Jon Arthur
Encyclopedia
From his home in Pittsburgh, Jon Arthur went to radio school and then began his broadcasting career at radio station WJLS
WJLS (AM)
WJLS is a Southern Gospel formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Beckley, West Virginia, serving Southeastern West Virginia. WJLS is owned and operated by First Media Radio, LLC....
(Beckley, West Virginia
Beckley, West Virginia
Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, which was founded on April 4, 1838. The 2008 population was estimated to be 16,832 by the U.S. Census Bureau. Early in its history, the town was known as Beckleyville and Raleigh Court House...
), signing on two weeks after the station went on the air in 1939. Arthur later left Beckley for Ogdensburg, New York
Ogdensburg, New York
Ogdensburg is a city in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 11,128 at the 2010 census. In the late 18th century, European-American settlers named the community after American land owner and developer Samuel Ogden....
and soon headed for the West Coast.
No School Today
At WSAI in Cincinnati, Arthur began the Big Jon and Sparkie show, carried daily on 181 ABC stations beginning in 1950. ABC also aired his two-hour Saturday show, No School Today, heard weekly by 12 million listeners on 275 stations. The show's theme song was "Teddy Bears' PicnicTeddy bears' picnic
"Teddy Bears' Picnic" is a song consisting of a melody by American composer John Walter Bratton, written in 1907, and lyrics added by Irish songwriter Jimmy Kennedy in 1932. It remains popular as a children's song, having been recorded by numerous artists over the decades. Kennedy lived at...
" as sung by Ann Stephens. Cincinnati's Don Kortekamp, who was working at WSAI, became the scriptwriter of Big Jon and Sparkie.
The Saturday morning "No School Today" usually featured Sparkie's recounting of the last serial episode of Captain Jupiter, which he and his friend Rabbit Ears McKester saw at the movies. Reference was often made to Captain Jupiter's arch enemies, Montmorency Clutchrider and Ivan Crusingspeed, who seemed to be featured in name only.
Big Jon and Sparkie Birthday Song
Today is a birthdayWe wonder for whom
We know it is someone
Who's right in this room
So, look all around you
For somebody who
Is smiling and happy
My goodness it's you!
Happy birthday, "
From all of us to you
Happy birthday, "
From Mummy and Daddy, too
We Congratulate you
And pray good luck follows you
Happy Birthday, "
May all of your good dreams come true!
Comic books
The radio program was adapted into the comic book, Big Jon and Sparkie, published by Alden Getz for Ziff-Davis. Getz also published The Daily Weekly, a promotional newspaper giveaway based on the No School Today radio program. The comic book ran for four issues.The radio characters were also among the first media personalities satirized in Mad
Mad (magazine)
Mad is an American humor magazine founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines in 1952. Launched as a comic book before it became a magazine, it was widely imitated and influential, impacting not only satirical media but the entire cultural landscape of the 20th century.The last...
when Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic books and magazines. Kurtzman often signed his name H. Kurtz, followed by a stick figure Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, Brooklyn, New York – February 21, 1993) was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic...
wrote "Big John" and "Sparkie" into "Robin Hood!" in the fourth issue of the comic book.
During the 1960s, Jon Arthur broadcast middays at WKRC in Cincinnati. Arthur's life story was featured on the radio show Unshackled.
He should not be confused with the Pensacola talk radio host Jon Arthur.
