Railroad Hour 48 11 01 (005) Roberta

# The Railroad Hour - "Roberta"

Step aboard for a enchanting evening of song and romance as The Railroad Hour presents Jerome Kern's beloved musical comedy *Roberta*. Picture yourself in the elegant dining car of a streamliner, the gentle clickety-clack of wheels beneath you, as the orchestra strikes up those unforgettable melodies that captured America's heart in 1933. Our cast brings Kern's witty tale of a broke American football player who inherits a fashionable Parisian dress shop to vivid life, blending comedy, intrigue, and some of the most sublime musical theater ever composed. Between the laughs and romantic entanglements, you'll hear the hauntingly beautiful "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes," a number that has become synonymous with the golden age of American musical theater itself.

The Railroad Hour was ABC's answer to radio's golden age appetite for sophisticated entertainment—a place where Broadway's magic could be transported directly into America's living rooms. Running from 1948 to 1954, this program became a beacon for musical drama, featuring top-tier talent and lavish orchestral arrangements that rivaled any theater production. *Roberta* exemplifies the show's mission to preserve and celebrate the great American songbook while the postwar era desperately craved elegance and escapism. Jerome Kern's timeless score provides the perfect vehicle for The Railroad Hour's distinctive approach: quality entertainment with genuine artistic ambition, proving that radio drama could be as refined and moving as anything on Broadway itself.

Don't miss this beautifully preserved broadcast from November 1st, 1948—a perfect reminder of when radio brought Broadway magic into homes across America, when a simple broadcast could transport listeners to Paris, to romance, and to an era when music and storytelling reigned supreme.