On This Day, August 29: Burns and Allen
Also featured: FBI in Peace, War, Columbia Workshop.
August 29 Update
This report documents the historical provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and pure narrative synopses for broadcasts transmitting on August 29 across American network radio, George Burns & Gracie Allen's antique auction scramble for Swan Soap (1944), Martin Blaine cracking bullion heists and fur hijacking rings on The FBI in Peace and War for Lava Soap (1946–1947), Irving Reis directing landmark speculative and supernatural dramas by Stephen Vincent Benét and DuBose Heyward on Columbia Workshop (1936–1937), and Gene Autry & Pat Buttram on Melody Ranch for Doublemint (1936–1948):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "No Money for the Antique Auction" | CBS (WABC) 1944-08-29 9:00 PM EWT |
Lever Brothers Co. Swan Soap |
George Burns, G. Allen | Bill Goodwin & Willson | ["Sitcom", "Comedy", "Domestic", "Marriage", "Americana"] |
Gracie borrows household allowance funds to bid on antique spinning wheels after George forbids her from attending the neighborhood auction. |
| "The Golden Alibi" | CBS (WABC) 1946-08-29 8:30 PM EDT |
Procter & Gamble Lava Soap |
Martin Blaine (Agent) | Louis Pelletier (Writer) | ["Police Procedural", "Docudrama", "Crime", "Law Enforcement", "True Crime"] |
Federal agents unravel an elaborate alibi concocted by an armored car courier who staged his own kidnapping to conceal stolen bullion. |
| "The Double Double-Cross" | CBS (WCBS) 1947-08-29 9:30 PM EDT |
Procter & Gamble Lava Soap |
Martin Blaine (Agent) | Frederick L. Collins | ["Police Procedural", "Docudrama", "Crime", "Law Enforcement", "True Crime"] |
Special agents track an ex-convict confidence trickster who double-crosses his own hijacking gang during a multimillion-dollar fur heist. |
| "1986 A.D." | CBS (WABC) 1936-08-29 8:00 PM EDST |
Sustaining Experimental Drama |
Repertory Cast | Stephen V. Benét / Reis | ["Sci-Fi", "Experimental", "Futuristic", "Drama", "Anthology"] |
An experimental speculative drama envisioning mechanized urban society, synthetic nutrition, and automated labor fifty years into the future. |
| "The Half-Pint Flask" | CBS (WABC) 1937-08-29 7:00 PM EDST |
Sustaining Experimental Drama |
Repertory Cast | DuBose Heyward / Reis | ["Horror", "Gothic", "Supernatural", "Experimental", "Anthology"] |
A visiting archaeologist on a remote Carolina Sea Island incurs a supernatural tribal curse after removing a sacred glass flask from a grave. |
| "The Runaway Stallion of Red Rock Canyon" | CBS (WCBS) 1948-08-29 7:00 PM EDT |
Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. Doublemint Chewing Gum |
Gene Autry, Pat Buttram | Cass County Boys & Cotner | ["Western", "Music", "Adventure", "Vocal", "Americana"] |
Gene Autry and Pat Buttram track an elusive wild stallion across treacherous canyon country to clear a young rancher falsely accused of horse theft. |