On This Day, September 3: WWII Milestones and Montgomery
Also featured: Strange As It Seems.
September 3 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 3 across momentous World War II milestone broadcasts (the 1939 British defense emergency blackout order, the 1943 Eighth Army amphibious landing in Italy, and the 1944 liberation advance toward Brussels), bizarre historical medical folklore, clinical family soap operas, and South African domestic sitcoms, General Bernard Montgomery (1943), Douglas Edwards on CBS World News Today (1944), Strange As It Seems (1947), Hugh Studebaker in Bachelor's Children for Old Dutch Cleanser (1943), and The Little Things in Life (1939–1975):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Emergency Defense Regulations Announcement on Outbreak of War" | BBC Home Service 1939-09-03 7:00 PM BST |
Sustaining Official Announcement |
BBC News Staff | Ministry of Information | ["News", "WWII", "BBC Home", "Emergency", "History"] |
Official BBC broadcast announcing immediate wartime emergency defense orders including civilian blackout procedures and public entertainment venue closures. |
| "Eighth Army Landings in Italy with General Montgomery" | BBC / Allied Radio 1943-09-03 9:00 PM BST |
Sustaining Military Bulletin |
Gen. Bernard Montgomery | Eighth Army HQ | ["News", "WWII", "Bernard Montgomery", "Italy Campaign", "BBC"] |
General Bernard Montgomery announces British Eighth Army assault units crossing the Strait of Messina onto the Italian mainland. |
| "Allied Liberation Forces Advance Toward Brussels with Douglas Edwards" | CBS (WABC) 1944-09-03 2:30 PM EWT |
Sustaining Wartime News Special |
Douglas Edwards (Anchor) | Charles Collingwood | ["News", "WWII", "CBS News", "Douglas Edwards", "Liberation"] |
Allied war correspondents report rapid armored advances liberating Brussels and entering southern Belgium against retreating German forces. |
| "The Old Fashioned Cure for Rabies with Gayne Whitman" | Syndication 1947-09-03 |
Sustaining Oddity Docudrama |
Gayne Whitman (Narrator) | John Hix (Creator) | ["Docudrama", "History", "Strange As It Seems", "Gayne Whitman", "Syndicated"] |
A historical retelling of early frontier medical superstitions and folklore remedies utilized prior to Louis Pasteur's rabies vaccine. |
| "Dr. Bob's Clinical Consultations with Hugh Studebaker" | CBS (WBBM) 1943-09-03 10:45 AM EWT |
Cudahy Packing Co. Old Dutch Cleanser |
Hugh Studebaker (Bob) | Marjorie Hannan & Flynn | ["Soap Opera", "Drama", "Bachelors Children", "Hugh Studebaker", "Old Dutch"] |
Dr. Bob Graham advises a nervous expectant father while managing unexpected medical emergencies at his suburban clinic. |
| "The Uninvited Guests with Springbok Radio" | Springbok / SABC 1975-09-03 |
Sustaining Domestic Sitcom |
Springbok Comedy Cast | SABC Production Team | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "Little Things In Life", "Springbok", "SABC"] |
A suburban family's quiet anniversary dinner is overturned when distant eccentric relatives arrive unannounced for an extended stay. |