The Ford Sunday Evening Hour

"The Ford Sunday Evening Hour" was an hour-long concert music radio series, sponsored by the Ford Motor Company, which was broadcast from 1934 to 1946, with a hiatus from 1942 to 1945. The program presented selections of classical music, hymns, popular ballads and well-known arias.

The series featured a rotation of different conductors, including Fritz Reiner and John Barbirolli. Soloists included soprano Helen Jepson, contralto Gladys Swarthout, baritone John Charles Thomas (a 1936-37 regular) and Lawrence Tibbett.

William Reddick became producer of the program in 1936. Henry Ford was closely involved in the program, from choosing the theme ("The Children's Prayer" from "Hansel and Gretel") to hiring the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

Books

During the weekly intermission, William John Cameron of the Ford Motor Company delivered brief talks on a variety of topics from sports to economics. These talks were collected into a several books published by Ford.

On CBS, the series began October 7, 1934, on Sunday evenings at 9pm, continuing until March 1, 1942. It returned Sundays at 8pm on ABC September 30, 1945, airing until June 23, 1946.

During the summer months, it was replaced by "The Ford Summer Hour", featuring Donald Voorhees, Meredith Willson, James Melton, Francia White and Jane Pickens.

When "The Ford Sunday Evening Hour" came to an end, the Ford Motor Company immediately launched one week later, "The Ford Festival of American Music" which offered the full spectrum of popular music, from swing to show tunes, along with folk and classical selections. Leigh Harline conducted the orchestra, and Alfred Drake was the host of the show, produced by George Zachary. It aired from June 30 to September 22, 1946.

ee also

*Ford Theatre

External links

* [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,849763,00.html "Farewell, Ford," "Time", February 2, 1942.]