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Harold Bolande, Announcer, Musician And Actor Finds Happiness In Radio

By Nancy Frazer

The heartiest voice of all – that characterizes Harold Bolande’s particular claim to glory and all of you who hear him daily over KMOX will agree.

There is a secret for that particular trait and that lies in his interest in radio and in his unfeigned friendliness for everyone. He is just as friendly and enthusiastic when his voice first comes over the air for the Early Morning Band Wagon as it (sic) is at noon for the Farm Service Hour and later at night when he introduces The Citizen of the Southwest. He lives, thinks and eats radio – eats it, of course, when his many devoted listeners send him samples of their cookery and helpful suggestions.

He’s a Yankee, too, and so disclaims the reserve usually attributed to that Eastern section of the country. He is from Norwich, Connecticut. He early saw the light, however, and came out to the middle west when he was only eighteen.

Harold has held all sorts of colorful jobs in the intervening years until he finally found the niche that suited his many and peculiar talents.
He had been talking into a dictaphone for quite awhile until one of the stenographers in a large music house where he was employed remarked one day that she was always happy when she had to type his work for his voice recorded clearly. The idea intrigued him and he decided to make a few records and play them back. He was the only one that was surprised that he sounded so well (sic) for his associates and friends had known it all along!

It occurred to him to go to KMBC and try out and his voice was typified as one having perfect pitch. He became a guest announcer, then a full-time one and then served as program director and chief announcer at the various stations in Kansas City.

When KMOX was putting on a circus program last April, they invited him to come and try out for the place of “barker” – and the rest was easy. He became a regular announcer here specializing on the Farm Service Hour. He used to live on a farm and loves everything connected with it so he has an earnest wish to help and entertain farm folks.

But that isn’t all. One night when my own program ran a bit short, I was amazed to see him dart over to the piano and beautifully “fill” the few seconds before another feature. He is an accomplished pianist, playing both by ear and note. He studied voice at the New England Conservatory of Music. And you should see him take Sad Sam’s accordion and make it do musical flip flops!

He learned to play the accordion when he was in the music business just for the sheer love of learning new things. He does a rollicking good job of wangling tunes out of one too.
Recently he has been interested in dramatics and is taking the leading role, and very ably too, in the series of “The Scoop” dramas heard every Tuesday and Thursday on KMOX. That delights him and he is spending long hours on mastering the dramatic art.

About five feet ten, he has almost black curly hair, keen friendly grey-blue eyes and a spontaneity that is impossible to resist. He likes to think up new features and production ideas – in short everything that has any connection with radio work.

Probably his greatest admirer is his own eleven-year-old son Donald whose greatest aspiration is to be a radio announcer. Harold plays football with his youngster, teaches him the diction necessary for the radio and in odd moments teaches him French. “Bolande” came from the French name “Boulande” and Harold’s heritage enables him to speak a good brand of his father’s native tongue. He served with the 35th division in France, and so augmented his knowledge of the language.

Just to give you an idea of his versatility, here are some of the positions that he has held: jewelry salesman; assistant chief clerk, telephone company; shipping clerk; specialty salesman; time keeper, pipeline company; pianist in a theater; hotel bellboy and waiter; stacker during harvest; cowboy riding fences and herding cattle; credit manager; sales promotion man, music company; radio, piano and book salesman; radio work including manager, program director and announcer; also radio salesman; two and one half years USA-AEF 35th Division; plays piano, piano-accordion and mandolin; and his favorite sports are: hockey, tennis, billiards and baseball and swimming.

But fortunately he is here at KMOX making new friends every day in the work that he loves the very most!

(Originally published in Radio and Entertainment 11/26/1932.)

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

Van Volkenburg Elected President of Station KMOX

Van Volkenburg

Van Volkenburg

It sounds like a fairy tale…or a Horatio Alger story…and it’s one of those things that, in these days, happen only in radio.

The Columbia Broadcasting System has just announced the election of J. L. Van Volkenburg as President and Member of the Board of Directors of The Voice of St. Louis, Inc., owning and operating company of KMOX, the 50,000 watt station in St. Louis.

Thus far it’s just another announcement, but – Van Volkenburg is only 29 years of age, probably the youngest man in the country holding such a responsible position; he came to KMOX as Sales Manager in October, 1932, was made Director of Operations in January , 1933, and on June 15, 1933 was elected to the position herein announced.

And that isn’t all that is amazing about this young man’s lightning-like strides up the ladder of success. To the “veterans” of radio, Van Volkenburg’s career is parallel to the miraculous growth of the industry itself, which, in only ten years’ time, has taken its place among the leading industries of the country. For KMOX was his first radio station.

Of course he had the kind of background that augured success, if intelligently used…as it was. For five years preceding his affiliation with KMOX, Van Volkenburg was manager of the radio department in the Chicago offices of a national advertising agency, where he had complete charge of the production of both local and network programs. In his earlier days on the Keith circuit, traveling from one end of the country to the other as a single and also part of a singing-playing team, gave him a sound knowledge of what the public wants in entertainment. He is a versatile musician, playing the piano, pipe organ and trombone, as well as the possessor of a fine voice.

(Originally published in Radio & Entertainment 6/25/1933.)

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

Franklyn MacCormack Was Stage Star Before Radio Claimed Him

Franklyn MacCormack has joined the staff of WIL as Program Director. Mr. MacCormack is well fitted for the position having had several years’ experience in radio and theatrical work.

He played the lead – “Chico” – in the road production of “Seventh Heaven” and traveled from coast to coast with the show. He can boast of European laurels as well as his American successes. In London he appeared for thirty five weeks in the sensational English play “Journey’s End,” based upon the World War.

Not being content with having gained recognition in theatrical productions, MacCormack turned his attention to the movies and appeared in several successful pictures.

In December of 1928 he visited a radio station with a friend who was interested in becoming an entertainer. After some persuasion MacCormack decided to have an audition. His voice was found so pleasing that he was offered a position as announcer. He accepted and since has been actively connected with radio production. He has also announced over the Columbia Broadcasting System.

In addition to his responsibility as program director he will be featured in his own program, “The Dream Boat” which will be broadcast over WIL nightly at 10:30 o’clock.

(Originally published in Radio and Entertainment 1/16/1932).</p/>

Franklyn MacCormack, program director and production manager of WIL is heard nightly over that station as the “Old Captain” of “The Dream Boat,” one of the most popular presentations on the air.
He came to WIL early this year with an excellent background of theatrical and radio experience as an announcer on the Columbia Broadcasting System.

He played the lead – “Chico” in the road production of “Seventh Heaven” and traveled from coast to coast with the show. He can boast of European laurels as well as his American successes. In London he appeared for thirty five weeks in the sensational English play “Journey’s End,” based upon the World War.

MacCormack has an excellent singing voice and is heard with “Sunshine Serenaders” on WIL at 9 a.m. each morning except Sunday. 

(Originally published in Radio & Entertainment 9/25/1933.)

MacCormack Is New Announcer On Easy Aces Skit

Franklyn MacCormack, former Program Director of WIL, is now with the Columbia Broadcasting System as announcer for the Lavoris Easy Aces program heard every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 7 p.m. over KMOX.

Competing with twenty-eight other announcers for the program, MacCormack secured the appointment. Jane and Goodman Ace are under contract for four years to the sponsors and he will continue to be the announcer for the skit of American home life.

While Franklyn was at WIL, he was program director, announcer, soloist, and became famed for his Dream Boat, a group of poetical readings each evening. He came to St. Louis a year ago from Denver where he had been in radio work, and previous to that had been widely experienced in stage and dramatic work. Neil Norman is his successor as program director of WIL.

(Originally published in Radio and Entertainment 3/11/1933)

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

Billy Lang, WIL Announcer, Came To Radio From The Stage

Billy Lang, senior announcer at WIL, began his professional career with Paul Whiteman in Denver, their home town. Lang was one of the original rhythm boys in Whiteman’s orchestra.

It was back in the pre-jazz age. The two young men stood at the crossroads. One of them, a fiddler in the local orchestra, later became “The King of Jazz.” The other went on the stage and then into radio as the “Radio Joy Boy.”

Billy Lang
Billy Lang

Billy Lang wanted to be an actor. His parents wanted him to study electrical engineering. They triumphed for a while, but Billy had his way later. He is glad now that he found out something about electricity because it has helped him in his studio work.

As early as 1918 the young man was giving a lot of his time to the Little Theatre movement in Denver and that year was awarded the trophy for the best work on the local stage.

After his appearance with Whiteman’s orchestra, he trouped around the country with the Bohemian Bandits, a musical organization, appearing in theatres and the Orpheum circuit.

In his theatrical trouping, Lang occasionally sang over the radio as a ballyhoo for the show. In this way he drifted from the stage to the field of radio and in 1929 came to St. Louis to join the staff of WIL, first as a singer an later as an announcer. In the three years he has been attached to the popular station, Billy has developed a radio personality known wherever WIL broadcasts are heard.

(Originally published in Radio & Entertainment 5/1/1932.)

Billy Lang, “six feet of personality,” came to radio from the stage. In fact one might say Billy grew up on the stage, starting at an early age, as call-boy in a Denver theater.

During his early  and interesting stage and back stage career Billy “worked” such shows – with the original New York companies – as “Ben Hur,” “Within the Law,” “The Merry Widow,” “The Firefly,” “Peter Pan” with Maude Adams, “The Return of Peter Grimm,” and the original “Bird of Paradise.”

Billy recalls one of the outstanding shows of that time, the name of the production is forgotten, but the staging, costuming and effects never, because of the ingenious desert sand storm which was represented by the use of an airplane propeller and powdered cork.

Billy’s opportunity to become the “actor” came with Carter, “The Great” – master magician, who at that time was listed as one of the big time illusionists. Billy’s was an important part – he carried a spear – but it started him on a long and varied career behind the footlights and took him to nearly every state in the Union.

We learned that one of his first vocal ventures with a vocal trio, which was made up of Harry Barnes, who is known as one of the original Paul Whiteman Rhythm Boys, and Al Roberts, who is now master of ceremonies in a large Los Angeles theatre.

Billy worked with the now famous King of Jazz, who was at that time just “Paul,” a struggling fiddle player at the Broadway Theatre in Denver. Incidentally Billy received his vocal training from Professor Whiteman, Paul’s dad, in whose choir Billy sang.

The dynamic friendly voice of Billy Lang, the announcer, was acquired through training in the Little Theatre. Billy was an active member, at one time holding the position of assistant director and production manager; in 1920 he represented the group, having the distinction of producing the winning play of the Little Theatre Tournament and being chosen the best non-professional male actor in the entire contest. This brought Billy his opportunity in drama, he next played two successful seasons with a David Belasco show company on the west coast. This was followed by other successes, and from drama, Lang turned his attention to vaudeville and toured with a band. Radio attracted his attention and his clever songs and bright patter won for him the title of “Radio Joy Boy.” It was in the capacity of entertainer that Billy came to Radio Station WIL. His friendly voice soon won the radio fans and Billy was made Junior Announcer. Later he earned the title of Senior Announcer, which he still holds.

Not only does he announce but every afternoon this “Radio Joy Boy” sings the same dear old love songs that made Billy Lang the senior announcer at Station WIL. He is accompanied by Jimmie Masters.

(Originally published in Radio and Entertainment 2/6/1932).

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

St. Louis’ First DJ War

Many St. Louisans remember the classic battle between WIL and KXOK to dominate the market’s young listening audience in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, but the city’s first deejay war took place a decade earlier.

In the late ‘40s, the concept of a disc jockey was just beginning to take hold. Radio stations which were network affiliates relied on the nets to fill the day with programming, which ranged from news to soap operas to comedies, dramas and kids’ shows. A new invention – television – was slowly making inroads, and the networks were beginning to raid their stables of radio stars to provide programming for the new medium.

Independent radio stations provided many of the same types of shows as did their net-affiliated brethren, but the shows were locally produced. Those programs that relied on “transcribed music” were completely scripted, and the announcers seldom projected any of their own personalities.

But in 1947, St. Louisans got their first taste of disc jockey competition. The situation is described in Arnold Passman’s book, “The Deejays.” Two men who had already established themselves in the market suddenly became competitors for the ears of the music-loving masses.

Rush Hughes
Rush Hughes

Rush Hughes had made a name for himself nationally as announcer/host for the NBC game show “Pot O’ Gold,” and in news, delivering commentaries even before he came to St. Louis. This had led to a syndication deal in which his commentaries were distributed to subscribing stations on disc.

Gil Newsome
Gil Newsome

Gil Newsome also had done national work as the announcer on “Coca-Cola’s Victory Parade of Spotlight Bands,” heard on the Blue Network and Mutual. In St. Louis, he took his show to where the teen audience was, doing remotes and personal appearances constantly.

As Passman described it in his book, Hughes was working at KXOK in the spring of 1947. “By late spring KWK had brought in the rapid-fire, hard-selling Newsome, with his record shop surveys. And it wasn’t long after the fall semester was underway that he topped the ratings.”

Besides his work as a local deejay, Hughes had some additional responsibilities. He was on the road frequently promoting his syndicated show, but he managed to corner celebrities while he was traveling and return with interviews he could broadcast on KXOK. Newsome soon went on the road on weekends to do the same thing.
The two would also battle using record promoters, jockeying to be the first in the market to air a new release. When successful, each jock would make sure his listeners knew he had bested the competitor at the other station. Passman wrote, “Nowhere was the battle more frenzied than in St. Louis.”

To the casual observer, all this competition would seem to be beneficial to listeners. The city’s top two radio personalities working so hard to be best would certainly result in a better radio product. It did, but there was an interesting bit of fallout.

Passman notes that other deejays at lesser stations here were left in the dust, but they were smart enough to know their limits “…lesser announcers would reluctantly turn down advance men for entertainers. Not only did they acknowledge the power of a Hughes or a Newsome…they feared their possible air venom. By letting the press agents off the hook in this way, the other deejays shrugged their shoulders and tried to make the best of a sticky situation.”

This opening salvo in St. Louis’ deejay wars came to an end in 1948 when Hughes took a job in Chicago, but it wasn’t peaceful for long. A young jock named Ed Bonner soon hit town on KXOK, giving Newsome another foe to battle over the airwaves.

(Reprinted with permission of the St. Louis Journalism Review. Originally published 4/2008.)

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

On A Cold December Night

The field in Kirkwood where the first KMOX transmitting shack was built. The building shown is still standing at the end of Simmons Street north of Manchester.
The field in Kirkwood where the first KMOX
transmitting shack was built. The building
shown is still standing at the end of
Simmons Street north of Manchester.

Freezing temperatures at the end of December in St. Louis are to be expected. But even though the mercury dropped to 33 degrees the night of Christmas Eve, 1925, a group of engineers apparently had no qualms about trekking to the middle of a field in the (then) far-western suburb of Kirkwood for a special nighttime event.

That was the night KMOX, St. Louis’ “super station” signed on. The inaugural broadcast, which began at 7:00 p.m. and lasted well past midnight, focused the spotlight on those who had worked to make the station a reality, and it meant an unusually large contingent of engineers was stationed at the station’s transmitter building north of Manchester Road near Geyer.

Telephone engineer Ray Elmore recalled just how rural the setting was at the transmitter site: “At the time the location of the two original towers on Geyer Road north of Manchester was a big cow pasture grown up in weeds and brush and there were no circuits out there. It’ll be hard for people who live there now to realize just what I’m talking about. Kirkwood didn’t extend beyond Manchester Road north at all…They had us standing by in case there was trouble on the circuits. And we were standing outside of this little building they had there out in that cow pasture on Christmas Eve.”

The “little building” to which Elmore referred was actually an 11-room stucco structure that housed the huge transmitting equipment for the station. In an on-air interview at KMOX in the ‘70s he remembered a windy night, but he also remembered a sense that the crew of engineers at the transmitter was part of something very special.

For KMOX ownership and management, that inaugural broadcast had to be noteworthy. Three nights of dress rehearsals were scheduled at the studios in the Mayfair Hotel. Station music director Elizabeth Cuney was in charge of coordinating several large ensembles which were appearing on the program, including the Little Symphony, the vested choir of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and Gene Rodermich’s Jazz Orchestra. It was even more of a challenge because of the limited floor space available – the station had only two studios at the time, and there was a large assemblage of dignitaries who were all planning to speak over the air as well.

Engineering studies showed that the station would achieve maximum geographical coverage by broadcasting the event at night, and radio fans across the nation were alerted in advance. An article in the Christian Science Monitor dubbed the coming Christmas Eve broadcast a Christmas gift to the nation. “’The Voice of St. Louis’ as it already is known due to the fact that it has been heralded throughout the country by the big civic and industrial enterprises in represents, will perform a territorial service in the main and a national service incidentally in making millions better acquainted with St. Louis and the greater southwest trade territory of which St. Louis is logically the gateway.”

Who better to extol the virtues of St. Louis than Mayor Victor Miller? He began to speakers’ portion of the broadcast describing KMOX as “our candle on a candlestick through which we shall reach the farther-most corners of this great country of ours and advise them of our ambition, our achievements, and our desire for service.”

The speakers droned on, with representatives from each corporate member of the “Voice of St. Louis, Inc.” being given mike time. At 10:15, KMOX relinquished the airwaves for 15 minutes to a St. Louis station that had had already been on the air for two years. KFUO, which shared a frequency with KSD and which was owned by the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, used its allotted time to begin the religiously oriented portion of the KMOX show. This led to Christmas carols by the St. Peter’s choir and then a broadcast of a full Communion service, which led to the stroke of midnight.

Christmas Day 1925 officially dawned on KMOX with the music of the Gene Rodermich Jazz Orchestra. This was followed with more sharing of time with existing stations, WIL and WSBF.

Of all the civic and corporate leaders who addressed the vast, unseen audience over KMOX that night, the man who represented one of the city’s newspapers seemed to have the best grasp of the potential of this radio station. The Globe-Democrat was one of the Voice of St. Louis shareholders. President and editor E. Lansing Ray said of the station, “…we hope to reflect the advantages of a great city and its market – the commercial, industrial, the civic and the cultural assets of St. Louis…Think, then, of the Voice of St. Louis as a community gift.”

(Reprinted with permission of the St. Louis Journalism Review. Originally published 1/08)

By it-registrationsstlmediahistory, ago

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