Passing Parade
Encyclopedia
The Passing Parade, a.k.a. John Nesbitt's Passing Parade, was an American radio series created, written, and narrated by John Nesbitt
which was adapted into an Oscar-winning series of MGM short subjects. In both media, the series usually focused on strange-but-true historical events, both little-known and famous, as well as figures such as Catherine de' Medici
and Nostradamus
.
network on February 1, 1937, running off and on until 1951 over three different networks and in syndication. Nesbitt's inspiration was a trunk left to him by his father which contained news clippings of odd stories from around the world. Nesbitt, who usually presented his stories without sound effects or music, utilized a research staff of fourteen people in verifying the details of his tales, but wrote the final scripts himself, often within an hour of airtime.
Radio producer/announcer John Doremus
later acquired the rights to the series and revived it as a late 1950s-early 1960s syndicated feature, billing his version as "from the files of John Nesbitt." Over 1500 three minute episodes were broadcast.
.
The films were reedited for television syndication by MGM in the early 1960s. The shorts in their original form were eventually reaired on Turner Classic Movies
.
John Nesbitt (announcer)
John Nesbitt was an actor, narrator, announcer, producer and screenwriter born in Victoria, British Columbia, who died in Carmel, California...
which was adapted into an Oscar-winning series of MGM short subjects. In both media, the series usually focused on strange-but-true historical events, both little-known and famous, as well as figures such as Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen consort of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II of France....
and Nostradamus
Nostradamus
Michel de Nostredame , usually Latinised to Nostradamus, was a French apothecary and reputed seer who published collections of prophecies that have since become famous worldwide. He is best known for his book Les Propheties , the first edition of which appeared in 1555...
.
Passing Parade on radio
The radio series, developed as an outgrowth of an earlier Nesbitt-produced program (Headlines of the Past), was launched on the NBCNBC
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...
network on February 1, 1937, running off and on until 1951 over three different networks and in syndication. Nesbitt's inspiration was a trunk left to him by his father which contained news clippings of odd stories from around the world. Nesbitt, who usually presented his stories without sound effects or music, utilized a research staff of fourteen people in verifying the details of his tales, but wrote the final scripts himself, often within an hour of airtime.
Radio producer/announcer John Doremus
John Doremus
John Doremus was an American radio personality, best known for his radio syndication of "The Passing Parade", a series of short stories of remarkable but relatively unknown episodes throughout history.In the late 1950s he acquired the rights to the series, which until then had been a television...
later acquired the rights to the series and revived it as a late 1950s-early 1960s syndicated feature, billing his version as "from the files of John Nesbitt." Over 1500 three minute episodes were broadcast.
Parade on film
The series of Passing Parade one-reel short subjects was produced for MGM from 1938 to 1949. Most of the films featured the slow movement of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 as the opening theme music. The directors included Fred ZinnemannFred Zinnemann
Fred Zinnemann was an Austrian-American film director. He won four Academy Awards and directed films like High Noon, From Here to Eternity and A Man for All Seasons.-Life and career:...
.
The films were reedited for television syndication by MGM in the early 1960s. The shorts in their original form were eventually reaired on Turner Classic Movies
Turner Classic Movies
Turner Classic Movies is a movie-oriented cable television channel, owned by the Turner Broadcasting System subsidiary of Time Warner, featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and MGM, United Artists, RKO and Warner Bros. film libraries...
.
External links
- http://www.classicthemes.com/50sTVThemes/themePages/passingParade.html
- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0626363/
- http://randsesotericotr.podbean.com/2008/12/06/the-passing-parade-pgm-10/
- http://ctva.biz/US/Documentary/PassingParade.htm