Arthur Godfrey


Godfrey in 1953

Born: Arthur Morton Leo Godfrey; August 31, 1903; Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Died: March 16, 1983 (aged 79); Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Occupation: Broadcaster and entertainer

Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname The Old Redhead. At the peak of his success, in the early-to-mid 1950s, Godfrey was heard on radio and seen on television up to six days a week, sometimes for as many as nine separate broadcasts for CBS. His programs included Arthur Godfrey Time (Monday-Friday mornings on radio and television), Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts (Monday evenings on radio and television), Arthur Godfrey and His Friends (Wednesday evenings on television), The Arthur Godfrey Digest (Friday evenings on radio) and King Arthur Godfrey and His Round Table (Sunday afternoons on radio).

The infamous on-air firing of cast member Julius La Rosa in 1953 tainted his down-to-earth, family-man image and resulted in a marked decline in popularity which he was never able to regain. Over the following two years, Godfrey fired over twenty additional cast and crew members, under similar disregard and questionable ethics, for which he was heavily attacked by the press and public alike. A self-made man, he was fiercely competitive; some of his employees were fired for merely speaking with ones he considered to be competitors, like Ed Sullivan, or for signing with agents. By the late 1950s, his presence had been reduced to hosting the occasional television special and his daily network radio show, which ended in 1972.

Godfrey was strongly identified with many of his commercial sponsors, especially Chesterfield cigarettes and Lipton Tea. He advertised Chesterfield for many years, during which he devised the slogan "Buy 'em by the carton", but he terminated his relationship with the company after he quit smoking, five years before he was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1959. He later became a prominent spokesman for the tobacco control movement.

{snip}

Radio Coverage of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Funeral (April 14, 1945)
Added to the National Registry: 2014
Essay by Christopher H. Sterling (guest post)*

After years of wartime news events providing interruptions to scheduled programs, Americans were almost used to the repeated occurrence. But few expected the shocking news reporting the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in April 1945.

FDR’s Death: On Thursday evening, March 29, 1945, FDR had escaped the pressures of Washington, DC, heading south by train to the slower and calmer tempo of his “Little White House” in Warm Springs, Georgia. There, surrounded by a small group of family members and long-term friends, he sought to rebuild his energy for a planned appearance at the San Francisco conference that would found the United Nations.

It was not to be. After about a week of relaxing, including short motor trips nearby, FDR sat for sessions with a portrait painter. Then, just before lunch on Thursday, April 12th, he suffered a fatal stroke, dying a few hours later, at age 63. The first radio news flashes went out that afternoon. The next day, a slow procession by train bore the president’s body back north, first to Washington and then to his funeral at home in Hyde Park, NY. Radio reported its sad way.

Godfrey’s Role: FDR would be in Washington only briefly--about five hours laying in state in the White House’s East Room. What is remembered as his “funeral” was the brief procession from Washington’s Union Station to the White House and his brief laying in state.

Arthur Godfrey (1903-1983) was already a 15-year local radio veteran when, based on his role as the network’s morning man in the nation’s capital, he was added to CBS Radio's team of journalists covering the FDR procession taking place on Saturday, April 14th. Positioned near the White House, overlooking the procession’s route, Godfrey gave a detailed and emotionallywrought description, including of the caisson carrying the President's body. He was providing what in sports events today is often termed “color,” describing for those unable to see them, the people in the procession as well as those watching it go by, the overall scene, and some of the events of FDR’s brief, final stopover in Washington.

But the strain of appearing comfortable in his role was evident. “God give me strength to do this,” he was overheard to say off air. As President Truman’s car drove into sight toward the end of the procession, Godfrey finally choked and then broke down on the air, quickly returning listeners to the studio. His reaction was surely an emotional evocation of what many radio listeners shared.

{snip}

The WallBreakers

Arthur Godfrey Reports from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Funeral—April 14, 1945

{snip}

Low-power FM station WERA, in Arlington, Virginia, ran a show yesterday afternoon about the death of President Roosevelt. It consisted of radio broadcasts from the days following his death.

https://www.facebook.com/939941119429678/photos/a.942268432530280/2843874072369697/

Local radio personality Arthur Godfrey was covering the funeral from his vantage point on top of the Riggs Bank building at the northwest corner of 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. He had been sent there by WJSV, which became today's WTOP. He was quite knowledgeable and detailed in his narrative. I urge you to give the podcast a listen.

{snip}