Early Radio Debut

Betty White’s earliest radio work found online is from an early 1930s drama called Empire Builders, sponsored by the Great Northern Railway Company. The program dramatized stories, often with travel and American landscapes in the background, and lots of evocative train sounds. Betty White starred as a young crippled orphan who befriends a wealthy bachelor at the hospital in time for a happy ending at Christmas. She was just eight years old.

On another episode, she played a baby abandoned on a train. In both tales, she charms those she meets and ends up adopted.

(Program information is available here.)

How Margarine Launched Betty White’s Career

Today she may be known for her Snickers commercial, but it was another food that helped White get her start. In the mid-1940s, she went from audition to audition hoping for that first break. Producer Fran Van Hartesveldt took pity on the young Betty. One day, they were both in the elevator and he said, “I’ll take a chance and give you one word to say in the commercial on this week’s Gildersleeve…Think you can say ‘Parkay’ without lousing it up?”

The union membership would cost her more than the $37.50 she would earn, but it was well worth it. Despite fears of saying “parfait” instead of “Parkay,” she succeeded in her debut, and as she says in her biography, “I was in show business!”

The radio program was the comedy The Great Gildersleeve, starring Harold Peary and sponsored by Kraft Foods. A sampling of Great Guildersleeve episodes are available here.

White went on to read more commercials and play bit parts in The Great Gildersleeve, Family Theater Radio, and Blondie, a program based on the popular comic strip.

Turning to Crime

She also played leads on the air. Betty White became the voice of some of the FBI’s most wanted in episodes of This Is Your FBI. Produced and directed by Jerry Devine and endorsed by J. Edgar Hoover, the program dramatized actual cases ripped from FBI files.

She acted in such shows as the 1949 episode “Larcenous Bride.” We hear glimmers of Rose Nylund’s innocence in the naïve newlywed who becomes entangled in major scams.

From Turntables to Television

As the television industry grew, radio broadcasters were getting into the mix. In 1949, Al Jarvis, one of America’s first radio disc jockeys, made the shift by launching the program Hollywood on Television on KLAC—essentially a televised broadcast of his radio show. He called up Betty to recruit her as his “girl Friday.” She ended up being on the show every day, earning a whopping $50 per week, which soon increased to $300. Over time, they played fewer and fewer records, focusing instead on variety segments and commercials.

With over five hours of airtime per day, she and Jarvis had a lot of space to fill, giving her a chance to play with ad-libbing and singing. The improv would lead to future sketches and she went on to sing on the short-lived Betty White Show and elsewhere.

In 1952, she took over the reins of Hollywood on Television, becoming the first woman to host a daytime talk show. She and the program’s pianist George Tibbles began to incorporate more sketches into the show, including comedic spats between a married couple—Elizabeth and Alvin. This turned into a new sitcom venture Life With Elizabeth, a program that led to her first Emmy. Here’s the first episode of that show:

Happy birthday to a pioneer across the media platforms!

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Teenage Oprah got her start in media as a part-time news reporter on WVOL radio in Nashville, TN. While still at college, she became the first African-American TV correspondent and youngest news co-anchor on WTVF in Nashville. In 1976, she moved to Baltimore to become a news reporter and anchor at WJZ-TV.

Here are a couple of news promos with Oprah, including one for the morning show People Are Talking, which she co-hosted with Richard Sher.

In 1984, she moved to Chicago to host AM Chicago.

When programming director Dennis Swanson saw Oprah’s audition for their talk show host position, he said, “This woman is awesome,” adding “This person is just a natural television performer.” And he didn’t want her to change a thing–”the hairdo, the clothes, the weight…I wanted her just as she was.”

Soon, she was beating Phil Donahue, and the program was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Among her high profile guests in those early episodes, she interviewed one of her favorite artists of all time, John Denver.

Hear more of her behind the scenes with this clip from 1986 at Oak Park-River Forest High School where she talks about being a black woman on television and hints at her future success and wealth.

Now established in her own national show and having already received an Oscar nomination for The Color Purple, she went on 60 Minutes in 1986 to talk to Mike Wallace about her career.

Also, this montage made by a superfan offers a fun selection of highlights from Oprah’s signature show.

During National Peanut Month, glamour shots of the popular foodstuff are on display at a gallery in New York City. Lee Zalben, founder of Peanut Butter & Co., was challenged to concoct 365 sandwich recipes. He loved the way they tasted and wanted to share the way they looked. Teaming up with photographer Theresa Raffetto and food stylist Patty White, he created the portraits to show off his nutty muse.

Zalben especially enjoyed the collaboration on the cityscape of the honeycomb sandwich.

In addition to peanut butter, Julius Caesar’s immortal last words inspired “Et Tu, PB”—a sandwich with anchovies.

President and managing director of the National Peanut Board Marie Fenn never eats peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. For her, the crusty bread and robust tomatoes make “You Say Tomato…” her favorite sandwich depiction. (Since tomatoes are technically fruit, swapping them in for jelly may be a natural choice.)

Check out a few of the celebrated sandwiches here or at the Nutropolitan.

A few nutty facts

Technically, peanuts are not actually “nuts” but rather legumes (but “pealegumes” isn’t nearly as catchy).

A peanut has boldly gone where no snack food had gone before thanks to astronaut Alan B. Shepard, who brought a peanut with him to the moon on the Apollo 14 mission.

Do you suffer from “Arachibutryophobia”? It’s the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth.

Peanuts also have a presidential pedigree—both Thomas Jefferson and Jimmy Carter were peanut farmers.

The 2008 rejection of an application from the Marine Corps to honor its birthday has also come back into the discussion.

The management has stayed quiet on the Mother Teresa decision other than stating that it’s final. It has been self-critical in the past for lighting choices on occasion. In a 2003 New York Times interview, building special events manager Lydia A. Ruth said she regretted some of the more commercial lighting choices–Microsoft 95 (blue, red, green and yellow), new M&Ms (blue), and Pink Floyd’s new album (red pulses).

What Do Herbert Hoover and Justin Bieber Have in Common?

Justin Bieber may have generated the most buzz when he flipped the switch on the Empire State Building light display for the Jumpstart Reading Challenge in 2009, but Herbert Hoover was the first to light up the Empire State Building back in 1931 after the building’s completion. (Technically, he pressed a button in D.C.) Since then, the lights have gone through many evolutions, expanding in size, color and occasions, and decreasing in wattage. In 1932, a searchlight switched on to signify New York’s own FDR’s presidential election win. (On election eve 2008, the tower displayed both red lights for Republicans and blue lights for Democrats. After Obama won, it switched over to all blue.)

In 1956, revolving beacons, known as “Freedom Lights” were added to the building, turning it into a “lighthouse of the sky.” A new set of Empire State Building lights debuted during the 1964 World’s Fair, brightening the building’s facade.

Douglas Leigh was behind the colorful lighting advancements. In his advertising career, Leigh was also the innovator behind a number of iconic billboards that featured steaming cups of coffee, glowing weather displays and rings of cigarette smoke. Equipped with Leigh’s new color palette, the building started lighting up in earnest in the 1970s. The first display was on July 4, 1976—the Empire State Building lit up in Red, White and Blue, but it might not have been for the nation’s bicentennial. Some accounts say that it was actually to celebrate the birthday of Leona Helmsley, one half of the real estate empire of Harry and Leona Helmsley (she was also born on the fourth of July).

The following year, Yankees fans celebrated their World Series Victory in the glow of blue and white lights from a new bigger display that reached from the 72nd floor all the way to the television antenna. As the New York Times put it, “Colored lights turn the Empire State Building into a toy.”

In addition to vertigo, engineers who change the light gel colors as many as 200 times per year must contend with snow drifts and wayward hawks. Now, a more computerized system has greatly reduced the daily work of changing the colors of the lights.

What Do the National Osteoporosis Society and Windows 95 Have in Common?

Since 2006, the official Lighting Partner program has reviewed applications for those who want to celebrate with colored lights atop the famous building. A variety of holidays, occasions and individuals are celebrated.

Usually, no more than three different colors are allowed, but a lighting display in honor of the Grateful Dead’s museum exhibit sparkled in a tie-dye rainbow of colors (pictured).

In addition to regular holidays, what else has been celebrated in lights?

Singers:
Frank Sinatra’s 80th birthday and also his death (blue)
Mariah Carey’s top-selling album (purple, pink and white)

Fictional Characters:
The Simpsons movie release (yellow)
Popeye’s 75th Birthday (green)

Corporations
Microsoft, for Windows 95 (blue, red, green and yellow)
Snapple, for a corporate meeting (yellow)

Causes:
Breast Cancer Awareness (pink)
National Osteoporosis Society (teal)

Pets
Cat Fanciers Association (purple, orange and white)
Westminster Dog Show (purple and gold)

The Cat Fanciers Association lights shone for three nights, one night longer than the Westminster Kennel Club display–perhaps there are more cat lovers than dog lovers behind the scenes at the Empire State Building.

On other nights, the lights shine in all white, or in the colors of New York sports teams when they have home games. Following 9/11, the Empire State Building went off its regular schedule to shine red, white and blue all through the night to offer comfort to those looking out at the sky in the wee hours.

Lights Out

In addition to brightening up the sky, the Empire State Building has gone dark on a few specific occasions.

In 2004, it went dark for 15 minutes in honor of Faye Wray, the actress carried up to the top of the building in King Kong.

In 2008, the Empire State Building went “green” by turning off the lights in honor of Earth Hour. (Though far more energy is conserved in this and other commercial buildings through changes to what’s going on inside of the building.)

During certain times of the year, the building dims its light to be less distracting to migratory birds.

In 1992, Harry Helmsley ordered the lights turned off for the first night of Leona’s prison sentence for tax evasion.

When Harry died in 1997, the building paid tribute by dimming its lights for 7 days.

If you can’t see the Empire State Building from your own window, check out this handy site to see what color the building is today and how it looks.

What started out as a creative demonstration has since turned into an all out competition judged on technical ability and artistic impression, with bonus points for unique costumes, dance moves, and other innovations. After the second place Des Plaines Public Library Cart Wheels team performed to a medley of songs from Grease, Ison remarked, “There was a move towards the beginning–a sort of thrust–worth several points.” And with each thrust, the competition also brings team members closer together, building camaraderie. (The winning team had to juggle practices with members from three different library branches.)

After an especially competitive year that almost ended in a tie, the judges awarded the Oak Park Library Warrior Librarians first prize for their viking-inspired performance, complete with sword play, horned helmets, and war cries.

During the competition, one of the moderators joked to any library school students in the audience, “It’s really not too late to change your major.” Judging by the applause from the overflowing crowd, if anything, this competition will likely boost library school enrollments, and reduce shushing.

Here are the videos of the top three teams:

First Place: The Oak Park Public Library Warrior Librarians (IL)

Second Place: Cart Wheels, Des Plaines Public Library (IL)

Third Place: Steel City Kings, University of Pittsburgh

Urho’s story evolved from a workplace joke to an international legend. Matteson’s coworker Gene McCavic wrote an ode in his honor in a “Finnish dialect.” In the original story, Urho rid Finland of poisonous frogs, but grasshoppers were an actual pest native to the country. Bemidji State College Professor Sulo Havumäki revised the myth to grasshoppers and helped to popularize it. His name is on the bottom of the plaque that graces the main Urho statue in Menahga, Minnesota. Every year, locals dressed as grapes and grasshoppers wearing purple and green reenact their hero’s triumph over the grasshoppers, and then they drink grape juice. Celebrations span Finnish communities around the globe,
including Ontario, Canada.

Urho’s legacy made it back to Finland with the establishment of St. Urho’s Pub in 1973. Grasshoppers have also returned.

See how they celebrate in Squaw Lake, Minnesota:

Mothers in Taiwan can now give birth in a Hello Kitty-themed hospital. Patients enjoy the iconic feline theme on everything from baby blankets, nurse uniforms, and a statue of the cat dressed like a doctor. Tsai Tsung-chi designed Hau Sheng Hospital with his mother, wife and daughter’s adorable cartoon cat in mind. [Image courtesy of Reuters.]

Meanwhile, other entrepreneurs in the restaurant industry have taken the hospital theme to different kinds of ventures. Just don’t expect your health insurance to cover any of them.

1. Hospitalis

A group of local doctors in Latvia created their own high-end restaurant, Hospitalis. Sitting on exam-room style furniture, diners in Latvia enjoy meals from test tubes carried by waitresses in nurse outfits. If you choke on your food, someone well-qualified should be able to assist you with the Heimlich maneuver.

2. Clinic Club

Relax in one of the pill-shaped rooms of Singapore’s Clinic Club. Artist Damien Hirst’s work inspired the decor and 15 of his pieces decorate the venue. (Hirst himself used to own a bar called “The Pharmacy” in London, which closed in 2003). Pull up a wheelchair and sip drinks from hanging plasma packs. You’ll have to check with the bartender for a hangover cure. [Image courtesy of lisajarrad.]

1. Check the CafePress Meter

CafePress, the maker of customized t-shirts and other swag, has been tracking the sales of candidate paraphernalia since January. The candidates have inspired the public to design nearly 5.8 million custom items for sale on the site. Obama’s sales peaked in June, accounting for 77 percent of all sales through the website, and currently out-sell McCain. However, in mid-September, McCain merchandise outpaced Obama items. Throughout the campaign, Sarah Palin merchandise has almost always beaten Joe Biden’s sales numbers.

2. Gauge Their Soda Pop-ularity

Campaign supporters vote by the bottle at Jones Cola. The company is tracking the candidates’ soda pop-ularity at Campaign Cola 2008. Joe six-packs everywhere can choose between Yes We Can Cola and Pure McCain Cola, or even Ron Paul Revolution Cola and Capitol Hillary Cola if they’re nostalgic for the primaries. (As of Tuesday afternoon, Obama was ahead of McCain, 15,216 bottles to 3,726. Ron Paul’s soda-loving followers have put him in second place, with 6,606 bottles sold.)

3. Look to the Stars (We Don’t Mean Matt Damon or Jon Voight)

At least one astrologer predicts that Leo Obama will win over Virgo McCain. Another astrologer predicts an Obama win with a margin of at least 10 percent. Astrologer Raj Kumar Sharma noted that America is entering the age of Aquarius. Also, by the Chinese calendar, 2008 is the year of the Rat, the same as McCain’s birth year. Obama was born in the year of the Ox, and 2009 is also the year of the Ox.

4. Have a Facebook-Friend-Off

Facebook may not yet rule the world, but if it did, Obama would out-friend McCain more than 4 to 1. Of course, Facebook’s younger crowd might skew the results, but according to professor Christine Williams, the social networking edge can translate into a real-world boost of 3 percent.

5. Poll the Trick-or-Treaters

Voting with Halloween costumes instead of ballots, Obama would be ahead 55% to 45%. The costume website also breaks down the presidential mask popularity by state, in case you want to compare it to the electoral college. Mask predictions held true according to statistics back to 1980. They might be more accurate than current election polls as well.

6. Let the Redskins Decide

Legend has it that the football forecasts the winning party of the presidential election. Since 1936, every time the Washington Redskins win their final homegame before the presidential election, the incumbent party wins. This did not hold true in 2004 when the Redskins lost but incumbent Republican Bush won. Good news for Democrats—last night, the Pittsburgh Steelers marched into Washington and defeated the Skins 23-6.

With campaign attire in the spotlight, what apparel choices are candidates and their spouses making? Whether they buy the with their own money or campaign funds, here are some of the fashion trends among the political elite.

1. Kawasaki, the Japanese company that makes Sarah Palin’s iconic eyeglasses, received as many orders in 10 days for the frame as it does in a year.
2. Minnesota’s Pacificier baby boutique is also cashing in on the publicity about Trig Palin’s romper.
3. Sarah Palin debuted as the VP candidate in an Italian designer Valentino top, but her beaded earrings were handmade in Alaska by her mother-in-law.
4. Palin likes Patagonia outerwear, but the brand was quick to distance itself from the VP candidate. “Just wearing the clothing of an environmental company does not necessarily make someone an environmentalist,” said Patagonia rep Jen Rapp.

5. Daughter Piper Palin carries a Louis Vuitton purse, but it’s a fake.

6. John McCain sports Italian designer Ferragamo shoes. Meanwhile, Sarah Palin and Paris Hilton have the same taste in Naughty Monkey shoes.

7. Cindy McCain favors U.S./Dominican Republic designer Oscar De La Renta, which she and Laura Bush both wore at the convention.
8. Barack Obama’s preference for Hartmax suits was a boon to sales for the largest suit maker in the U.S.
9. Michelle Obama wore a blue dress by Chicago-native designer Maria Pinto to the convention, and an off-the rack Donna Ricco dress for her appearance on The View.
10. Joe Biden always wears a flag pin and his trademark grin.