On This Day, September 1: WWII Outbreak 1939 and The Railroad Hour
Also featured: Graham Kennedy.
September 1 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 September 1 across the epochal radio outbreak of World War II on September 1, 1939, Association of American Railroads operettas, and Australian television/radio comedy revues, Alvar Liddell reporting the Nazi invasion of Poland, Ignacy Jan Paderewski's international appeal, German state radio propaganda on Jupp und Willie (1939), Gordon MacRae and Dorothy Kirsten on The Railroad Hour (1952), and Graham Kennedy (1939–1979):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Pirates of Piccadilly with Gordon MacRae and Dorothy Kirsten" | NBC (WNBC) 1952-09-01 8:00 PM EDT |
Assoc. American Rail Passenger Rail Service |
Gordon MacRae, Kirsten | Carmen Dragon Orchestra | ["Music", "Operetta", "Musical", "Railroad Hour", "Gordon MacRae"] |
A musical comedy adaptation follows an ambitious young London songwriter navigating rival theater producers and romantic entanglements. |
| "Sunday Morning Fever with Graham Kennedy" | 3LO Melbourne 1979-09-01 |
Sustaining Australian Comedy |
Graham Kennedy, Cast | ABC Radio Comedy | ["Comedy", "Satire", "Graham Kennedy", "Australia", "Playhouse"] |
Graham Kennedy hosts an irreverent Australian comedy revue spoofing disco dance crazes and weekend suburban hangovers. |
| "Alvar Liddell Reports the German Invasion of Poland with BBC Home Service" | BBC Home Service 1939-09-01 10:45 AM BST |
Sustaining War Bulletin |
Alvar Liddell (Newsreader) | BBC News Service | ["News", "History", "WWII", "Invasion Of Poland", "BBC"] |
Newsreader Alvar Liddell interrupts regular programming to announce that German military forces have invaded Poland and bombed Warsaw. |
| "Jupp und Willie: Nazi Domestic Propaganda on Listening to Foreign Radio with RRG Berlin" | RRG Berlin 1939-09-01 |
German State Radio Public Enlightenment |
Ludwig Lommel (Jupp) | RRG Production Staff | ["Propaganda", "History", "WWII", "Germany", "RRG"] |
A satirical dialogue between two Berliners serves as domestic propaganda warning citizens against tuning in to foreign enemy radio broadcasts. |
| "Ignacy Jan Paderewski on the Nazi Invasion Looming over Poland" | International Relay 1939-09-01 |
Polish Relief International Red Cross |
Ignacy Jan Paderewski | Shortwave Broadcast Staff | ["News", "History", "WWII", "Poland", "Paderewski"] |
Former Polish Prime Minister and composer Ignacy Jan Paderewski delivers an impassioned radio appeal urging world democracies to assist Poland against Nazi aggression. |
| "Jupp und Willie: Blackout and Foreign Broadcast Warning with RRG Berlin (Alternate)" | RRG Berlin 1939-09-01 |
German State Radio State Broadcasting |
RRG Radio Actors | RRG Production Staff | ["Propaganda", "History", "WWII", "Germany", "RRG"] |
Two comical German characters discuss the imposition of wartime blackout regulations and state penalties for listening to BBC transmissions. |