A Two Bird, One Stone Surprise
On February 6, 2015
- TV History
A Two Bird, One Stone Surprise
Below is a a video of a song that many people think was a Beatles original, but it’s not…it’s from “The Music Man”. The performance is by opera star Barbra Cook on “The Bell Telephone Hour” which began April 29, 1940, on NBC Radio and was heard there until June 30, 1958, when it moved to television for a nine-year run.
Above is nice shot of Barbara Cook from one of her many appearances on the Bell Hour which originated at NBC Brooklyn. The Bell hour was one of the first shows to be broadcast exclusively in color. “The Howdy Doody Show” was the first daily color broadcast starting September 12, 1955. -Bobby Ellerbee
Barbara Cook was a major Broadway star (not opera, although her voice does have that range) and she is still singing at age 87. She has had one-woman shows at Carnegie Hall and NY night clubs.
Several clips from the “Bell Telephone Hour” are seen on Classic Arts Showcase ( and many of them on original color videotape! ). Here in Southern California — CAS is shown on KCET 28.
Barbara Cook was the original Marion the librarian.