On This Day, September 4: Sam Spade and Rocky Jordan
Also featured: Superman.
September 4 Update
This report documents the historical provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, serial story metadata declarations, and pure narrative synopses for broadcasts transmitting on September 4 across Howard Duff's hardboiled sleuthing on The Adventures of Sam Spade for Wildroot Cream-Oil, Jack Moyles facing North African intrigue on The Adventures of Rocky Jordan for Del Monte Foods, Bud Collyer racing against time in Professor Thorpe's Bathysphere on The Adventures of Superman, real-life police documentary recordings on Night Watch, ecclesiastical British comedy on All Gas and Gaiters, and cheerful morning radio with Don McNeill on The Breakfast Club, Howard Duff (1949), Jack Moyles (1949), Bud Collyer (1940), Donn Reed (1954), Derek Nimmo (1972), and Don McNeill (1940–1972):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Arc Metadata | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Flashback Caper with Howard Duff as Sam Spade" | NBC (KNBC) 1949-09-04 8:00 PM EDT |
Wildroot Co. Wildroot Cream-Oil |
Howard Duff & Tuttle | Gil Doud & Bob Tallman | ["Detective", "Hardboiled", "The Adventures of Sam Spade", "Howard Duff", "Wildroot"] |
null |
Sam Spade is hired by an amnesiac photographer attempting to reconstruct the fragmented memories of a deadly hit-and-run collision. |
| "A Stranger to the Desert with Jack Moyles as Rocky Jordan" | CBS (KNX) 1949-09-04 6:30 PM EDT |
California Packing Del Monte Brand Foods |
Jack Moyles (Rocky) | Larry Roman & Novello | ["Detective", "Adventure", "Rocky Jordan", "Jack Moyles", "Del Monte"] |
null |
Cafe proprietor Rocky Jordan is drawn into a lethal desert ambush after sheltering a wounded European refugee carrying an ancient map. |
| "Professor Thorpe's Bathysphere (Part 5) with Bud Collyer" | Mutual (WOR) 1940-09-04 5:15 PM EDST |
Sustaining / Kellogg Kellogg's Pep |
Bud Collyer (Superman) | Siegel & Shuster (Creators) | ["Superhero", "Adventure", "Superman", "Bud Collyer", "Kellogg"] |
{"title": "Professor Thorpe's Bathysphere", "part": 5, "total_parts": 12} |
Clark Kent races against the clock to rescue deep-sea explorer Professor Thorpe after sabotage severs the air lines to his submerged ocean sphere. |
| "Fence 447 and Western Union Raid with Donn Reed" | CBS (KNX) 1954-09-04 8:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining Police Documentary |
Donn Reed (Recorder) | Culver City Police Staff | ["Police", "Documentary", "Night Watch", "Donn Reed", "CBS"] |
null |
Tape recorder in hand, Donn Reed rides along with patrol officers raiding a suspected stolen property fencing operation and securing a burgled telegraph office. |
| "The Bishop Loves His Neighbour with Derek Nimmo" | BBC Radio 4 1972-09-04 |
Sustaining British Sitcom |
Robertson Hare & Nimmo | Devaney & Apps (Writers) | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "All Gas And Gaiters", "Derek Nimmo", "BBC Radio 4"] |
null |
Clerical pandemonium ensues across the cathedral close when the Bishop attempts to mediate a boundary dispute with an eccentric neighbor. |
| "He Was Born in a Cemetery with Don McNeill" | ABC (WLS) 1959-09-04 9:00 AM EDT |
Swift & Company Swift's Premium Meats |
Don McNeill & Allison | Sam Cowling & Staff | ["Variety", "Morning", "Breakfast Club", "Don McNeill", "Swift"] |
null |
Don McNeill shares lively audience banter, humor from the Memory Time segment, and cheerful early-morning musical selections. |