The Atwater Kent Hour
Encyclopedia
Josef Pasternack
Josef Alexander Pasternack was a well-known conductor and composer in the first half of the 20th century.-Biography:...
. Soprano Frances Alda
Frances Alda
Frances Alda was a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised operatic soprano. She achieved fame during the first three decades of the 20th century due to her outstanding singing voice, fine technique and colourful personality—and frequent onstage partnerships at the New York Metropolitan Opera with the...
was often the featured vocalist, and soprano Mary Eastman also performed. The opening theme music was "Now the Day Is Over," by Sabine Baring-Gould
Sabine Baring-Gould
The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould was an English hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1240 publications, though this list continues to grow. His family home, Lew Trenchard Manor near Okehampton, Devon, has been preserved as he had it...
(words) and Sir Joseph Barnby
Joseph Barnby
Sir Joseph Barnby , English musical composer and conductor, son of Thomas Barnby, an organist, was born at York. He was a chorister at York Minster from the age of seven, was educated at the Royal Academy of Music under Cipriani Potter and Charles Lucas, and was appointed in 1862 organist of St...
(music).
The series was sponsored by the manufacturer of radio receivers, Atwater Kent
A. Atwater Kent
Arthur Atwater Kent, Sr. was an inventor and prominent radio manufacturer based in Philadelphia, usa. In 1921, he patented the modern form of the automobile ignition coil.-Biography:...
. The company's factory was located at 4745 Wissahickon Avenue in North Philadelphia. The radio program paralleled the rise of the Atwater Kent Manufacturing Company, as noted in the history provided by the Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia:
- In 1922 Kent produced his first radio components and in 1923 his first complete radios. By 1924 the company had outgrown its Stenton Avenue campus and moved to a new $2 million plant on Wissahickon Avenue. This plant, constructed in sections, would eventually cover 32 acres. In 1925 the Atwater Kent Manufacturing Company became the largest maker of radios in the nation. Supporting the manufacture of radios was The Atwater Kent Hour, a program broadcast throughout the country in the mid-1920s. The show featured top entertainment and became one of the most popular and acclaimed regular radio programs of the era. In 1929 the company reached its peak performance with over 12,000 employees manufacturing nearly one million radio sets. The plant itself was an architectural sensation and received hundreds of visitors annually.
William Spier
William Spier was an American writer, producer and director for television and radio. He is best known for his radio work, notably Suspense and The Adventures of Sam Spade....
, the program was one of the highest rated evening shows. During the 1930-31 season, The Atwater Kent Hour ranked third (after Amos 'n' Andy
Amos 'n' Andy
Amos 'n' Andy is a situation comedy set in the African-American community. It was very popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s on both radio and television....
and Rudy Vallee
Rudy Vallée
Rudy Vallée was an American singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer.-Early life:Born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont, the son of Charles Alphonse and Catherine Lynch Vallée...
). The announcer was Phillips Carlin
Phillips Carlin
Phillips Carlin was a radio broadcaster and television executive. Carlin started his broadcasting career with the New York radio station, WEAF. He teamed up with Graham McNamee to announce the 1926, 1927 and 1928 World Series...
, who also announced for The Goodrich Hour and The Palmolive Hour.