Ep01 Fred Allen Jimmy Durante

# The Big Show - Episode 1: Fred Allen & Jimmy Durante

Picture yourself in the autumn of 1949, settling into your favorite chair as the NBC orchestra swells and that unmistakable announcer's voice booms across your radio: "Ladies and gentlemen, *The Big Show!*" What unfolds is pure vaudeville magic translated into sound—Fred Allen, radio's quickest wit and sharpest satirist, trading barbs with the irrepressible Jimmy Durante, whose gravelly voice and "inka-dinka-doo" charm have made him a national treasure. This opening broadcast crackles with the nervous energy of a premiere, the kind of live performance where anything could go wonderfully, hilariously wrong. You'll hear elaborate production numbers, comedy sketches that build from quiet setups to explosive punchlines, and the kind of sophisticated humor that assumes listeners are intelligent enough to catch every reference and double meaning.

*The Big Show* represented the apex of radio entertainment—a lavish, big-budget spectacular that NBC created specifically to compete with television's growing threat. Produced by the legendary Goodman Ace, the show assembled Hollywood's finest talent: dramatic actors, crooners, comedians, and orchestra musicians, all working together in real-time before a live studio audience. This particular episode was historic: it announced radio's refusal to go quietly, proving that the medium could be just as star-studded and ambitious as anything flickering on a small screen.

For today's listener, this episode offers an irreplaceable window into American entertainment at its most confident and accomplished. Hear the live breath of performers at the height of their powers, the spontaneous laughter of a studio audience experiencing something genuinely special, and the unmistakable crackle of an art form making one last, glorious stand. Turn down the lights, tune in, and step back into 1949.