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Dick Haymes, the male singing star of the Twentieth Century-Fox motion picture, “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling,” was born Richard Benjamin Haymes in Buenos Aires, Argentina. His Irish-born mother, Marguerite Haymes, was a well-known vocal coach and instructor. Dick became the vocalist in a number of big bands and worked in Hollywood on radio and in many films throughout the 1940s and 1950s. His female singing co-star in the film, June Haver, was also on contract to Fox and during her career at the studio, was originally groomed to be the next Betty Grable (she was often referred to as "The Pocket Grable"), and even co-starred with Grable in the 1945 film, “The Dolly Sisters.” Haymes and Haver reprised their original roles in the ‘The Screen Guild Theatre’s re-creation for radio of the film, “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.” Not only were their voices in fine form, but their duets were praised by music critics of the day as some of the best in years, something which you’ll be given the opportunity to appreciate on the next ‘From The Vault’ program.

On Wednesday night (17th Mar.)

At 6:00 pm on The Shoalhaven’s own Community Radio Station, Shoalhaven FM, Harold Ellison’s program of Old-Time Radio Shows, ‘From The Vault,’ will be wearing the green and joining in the world-wide celebrations dedicated to the Emerald Isle, or Ireland for short, by presenting an entire evening of shows featuring St. Patrick’s Day as their main theme. In the U.S., where each of these shows were originally broadcast, the day is celebrated with parades, mischievous leprechauns everywhere you look, four-leafed clover, the telling of Irish folklore and folktales, singing Irish songs and everything that can be made green, from beer to hairdos, has been given a fresh splash of emerald. And during radio’s Golden Age, every and any type of radio show was given a St. Patrick’s theme, or at the very least an Irish one in honour of the occasion. This made compiling the shows to play on this evening’s ’From The Vault’ a simple matter of choosing the best and most entertaining for you on a program we’re calling, ’From The Vault’s St. Pat’s Night.’ And what a night it will be…to be sure…to be sure!

We’ll start off with ‘The Screen Guild Theatre’s re-creation for radio of the 1944 Twentieth Century-Fox motion picture, “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling,” which was also known as “Irish Eyes Are Smiling.“ For this production, the original film’s two major singing stars, Dick Haymes and June Haver, re-created their screen performances. In an unusual twist, the fees that would normally have gone to all the stars appearing on the program were given to the Motion Picture Relief Fund (which amounted to almost $800,000 by the Summer of 1942). This money was used to build and maintain the Motion Picture Country House, which consisted of 40 bungalow units for the housing of aging and indigent film stars. As the 40’s unfolded, Producer Bill Lawrence eagerly sought films that hadn’t been worked as yet on ’The Lux Radio Theatre’ or on the many copycat series that arose during those years. “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling” is a tuneful account of the life of Ernest R. Ball, composer of many popular Irish songs, including the film’s title song. It’s a good story, but the highlight is definitely the music and the flawless singing of Haymes and Haver and a more delightful half hour is hard to imagine.

Then, we’ll hear a Bob Hope monologue focusing on St. Patrick’s Day. Bob was at his peak, the material is first class and extraordinarily funny.
And then, from out of the West rode a man with the most famous business card in radio, containing the words, ’Have Gun, Will Travel,’ an oddity as it was the only significant radio show that originated on television. Beginning as a TV series, with Richard Boone as Paladin, ’Have Gun’ immediately leaped into the top ten and gained such an enthusiastic following that CBS decided to add it to its fading radio chain. Boone wore black and conveyed the image of a man not to be trifled with. For radio, John Dehner approached the role as if Boone had never existed. “I don’t imitate,” he said in an interview years later. His was a streamlined version, but just as deadly. Paladin was a loner, a man with no friends. You’d be terribly unlucky to miss the ’Have Gun, Will Travel’ episode, “Irish Luck.”

After that, we’ll hear the Audition show, also called the debut, of one of radio’s most enduring as well as endearing comedies, ‘Duffy’s Tavern,’ with the episode, “Irish Tenor-Gertrude Neison.” ‘Duffy’s’ was a state of mind, allegedly located in downtown Manhattan, catering to the Irish working class. Its bill o’ fare specialised in such ethnic dishes as corned beef and cabbage as well as pickled pigs’ feet. At Duffy’s, said Archie the Manager, played to perfection by Ed Gardner, who also had final say over the show’s scripts, the clientele they attracted was “the after-Bingo crowd.” Gardner was insistent that the accents be authentic… “Where they went to grade school, that’s what counts in the way you do the lingo.” “An actress could fake a southern drawl,” said Gardner, “but that Brooklyn twist just about has to be real.” So stop in for a goodly serving of Irish-New York lingo, not to mention the laughs.

Then, as a special treat, we’ll be hearing the St. Patrick’s Day episode of “The Quiz Kids,” with questions regarding everything Irish. See how many YOU can answer… before the 6 to 9 year olds make you feel totally ashamed of your own education.

Finally, depending upon how much time left over, we’ll hear a little from the St. Patrick’s Day episode of the NBC series, “Recollections,” with Irish radio personalities from way back. It’s a real treat.

‘From The Vault’ airs immediately after Harold Ellison's other program, ‘The Jazz Café,’ featuring the soothing sounds of mellow, Smooth Jazz, 4 to 6 pm Wednesdays.

Bell Canada has been sponsoring ‘The Bell Canada Reading Series’ for some years now, which emanates from The Royal George Theatre in the quaint village of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, the home, since the early 60‘s, of the Shaw Festival. Although established primarily to feature the plays of George Bernard Shaw and his literary contemporaries, in recent years, the festival has branched out and staged works by other fine Canadian, American, British and European playwrights. Located a mere 20 minutes from the thunder of Niagara Falls itself, Niagara-on-the-Lake welcomes visitors to its bountiful orchards, award-winning wineries, historic sites, lush parks and gardens and elegant homes that are classic examples of Victorian, Regency and Edwardian architecture, many offering bed and breakfast accommodation. Horse drawn carriages parade up and down the main street, which is lit by old fashioned lighting fixtures. The mixture of beauty, culture and history is intoxicating, as will be the offerings of magnificent Canadian radio productions you’ll rejoice in listening to on the next ‘From The Vault’ program.

On Wednesday night (10th Mar.)

At 6:00 pm on The Shoalhaven’s own Community Radio Station, Shoalhaven FM, Harold Ellison’s program of Old-Time Radio Shows, ‘From The Vault,’ will feature an evening of top quality Canadian radio productions as emotionally stimulating as they are intellectually challenging. We’ll be hearing stories involving an unusually dedicated young policewoman, a house detective at one of Canada’s finest old hotels that caters to a wealthy and spoiled clientele, an insurance investigator who thinks nothing of risking his life to discover what’s happened to a hijacked luxury yacht and a mad Checov comedy about a widow whose late husband’s debtor has come to collect and end up in a romance with the woman. And all this is yours to enjoy on the program ‘From The Vault’s Weaving Canadian Yarns Night.’

We’ll begin with the story of a young, dedicated policewoman, Constable Tannis Bailey, who’s relatively new to the Calgary Police Service. She’s often in trouble with her superiors due to the way she goes about performing her duties. Tannis can’t help but become personally involved in the solving of all manners of crimes and situations on the program ‘Bailey’s Way.’ But fortunately for Tannis, her superiors do have faith in her and her ability to eventually learn to distance herself from the work she’s involved in. ‘Bailey’s Way’ is totally unlike any other police drama you’ve ever heard, a statement which the episode, “Logan’s Lost Herd,” will go a long way towards displaying.

Next, from the Royal George Theatre at Niagara-on-The-Lake, Ontario, home of “The Shaw Festival,” we’ll hear a play from the ‘Bell Canada Reading Series.’ And the plays are performed just that way: with no sets, no fancy costumes, only actors, in their street clothes, reading a play to a very appreciative audience, and naturally acting out the story beautifully. It’s a packed out house tonight because the play is a one act Chekhov comedy, called, “The Bear,” which is part of a series that Anton Chekhov called his “Vaudevilles,” because they are just that… fast, furious and oh so funny and of course, splendidly adapted for radio.

Then, it’s 1923, and ‘Becker’ is the house detective at ‘The Queen of The Rockies,’ an exclusive old hotel that he likes to refer to as simply ‘The Queen.’ Becker started working at ‘The Queen,’ two years ago, at the insistence of friends, who felt that this would be an ideal way for him to forget about the accident in which his wife was lost. That goal hasn’t been totally successful but working at the hotel does provide some interesting diversions in his life. And in an old, fashionable hotel like ‘The Queen,’ with it’s jewellery-laden wealthy guests, some with very unusual pasts that they are doing their best to conceal, one never knows what’s going to happen. The ‘Becker’ episode, “Pearl” is a perfect example of that.

Finally, we have ‘Flynn’ an investigator who, on behalf of the insurance company, is looking into the recent hijacking of a $200,000 yacht. He’s doing this investigation work aboard a small sailboat and the area he’s snooping around in is noted for some serious whirlpools, whirlpools that are more than powerful enough to suck down into its unknown depths a much larger motorised vessel, much less a flimsy sailboat. Therefore it’s vital for Flynn, and the woman he has aboard with him, to keep a sharp lookout, lest they don‘t make it out of these waters alive, something which the hijackers would be quite happy to see happen in the tension-packed episode, “Whirlpool.”

‘From The Vault’ airs immediately after Harold Ellison's other program, ‘The Jazz Café,’ featuring the soothing sounds of mellow, Smooth Jazz, 4 to 6 pm Wednesdays.

Donald Monat simply excels as John Steed in the South African radio version of ‘The Avengers,’ and is undoubtedly the nearest anyone has come to equalling Patrick Macnee's superb portrayal. From the very first scene you hear, Monat immediately stamps his mark upon the role. Any previously held notion that John Steed can only be played by one man is instantly disproved. Monat's interpretation, which gives the impression that his Steed is, perhaps, a little older than Macnee's, is highly effective. His distinctive voice lends John Steed an instant authority - a highly desirable piece of radio shorthand. Diane Appleby’s performance as Emma Peel is likewise highly successful when compared to her television counterpart, Diana Rigg. However, to be fair to Ms. Appleby, the character of Mrs. Peel was never going to be as simple to transfer from the medium of television to the radio as that of her partner in crime detection as so much of Emma‘s appeal was a visual one. Fans of television’s ’The Avengers’ should be looking to this radio version, starring these two fine expatriate British actors, with great anticipation on the next ‘From The Vault’ program.

On Wednesday night (3rd Mar.)

At 6:00 pm on The Shoalhaven’s own Community Radio Station, Shoalhaven FM, Harold Ellison’s program of Old-Time Radio Shows, ‘From The Vault,’ will present a program featuring South African radio‘s radio re-creation of the famed television show, ‘The Avengers,’ with John Steed and Emma Peel facing a situation that could almost have been taken right out of ‘The Arabian Nights,’ except for the fact that it’s filled with far more excitement, technical wizardry and wit. That will be accompanied by the show ‘Favourite Story,’ where each episode had a celebrity choose his favourite story, which would then be performed with a full cast and orchestral musical accompaniment. This night’s celebrity’s choice was the enchanting story of “1001 Arabian Nights - The Legend of Scheherazade.” All this on two hours of positively riveting radio that we’re calling ‘From The Vault’s Arabian Night’s Night With The Avengers and Favourite Story.’

Two years after the original British television series ‘The Avengers’ drew to a close, John Steed and Emma Peel returned to find a new audience in an unexpected locale… South Africa. Despite being the most economically advanced country in Africa, South Africa was relatively late in introducing television broadcasting to its population, which didn’t happen until 1976. Prior to that, South Africans had to rent 16mm film versions of any foreign TV productions they wished to see. This is why early in 1972, ‘The Avengers’ found an eager radio audience. Starring superb British actors, Donald Monat and Diane Appleby, episodes of ‘The Avengers’ were adapted from the original television scripts and recorded in Johannesburg. In a departure from the self-contained format of its source material, ‘The Avengers’ radio series called for each script to be re-written as a serial of five, six or seven fifteen-minute episodes. For this special ’From The Vault’ program, all seven parts of the positively thrilling episode, “The Fantasy Game,” wherein Steed and Mrs. Peel find themselves in an adventure right out of “The Arabian Nights,” have been edited together so you can enjoy all the action in one evening’s listening.

Then Ronald Colman hosts ‘Favourite Story,’ a dramatic anthology series in which the favourite classic literature of prominent personalities and celebrities was dramatised, with the emphasis on quality, and quality is what listeners heard. In this broadcast we’ll experience the literary selection of Mr. Lowell Thomas, the celebrated author of “Lawrence of Arabia,” commentator, and world traveller, who, as his ‘Favourite Story’ has requested “1001 Arabian Nights - The Legend of Scheherazade,” which is a series of stories with in a story. The classic “Arabian Nights” folktales originate from various ethnic origins such as India, Persia and Arabia. The main story is that of Scheherazade, the daughter of the Vizier, who dared to face King Shahrayar, who out of anger was causing great harm to his kingdom. Paula Winslowe does a magnificent job in the title role. Music for the production is “Sheherazade,” Op. 35, the dazzling, colourful symphonic suite, considered the most popular work of Russian composer Rimsky-Korsakov.

‘From The Vault’ airs immediately after Harold Ellison's other program, ‘The Jazz Café,’ featuring the soothing sounds of mellow, Smooth Jazz, 4 to 6 pm Wednesdays.

Shirley Temple (born 23rd April, 1928), the most popular child star of all time, made her screen debut in 1932 in a short film when she was only three years old. Shirley skyrocketed to superstardom in 1934 with the release of “Bright Eyes,” a feature film designed specifically for her talents. Star status was confirmed with an Academy Award in February 1935, and at aged six she is the youngest person ever to be awarded an Oscar. Blockbusting super hits followed year after year during the mid to late 1930s. Licensed merchandise that included dolls, dishes, and clothing capitalized on her image. Both fans of the youthful star as well as those never before exposed to her talents will find listening to ‘The Lux Radio Theatre’ re-creations of two of her most famous films (“Captain January” - see photo on right and “The Bachelor and The Bobby-Soxer” - see photo below with Cary Grant) an extremely rewarding experience on the next ‘From The Vault’ program.

On Wednesday night (24th Feb.)

At 6:00 pm on The Shoalhaven’s own Community Radio Station, Shoalhaven FM, Harold Ellison’s program of Old-Time Radio Shows, ‘From The Vault,’ will present a program featuring ‘The Lux Radio Theatre’s re-creations of two of the most important films of Shirley Temple’s, each representing an important time in the life of the young star: “Captain January” from 1936, a film representative of when the precocious youthful Shirley gave one of her best acting performances and “The Bachelor and The Bobby-Soxer” from 1947 when the then teenage Shirley starred with Cary Grant in this much heralded screwball comedy. And not only will you be able to enjoy both of these hit motion pictures, but you’ll also hear some of the behind the scenes life story of this young star on a program we’re calling ‘From The Vault’s Shirley Temple Night.’

Shirley Temple was only 8 years old when the film “Captain January” was released in 1936, but was already 12 years of age when ‘The Lux Radio Theatre’ version was broadcast. And yet, listening to this ‘Lux’ version is no less an intensely moving experience. Shirley plays 'Star,' a foundling rescued from the sea as a baby by Captain January, a lighthouse keeper. The two live in the lighthouse at Cape Tempest. Agatha Morgan, a truant officer in the area, demands that Star be enrolled in school and removed from the care of Captain January who never legally adopted her. The possibility of being separated is devastating for both January and Star but never fear, the story has a delightfully happy ending. Shirley Temple‘s performance in this film was one of her best.

Then, Cary Grant joins with Shirley Temple to re-create their roles in the 1947 screwball comedy, “The Bachelor and The Bobby-Soxer.” Shirley plays seventeen-year-old Susan Turner who develops a crush on Richard Nugent (Cary Grant), a sophisticated bachelor who gives a lecture on art at her high school. Susan's uncle, a psychiatrist, believes Richard is an innocent bystander, but manages to persuade him to play along with Susan until the infatuation ends. He reluctantly agrees, but when his efforts to shake her off fail, he throws himself into the charade hoping Susan's older sister Margaret will put an end to the affair. Once again there’s a happy ending to this extremely funny predicament. Johnny Sands also reprises his screen role as Jerry, Susan’s teenage boyfriend.

‘From The Vault’ airs immediately after Harold Ellison's other program, ‘The Jazz Café,’ featuring the soothing sounds of mellow, Smooth Jazz, 4 to 6 pm Wednesdays.