Land of the Lost

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piqueroi
Posts: 29
Joined: Sat Nov 05, 2005 5:08 am
Location: Florida

Land of the Lost

Postby piqueroi » Sat Dec 31, 2005 5:20 am

Occasionally a friend and I reminisce about old radio shows. She loved a series with a talking fish that would lead children to undersea adventure. Last week OTRLive365 had the show, which I had never heard but recognized what it was from Barbara's verbal recollection. Land of the Lost and the fish was named Red Lantern.
I was curious enough to search the Internet now that I had more info, and was doubly surprised to discover Art Carney played Red Lantern.
The single show I heard involved a magic blue sapphire turning black because it had been touched by someone who intended to damage the undersea kingdom.
Do any readers know if more episodes of Land of the Lost survive?

Jed Dimatteo

Land of the Lost

Postby Jed Dimatteo » Sun Jan 01, 2006 9:54 am

seems to me that I HAVE heard an episode of that program in recent years but it may have been the one you reference.

I recall the children in the adventure were named Billy and Betty and I think that at one time back in the '40s they played the original adventure when the kids first met up with the magical fish at the sea shore and he helped them retrieve an item they had lost (from Davey Jone's Locker).

I think that Billy and Betty had some magic seaweed that enabled them to survive under water.

The program was wrtitten and created by Isabelle Manning Hughson and I don;t recall a sponsor but somehow I sent for and received the only priemium that I ever recall them offering - it was a coloring book which depicted the show's characters.

I never had picked up on Art Carney being involved - thanks for that.

On New York radio, I believe the program followed "Let's Pretend" on Saturday mornings

Speaking of Children's programs - I see you live in Florida - on my first vistit to that state as a child I discovered where my old radio favorite Uncle Don had been hiding for three years - I actually did hear him say "those words" with my dad standing next to me. I didn't even know what the words meant but my dad accuately predicted that show would not be back on the air on Monday. WOR in New York apparently had the clout to smooth it all over and it was only by chance that I found Don Kearney when we visited my aunt in Coral Gables after my grammar school graduation.

Jack French
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Postby Jack French » Sat Jan 21, 2006 12:49 pm

"Land of the Lost" aired from Jan 1944 to Jul 1948, alternating between Mutual and ABC at various times. Usually it was a sustaining show, but for last year was sponsored by Bosco, the kids' drink.

A total of eight episodes have survived to present day and many OTR dealers have a few in stock.

Isabel Manning Hewson served as narrator of this undersea juvenile fantasy. Betty Jane Tyler played Isabel as a child and Ray Ives was her brother Billy. The were several men who played "Red Lantern" (the wisest fish in the sea) including Julius Matthews, Art Carney and William Keene. Michael Fitsmaurice was the announcer. Other regular characters on the show were Mike Pike, Kid Squid, and Ralph Royster the Singing Oyster.

Most of the episodes involved finding something from earth that was lost in this undersea kingdom among the magic seaweed.

Jack French
Editor: RADIO RECALL


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