Shell Chateau
Encyclopedia
Shell Chateau was a musical variety radio series heard on NBC from 1935 to 1937. Sponsored by Shell Oil
, the hour-long program, sometimes called The Shell Show, was broadcast on Saturday evenings at 9:30pm.
was the host when the show debuted April 6, 1935, with Jolson singing the opening theme song, "Golden Gate". The format usually featured a song by Jolson, a comedy routine, a singing guest performer, more music, another Jolson song and a dramatic sketch, followed by more Jolson. Film stars often did scenes from a movie they were promoting. Victor Young
was the orchestra leader, with Ernie Watson and his orchestra on later shows.
agency with Herb Polesie directing. Carroll devised the unusual title because the sponsor wanted its name in the title, and programs at the time sometimes attempted to create the illusion that they were emanating from a luxurious hotel or an exotic location. The J. Walter Thompson agency was responsible for pioneering several big-name variety programs, including The Chase and Sanborn Hour
, The Fleischmann's Yeast Hour
and the Kraft Music Hall
.
, Wallace Beery
, Edward Everett Horton
, Smith Bellew and Joe Cook
. The announcers included Foster Williams.
Guests included Louis Armstrong
, John Barrymore
, Lionel Barrymore
, Ben Blue
, Bette Davis
, Joan Davis
, Judy Garland
(who made two 1935 appearances in the same month), Florence Gill
(doing her Walt Disney
animation chicken voices), George Jessel
, Boris Karloff
, Dixie Lee
, Joe E. Lewis
(who was a guest four times), John McCormack, Maxie Rosenbloom
, Joe Penner
, Eleanor Powell
(doing a Katharine Hepburn
impression), Ginger Rogers
, Babe Ruth
, Benay Venuta
(who became a network performer as a result of her 1935 appearance), Fats Waller
, Johnny Weissmuller
and Lee Wiley
.
Shell Oil Company
Shell Oil Company is the United States-based subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, a multinational oil company of Anglo Dutch origins, which is amongst the largest oil companies in the world. Approximately 22,000 Shell employees are based in the U.S. The head office in the U.S. is in Houston, Texas...
, the hour-long program, sometimes called The Shell Show, was broadcast on Saturday evenings at 9:30pm.
Al Jolson
Al JolsonAl Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
was the host when the show debuted April 6, 1935, with Jolson singing the opening theme song, "Golden Gate". The format usually featured a song by Jolson, a comedy routine, a singing guest performer, more music, another Jolson song and a dramatic sketch, followed by more Jolson. Film stars often did scenes from a movie they were promoting. Victor Young
Victor Young
Victor Young was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. He was born in Chicago.-Biography:...
was the orchestra leader, with Ernie Watson and his orchestra on later shows.
Title
Carroll Carroll was the writer-producer for the J. Walter ThompsonJWT
JWT is one of the largest advertising agencies in the United States and the fourth-largest in the world. It is one of the key companies of Sir Martin Sorrell's WPP Group and is headquartered in New York. The global agency is led by Worldwide Chairman and Global CEO Bob Jeffrey who took over the...
agency with Herb Polesie directing. Carroll devised the unusual title because the sponsor wanted its name in the title, and programs at the time sometimes attempted to create the illusion that they were emanating from a luxurious hotel or an exotic location. The J. Walter Thompson agency was responsible for pioneering several big-name variety programs, including The Chase and Sanborn Hour
The Chase and Sanborn Hour
The Chase and Sanborn Hour was the umbrella title for a series of US comedy and variety radio shows, sponsored by Standard Brands' Chase and Sanborn Coffee, usually airing Sundays on NBC from 8pm to 9pm during the years 1929 to 1948....
, The Fleischmann's Yeast Hour
The Fleischmann's Yeast Hour
The Fleischmann's Yeast Hour was a pioneering musical variety radio program broadcast on NBC from 1929 to 1936, when it became The Royal Gelatin Hour, continuing until 1939...
and the Kraft Music Hall
Kraft Music Hall
The Kraft Music Hall was a popular variety program, featuring top show business entertainers, which aired on NBC radio and television from 1933 to 1971....
.
Other hosts and guests
On March 6, 1936, when Jolson left the series, the ratings dropped considerably. It continued until June 26, 1937, with other hosts, including Walter WinchellWalter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
, Wallace Beery
Wallace Beery
Wallace Fitzgerald Beery was an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill opposite Marie Dressler, as Long John Silver in Treasure Island, as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa!, and his titular role in The Champ, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
, Edward Everett Horton
Edward Everett Horton
Edward Everett Horton was an American character actor. He had a long career in film, theater, radio, television and voice work for animated cartoons. He is especially known for his work in the films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.-Early life:Horton was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Isabella...
, Smith Bellew and Joe Cook
Joe Cook (actor)
Joe Cook was an American actor, comedian, and entertainer most known for his work on Broadway but who also appeared in motion pictures....
. The announcers included Foster Williams.
Guests included Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
, John Barrymore
John Barrymore
John Sidney Blyth , better known as John Barrymore, was an acclaimed American actor. He first gained fame as a handsome stage actor in light comedy, then high drama and culminating in groundbreaking portrayals in Shakespearean plays Hamlet and Richard III...
, Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul...
, Ben Blue
Ben Blue
Ben Blue , born Benjamin Bernstein, was a Canadian-American actor and comedian.Born to a Jewish family in Montreal, Quebec, at the age of nine, Blue emigrated to Baltimore in the United States where he won a contest for the best impersonation of Charlie Chaplin...
, Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
, Joan Davis
Joan Davis
Joan Davis was an American comedic actress whose career spanned vaudeville, film, radio and television. Remembered best for the 1950s television comedy, I Married Joan, Davis had a successful earlier career as a B-movie actress and a leading star of 1940s radio comedy.Born as Madonna Josephine...
, Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
(who made two 1935 appearances in the same month), Florence Gill
Florence Gill
Florence Gill was an English voice actress. She provided the voices of Walt Disney's Clara Cluck and The Wise Little Hen. Her interment was located at Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles, California....
(doing her Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
animation chicken voices), George Jessel
George Jessel
George Jessel may refer to:*George Jessel , American actor*George Jessel , English jurist*George Jessel of the Jessel Baronets...
, Boris Karloff
Boris Karloff
William Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
, Dixie Lee
Dixie Lee
Dixie Lee was an American actress, dancer, and singer.Born Wilma Wyatt, she adopted the professional name "Dixie Carroll" as a singer and showgirl. Winfield Sheehan of the Fox film studio changed the name to Dixie Lee, to avoid confusion with actresses Nancy Carroll and Sue Carol...
, Joe E. Lewis
Joe E. Lewis
Joe E. Lewis , born Joseph Klewan in New York City, was an American comedian and singer.-Biography:...
(who was a guest four times), John McCormack, Maxie Rosenbloom
Maxie Rosenbloom
Max Everitt Rosenbloom, known as Slapsie Maxie was an American boxer, actor, and television personality.-Life and career:...
, Joe Penner
Joe Penner
Joe Penner was an American 1930s-era vaudeville, radio and film comedian. He was an ethnic Hungarian born as József Pintér in Nagybecskerek, Austria-Hungary...
, Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Torrey Powell was an American film actress and dancer of the 1930s and 1940s, known for her exuberant solo tap dancing.-Early life:...
(doing a Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress of film, stage, and television. In a career that spanned 62 years as a leading lady, she was best known for playing strong-willed, sophisticated women in both dramas and comedies...
impression), Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
, Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
, Benay Venuta
Benay Venuta
Benay Venuta was an American actress, singer and dancer.Born Benvenuta Rose Crooke in San Francisco, Venuta attended finishing school in Geneva and lived in London where she worked as a dancer before returning to the States. She made her first screen appearance in the silent Trail of '98 in 1928...
(who became a network performer as a result of her 1935 appearance), Fats Waller
Fats Waller
Fats Waller , born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer...
, Johnny Weissmuller
Johnny Weissmuller
Johnny Weissmuller was an Austro-Hungarian-born American swimmer and actor best known for playing Tarzan in movies. Weissmuller was one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s, winning five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. He won fifty-two US National Championships and set sixty-seven...
and Lee Wiley
Lee Wiley
Lee Wiley was an American jazz singer popular in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.Wiley was born in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. While still in her early teens, she left home to pursue a singing career with the Leo Reisman band. Her career was temporarily interrupted by a fall while horseback riding...
.