On Friday, May 18, 1934, radio columns in the New York press announced that Bert Parks of CBS would be “relinquishing his status as N.Y.’s youngest Network Staff Announcer to the newly appointed George Ansbro on the NBC Announcing Staff.”
From his role as an NBC page in 1931 to his career as a network announcer, Ansbro recalls an era that includes a who’s who of early radio and Hollywood stars, and a transition from what was known as the Blue Network and its beginnings at Rockefeller Center to the massive radio and television organization now known as ABC.

George Ansbro was an announcer for the NBC and ABC networks for six decades. He worked in both the live radio era of big bands and soap operas and the television era, retiring from ABC in 1990. He lives in Spring Lake, New Jersey.

George Ansbro
Foreword by Leonard Maltin
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 245
Bibliographic Info: 43 photos, index
Copyright Date: 2009 [2000]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-4318-5
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1225-6
Imprint: McFarland

Foreword by Leonard Maltin    nbsp; 1

Preface      3

1. THE TWENTIES      5

2. MAYOR JIMMY WALKER      12

3. MY FIRST RADIO APPEARANCE      17

4. GOVERNOR AL SMITH      19

5. “HELLOOOOO KATHLYN, HELLOOOOO JIM”      22

6. DREAMING AND WONDERING      24

7. MUCH SOUL SEARCHING      27

8. A ROTTEN SUMMER      31

9. 711 FIFTH      33

10. ON THE CHEAP TO ALBANY      38

11. TALES OF 711      43

12. CALL FOR PHILIP MAWRREESS      49

13. SO LONG 711, HELLO RADIO CITY      54

14. MAY 19, 1934      57

15. THE RED AND THE BLUE      66

16. ON MY OWN      71

17. BIG BAND REMOTES      77

18. MORE BAND REMOTES      82

19. INTERESTING REHEARSALS      87

20. FIRE THE ANNOUNCER      91

21. AFRA BEGINS      98

22. HORSING AROUND WITH HOOVER      106

23. CALLING ALL MEN TO BARNEY’S      111

24. WINCHELL      117

25. WANNA BUY A NETWORK?      121

26. MAYOR FIORELLO LA GUARDIA      126

27. NAKEDSVILLE ON LEXINGTON AVENUE      132

28. THY NETWORK IS BLUE      138

29. WEDDING BELLS      145

30. WORKING WITH ELEANOR AND ANNA ROOSEVELT      154

31. AMERICA’S BOYFRIEND AND AMERICA’S SWEETHEART      161

32. UKULELE IKE THROWS A PARTY      173

33. A MAIDEN TRIP ON A MAIDEN VOYAGE      175

34. MANHATTAN MAHARAJAH      181

35. THE STORK CLUB      183

36. UNWELCOME TENTH ANNIVERSARY GIFT      191

37. SUING THE LANDLORD      192

38. SO LONG RADIO CITY, HELLO WEST 66TH      195

39. HOWARD COSELL, A RELATIONSHIP BEGINS      198

40. UNLOADING A SUPERVISOR      202

41. “MONEYBAGS ANSBRO”      207

42. “AW, WHAT THE HELL, GEORGIE”      210

43. LATE LUNCH AT TOOTS SHOR’S      214

44. “GEORGIE, I’M GLAD YOU CAME”      217

45. THE CURSE OF ALCOHOLISM      219

46. TWENTY-FOUR YEARS WITH THE FBI      221

47. RETIREMENT      228

Epilogue      229

Index      230

“a record of six decades as an announcer with NBC and ABC”—Classic Images; “filled with anecdotes and inside stories of literally hundreds of other radio personalities…gives insight into some of the operations of the broadcast industry and has a number of interesting photos”—North American Radio Archives; “should delight any nostalgia fan…. Musicologists will be especially fascinated by his big band remote broadcast history. It is a lot of fun especially for the radio buff! Highly recommended”—The Illustrated Press.