Don McNeill and his Breakfast Club / John Doolittle.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Doolittle, John, 1941-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

McNeill, Don (Donald Thomas), 1907-1996.

McNeill, Don.

Radio broadcasters--United States--Biography.

Radio broadcasters.

United States.

Breakfast Club (Radio program).

Genre:

Biographies.

Sound recordings.

Physical Description:

xvi, 247 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm + 1 sound disk (4 3/4 in.)

4 3/4 in.

Place of Publication:

Notre Dame, Indiana : University of Notre Dame Press, [2001]

Summary:

Before morning talk radio, before Garrison Keillor and Lake Wobegon, before Oprah, Jay, Rosie, and Dave, there was Don McNeill and his Breakfast Club. From his first broadcast in June 1933 until his sign-off in December 1968, Don McNeill presided as emcee over his creation, along the way cultivating as widespread an audience and as long-lived a show as any that flourished in the decades when radio was the dominant source of news and entertainment in American life.

McNeill's genius was to insist on an unscripted show produced before a studio audience. In that format, his spontaneous wit and genial manner, coupled with his good-natured banter with the Breakfast Club cast and audience, meshed beautifully into an uplifting show of emotional immediacy. Listeners tuned in at 8 A.M. to hear the first of four calls to breakfast; they knew to expect the March Around the Breakfast Table and such other regular features as the Moment of Silent Prayer and Memory Time.

Through a mix of comedy, music, interviews, and upbeat moral encouragement--all centered around the everyday fixture of the breakfast table--McNeill both entertained his listeners and welcomed them as participants in a morning ritual that became part of their daily routine. Their response was overwhelming, rewarding the show with support for over thirty-five years.

With Chicago as his base, McNeill's friendly style and energetic show captured a loyal audience of stay-at-home, middle-income women across the nation. A growing number of listeners attracted sponsors and soon McNeill became a household celebrity. Some of the biggest names in show business dropped by the Breakfast Club, including Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, Jimmy Stewart, Jane Russell, Joe Lewis, Lucille Ball, Danny Kaye, and Groucho Marx. The Breakfast Club then hit the road to great success, even spawning in 1948 the "Don McNeill for President" campaign complete with whistle-stops across the country.

McNeill's sincerity, warmth, and humor entertained his audience and gave it a welcome balance to the deprivations and horrors of the Depression, World War II, and the Korean War. Often corny and always rooted in down-to-earth friendliness, McNeill never shied away from conveying his values: civility to all, respect for family and marriage, compassion for others, and spirituality as a source of inner strength. Complete with a CD of selections from Breakfast Club broadcasts, this set will charm old-time radio devotees and students of media and Chicago history, as well as former Breakfast Clubbers.

Contents:

1 McNeill Takes the Long Way from Milwaukee to Chicago 1

2 The Very First Call to Breakfast 9

3 A Marine Makes Way for Studio Audiences 21

4 Bringing Sponsors to the Table 33

5 The Wartime Silent Prayer Becomes a Tradition 43

6 Aunt Fanny Joins the Growing Cast 55

7 "McNeill for President" 65

8 After the Merchandise Mart 81

9 The TV Club (1950-1951) 91

10 Breakfast Club Road Trips 105

11 Himself's Hideaway

The Perfect Retreat 113

12 1954-1955 Radio-TV Simulcast 121

13 Taking Pride in America 131

14 Loyal Listeners and Sponsors 137

15 Memorializing the Silent Prayer 149

16 Breakfast Clubbing from Europe 161

17 Breakfast in the Clouds 173

18 Last Call to Breakfast 181

19 Don McNeill

A Super Senior 189

20 A Radio Pioneer 203.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 219-228) and index.

ISBN:

0268008981

OCLC:

45363260