The Royal Gelatin Hour
Robert Farrell
Beginning in the 1936 season, the name of the program was changed to The Royal Gelatin Hour, as Standard Brands apparently decided they were better served pushing desserts than yeast. The program began to feature guests from the Motion Picture World, including writer Noel Coward, Fay Wray, Tyrone Power, Bob Hope, Roland Young, Gertrude Lawrence, Fanny Brice, and Ed Wynn.
During the first season of The Royal Gelatin Hour, Vallee introduced a young ventriloquist, Edgar Bergen. Although even Vallee expressed doubts at having a ventriloquist on the radio, Bergen's comedic timing and style, along with the precociousness of his sidekick Charlie McCarthy, made him a hit. Bergen appeared on several more episodes during the 1936 season, and in 1937, Standard Brands rebuilt The Chase and Sanborn Hour around Bergen and McCarthy, running until 1949.
The Royal Gelatin Hour also made history during Rudy Vallee's 1937 summer vacation. Vallee insisted that the sponsor hire jazz great Louis Armstrong as summer host, making Armstrong the first African American to host a major network program.
This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.