Ed Byron[1] (born Edward Armour Byron,[2] October 1905[3][4] - November 21, 1964) was an American radio and television producer — "a pioneer in radio dramatic production".[1]

Biography

The oldest of three children born to Armour C. Byron and Cecilia Halloran,[3][4][5] Byron was a native of Newport, Kentucky and attended the University of Cincinnati.[6] He was a newspaper reporter for United Press before he began working in radio.[1]

He was a producer at WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the 1930s,[7] and while there he created Moon River, which radio historian John Dunning called "perhaps the best-known, best-loved, best-remembered local show of the network radio era."[8]

Byron became a freelancer in 1935.[9] He created the Mr. District Attorney radio program, which was later adapted for television.[7] He produced and directed the radio version and was one of its writers, but a clause in his contract with Phillips Lord, who owned the rights to the program, limited his on-air credit to co-author.[10]

Byron was called "a stickler for authenticity".[11] For example, when a character was shot in an episode, the location of the bullet wound was specified to the actor or actress because the location would have "a large influence on the victim's speech and general behavior".[11] Dunning described him as "a student of crime, with a library of 5,000 books on the subject".[8]: 464  Once a week for more than a decade he dressed like a working man and went to dangerous parts of the city, including rough bars, seeking ideas for stories from "thieves, lackeys, and off-duty cops".[8]: 464  He learned more about crime by reading five newspapers daily.[8]: 465 

He also produced the radio programs Pot o' Gold,[6] The Adventures of Christopher Wells,[12] Music by Gershwin,[8]: 471  and What's My Name?.[8]: 716 

During World War II Byron served in the U. S. Army, becoming a major.[7] He reported for duty on February 10, 1943, and was commissioned a captain.[13] When he was radio officer for General Douglas MacArthur he was one of the creators of Radio Guinea, which enabled MacArthur to broadcast during the war.[7]

Byron was president of the New York local of the Radio Directors Guild,[14] and by May 1947 he had become head of the national guild. In the latter role he produced "an unprecedented series of air shows costing about $400,000" to oppose passage of the Taft–Hartley Act.[15]

Byron went to work for NBC in 1960 as an account executive in the special program sales department.[1] He left there in the spring of 1964 to work at ABC on a project "for the restoration of top-grade radio drama".[16] The result was Theatre-Five.[1]

Personal life and death

In 1931, Byron married Gertrude Dooley, an actress on WLW.[17] He married actress Maxine Jennings on May 17, 1940, in Warrenton, Virginia.[18] At the time of his death, he was married to the former Catherine McCune. He had two sons.[7] He died of cancer on November 21, 1964, in Veterans Hospital in West Haven, Connecticut, aged 59.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Edward A. Byron Dies; Pioneered In Radio Drama". Hartford Courant. United Press International. November 23, 1964. p. 20. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  2. ↑ [ "Society"]. The Kansas City Star.
  3. 1 2 "Weds Kentucky Girl". The Cincinnati Post. January 10, 2023. p. 1. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Halloran a Grandpa". The Kentucky Post. p. 5. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  5. ↑ "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDB2-585 : 3 February 2021), Armor C Byron, 1920.
  6. 1 2 "Ed Byron Rites Set, Produced Moon River". The Cincinnati Post. November 23, 1964. p. 24. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Moon River' Creator Dies, Newport-Born Ed Byron". The Cincinnati Enquirer. November 22, 1964. p. 3. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 467–468. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3.
  9. ↑ "Outsider Ed Byron on Y & R Audition". Variety. November 2, 1938. p. 30. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  10. ↑ "'Mr. District Attorney'". Variety. July 8, 1942. p. 37. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  11. 1 2 Kay, E. (August 8, 1942). "New York". Movie-Radio Guide. pp. 10–11. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Christopher Wells". Variety. October 1, 1947. p. 24. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Ed Byron into Army". Variety. February 3, 1943. p. 27. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Freelance Sweets to head Directors Guild" (PDF). Variety. May 21, 1947. p. 28. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  15. ↑ "AFL's 400G Air Splurge to Fight Anti-Labor Bill" (PDF). Variety. May 7, 1947. p. 34. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Ed Byron Helms ABC 'Operation Restoration' In Radio Drama Push". Variety. April 1, 1964. p. 64. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  17. ↑ Heinl, Robert D. (April 26, 1931). "Dial Flashes". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. p. 25. Retrieved April 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ Brown, Wilson (June 8, 1940). "In New York". Movie and Radio Guide. p. 37. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
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