Media: Thank You Imagination Theatre

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This is the one thousandth post to this blog.  The looming significance of such a milestone was a significant factor in the decrease in entries to this space--I wanted to find something significant to mark the event.  In the end, it was obvious--something else that had reached and surpassed a much more significant one thousand milestone--Jim French's "Imagination Theatre."

Way back in 1990, as the CBS Radio Network once more cancelled the distribution of its "Radio Mystery Theater" series (which had stopped recording new episodes in 1982), KIRO radio in Seattle wanted something to replace the series, which remained very popular in the Pacific Northwest.  Management didn't need to look very far.  They had on staff as their late morning "Midday" host someone who had been doing radio dramas since 1965, Jim French.

Before long, the "KIRO Mystery Playhouse" was born, producing both new radio dramas and re-playing classic episodes from French's earlier work on KIRO and KVI, including series like "Crisis" and "Dameron."  Even early in his career, French had the foresight to retain the rights to these works, so rather than being lost in station archives, he could bring them back for further broadcast at his discretion.  As time went on and the radio landscape changed, the show would shift to sister station KNWX in 1999 and away from the then-Entercom cluster to KIXI in 2003.  Most importantly, though, it had been picked up in syndication in 1996 by Transmedia as "Imagination Theatre."  French felt this was a much more descriptive name, as what the shows were doing was engaging the listener's imaginations, not necessarily solving a mystery.  Transmedia and Jim French Productions amicably parted ways in 2006, and Jim French Productions would handle syndication for the remainder of the show's run.

Syndication brought "Imagination Theatre" not only to hundreds of stations and satellite radio across the United States over the years, but to other English-speaking nations, foremost Australia and Canada.  Internet distribution would bring it to the entire world.  What had once been a Seattle phenomenon perhaps also experienced in places like Alaska where KIRO could be heard at night grew to attract attention from radio enthusiasts all over the planet.  French secured the rights to record classic and original "Sherlock Holmes" dramas, and this brought attention from British writers who would contribute to other series airing on "Imagination Theatre."  Live tapings, which initially occurred at the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) in Seattle, Washington, moved to the Kirkland Performance Center in Kirkland, Washington in 1999 and continued on an approximately monthly basis.

These radio dramas were one of the reasons I became interested in radio.  In my teenage years, I would go out of my way to be at a radio that could receive KIRO 710 AM at 9 pm on weekend evenings.  I was able to catch a live taping of the "KIRO Mystery Playhouse" at MOHAI in 1992, and would enjoy an "Imagination Theatre" taping in Kirkland in 2006.  The familiar voices from Seattle radio that acted in various dramas created a link to my childhood, never mind the setting of many of the Harry Nile detective stories in a post-World War II Seattle.

While series as diverse as "Kerides, the Thinker" set in ancient Egypt, "Raffles, the Gentlemen Thief" set in Victorian England, and "Kincaid, the Strange Seeker" set in contemporary America appeared regularly on "Imagination Theatre," arguably the most iconic series was "The Adventures of Harry Nile."  Regular listeners know the entire history of the character, from his time in Chicago as a policeman and his interracial marriage, to his time in Los Angeles where he would meet his partner Murphy and have many adventures during World War II, to his time in Seattle.  Originally started as a KVI series in 1976 with haunting theme music by David Shire, "The Adventures of Harry Nile" featured Phil Harper as Harry Nile and Pat French, Jim's wife, as his partner Murphy.  (Murphy's first name, mentioned in only one episode in the entire series, would become a marker of devoted fans--if you knew Murphy's first name, you were in the club.)  After Harper's death in 2004, Jim French's right-hand man, Larry Albert, would take over.  Mary Anne Dorward would start voicing Murphy in 2011, leading to one of many inside jokes on the show as her first appearance was marked by Harry saying "You sound different."  "The Adventures of Harry Nile" was so preeminent in the "Imagination Theatre" world that its web site was promoted as "harrynile.com" rather than "jimfrenchproductions.com".

Pat French's retirement was a warning that all good things do not last forever.  Jim French's health began to decline, and it was announced that the January 30th, 2017 taping at the Kirkland Performance Center would be the last live taping.  At the taping, it was announced that the last new broadcast would air at the end of February, and Jim French Productions would close for good at the end of March.

The final episode could be nothing other than a final episode of "The Adventures of Harry Nile" and the ending could only be the outcome that some fans had been waiting forty-one years to hear--even longer than the fictional Murphy had been waiting.

So, in this one-thousandth blog entry, I thank Jim French and his many associates for 1,093 official weeks of "Imagination Theatre," and in reality many more hours of quality broadcasting over the years.  As E.G. Marshall would say at the end of each "Mystery Theater," may you have "pleasant dreams" forever.

Media: Changes Twenty Years Ago

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Lest anyone think I haven't had some practice commenting on changes in radio and lamenting the future of the medium, try to think back twenty years and read my Highlight report from 29-October-1990, which came from a decidedly Seattle-centric perspective:

Today, for the first time, I saw a Judy Muller feature, on elder surfers, on ABC Television's World News tonight. Muller used to be a regular CBS radio commentator, and I enjoyed her features nearly as much as Charles Osgood's. When she left CBS last August, my radio listening enjoyment decreased considerably. In fact, in my opinion, radio in general has been getting worse all year. Stay tuned. [An Audi commercial played in the original audio version of this essay.]

I used to really enjoy listening to the radio, at virtually any time of the day or night. All my weekend nights would be spent listening intently to the highly professional Mystery Theater. However, as of January 1st, the Mystery Theater went off the air and its replacement six months later, the KIRO Mystery Playhouse, just doesn't stack up in suspense and quality endings.

At the end of the summer, more little changes occurred. Judy Muller left CBS radio, and several Seattle-area FM station changed their format, to less likable combinations of present-day music and classic rock'n'roll. Just when I had adjusted to these losses, more changes happened.

KOMO radio abandoned its weeknight program October 22nd in favor of Sally Jesse Raphael and Tom Snyder shows. I like being able to consistently hear Tom Snyder, but I will miss the excellent local news of KOMO's News at Ten.

This Monday, National Public Radio abandoned their evening Heat program with John Hockenberry. Though I wasn't a consistent listener, whenever I did tune in, I was always impressed by the quality of the satire on Heat.

The final straw is coming this Thursday, November 1st, when my favorite radio station, San Francisco's KCBS, will go to an all-news format. No longer will I be able to hear Art Finley's Nightbeat, in my opinion the most entertaining talk show on the air between 8 and 11 pm.

Change is inevitable, but I don't understand why all these reformattings and dropped programs are usually very negative and at best are quite mixed. At least Judy Muller will have an opportunity to be creative on ABC TV.

Twenty years later, it's interesting to see where some of these individuals have ended up. Judy Muller is still a television correspondent for ABC News. The KIRO Mystery Playhouse, produced by Jim French, has since become the syndicated Imagination Theater and still produces a one-hour show each week. KOMO radio dropped talk in favor of all-news, though its daytime format now includes talk shows from 9 to 3. John Hockenberry worked for NBC television for a time, but returned to public radio and now hosts the youth-focused morning show, The Takeaway. KCBS is still an all-news station, and now simulcasts on FM. Art Finley retired as a news anchor in 1995, and reportedly lives in British Columbia.

Media: Remembering Himan Brown

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Somehow, I missed the news for several days that Himan Brown died on Friday at the age of 99. I knew Brown as the producer of CBS Radio Mystery Theater, and last heard him on a National Public Radio reincarnation of Mystery Theater in 2000, but he was far more than that--he was the premiere radio drama producer of the 20th century.

CBS Radio Mystery Theater itself ran from 1974 to 1982; I heard it on re-runs later in the decade until CBS stopped nightly distribution of the series at the end of 1989. I don't remember the first time I heard the program, but I definitely remember that it became part of my routine almost immediately. The program was so well-produced that it was completely engrossing, and the plot twists could be genuinely shocking. My local affiliate, KIRO in Seattle, ran three hours on Saturday night and two hours on Sunday night, and I would religiously head to bed and not turn the radio off until the show was over.

E. G. Marshall was the host of Mystery Theater, but Brown was the driving creative force and its link to the golden days of radio, dutifully credited at the end of each show. Yet, that was far from Brown's peak accomplishment. He did his first radio drama work in 1929, and would go on to work not only through the golden era but well beyond, producing a long list of shows including Dick Tracy, Flash Gordon, and the Inner Sanctum Mysteries. The Inner Sanctum introduced the creaking door that would be an icon of the later Mystery Theater. In all, Brown produced over 30,000 dramas including 1,399 Mystery Theaters.

When Mystery Theater went out of distribution, its popularity was still so strong that many CBS affiliates tried substitute programming. Most notably, KNX in Los Angeles played other famous radio programs during its 9 PM "Drama Hour," audible at that after-dark hour up and down the west coast. KIRO in Seattle had its own Jim French go back into the production of new dramas.

Indeed, radio drama continues on. Jim French Productions does an weekly Imagination Theater hour, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation produces a weekly half-hour episode (currently running Afghanada), the British Broadcasting Corporation probably still has the highest output in the world, and there are others. However, all of these other shows have their own tone and feel; the unique style of Himan Brown has been silenced forever.

Then again, considering the plot twists inherent in Mystery Theater, can we really be sure he won't come back? Pleasant dreeeeaaams, hmmmmm?