Duffy's Tavern: Old-Time Radio Comedy

Clifton Fadiman, the quizmaster from Information, Please, visits Duffy's Tavern to lecture the Lord Byron Ladies' Literary Society. Archie, the narrator, and Duffy, the tavern owner, try to keep the visit from going wrong, while Duffy's regulars bring up poems, Shakespeare, and books. Archie has written a lecture for Fadiman to read, and Mrs. Pendleton and the society members arrive with their own expectations. This is an episode of the Duffy's Tavern series, first broadcast on June 15, 1943, with Ed Gardner, Shirley Booth, Charlie Cantor, and Florence Halop in the lead roles.

With Archie, Duffy, Clifton Fadiman, Mrs...

At Duffy's Tavern, Archie, the narrator, prepares the bar for a visit from the actress Tallulah Bankhead, whose arrival he has been anticipating. Eddie, Archie's assistant, helps him set the table, while Finnegan and Miss Duffy are distracted by plans of their own. Archie hopes to impress the star with a welcome poem written for her, and the tavern's regulars are eager to meet her. Ed Gardner leads the cast, which includes Shirley Booth, Charlie Cantor and Florence Halop. This episode aired on June 1, 1943, on CBS, NBC Blue and NBC.

With Archie, Eddie, Finnegan, Miss Duffy, Tallulah...

Archie, the regular at Duffy's Tavern, is eager to impress visiting film star Susan Hayward, who has come to the tavern alongside big game hunter Frank Buck. Duffy, who runs the bar, bickers with Archie and with the waiter Finnegan about marriage, pay, and animals, while Miss Duffy sets her sights on Buck. Archie tries to pass himself off as an adventurer, telling tall tales about jungle encounters and even bringing out a supposed African pigman to prove his claims. The evening fills with comic quarrels and exaggerations as the guests arrive and mingle in the tavern. This episode...

At Duffy's Tavern, Archie and his regulars plot to lure the Lone Ranger to the Tivoli Theatre, where the manager, Whiteboard, has offered a free season pass for the right man. Finnegan's younger brother Wilford is brought in and turns out to be a sharp critic of the Lone Ranger radio program. Meanwhile Miss Duffy flirts with a visitor who claims to be the masked hero, and the regulars argue over whether anyone really knows what the Lone Ranger looks like. This is Duffy's Tavern, from the Duffy's Tavern singles series, first broadcast on February 2, 1943, with Ed Gardner and...

Archie the manager and Finnegan run Duffy's Tavern while Duffy is away, and Archie resolves to help his fellow man. Milton Berle, a star of the Ziegfeld Follies, comes into the tavern, and Archie hopes Milton can get Miss Duffy a place in the show. Milton is unimpressed by Archie's fitness talk, while Miss Duffy keeps pressing to become a stage performer. Archie then hatches a plan to remake Miss Duffy into a glamorous French singer, and a self-declared French star named Fifi arrives to sing and perform impersonations for Milton. Duffy's Tavern is a comedy series, and this...

Eddie Anderson, playing Rochester, and Ed Gardner, playing Archie, plan a national radio show for Duffy's Tavern after Rochester discovers the Jack Benny program. Archie decides he can replace Jack Benny, reassigning the cast members to new roles while Eddie tries to recruit a sponsor. Duffy, Miss Duffy and Finnegan all get drawn into the scheme as Archie rehearses the show and boasts about his comedy. The sponsor is then approached about funding the broadcast, and Archie's plans begin to unravel. This Duffy's Tavern episode from December 29, 1942 features Ed Gardner and Shirley Booth, and the title lists Eddie Anderson...

At Duffy's Tavern, Archie the manager tries to persuade singer Kate Smith to perform there, and her manager Ted Collins insists on terms. Archie drafts a contract full of legal jargon, and Eddie is pressed into witnessing it. Duffy, who has a combination radio and phonograph, is said to be unable to hear Kate sing. Archie also bumps into an old acquaintance, Ernest Brother, while Miss Duffy talks about her former boyfriend Stephen D'Orton. The show is Duffy's Tavern, a comedy with Ed Gardner, Shirley Booth, Charlie Cantor and Florence Halop, originally aired on 1942-12-15.

With...