On This Day, August 25: Casey Crime Photographer (3 Eras) and Peter Tinniswood (BBC)
Also featured: Joseph Cotten (AFRS).
August 25 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, serial multi-part narrative arcs, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 25 across American network, three classic newspaper hardboiled cases of Casey, Crime Photographer across two lead actors (Staats Cotsworth & Darren McGavin) and two sponsors (Anchor Hocking & Philip Morris), Peter Tinniswood's uproarious Antarctic cricket memoirs on BBC Radio 4, Joseph Cotten & Teresa Wright on Armed Forces Radio Theater, and children's fables on The Story Lady (1945–1981):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Polar Games by Peter Tinniswood (Robin Bailey as The Brigadier — BBC)" | BBC Radio 4 1981-08-25 6:30 PM BST |
Sustaining Cricket Comedy Monologues |
Robin Bailey (The Brigadier) | Peter Tinniswood (Writer), John Tydeman | ["Comedy", "British", "Satire", "Sports", "Cricket"] |
"Tales from a Long Room, by Peter Tinniswood, starring Robin Bailey as the Brigadier!" The pompous, cricket-obsessed Brigadier recounts his uproarious memoirs of the legendary 1912 expedition when English gentlemen attempted to play a five-day test cricket match on the Antarctic ice cap with emperor penguins serving as fielders. |
| "The Shaggiest Dog in the World (Georgene O'Donnell — The Story Lady)" | NBC (WEAF) 1947-08-25 9:15 AM EDT |
Sustaining Children's Storytelling |
Georgene O'Donnell (Story Lady), Rosa Rio | NBC Children's Programs | ["Children", "Storytelling", "Fable", "Family", "Educational"] |
"Here comes The Story Lady!" The Story Lady reads the delightful children's fable 'The Shaggiest Dog in the World', recounting how a kindly, overgrown sheepdog with mop-like fur wins the hearts of the villagers by rescuing lost kittens during a summer rainstorm. |
| "The Snowball (Staats Cotsworth as Flashgun Casey — Anchor Hocking Glass)" | CBS (WCBS) 1949-08-25 9:30 PM EDT |
Anchor Hocking Fire-King Ovenware |
Staats Cotsworth (Casey), Jan Miner (Ann) | Alonzo Deen Cole, John Dietz, Bob Hite | ["Detective", "Newspaper", "Hardboiled", "Mystery", "Crime"] |
"Anchor Hocking Glass presents Casey, Crime Photographer!" Morning Express photographer Flashgun Casey and reporter Ann Williams visit the Blue Note Cafe before untangling a runaway 'snowball' extortion racket where small-time blackmail against a Broadway producer snowballs into a sensational nightclub shooting. |
| "The Snowball (West Coast Repeat — Casey, Crime Photographer)" | CBS (KNX) 1949-08-25 8:30 PM PST |
Anchor Hocking Fire-King Heat-Resistant Glass |
Staats Cotsworth (Casey), Jan Miner (Ann) | Alonzo Deen Cole, John Dietz | ["Detective", "Newspaper", "Hardboiled", "Mystery", "Crime"] |
"It's Fire-King Ovenware time with Casey, Crime Photographer!" In this Pacific network repeat performance, Casey takes crime-scene flashbulb photos that reveal how a seemingly accidental fire at a Broadway theater was deliberately set to cover up an extortion homicide for Fire-King Ovenware. |
| "The Moth (Darren McGavin as Casey — Philip Morris Cigarettes)" | CBS (WCBS) 1954-08-25 9:00 PM EDT |
Philip Morris & Co. Philip Morris Cigarettes |
Darren McGavin (Casey), Jan Miner (Ann) | John Dietz (Dir.), Ken Roberts | ["Detective", "Newspaper", "Hardboiled", "Mystery", "Crime"] |
"Philip Morris presents Casey, Crime Photographer!" Ace news photographer Casey investigates the suspicious drowning of an eccentric millionaire lepidopterist nicknamed 'The Moth', following a trail of forged wills and stolen rare specimens through the waterfront docks for Philip Morris. |
| "Return to Tomorrow (Joseph Cotten & Teresa Wright — Armed Forces Radio)" | AFRS Hollywood 1945-08-25 (Overseas Troops) |
Sustaining AFRS Morale Broadcast |
Joseph Cotten, Teresa Wright, Ray Collins | Wilbur Hatch Orchestra, Ken Carpenter | ["Drama", "Romance", "Military", "Postwar", "Hollywood"] |
"From Hollywood, the Armed Forces Radio Service presents Armed Forces Radio Theater!" Hollywood stars Joseph Cotten and Teresa Wright star in 'Return to Tomorrow', a touching romantic drama about a discharged wounded infantry veteran who returns home to rebuild his life, find forgiveness, and reclaim his future with his devoted high-school sweetheart. |