version of "A Christmas Carol" and features Reginald Owen in a small role!

Also in another small part was Cy Kendall, who played the Ghost of Christmas Present on Ronald Colman's 1941 recording!

Here's Glenn Miller's record of "A Handful of Stars" as a bonus:

The Stingiest Man in Town (1956) Bonus Bonus!

While we're still on the subject of "The Stingiest Man in Town," one thing I had been wondering about was Johnny Desmond's 45 rpm single of "Old Fashioned Christmas" and "The Birthday Party of the King," the two songs he had sung in the 1956 live production.

The original cast album was on Columbia Records, the then-current home of Johnny's castmates Vic Damone and the Four Lads. But Johnny was under contract to Coral Records (a subsidiary of Decca) at that time. Obviously some deal was worked out between the companies for Johnny to appear on the album, but did they use the same recordings that were on the Columbia album for the Coral single?

Well, a bit of sleuthing shows the running times are not the same. Hmmm...

The label of the single shows "Music by Camarata" (rather than, say, Dick Jacobs, the house arranger for Coral) as does the album. So, are they edited versions of the same recording?

How does one find this out if the single doesn't seem to be posted anywhere online? Track down a copy of the 45 and buy it!

So, I now do have my mitts on that 45 shown above!

And while the arrangements are similar, these are clearly different recordings from the ones on the album. Now we know! I can rest!

So, check out the single version of "Old Fashioned Christmas" right here:

And the album version:

While we're talking about Johnny Desmond, I had mentioned when discussing the cast of the 1956 production of "The Stingiest Man in Town" that Johnny had really come into prominence when singing with Glenn Miller's AAF band during WWII. That was a terrific band and Johnny, the G.I. Sinatra, was terrific with them. So for a bonus bonus, here he is singing a topical song:

Good stuff!