Inside Radio Stars, part I

Radio Stars, April, 1933. We may have been deep in the throes of the Great Depression, but what a great year for comedy! On the cover, Jack Pearl at the very height of his fame, just prior to making his feature film debut in Meet the Baron at MGM. Inside, more info than I have ever seen anywhere else about Tom Howard. Who knew he owned a kennel of racing whippets? Also revealed is the fact that he and George Shelton used no scripts on the air, a true mark of the seasoned burlesque comic.

Radio Stars, May, 1933. Rudy Vallee on the cover, also at the height of his popularity. It was his show on NBC that featured Shelton and Howard. First, a dramatic tale about Ed Wynn's near financial (and physical) collapse. Wynn's lengthy career was marked by unusually severe ups and downs, so it's little wonder that his emotional state followed suit. And this is the first time I've ever seen a picture of his mother.