BW - EP159—001: NYC In January 1956 With Johnny Dollar—CBS Radio In Early 1956

Breaking Walls: The Podcast on the History of American Network Radio Broadcasting

Support Breaking Walls at https://www.patreon.com/thewallbreakers At a CBS radio meeting in September 1955 at 485 Madison Avenue, John Karole VP of Sales, predicted CBS’s time sold would be more than the other three networks combined. Radio affiliates were given a Segmented Selling Plan. The plan offered a five-minute segment for twenty-one hundred dollars. Frank Stanton, President of CBS, boasted that since the birth of radio advertising, more than eight billion dollars had been spent on commercials. Network radio advertising in 1955 was up and year-over-year revenue would finish four million dollars ahead of 1954, but privately, many of the local stations grumbled. CBS had recently instituted income-slashing one-year contracts and added a standard six-month cancellation clause, while cutting compensation by twenty percent. Eight million new radios were manufactured in 1955—forty-five percent more the previous year. Car radios were now standard and transistor sets were on the rise. It was estimated that mobile listening added anywhere from thirty to seventy percent to overall radio ratings. On-the-go ratings polls were still rudimentary, but Richard M. Mall in The Journal of Broadcasting speculated that the days of families listening together in the parlor were over. Five-minute newscasts now dominate the tops of most hours. CBS was selling news advertising at its highest rate in history and New York was CBS’ major news hub. CBS announced new evening radio programs with name-brand talent and The $64,000 Question would now be simulcast on both radio and TV. They were also increasing dramatic production. This included two evening strips at 8PM that would air five nights per week for fifteen minutes each night. One was a reboot of Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar. It was to star Gerald Mohr, who had just finished a successful run as Christopher Storm on TV’s Foreign Intrigue. Mohr recorded an audition on August 29th, 1955. Veteran radio director Jack Johnstone was brought in, but Mohr didn’t take the part. New auditions were held the next month. Each actor had twenty minutes to pitch themselves and audition with actress Lillian Buyeff. Amongst those who read were radio mainstays Paul Dubev, Larry Thor, Jack Moyes, Tony Barrett, Vic Perrin, and the man they selected, Bob Bailey. The rebooted Yours Truly Johnny Dollar debuted over CBS airwaves at 8:15PM eastern time on October 3rd, 1955. The new format offered seventy-five minutes of weekly time, allowing tremendous character development. It wasn’t long before letters were pouring into CBS. While the CBS sales team looked for national sponsorship, in early 1956 a new case took Johnny Dollar to New York City. Dollar would be in town between January 9th and 13th. Tonight, we’ll focus on Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, stolen goods, and what was happening in New York that week in January, 1956.