Amalgamated Broadcasting System
Encyclopedia
The Amalgamated Broadcasting System (ABS) was a radio network established on September 25, 1933 by two men: American comedian
and radio
star Ed Wynn
, the "Fire Chief" of the original Fire Chief Program
program on NBC
and CBS
; and Hungarian
-born violinist Ota Gygi.
Wynn had been concerned with two things: his own perilous-seeming future as an entertainer and the power the already-established networks had over the programming policies of their local affiliate stations. He hoped that ABS would serve as an alternative as well as helping him establish a more secure future for himself and his family, according to radio historian Elizabeth McLeod.
In fact, Wynn poured his entire personal savings as well as his reputation into the project, then put together an investment group and bought New York
station WBNX
as its planned flagship, hoping to establish a 100-station network in due course. The investment team also looked to WOL
Washington
, WPEN
Philadelphia
, WHDH
Boston and WCFL
Chicago
among planned key affiliates. The new network went on the air with a four-hour gala from WBNX's newly-built New York
studios on September 25, 1933---even as Wynn was preparing a new season of The Fire Chief Program.
Wynn, however, was also due to Hollywood to make a new film and put Gygi in charge of the network in his absence. That, McLeod wrote, proved the biggest mistake of his career, if not his life. At a press conference launching the new ABS, Gygi "managed to alienate almost the entire New York City press corps," McLeod wrote, "by announcing . . . that he was only interested in what the New York Times thought of the project and had no use for any of the other papers." That irked then-powerful New York Daily News
radio critic Ben Gross, whose lead in attacking the apparent ABS attitude was picked up by his peers---and by advertisers whom Gygi reportedly alienated by positioning ABS toward treating advertising as "a necessary but distasteful evil," McLeod continued. ABS would allow no advertiser mention other than at the beginning and end of programs and no advertising spots during any programs. That was commercial radio's original policy until NBC and CBS abandoned it as the 1930s progressed, McLeod noted, leaving ABS stranded for attracting top quality programming without big money advertisers to sponsor it.
That attitude plus its weak organisation in Wynn's absence killed the project. Amalgamated went out of business on October 28, 1933, only five weeks after its first broadcast. Wynn had ended his association with ABS by that time but he had also vowed to repay his investors---their loss was over $300,000, according to McLeod---and that pressure, plus the end of The Fire Chief Program and his marital trouble two years later, helped drive the comedian toward a nervous breakdown by the end of the 1930s.
A much more successful alternative network, the Mutual Broadcasting System
, was established on September 29, 1934. Mutual was inspired in large part from the ideas behind Amalgamated, and in fact had one of Amalgamated's planned key affiliates, WXYZ Detroit, as one of its charter stations. A recording of ABS's launch gala is believed to survive and circulate among history-minded old-time radio fans.
The film The Great Man
(1956), which has a broadcasting background and features Wynn in a supporting role, is centered on a fictional network known as the "Amalgamated Broadcasting System".
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
star Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn was a popular American comedian and actor noted for his Perfect Fool comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a dramatic actor....
, the "Fire Chief" of the original Fire Chief Program
Texaco Star Theater
Texaco Star Theater is an American comedy-variety show, broadcast on radio from 1938 to 1949 and telecast from 1948 to 1956. It was one of the first successful examples of American television broadcasting, remembered as the show that gave Milton Berle the nickname "Mr...
program on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
and CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
; and Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
-born violinist Ota Gygi.
Wynn had been concerned with two things: his own perilous-seeming future as an entertainer and the power the already-established networks had over the programming policies of their local affiliate stations. He hoped that ABS would serve as an alternative as well as helping him establish a more secure future for himself and his family, according to radio historian Elizabeth McLeod.
In fact, Wynn poured his entire personal savings as well as his reputation into the project, then put together an investment group and bought New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
station WBNX
WKDM
WKDM 1380 is a United States ethnic brokered radio station serving New York City and owned by Multicultural Broadcasting. The station broadcasts in Mandarin Chinese, 24 hours a day from Monday to Friday.-History:...
as its planned flagship, hoping to establish a 100-station network in due course. The investment team also looked to WOL
Wol
Wol, WoL or WOL may refer to:Computing* Wake-on-LAN, an Ethernet standard that allows computers to be turned on by a network message* Warhammer Online, abbreviation used internally by Games Workshop staff...
Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, WPEN
WPEN (AM)
WPEN is an AM radio station broadcast on 950 kHz. The station is licensed to Philadelphia and serves that market. WPEN is owned and operated by Greater Media and offers a Sports Talk format. The station is known as "950 ESPN"-The Early Years:...
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, WHDH
WEEI
WEEI is a sports radio station in Boston, Massachusetts, that broadcasts on 850 kHz from a transmitter in Needham, Massachusetts, and is owned by Entercom Communications. The station is one of the top-rated sports talk radio stations in the nation. Studios are located in Brighton, Massachusetts...
Boston and WCFL
WCFL (AM)
WCFL was the callsign of a commercial radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was owned by the Chicago Federation of Labor, hence its call letters. The station is now known as WMVP. Its transmitter is located in Downers Grove and is still in use by WMVP...
Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
among planned key affiliates. The new network went on the air with a four-hour gala from WBNX's newly-built New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
studios on September 25, 1933---even as Wynn was preparing a new season of The Fire Chief Program.
Wynn, however, was also due to Hollywood to make a new film and put Gygi in charge of the network in his absence. That, McLeod wrote, proved the biggest mistake of his career, if not his life. At a press conference launching the new ABS, Gygi "managed to alienate almost the entire New York City press corps," McLeod wrote, "by announcing . . . that he was only interested in what the New York Times thought of the project and had no use for any of the other papers." That irked then-powerful New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
radio critic Ben Gross, whose lead in attacking the apparent ABS attitude was picked up by his peers---and by advertisers whom Gygi reportedly alienated by positioning ABS toward treating advertising as "a necessary but distasteful evil," McLeod continued. ABS would allow no advertiser mention other than at the beginning and end of programs and no advertising spots during any programs. That was commercial radio's original policy until NBC and CBS abandoned it as the 1930s progressed, McLeod noted, leaving ABS stranded for attracting top quality programming without big money advertisers to sponsor it.
That attitude plus its weak organisation in Wynn's absence killed the project. Amalgamated went out of business on October 28, 1933, only five weeks after its first broadcast. Wynn had ended his association with ABS by that time but he had also vowed to repay his investors---their loss was over $300,000, according to McLeod---and that pressure, plus the end of The Fire Chief Program and his marital trouble two years later, helped drive the comedian toward a nervous breakdown by the end of the 1930s.
A much more successful alternative network, the Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
, was established on September 29, 1934. Mutual was inspired in large part from the ideas behind Amalgamated, and in fact had one of Amalgamated's planned key affiliates, WXYZ Detroit, as one of its charter stations. A recording of ABS's launch gala is believed to survive and circulate among history-minded old-time radio fans.
The film The Great Man
The Great Man
The Great Man is a 1956 drama film directed by José Ferrer and based on a novel by Al Morgan. It was loosely based on the controversial career of Arthur Godfrey, the beloved TV and radio host whose image had been tarnished by a number of cast firings and Godfrey's contentious battles with the...
(1956), which has a broadcasting background and features Wynn in a supporting role, is centered on a fictional network known as the "Amalgamated Broadcasting System".