Clara Bow #4 -- April 30, 2013

 

Red haired Clara Bow was probably the most popular silent actress after Mary Pickford. This charming image is from the April, 1929 Photoplay. The caption describes how "The Brooklyn Bonfire" made her radio debut on KNX, a station which is still on the air.  I rely on KNX for traffic news when I'm in the LA area.  Perhaps the photo also helped to dispel the rumor that she suffered from mike fright. 

 The October, 1929 Radio Digest has an article, "Esther Ralston Broadcasts to Millions," by Herbert Moulton, about Paramount's efforts in radio.

"Every Monday night from 8 to 9 o'clock, Pacific Standard Time, KNX broadcasts the Paramount Hour, which has become one of the most popular programs on the air ... Public response to these broadcasts has been tremendous. Clara Bow's initial appearance at KNX was an event of national proportions, for it came at a time when the 'It' girl's admirers were wondering how her voice would sound in talking pictures. KNX provided these fans with a 'pre-audition,' so to speak, and convinced them that Miss Bow's voice would register on the screen in the same red-hot vivacious manner that she herself does."