On This Day, August 23: Blondie and Andre Kostelanetz
Also featured: The Couple Next Door.
August 23 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 23 across American and British broadcasting history (1943–1986):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Case of the Stolen Emerald Tiara (The American Weekly)" | Syndication 1953-08-23 (Transcribed) |
The American Weekly Hearst Sunday Magazine |
Everett Sloane, Joan Alexander | Hearst Radio Productions, George Ansbro (Announcer) | ["Docudrama", "True Crime", "Drama", "Journalism"] |
Based on sensational investigative reporting in The American Weekly, insurance detectives track a cat burglar who stole a priceless diamond-and-emerald tiara from a high-society Fifth Avenue penthouse estate. |
| "Judging the County Fair Baby Contest (Starring Peg Lynch & Alan Bunce)" | CBS (WCBS) 1960-08-23 2:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining CBS Daytime Drama |
Peg Lynch (Betsy Piper), Alan Bunce (Joe Piper), Francie Myers | Peg Lynch (Creator), Robert Weenolsen (Director) | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "Domestic", "Family"] |
Betsy and Joe Piper find themselves in hot water with neighborhood parents after agreeing to serve as impartial judges for the local country fair's cutthroat beautiful baby contest. |
| "Music by Kostelanetz with Guest Baritone Robert Weede (Chrysler)" | CBS (WABC) 1943-08-23 9:00 PM EWT |
Chrysler Corporation Chrysler Automobiles & War Effort |
Andre Kostelanetz and his 45-Piece Orchestra, Robert Weede | Andre Kostelanetz (Conductor), Frank Gallop (Announcer) | ["Music", "Classical", "Easy Listening", "Opera", "Vocal"] |
Maestro Andre Kostelanetz leads his 45-piece concert orchestra in lush symphonic arrangements of popular standards and operatic arias, featuring guest Metropolitan Opera baritone Robert Weede singing the 'Largo al factotum' from The Barber of Seville. |
| "The Carnation Contented Hour: Buddy Clark with Percy Faith's Orchestra" | NBC (WNBC) 1948-08-23 10:00 PM EDT |
Carnation Company Carnation Evaporated Milk |
Buddy Clark (Baritone), Contented Quartet, Percy Faith Orchestra | Percy Faith (Conductor), Jimmy Wallington (Announcer) | ["Music", "Vocal", "Easy Listening", "Pop", "Variety"] |
Singing star Buddy Clark and maestro Percy Faith present a sophisticated evening of American popular music for Carnation Milk, featuring Clark singing 'Love Somebody' and Faith's lush orchestral rendition of 'Begin the Beguine'. |
| "After Henry: The Romantic Approach (Series 2, Episode 3 — Starring Prunella Scales)" | BBC Radio 4 1986-08-23 1:30 PM |
Non-commercial BBC Radio Comedy |
Prunella Scales (Sarah), Joan Sanderson, Gerry Cowper | Simon Brett (Author), Pete Atkin (Producer) | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "British", "Family"] |
Widowed Sarah France is bewildered when an elderly, eccentric suitor pursues her with lavish courtship gestures, sparking sarcastic commentary from her demanding mother Eleanor and daughter Clare. |
| "Dagwood Asks for a Wartime Raise (Camel Cigarettes)" | CBS (KNX) 1943-08-23 7:30 PM EWT |
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Camel Cigarettes |
Penny Singleton (Blondie), Arthur Lake (Dagwood), Hanley Stafford | Ashmead Scott (Adapter), Don Bernard (Director) | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "Comic Strips", "Family"] |
Dagwood Bumstead attempts to muster the courage to ask boss J.C. Dithers for a wartime raise, but a comical mix-up involving an oversized sandwich and misplaced construction blueprints throws the office into hilarious chaos. |