45 Facts About Mutual Broadcasting System

1.

Mutual Broadcasting System was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999.

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2.

Mutual Broadcasting System pioneered the nationwide late night call-in radio program in the late 1970s, introducing the country to Larry King and later Jim Bohannon.

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3.

Four national networks of American radio's classic era, Mutual had for decades the largest number of affiliates, but the least certain financial position.

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4.

Once General Tire sold the network in 1957, Mutual Broadcasting System's ownership was largely disconnected from the stations it served, leading to a more conventional, top-down model of program production and distribution.

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5.

Mutual Broadcasting System changed ownership several times in succeeding years—even leaving aside larger-scale acquisitions and mergers, its final direct corporate parent, Westwood One, which purchased Mutual Broadcasting System in 1985, was the seventh in a string of new owners that followed General Tire.

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6.

In contrast, the Mutual Broadcasting System was run as a true cooperative venture, with programming produced by and shared between the group's members.

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7.

The network was in the midst of a major expansion: the first outside group of stations to sign on with Mutual Broadcasting System was John Shepard's Colonial Network with its Boston flagship station, WAAB, and thirteen affiliates around New England.

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8.

Mutual Broadcasting System gave the twice-a-week series its first national exposure until November 1939, when it switched to NBC Blue.

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9.

Mutual Broadcasting System provided the national launching pad for Kay Kyser and his Kollege of Musical Knowledge radio show.

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10.

Kyser's enormous success at Mutual Broadcasting System soon allowed his show to move to NBC and its much larger audience.

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11.

That autumn, Mutual Broadcasting System won exclusive broadcast rights to the World Series.

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12.

Mutual Broadcasting System began building a reputation as a strong news service, rivaling the industry leaders in quality if not budget.

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13.

The broadcasts of WOR reporter Gabriel Heatter from the Lindbergh kidnapping "trial of the century" in 1935, heard over Mutual Broadcasting System, were highly regarded; Heatter soon had his own regularly scheduled newscast, aired nationally five nights a week.

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14.

In 1936, via WOR, Mutual began broadcasting the reports of news commentator Raymond Gram Swing, who became one of the country's leading voices on foreign affairs.

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15.

In 1938, Mutual started rebroadcasting news reports from the BBC and English-language newscasts from the European mainland.

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16.

Early in 1940, the corporate organization of Mutual became even more inclusive, as described by scholar Cornelia B Rose:.

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17.

Still, because Mutual Broadcasting System affiliates were mostly in small markets or lesser stations in large ones, the network lagged way behind in advertising revenue—NBC took in eleven times as much as Mutual Broadcasting System that year.

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18.

Mutual Broadcasting System is excluded from, or only lamely admitted to, many important markets.

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19.

In 1945 it reached 384 affiliates, and by December 1948, Mutual Broadcasting was heard on more than 500 stations in the United States.

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20.

The plans never got off the ground and Mutual Broadcasting System thus became the only one of the "Big Four" US radio networks not to start a television network.

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21.

Mutual Broadcasting System provided an early national outlet for the influential, iconoclastic satirist Henry Morgan, whose show Here's Morgan began its network run in October 1940.

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22.

From May 1943 through May 1946, Mutual Broadcasting System aired The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, reprising their roles from the Universal film series.

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23.

In February 1946, Mutual Broadcasting System introduced a quiz show, Twenty Questions, that would run for more than seven years.

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24.

Around the same time, Mutual Broadcasting System acquired the television broadcast rights to the World Series and All-Star Game for the next six years.

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25.

Mutual Broadcasting System was likely reindulging in TV network dreams or was simply taking advantage of a long-standing business relationship; in either case, Mutual Broadcasting System sold the broadcast rights to NBC in time for the following season's games at an enormous profit.

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26.

Mutual Broadcasting System was at this point the largest US radio network in affiliate numbers, by far—it had around 560, almost three times as many as its most powerful competitors, CBS and NBC.

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27.

General Tire decided to spin off its holdings in Mutual Broadcasting System and sell it as a programming service even as it retained the stations that had given it control.

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28.

Mutual Broadcasting System was confronted with the situation the entire radio industry was facing: major advertisers were abandoning radio for television.

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29.

In 1950 as well, Mutual introduced radio listeners to adult science fiction with 2000 Plus, which first aired on March 15, almost a month before the premiere of NBC's similarly themed Dimension X The Shadow's long run finally ended in December 1954.

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30.

In November 1957, Mutual Broadcasting System aired the final episodes of its last two remaining half-hour original dramatic shows, Counterspy and Gang Busters, both picked up from other networks earlier in the decade.

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31.

Mutual Broadcasting System was replaced by Robert R Pauley, who came over from the ABC radio division, where he had served as president for nearly seven years.

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32.

Mutual Broadcasting System's replacement was Victor C Diehm, owner of several Mutual-affiliated radio stations and active on the Mutual Affiliates Advisory Council.

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33.

Under Little, Mutual Broadcasting System began its own niche programming services, taking advantage, like ABC, of the prevailing FCC requirement that all radio stations, of whatever primary format, regularly air news and public affairs.

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34.

Ohio businessman Daniel H Overmeyer looked to start his own TV network, and in 1967 sought a merger with Mutual; the offer was quickly rebuffed, but three Mutual stockholders joined with eleven other investors to buy Overmyer's hookup and rename it the United Network.

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35.

The Mutual Broadcasting System "bee-doops" were heard at the beginning and end of Mutual Broadcasting System newscasts, programs, between commercials and during network identification breaks.

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36.

One of the few primary network programs outside of news and sports that Mutual Broadcasting System initiated during this era, rapidly became one of the most successful in its history: the first nationwide, all-night call-in radio program, which launched on November 3,1975, with Herb Jepko as host.

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37.

Mutual Broadcasting System dropped Jepko in May, 1977 and he was briefly succeeded by husband and wife team Long John Nebel and Candy Jones, whose program fared little better than Jepko's.

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38.

King continued with his Mutual Broadcasting System call-in show until 1994, even long after he began appearing on a highly successful television program for CNN in 1985.

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39.

From 1970 through 1977, Mutual Broadcasting System was the national radio broadcaster for Monday Night Football.

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40.

At the beginning of 1980, Mutual Broadcasting System picked up the Sears Radio Theater, formerly broadcast over the CBS Radio Network, and renamed it Mutual Broadcasting System Radio Theater.

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41.

Westwood and Mutual Broadcasting System were a good match: The demographics of Mutual Broadcasting System affiliates tended to be adult; most of the stations that bought Westwood's programming, much of it in the pop music field, had substantially younger audiences.

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42.

Mutual Broadcasting System was now part of a much larger programming service, and its identity was being gradually phased out.

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43.

Country Countdown USA, founded as a Mutual Broadcasting System branded program after the Westwood One purchase, continues to air in its original format as CMT Country Countdown USA.

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44.

Mutual Broadcasting System founding stations WOR and WLW are now both under the ownership of iHeartMedia, who operates their own Premiere Networks.

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45.

Mutual Broadcasting System LLC, based in Spokane, Washington, uses the Mutual and Liberty names on its two stations, KTRW–Spokane and KTAC–Ephrata.

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