Ceiling Unlimited
 Flying Fortress (The Swoose) | |
| Genre |
Anthology series Aviation Variety-musical |
|---|---|
| Running time |
15 minutes (1942–1943) 30 minutes (1943–1944) |
| Country | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| Home station | CBS |
| Host(s) |
Orson Welles (episodes 1–13) Various (episodes 14–33) James Hilton (episodes 34–39) Joseph Cotten (second season) |
| Starring | Various |
| Creator(s) | Orson Welles |
| Writer(s) |
Orson Welles (episodes 1–13) Arthur Miller Harry Kronman Winston Norman Mandred Lloyd Harry Kronman others |
| Director(s) | Orson Welles (episodes 1–13) |
| Producer(s) |
Orson Welles (episodes 1–13) Thomas Freebairn-Smith (after February 1943) |
| Narrated by | Orson Welles |
| Air dates | November 9, 1942 to April 30, 1944 |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 78 |
Ceiling Unlimited (later known as America — Ceiling Unlimited) (1942–1944) is a CBS radio series created by Orson Welles and sponsored by the Lockheed-Vega Corporation. The program was conceived to glorify the aviation industry and dramatize its role in World War II.
"Welles wrote, produced, and narrated this show, and his work was considered a prime contribution to the war effort," wrote the Museum of Broadcasting.[1]
At the end of Welles's 13-episode contract (November 9, 1942–February 1, 1943), Ceiling Unlimited was hosted by a variety of personalities including Charles Boyer, Joe E. Brown, Ronald Colman, Marlene Dietrich, Cary Grant, Alan Ladd, William Powell, Basil Rathbone, Edward G. Robinson and writer James Hilton.
Ceiling Unlimited began as a 15-minute drama series broadcast Mondays at 7:15 p.m. ET. The program changed format for its second season, becoming a half-hour variety show hosted by Joseph Cotten. Retitled America — Ceiling Unlimited, the program featured vocalists Nan Wynn and Constance Moore, and music by Wilbur Hatch. The show aired Sundays at 2 p.m. ET beginning August 8, 1943, and ending April 30, 1944.
Production
Orson Welles returned to the United States on August 22, 1942, after six months of filming in Latin America at the behest of the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs and serving as what Welles termed "a kind of Ambassador extraordinary." [2] Within weeks he began to plan two CBS radio dramas to be broadcast on consecutive nights: Ceiling Unlimited, and Hello Americans, a docudrama to promote inter-American understanding and friendship during World War II.[3]:351
Ceiling Unlimited was a morale-boosting anthology of stories about heroic tales of aviation. Described by radio historian John Dunning as "aggressively patriotic," the program was sponsored by the Lockheed-Vega Corporation. There were no commercial breaks; the company was content to have just three one-line mentions throughout each show. It was noted in the contemporary press that as Lockheed and Vega had only one lucrative customer — the wartime Allied governments — they did not need to advertise.[4]
"Its purpose, one of simple propaganda, was to boost morale within the industry in order to underpin the vast increase in productivity the war demanded," wrote Welles biographer Simon Callow.[5]:157
Lockheed-Vega established a research bureau in Washington, D.C., to develop story ideas and identify true stories in the files of disparate government agencies. For his part, Welles acquainted himself with the Flying Fortress and other aircraft at the Lockheed-Vega plants in California, wrote biographer Frank Brady: "Sporting an employee's identification badge and wearing a silver-colored hard hat, he poked his nose into machinery, ate box lunches with executives, and talked to the workers on the assembly lines. He became enmeshed in the love of flight."[3]:351–352
Welles titled the series Ceiling Unlimited. "He thought it both romantic and evocative," wrote biographer Frank Brady, "but the sponsors disagreed. For weeks, in publicity releases and other references the program was called 'the new Orson Welles Show,' and it wasn't until two days before the broadcast, when it appeared that Orson would not relent, that Ceiling Unlimited became official."[3]:351
Playwright Arthur Miller was one of the writers for the show, and Welles asked him to create its format. Miller and Welles were the same age, 27; both were veterans of the Federal Theatre Project and they worked together easily.[3]:351–352 They had worked together once before; Welles performed a nuanced drama about Benito Juárez — Juarez: Thunder from the Hills, a verse play written by Miller — before a live audience on the September 28, 1942, broadcast of Cavalcade of America. [6][7]
Each week, Ceiling Unlimited announcer Pat McGeehan repeated, "Man has always looked to the heavens for help and inspiration, and from the skies too will come his victory and his future."[8] Welles cast many of his Mercury Theatre company of actors, including Ray Collins, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead and Everett Sloane.[9] Bernard Herrmann created the music for the first 13 shows.[10]
Welles's run on the program overlapped with his other CBS radio series, Hello Americans, which was broadcast on Sunday nights while Ceiling Unlimited aired on Monday nights. His radio success was "a psychic exhilarant" for Welles, wrote biographer Frank Brady:
After the difficulties of It's All True and the discredit of Ambersons, compounded by the humiliation of being turned away by RKO, he began to regain his confidence with the positive radio reviews that appeared across the nation. … Also in demand for speaking and lecture engagements, he now seemed to drift into professional celebrityhood, accepting all offers to appear anywhere at any time to speak about anything. … Gravitating between both coasts, sometimes commuting back and forth in a single week, very unusual in those days, he made what seemed like countless guest appearances on radio shows — everything from "The Fred Allen Show" to the "Radio Reader's Digest," and from "The Kate Smith Show" to "Take It or Leave It" and was engaged constantly as a lecturer, toastmaster, and master of ceremonies.[3]:353
At a last-minute rehearsal of Ceiling Unlimited, Welles clashed with a newly appointed advertising agency account executive, reported biographer Barbara Leaming:
When the agency fellow showed up, two hours before air time, Orson was rushing about the set as always, barking instructions at actors, musicians and technicians. The visitor edged up to Orson's new business partner, Jackson Leighter, and in a very low voice asked him, "Mr. Leighter, how do you handle this man Welles?" At which remark Orson suddenly stopped dead. A moment before, the set had been a hive of activity, but now no one was moving. "Young man", boomed Orson, who was only twenty seven years old himself. "You handle horses!" Without a word more, he repaired to his office, threw on his hat and coat, and left for the night. So definitive was his exit that Leighter knew he'd better quickly find a replacement.[11][12]Welles left Ceiling Unlimited at the end of his 13-episode contract, concluding the broadcast on February 1, 1943, with a statement: "For a while, the Mercury Theatre is going off the air. Next week my friend Ronald Colman will tell you the story about the Douglas Dauntless, the world's greatest dive bomber. We very much wish it were possible to go on writing and producing these radio plays. We've never been happier. … We leave with real regret."[13]
Ronald Colman was the guest host on the February 8, 1943, edition of Ceiling Unlimited, the first to be broadcast after Welles's departure. Future shows of the season would continue to use celebrity guest hosts, including Marlene Dietrich, Alan Ladd, Brian Donlevy, Frank Morgan, Ralph Morgan, Basil Rathbone, Robert Young, Cary Grant, Claire Trevor, Edward G. Robinson, Adolphe Menjou, and Walter Abel.[14]
The second season began on August 8, 1943 and followed more of a musical/variety format, with the series retitled America — Ceiling Unlimited. It was presented by Welles's friend and collaborator Joseph Cotten. It contained 39 episodes, the last of which was broadcast on April 30, 1944.[15]
Such were the differences from the first season format that Old Time Radio enthusiast website The Digital Deli argues, "Any attempt to simply conflate Ceiling Unlimited and America, Ceiling Unlimited is just silly. They're entirely different formats...The only elements common to both programs were their sponsor and the phrase, Ceiling Unlimited", although like most other sources, they provide listings for both seasons as if they were the same programme.[16]
Episodes
Ceiling Unlimited
Audiotapes of 12 of the 13 Ceiling Unlimited programs produced by Orson Welles are in the collection of the Lilly Library at Indiana University Bloomington.[17]Where indicated, some recordings are available at the Internet Archive. A trial recording of the first program, "Flying Fortress", can be heard at the Old Time Radio Researchers Group Library.[18]
From June 28 through August 2, 1943, Ceiling Unlimited was hosted by author James Hilton.[19]:145 [20] Reviewing a July broadcast, Billboard wrote, "Hilton's ceiling is zero-zero … Like many other ideas, James Hilton as a radio program sounded like a million dollars on paper and a thin dime on the air."[21] Hilton published Ceiling Unlimited (1943), a boxed limited edition of 100 signed copies of his six scripts for the program.[22]
| # | Date | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | November 9, 1942 | Flying Fortress by Ranald MacDougall and Norman Rosten Cast: Orson Welles, Erskine Sanford, Ray Collins; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 2 | November 16, 1942 | Air Transport Command Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 3 | November 23, 1942 | The Navigator by Orson Welles and Milton Geiger Cast: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Ray Collins, Agnes Moorehead, Elliott Reid; music by Bernard Herrmann Promoting the third broadcast in the series Welles stated, "Everyone knows the skill and courage it takes to become a pilot, but few realize the concentration, knowledge, quick wit and steady nerves required of the navigator."[23] |
| 4 | November 30, 1942 | Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, adapted by Orson Welles Cast: Orson Welles, Burgess Meredith; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 5 | December 7, 1942 | Ballad of Bataan by Norman Rosten Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 6 | December 14, 1942 | War Workers by Hans Conreid[24] Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann Welles "interviews" members of the diverse workforce at the Vega airplane factory[25] |
| 7 | December 21, 1942 | Gremlins by Lucille Fletcher[24] Cast: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, Lou Merrill; music by Bernard Herrmann Christmas episode[26] |
| 8 | December 28, 1942 | Pan American Airlines by Milton Geiger[24] Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann[27] |
| 9 | January 4, 1943 | Anti-Submarine Patrol Cast: Edward G. Robinson substituting for Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 10 | January 11, 1943 | Finger in the Wind by Myron Dutton Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 11 | January 18, 1943 | Letter to Mother by John Steinbeck Cast: Betty Garde (Mother), Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 12 | January 25, 1943 | Flyer Come Home by John Steinbeck Mrs. James and the Pot of Tea by John Tucker Battle Cast: Orson Welles; music by Bernard Herrmann |
| 13 | February 1, 1943 | The Future[24] Cast: Orson Welles (final show in his 13-episode contract); music by Bernard Herrmann Set three years in the future at La Guardia Airport |
| 14 | February 8, 1943 | Dive Bomber Cast: Ronald Colman |
| 15 | February 15, 1943 | Drama about a German mother whose son is fighting for Hitler Cast: Marlene Dietrich, Maria Riva |
| 16 | February 22, 1943 | Arctic Rescue Cast: Alan Ladd |
| 17 | March 1, 1943 | Flight Surgeon Cast: Ralph Morgan, Frank Morgan |
| 18 | March 8, 1943 | Cast: James Gleason, Pat O'Malley |
| 19 | March 15, 1943 | Air Transport Command Cast: Agnes Moorehead |
| 20 | March 22, 1943 | Alberto Santos-Dumont Cast: Charles Boyer |
| 21 | March 29, 1943 | Mr. Split-Second Cast: Basil Rathbone |
| 22 | April 5, 1943 | |
| 23 | April 12, 1943 | |
| 24 | April 19, 1943 | God's Corporals and Hymn to a Hero Cast: William Powell[28]and Agnes Moorehead |
| 25 | April 26, 1943 | Big Town, 1955 A.D. Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Ona Munson |
| 26 | May 3, 1943 | Cast: Walter Abel, Claire Trevor |
| 27 | May 10, 1943 | Rulers of Earth aka Dictators Meeting in Hell[24] Cast: Orson Welles (The Devil), George Coulouris (Napoleon), Pedro de Cordoba (Philip), Joe Kearns (Louis) Lou Merrill, Hans Conreid (The Kaiser); music composed and conducted by Anthony Collins[29] |
| 28 | May 17, 1943 | I Saw War Cast: Joe E. Brown |
| 29 | May 24, 1943 | Island in the Sky Cast: Cary Grant |
| 30 | May 31, 1943 | |
| 31 | June 7, 1943 | |
| 32 | June 14, 1943 | First Mission Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 33 | June 21, 1943 | Cast: Robert Young |
| 34 | June 28, 1943 | Radar, the Secret Weapon Cast: James Hilton |
| 35 | July 5, 1943 | Cast: James Hilton |
| 36 | July 12, 1943 | Cast: James Hilton |
| 37 | July 19, 1943 | Cast: James Hilton |
| 38 | July 26, 1943 | Cast: James Hilton |
| 39 | August 2, 1943 | Cast: James Hilton |
America — Ceiling Unlimited
Beginning Sunday, August 8, 1943, Joseph Cotten hosted the 30-minute variety series still sponsored by Lockheed and Vega but now titled America — Ceiling Unlimited. In his 1987 autobiography, Cotten recalled that at the end of the first broadcast he was summoned to the control booth for a telephone call: "It was Groucho Marx. He congratulated me and said that he had not only enjoyed the show, but had also been completely sold by the commercial. 'Just where can I buy a P-38?' he asked."[30]
| # | Date | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 8, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten, Nan Wynn |
| 2 | August 15, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 3 | August 22, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 4 | August 29, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 5 | September 5, 1943 | A Smart Soldier Like Me Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 6 | September 12, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 7 | September 19, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 8 | September 26, 1943 | Johnny Flynn and the Scourge of the Desert Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 9 | October 3, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten, Ben Lyon |
| 10 | October 10, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 11 | October 17, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 12 | October 24, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 13 | October 31, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 14 | November 7, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 15 | November 14, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 16 | November 21, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 17 | November 28, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 18 | December 5, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 19 | December 12, 1943 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 20 | December 19, 1943 | A Letter to an Unborn Son[24] Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore; music by Wilbur Hatch |
| 21 | December 26, 1943 | Flight Report Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 22 | January 2, 1944 | Custody of the Cook Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 23 | January 9, 1944 | Cajun Cradle Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 24 | January 16, 1944 | The Little People by Frank Richardson Pierce Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 25 | January 23, 1944 | Girl Adrift by Richard Howels Watkins Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 26 | January 30, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 27 | February 6, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 28 | February 13, 1944 | Remember This Day Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 29 | February 20, 1944 | Those Who Were On the Ferry Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 30 | February 27, 1944 | Comes the Devil Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 31 | March 5, 1944 | Situation Well in Hand by Vina Delmar Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 32 | March 12, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore; music by Wilbur Hatch |
| 33 | March 19, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 34 | March 26, 1944 | The Bride and Delehanty Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 35 | April 2, 1944 | George is a Noble Guy by George F. Jenkins Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 36 | April 9, 1944 | God's Corporals and Hymn to a Hero[24] Rebroadcast of Easter special from April 19, 1943 |
| 37 | April 16, 1944 | A Date in Bethesda Cast: Joseph Cotten, Constance Moore |
| 38 | April 23, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
| 39 | April 30, 1944 | Cast: Joseph Cotten |
Surviving episodes
The vast majority of episodes are believed to be missing, although they may still exist in private collections. Currently, six first-season episodes and four second-season episodes are in circulation among fans of Old Time Radio.[31]
"War Workers" is one of four of Welles's wartime radio broadcasts included as supplementary material in the Kino Classics restoration of The Stranger (1946), released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in October 2013.[32]
References
- ↑ Orson Welles on the Air: The Radio Years. New York: The Museum of Broadcasting, catalogue for exhibition October 28–December 3, 1988, page 64
- ↑ Welles, Orson and Peter Bogdanovich, edited by Jonathan Rosenbaum, This is Orson Welles. New York: HarperCollins Publishers 1992 ISBN 0-06-016616-9 page 150
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Brady, Frank, Citizen Welles: A Biography of Orson Welles. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1989 ISBN 0-385-26759-2
- ↑ John Dunning, On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1998) page 145
- ↑ Callow, Simon, Hello Americans. New York: Viking, 2006 ISBN 0-67087256-3 hardcover
- ↑ Frohlich, Shirley, "Comment," The Billboard, October 10, 1942, page 7
- ↑ Welles, Orson and Peter Bogdanovich, edited by Jonathan Rosenbaum, This is Orson Welles. New York: HarperCollins Publishers 1992 ISBN 0-06-016616-9 page 372
- ↑ John Dunning, On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1998) p.145
- ↑ Old Time Radio log for Ceiling Unlimited
- ↑ Radio Music, The Bernard Herrmann Web Pages; retrieved June 7, 2012
- ↑ Barbara Leaming, Orson Welles: A Biography (Viking, New York, 1985) p. 255
- ↑ Edward G. Robinson replaced Welles on the ninth Ceiling Unlimited broadcast on January 4, 1943; Welles had missed the January 3 broadcast of Hello Americans due to illness. Welles, Orson and Peter Bogdanovich, edited by Jonathan Rosenbaum, This is Orson Welles. New York: HarperCollins Publishers 1992 ISBN 0-06-016616-9 page 376
- ↑ Ceiling Unlimited episode "The Future of Aviation" — Welles's last episode as host, approx 14 minutes in.
- ↑ The Digital Deli listing for Ceiling Unlimited
- ↑ Old Time Radio log for Ceiling Unlimited
- ↑ The Digital Deli listing for Ceiling Unlimited
- ↑ Guide to the Orson Welles Materials in the Lilly Library — Tapes Lilly Library, retrieved May 28, 2012. Missing from the collection is the December 7, 1942, broadcast, in which Welles reads Norman Rosten's poem, Back to Bataan; only the bound script is in the collection.
- ↑ "Flying Fortress" (mp3) in the Old Time Radio Researchers Group Library; retrieved June 4, 2012. The program is prefaced by the following statement: "— follows will not be broadcast in its present form. None of the material has received official clearance. This is a trial record only."
- ↑ Dunning, John, On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1998 ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3 hardcover; revised edition of Tune In Yesterday (1976)
- ↑ Hilton, James, Ceiling Unlimited. Burbank, California: Columbia Broadcasting System, 1943; title page notes six broadcasts from June 28 to August 2, 1943
- ↑ J. M. K., Billboard, July 31, 1943
- ↑ Hilton, James, Ceiling Unlimited. Burbank, California: Columbia Broadcasting System, 1943; details at Between the Covers Rare Books and Live Auctioneers; retrieved June 5, 2012
- ↑ "Navigator on 'Ceiling Unlimited'"; The San Antonio Light, November 23, 1942
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 24.4 24.5 24.6 Ceiling Unlimited episode available at the Internet Archive
- ↑ Ceiling Unlimited — "War Workers", Paley Center for Media; retrieved May 28, 2012
- ↑ Ceiling Unlimited — "Gremlins", Paley Center for Media; retrieved May 28, 2012
- ↑ Ceiling Unlimited — "Pan American Airlines", Paley Center for Media; retrieved May 28, 2012
- ↑ Cedar Rapids Tribune, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, April 15, 1943, page 2. "William Powell of the movies is spokesman on God's Corporals, the Ceiling Unlimited story dramatizing the giant planes which carry wounded men from battlefields to base hospitals … The nurses are trained in aerial gunnery so they can take part in actual combat in case of attack. These intrepid young women are capable, in extreme emergency, of performing operations."
- ↑ Ceiling Unlimited, Paley Center for Media; retrieved May 28, 2012
- ↑ Cotten, Joseph, Vanity Will Get You Somewhere. San Francisco: Mercury House, 1987 ISBN 0-916515-17-6 page 69. Cotten remembered the program's title as Ceiling Zero.
- ↑ The Digital Deli listing for Ceiling Unlimited
- ↑ The Stranger at Kino Lorber, Inc. Retrieved 2013-10-05.