The Jack Benny Program NBC/CBS · 1940

Jb 1940 02 25 Yosemite Part 4

· GHOST OF RADIO ·
0:00 --:--

# The Jack Benny Program: Yosemite, Part 4 (February 25, 1940)

The California mountain air crackles with mischief as Jack Benny and his traveling companions find themselves deeper in comedic peril at Yosemite. In this fourth installment of the celebrated multi-part sketch, listeners will discover Jack's trademark stinginess colliding spectacularly with nature's grandeur—and his own hapless predicament. With Don Wilson's booming announcer charm, Mary Livingstone's quick-witted barbs, and the stellar supporting cast including Rochester van Jones, this episode promises the perfect blend of slapstick timing and razor-sharp dialogue that could only exist in the fertile imagination of radio comedy. Expect nature-gone-wrong scenarios, Jack's exasperated protests, and the kind of intricate comedic choreography that had America's living rooms erupting in laughter during the cold February night of 1940.

By 1940, Jack Benny had already perfected the art form of radio comedy, transforming the medium from simple entertainment into sophisticated theatrical performance. His program stood apart from competitors through its serialized storytelling—these multi-week Yosemite adventures proved that radio audiences craved narrative continuity alongside laughs. Benny's genius lay in his impeccable timing, his willingness to be the butt of the joke, and his ability to assemble comedy's finest talent: writers who understood pacing, actors who breathed life into recurring characters, and producers who recognized that laughter was an orchestrated instrument. This particular episode represents the golden age of American radio at its absolute peak.

Tune in to experience why Jack Benny became a national institution, why families gathered around their sets in devoted anticipation, and why these broadcasts remain undiminished by time. This is radio comedy at its most inspired.