2/4/2012 Billboard Top 10 Singles

Billboard Country Singles May 1, 1982 Top 50

The Golden Age of Radio - X-Minus One

Our Show for today is from the science fiction series of the mid 1950s, X Minus One. 

"A Gun for Dinosaur" written by L.Sprague de Camp in 1956.   This episode aired March 7th 1956 and was adapted for radio by Ernest Kinoy.

Classic Television - The Andy Griffith Show

One of my very favorite tv shows of all time is The Andy Griffith Show (B&W).  I could watch this show everyday and never get old.

Here is a great episode from Season 5.  Episode 7 "Man in the Middle".  Originally aired on CBS TV November 2nd 1964

Billboard Top 100 singles of 1964 ( No.25 - No.1 ) - Billboard Year End ...

In Case You Missed It

The Cadillac hearse that carried the body of President John F Kennedy to Air Force One following his assassination in Dallas TX in 1963 was sold at a Scottsdale AZ auction for $160,000.

Click here for the full story at CNN

New York Times Bestseller List 01/22/2012 Non Fiction

Here are the Top Ten Books on the New York Times Bestseller Non Fiction List for the week ending January 22nd 2012

10 - In the Garden of the Beasts - Erik Larson   (31 weeks)

9  -  Boomerang - Michael Lewis   (14 weeks)

8  -  Heaven is for Real - Todd Burpo  (6 weeks)

7  -  Through My Eyes - Tim Tebow   (18 weeks)

6  -  Catherine The Great - Robert K Massie    (8 weeks)

5  -  Unbroken - Laura Hillenbrand   (60 weeks)

4  -  Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman   (11 weeks)

3  -  Killing Lincoln - Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard    (15 weeks)

2  -  American Sniper - Chris Kyle w/Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice  (DEBUT)

1 -   Steve Jobs - Walter Isaacson  (11 weeks)

(11 consecutive weeks at #1)

New York Times Bestseller List 01/22/2012

Here are the Top 10 Books on the NY Times Fiction bestseller list for the week ending January 22nd 2012

10 - Kill Alex Cross - James Patterson   (8 weeks on list)
9  -  The Best of Me - Nicholas Sparks   (13 weeks)
8  -  The Litigators - John Grisham    (11 weeks)
7  -  The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson   (73 weeks)
6  -  Locked On -  Tom Clancy   (4 weeks)
5  -  77 Shadow Street - Dean Koontz   (2 weeks) (#1 last week)
4  -  11/22/63 - Stephen King   (9 weeks)
3  -  Death Comes To Pemberley - P.D. James   (5 weeks)
2  -  Love in a Nutshell - Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly  (DEBUT)
1  -  Private : #1 Suspect - James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
(DEBUT)

Billboard Top 100 singles of 1987 ( No.25 - No.1 )

Billboard All-Time Top 100 Songs ( 1958 - 2008 ) - 50th Anniversary

Grammy Flashback

With the Grammy Awards coming up on Feb 12 2012 I thought I would do some looks back at past Grammy Award winners.  
Tonight we start with the 1961 Grammy Awards and the Album of the Year and New Artist of the Year winner, Bob Newhart.
The Album of the Year was "The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart"  


This was the debut album for Mr. Newhart  and was recorded live at The Tidelands Club in Houston, TX.
He spent 14 non consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard album chart.  This was the first comedy record to be named Album of the Year and the only time a comedian has been awarded the Best New Artist Grammy.
Bob Newhart wanted to title the album "The Most Celebrated New Comedian Since Attila" but the Warner Brothers executives didnt care for that and created "The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart", but allowed his original title to stay as the subtitle.

here is the entire album for your enjoyment.

New York Times Bestseller List Fiction 1/14/2012

Here are the Top 10 books on the NY Times Bestseller list for the week ending January 14th 2012

10 - Explosive Eighteen - Janet Evanovich (6 weeks on list)
9  -  The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - Steig Larsson (72 weeks)
8  -  Red Mist - Patricia Cornwell  (4 weeks)
7  -  The Best of Me - Nicholas Sparks  (12 weeks)
6  -  The Litigators - John Grisham  (10 weeks)
5  -  Kill Alex Cross - James Patterson (7 weeks)
4  -  Locked On - Tom Clancy  (3 weeks)
3  -  Death Comes To Pemberley - P.D. James  (4 weeks)
2  -  11/22/1963  -  Stephen King (8 weeks)
1  -  77 Shadow Street - Dean Koontz 
(DEBUT)
A 19th century tycoon's mansion has been turned into luxury apartments, but it remains in the grip of evil forces.

Aloha from Hawaii: Via Satellite

Today in 1973 - Elvis Presley drew the largest audience for a single TV show to that time -- an estimated one billion viewers in 40 countries. Elvis - Aloha From Hawaii, a live, worldwide concert from Honolulu International Center Arena (later known as the Neal S. Blaisdell Center Arena). Performed at 12:30 a.m. Hawaiian Time, it was beamed live via Globecam Satellite to Australia, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, South Vietnam and other countries, and was seen on a delayed basis in approximately 30 European countries. The first American airing was April 4th on NBC-TV. The show was also released as a two-record album, and became one of Elvis’s top-selling LPs

This was the last soundtrack (and last #1 album on the Billboard 200 for Elvis) released during Elvis lifetime, the last 2 were released after his death, Elvis in Concert (1977 TV Special) and This is Elvis in 1981.

Here is the complete show from 1973

Golden Age of Radio - The Red Skelton Show

Today's Golden Age of Radio broadcast is from January 13th 1942 and it was never a broadcast, but a rehearsal.  The Red Skelton Show recorded their rehearsals and in some cases that is all that survives of that a particular broadcast.  
These also tended to be looser and funnier in some cases as Red ad libs even more and laughs at everything and just has a great time.
His cast included his then wife and joke writer Edna Stilwell, his bandleader Ozzie Nelson with singer/wife Harriet Hillard (Nelson).
Near the end of the broadcast Red likes to close with his "mean widdle kid" which is always a great laugh.

Read a short biography of the great hoosier comedian by going  here

Courtesy of our wonderful podcaster and friend Buck Benny here is the rehearsal of the Red Skelton Show from January 13th 1942

Billboard Hot 100 - Top 50 Singles (1/14/2012)

UK Official Singles Chart: Top 20 (1/14/12)

Top of the Pops (John Lennon Edition)

This week in 1980 the UK Charts were dominated (and rightly so) by the late John Lennon.  Tragically he was murdered a month before and now in sorrow and honor his legions of UK fans put 3 of his singles in the Top 5 of the UK singles chart for the week ending January 10th 1981.

5 - (Just Like) Starting Over - John Lennon




4 - Antmusic - Adam and the Ants




3 - Stop the Calvary - Jona Lewie


2 - Happy Christmas (War is Over) - John and Yoko


1 - Imagine - John Lennon
(4 consecutive weeks at #1)

Sanford and Son - Grady and His Lady

This episode of Sanford and Son aired on NBC Tv October 4th 1974
 (Season 4)

Fred fears wedding bells will break up his beautiful friendship after Grady announces he's engaged to Dolly, so Fred plots to puncture the romance

New York Times Bestseller List 1/8/2012

Here are the Top 10 Fiction Bestsellers on NY Times Fiction Best Seller List for the week ending January 8th 2012

10 - The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest - Stieg Larsson (71 weeks on List)
9  -  V Is For Vengeance - Sue Grafton (6 weeks)
8  -  Explosive Eighteen - Janet Evanovich (5 weeks)
7  -  Red Mist - Patricia Cornwell (3 weeks)
6  -  The Best of Me - Nicholas Sparks (11 weeks)
5  -  Death Comes To Pemberley - P.D. James (3 weeks)
4  -  Locked On - Tom Clancy w/Mark Greaney (2 weeks)
3  -  Kill Alex Cross - James Patterson (6 weeks)
2  -  The Litigators - John Grisham (9 weeks)
1  -  11/22/63 - Stephen King (7 weeks)
(4th non consecutive week at #1)

Craig Ferguson Show January 4th 2012

1/7/2012 Billboard Top 10 Singles - LMFAO wiggles their willies all the ...

Top 5

Here are the Top 5 Movies this week in 1986

5 - White Nights

starring Mikhail Baryshnikov, Gregory Hines and Helen Mirren.   This movie also gave 2 of the years biggest songs of 1985 with the Academy Award winning "Say You, Say Me" by Lionel Richie and the nominated "Separate Live" performed by Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin and written by Stephen Bishop.

4 - Spies Like Us

starring Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase and directed by John Landis.

3 - Out of Africa 

The winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture of 1986 as well as Best Director for Sydney Pollack.  Nominations for Best actress, Meryl Streep and Best Supporting Actor, Klaus Maria Brandauer.  Also starring was Robert Redford.

2 - The Jewel of the Nile 

the sequel to the 1984 blockbuster "Romancing The Stone", starring Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny Devito.

1 - Rocky IV

the fourth and most financial successful of the Rocky franchise bringing in $127.8 million in the US and Canada and $300 million worldwide.   This really introduced the world to Dolph Lundgren and Brigitte Neilsen who played and Ivan Drago and his wife Ludmilla.