Paul Rhymer
Encyclopedia
Paul Mills Rhymer was a United States scriptwriter and humorist best known as the creator of radio's long-run Vic and Sade
series. With a listening audience of 7,000,000, Vic and Sade was voted the number one daytime radio series in 1942, and Rhymer is regarded by many as one of the great humorists of the 20th Century.
Born in Fulton, Illinois
, in 1905, Rhymer grew up in Bloomington, Illinois
, attending Illinois Wesleyan University
in the mid-1920s. Following his father's death, he dropped out of college to help support his mother. After employment on the Chicago and Alton Railroad, he worked as a cabdriver and then became a reporter with The Pantagraph, the Bloomington newspaper. He lost that job when the editor learned Rhymer had been fabricating interviews with non-existent people. In 1929, Rhymer moved to Chicago and signed on with the continuity department of NBC Radio, where he wrote station breaks and introductions to the dance band remote broadcasts from the local hotel ballrooms.
He launched Vic and Sade on June 29, 1932, and between 1932 and 1946, he wrote more than 3500 episodes. He was honored on April 28, 1938, when Bloomington celebrated Paul Rhymer Day. In July, 1949, Rhymer's characters were seen on television in NBC's Colgate Theater, and they returned in 1957 for a two-month run on WNBQ in Chicago.
In 1952, Rhymer scripted the five-minute NBC-TV series, The Public Life of Cliff Norton, a spin-off of comedy sketches Norton had performed on Dave Garroway
's Garroway at Large from 1949 to 1951.
Rhymer also wrote book reviews and freelance magazine articles. He died October 26, 1964.
Vic and Sade
Vic and Sade was an American radio program created and written by Paul Rhymer. It was regularly broadcast on radio from 1932 to 1944, then intermittently until 1946, and was briefly adapted to television in 1949 and again in 1957....
series. With a listening audience of 7,000,000, Vic and Sade was voted the number one daytime radio series in 1942, and Rhymer is regarded by many as one of the great humorists of the 20th Century.
Born in Fulton, Illinois
Fulton, Illinois
Fulton is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,481 at the 2010 census, down from 3,881 at the 2000 census. Fulton is located across the Mississippi River from Clinton, Iowa.-Geography:...
, in 1905, Rhymer grew up in Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington is a city in McLean County, Illinois, United States and the county seat. It is adjacent to Normal, Illinois, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area...
, attending Illinois Wesleyan University
Illinois Wesleyan University
Illinois Wesleyan University is an independent undergraduate university located in Bloomington, Illinois. Founded in 1850, the central portion of the present campus was acquired in 1854 with the first building erected in 1856...
in the mid-1920s. Following his father's death, he dropped out of college to help support his mother. After employment on the Chicago and Alton Railroad, he worked as a cabdriver and then became a reporter with The Pantagraph, the Bloomington newspaper. He lost that job when the editor learned Rhymer had been fabricating interviews with non-existent people. In 1929, Rhymer moved to Chicago and signed on with the continuity department of NBC Radio, where he wrote station breaks and introductions to the dance band remote broadcasts from the local hotel ballrooms.
He launched Vic and Sade on June 29, 1932, and between 1932 and 1946, he wrote more than 3500 episodes. He was honored on April 28, 1938, when Bloomington celebrated Paul Rhymer Day. In July, 1949, Rhymer's characters were seen on television in NBC's Colgate Theater, and they returned in 1957 for a two-month run on WNBQ in Chicago.
In 1952, Rhymer scripted the five-minute NBC-TV series, The Public Life of Cliff Norton, a spin-off of comedy sketches Norton had performed on Dave Garroway
Dave Garroway
David Cunningham "Dave" Garroway was the founding host of NBC's Today from 1952 to 1961. His easygoing, relaxed, and relaxing style belied a battle with depression that may have contributed to the end of his days as a leading television personality—and, eventually, his life...
's Garroway at Large from 1949 to 1951.
Rhymer also wrote book reviews and freelance magazine articles. He died October 26, 1964.