Look Familiar? May 1940…In Front Of The Ed Sullivan Theater

Look Familiar? May 1940…In Front Of The Ed Sullivan Theater

Built in 1927 as The Hammerstein Theater, CBS took a long term lease on the dark venue in 1935 and converted it to a large radio theater. In 1950, they converted it to a television theater with the designation, CBS Studio 50.

This is a publicity photo for the movie ’20 Mule Team’ starring Wallace Berry that debuted in New York on May 3, 1940. When I saw this I thought that the 1952 television series ‘Death Valley Days’ may have spun out from this, but much to my surprise, this 1940 movie is based on the ‘Death Valley Days’ radio show that started in 1930 and ran there till 1945.

On TV, the show began in 1952 as a syndicated series, with reruns and updated new narrations continuing through August 1, 1975.

The radio and TV series was sponsored by the Pacific Coast Borax Company (20 Mule Team Borax, Boraxo) and hosted by Stanley Andrews (1952-1963), Ronald Reagan (1964-1965), Robert Taylor (1966-1969), and Dale Robertson (1969-1972). Hosting the series was Reagan’s final work as an actor; he also was cast in eight episodes of the series. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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