On This Day, August 23: Gertrude Lawrence and The Shadow (Australia)
Also featured: Amos 'n' Andy.
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, British, and Australian broadcasting history (1940–1976):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Emma, Lady Hamilton (Starring Gertrude Lawrence & Arnold Moss)" | CBS (WABC) 1943-08-23 11:30 PM EWT |
Sustaining CBS Radio Presentation |
Gertrude Lawrence, Arnold Moss (Lord Nelson) | Margaret Lewerth (Writer), William N. Robson, Bernard Herrmann | ["Drama", "Romance", "Historical", "Biographical"] |
Stage star Gertrude Lawrence portrays Emma, Lady Hamilton, chronicling her passionate, scandalous romance with British naval hero Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson amidst the turbulent backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars. |
| "The Shadow: Return to Life (Starring Moray Powell — Grace Bros.)" | 2GB Sydney 1951-08-23 8:00 PM |
Grace Bros. Sydney Department Store |
Moray Powell (Lamont Cranston), Lynette Foster | Grace Gibson Radio Productions, John Dease | ["Superhero", "Mystery", "Detective", "Thriller", "Australian"] |
The Shadow uses his occult hypnotic powers to cloud men's minds and expose an unscrupulous surgeon operating a secret clinic that provides altered plastic surgery identities and forged death certificates to hunted underworld criminals. |
| "CBS World News Tonight: Nighttime Blitzkrieg Opens on London (Edward R. Murrow)" | CBS (WABC) 1940-08-23 6:45 PM EDST |
Sustaining CBS News Presentation |
Elmer Davis (New York), Edward R. Murrow (London), William L. Shirer | Paul White (News Director), CBS News | ["News", "War", "Historical", "Documentary"] |
Anchor Elmer Davis coordinates live CBS shortwave reports as Edward R. Murrow reports live from a London rooftop amidst air raid sirens during the first nighttime German Luftwaffe bombing incendiary raids over central London. |
| "The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket: Pilot Special (BBC Radio 4)" | BBC Radio 4 1976-08-23 7:30 PM |
Non-commercial BBC Radio Comedy |
Patrick Fyffe (Dame Hilda Bracket), George Logan | Patrick Fyffe & George Logan (Writers), John Browell | ["Comedy", "Music", "Vaudeville", "British", "Satire"] |
Elderly genteel music hall spinsters Dame Hilda Bracket and Dr. Evadne Hinge host an eccentric musical evening in their parlour at Stackton Tressel, singing classic Gilbert and Sullivan and Ivor Novello operetta duets while squabbling over the piano stool. |
| "The Adventures of Tarzan: Poachers in the Forbidden Valley (Starring Lamont Johnson)" | Commodore Syndication 1951-08-23 (Transcribed) |
Local Commercials Commodore Advertisers |
Lamont Johnson (Tarzan), Cy Kendall, Gerald Mohr | Walter White Jr. (Producer), Bud Ernest | ["Adventure", "Jungle", "Action", "Pulp"] |
Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, pursues ruthless ivory poachers who tricked an innocent scientific safari expedition into dangerous forbidden cannibal territory, battling a stampeding herd of elephants to rescue the survivors. |
| "The Amos 'n' Andy Music Hall: 30th Anniversary Retrospective (1929–1959)" | CBS (KNX) 1959-08-23 7:05 PM EDT |
Sustaining Multiple CBS Sponsors |
Freeman Gosden (Amos / Kingfish), Charles Correll (Andy) | Freeman Gosden & Charles Correll (Creators), Del Sharbutt | ["Comedy", "Music", "Variety", "Historical"] |
Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll celebrate thirty historic years of broadcasting as Amos and Andy, spinning popular records while reflecting on legendary sketches, classic Kingfish lodge hall escapades, and three decades of radio history. |