Archival Dispatch: 32 Master Broadcasts Dated Across Treasury Song Parade, Big Jon and Sparkie, BBC Christmas Special, and The Story Lady
Date:
Author: radio index
Reading: 6 min
Tags: Treasury Song Parade, War Finance Committee, Mildred Bailey, Georgia Gibbs, Big Jon and Sparkie, Jon Arthur, Cincinnati Radio, BBC Radio, Ghost Stories, The Story Lady, Paul Bunyan, Edgar Allan Poe, Original Filenames
Batch 44 Forensic Discoveries
Batch 44 resolves 32 classic radio recordings across wartime music transcriptions, beloved children's story hours, and festive holiday drama: 8 syndicated War Department and U.S. Treasury discs from Treasury Song Parade (1943–1944, featuring Mildred Bailey, Georgia Gibbs, Jessica Dragonette, and Charles Holland), 8 serialized storybook episodes from Jon Arthur's Cincinnati classic Big Jon and Sparkie (1950–1952), 8 festive BBC Radio holiday broadcasts from Christmas Broadcasts (featuring The Grumbleweeds, King Street Junior, and Robert Louis Stevenson's The Body Snatcher), and 8 dramatized fairy tales and folklore broadcasts from The Story Lady (1949, including Paul Bunyan, Dr. Dolittle, and Edgar Allan Poe's The Gold-Bug).
1. Treasury Song Parade — 1943–1944 Wartime Homefront Masters
Pressed by the U.S. Treasury Department War Finance Division:
| Original Circulating Filename | Canonical Title | Verified Airdate | Homefront War Bond Feature |
|---|---|---|---|
Song_Parade_Lucille_Manners.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Lucille Manners ('One Kiss')" | 1943-05-18 | Operatic soprano Lucille Manners performs Sigmund Romberg's The New Moon. |
Song_Parade_Georgia_Gibbs.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Georgia Gibbs ('I Cried for You')" | 1943-07-27 | Vocalist Georgia Gibbs with David Broekman's Treasury Ensemble. |
Song_Parade_Mildred_Bailey.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Mildred Bailey ('Strictly Instrumental')" | 1943-08-17 | 'The Rockin' Chair Lady' Mildred Bailey swings with the Treasury orchestra. |
Song_Parade_Carlos_Ramirez.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Carlos Ramirez ('Begin the Beguine')" | 1943-10-12 | Colombian baritone Carlos Ramirez performs Cole Porter's classic. |
Song_Parade_Morton_Downey.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Morton Downey ('People Will Say We're in Love')" | 1943-11-23 | Irish-American tenor Morton Downey sings the Rodgers and Hammerstein hit. |
Song_Parade_Joan_Edwards.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Joan Edwards ('I'm Old Fashioned')" | 1944-01-18 | Your Hit Parade star Joan Edwards performs Jerome Kern's ballad. |
Song_Parade_Charles_Holland.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Charles Holland ('Talk About a Chile That Do Love Jesus')" | 1944-03-07 | Celebrated African-American tenor Charles Holland sings a sacred spiritual. |
Song_Parade_Jessica_Dragonette.mp3 |
"Treasury Song Parade: Jessica Dragonette ('Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair')" | 1944-04-25 | Radio's Sweetheart Jessica Dragonette interprets Stephen Foster. |
2. Big Jon and Sparkie — 1950–1952 Jon Arthur Cincinnati Masters
Created, written, and voiced entirely by Jon Arthur over WSAI Cincinnati and the ABC Network:
| Original Circulating Filename | Canonical Title | Verified Airdate | Storybook Episode Arc |
|---|---|---|---|
Big_Jon_Little_Red_Caboose.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: The Story of the Little Red Caboose" | 1950-10-24 | The famous musical story of the caboose that wished it were a locomotive. |
Big_Jon_Detective_Sparkie.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Detective Sparkie Gets an Idea" | 1951-04-10 | Sparkie dons a sleuthing magnifying glass to solve neighborhood mysteries. |
Big_Jon_Plans_For_Yukie.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Sparkie Has Plans for Yukie" | 1951-06-12 | Yukie Pooky the cab driver tries out for the Cincinnati baseball squad. |
Big_Jon_Surprise_Yukies_Barn.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: The Surprise in Yukie's Barn" | 1951-08-14 | A hidden tiddlywinks tournament takes over the barn loft. |
Big_Jon_Alas_Poor_Yorick.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Alas, Poor Yorick! I Knew Him" | 1951-10-16 | Exploring the spooky abandoned castle on Joy Hill Road. |
Big_Jon_Not_Much_Doing.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Not Much Doing in Cincinnati" | 1951-11-20 | Quiet autumn adventures and baseball uniform fundraising. |
Big_Jon_Almost_Captured.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Almost Captured by the Dog Nappers" | 1952-02-19 | Close call tracking down villainous pet thieves in the Ohio Valley. |
Big_Jon_Back_Home_Cincinnati.mp3 |
"Big Jon and Sparkie: Back Home Again in Cincinnati" | 1952-05-13 | Returning from Lake Michigan to their beloved hometown radio studio. |
3. Christmas Broadcasts — 1983–2011 BBC Radio & Public Broadcasts
Festive specials from BBC Radio 2, Radio 4, and KBYU-FM:
| Original Circulating Filename | Canonical Title | Verified Airdate | Holiday Special |
|---|---|---|---|
Christmas_Grumbleweeds_1983.mp3 |
"The Grumbleweeds Radio Show: Christmas Party Special (BBC Radio 2 Season 5)" | 1983-12-25 | The Grumbleweeds return for their annual Christmas comedy broadcast. |
Christmas_Sadko_Russian_Tales.mp3 |
"Old Peter's Russian Tales: 'Sadko' (BBC Radio Special)" | 1994-12-25 | Festive winter dramatization of the legendary Novgorod folk musician. |
Christmas_King_Street_Junior.mp3 |
"King Street Junior: Christmas at King Street (BBC Radio 4)" | 1985-12-24 | Peter Davison and James Grout star in the school holiday play crisis. |
Christmas_Body_Snatcher_RLS.mp3 |
"Red Room Ghost Stories for Christmas: Robert Louis Stevenson's 'The Body Snatcher'" | 2007-12-25 | Winter ghost story drama adaptation of Edinburgh medical intrigue. |
Christmas_Buick_Saloon_Bridge.mp3 |
"Red Room Ghost Stories for Christmas: Ann Bridge's 'The Buick Saloon'" | 2005-12-25 | Atmospheric ghostly narrative set in 1930s Peking during winter. |
Christmas_Count_Magnus_Encore.mp3 |
"Red Room Ghost Stories for Christmas: M.R. James' 'Count Magnus' (Encore)" | 2004-12-24 | BBC Radio 4 festive Christmas Eve repeat of the antiquarian ghost story. |
Christmas_End_Of_Road_New_Year.mp3 |
"Christmastime at the End of the Road: Yet Another New Year (BBC Radio)" | 2003-12-31 | Warm-hearted community comedy on New Year's Eve in rural England. |
Christmas_Chronicles_Good_Cheer.mp3 |
"The Christmas Chronicles: 'Be of Good Cheer' by Tim Slover (KBYU-FM)" | 2011-12-24 | Festive dramatic reading exploring Christmas joy and reflection. |
4. The Story Lady — 1949 Children's Storybook Classics
Syndicated transcription discs broadcast across regional American stations:
| Original Circulating Filename | Canonical Title | Verified Airdate | Classic Storybook Tale |
|---|---|---|---|
Story_Lady_Elephants_Graveyard.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Elephant's Graveyard'" | 1949-04-12 | Adventurous jungle legend narrated for young listeners. |
Story_Lady_Brothers_Karamazov.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Brothers Karamazov' (Folk Tale Adaptation)" | 1949-05-17 | Children's simplified folklore adaptation of fraternal loyalty. |
Story_Lady_Paul_Bunyan.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Legend of Paul Bunyan'" | 1949-06-21 | The mighty lumberjack and Babe the Blue Ox shaping America's wilderness. |
Story_Lady_Island_Giants.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Island of the Giants'" | 1949-07-26 | Mysterious mythological seafaring tale. |
Story_Lady_Dr_Dolittle.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Story of Dr. Dolittle'" | 1949-08-30 | Hugh Lofting's beloved doctor who talks to the animals. |
Story_Lady_Girl_Cried_Wolf.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Girl Who Cried Wolf'" | 1949-10-04 | Timeless Aesop fable told with sound effects and character voices. |
Story_Lady_Red_Hen.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: 'The Story of the Little Red Hen'" | 1949-11-08 | Classic industrious farmyard nursery tale. |
Story_Lady_Gold_Bug_Poe.mp3 |
"The Story Lady: Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Gold-Bug'" | 1949-12-13 | Cryptograms and buried pirate treasure adapted for radio. |