301222 - Attar of Roses

 

Recording status:  recorded; in circulation

This is one of the few episodes of Empire Builders that the Great Northern Railway paid to record and which is still in circulation. It is, however, one of the broadcasts that is badly misrepresented nearly everywhere it can be found. This broadcast was not called “Columbia River,” despite the numerous sites that refer to the program as such. Many sites also note that one of the featured performers was “Betty White,” but they have concluded erroneously that it was an eight or nine year old Betty Marion White (she of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Golden Girls, etc.).

 Betty Marion White DID NOT appear on Empire Builders. EVER.

The actress heard on Empire Builders by the name of Betty White was Betty Reynolds White, born Elizabeth Myrtle Reynolds in 1904. A petite 4 feet 11 inches tall, Betty White was 26-years-old, married, had one infant son already and another well on the way, and she specialized in children’s voices.

“Attar of Roses,” the correct title of this broadcast of Empire Builders, refers to a fragrant oil made from roses. The story does indeed have the Columbia River as a prominent feature of its locale, but using the name of the river as the title of the broadcast must have been someone’s innocent attempt to apply a name to the show based solely on listening to the only circulating copy of it. Great Northern Railway corporate records, and newspaper articles of the day, consistently name this program “Attar of Roses.”

This photo shows script writer W.O. Cooper and Betty Reynolds White inspecting the large track machine contraption used for making sound effects for trains. The image appeared in the February, 1931, issue of "What's On the Air." The accompanying caption contained two glaring mistakes. They used Betty White's maiden name, and they misstated the name of the 12/22/30 broadcast. Here's what was said: "Betty Reynolds, child actress of the Empire Builders, is fascinated by the device used in the studio to reproduce the sound of Great Northern trains. We don't believe any listener has forgotten Betty's work as the invalid child in the Empire Builders' Christmas story, "Altar of Roses." We certainly hope that story will be repeated next Christmas season." Sadly, the Empire Builders series did not last that long.

A press release for this program was used to craft a notice in the Seattle Times newspaper the day of the broadcast. Here is how the information appeared in the paper, complete with the writer's unsentimental and rather snarky take on the story:

The press release for tonight’s “Empire Builders” program on KOMO at 7:30 o'clock, says it will be all about a sharp-tongued millionaire who had chilblains of the heart and never knew it until he met little crippled Annie. Old Sharp Tongue and Annie are both inmates in a hospital in Portland, it goes on to say. Moreover, there will be twists at the heart strings. But withal, the press notice declares, a happy air will pervade the thing. Clap hands.

 
The story opened with the Old Timer chatting with a woman onboard the Empire Builder train – a common plot vehicle to set the stage for the venerable pioneer to launch into a tale of yesteryear and to weave some not-so-subtle advertising copy into the show on behalf of our sponsor. In the radio play, it was revealed that the train was passing a location where a serpentine roadway could be seen. The lady observed that it looked like a harrowing road to try to negotiate. The Old Timer agreed, and mentioned he knew of one time when a driver nearly died on that curve. He hinted at a happy ending however, and thus launched into his tale.

The recorded radio broadcast clearly departs somewhat from the copy of the program’s continuity that I’ve located. I suspect it was common to edit the script right up to the last minute, and I’m sure there were times the actors momentarily lost their places and ad libbed, although I think a good many of them also made an effort to memorize their parts. Most of them were veteran stage actors, so it would seem they would be accustomed to preparing themselves to carry out the performance, with or without a written copy of the continuity.

The Old Timer lit up his pipe before starting to tell his story, although his dialog about it in the continuity is slightly different than the recording. Among other differences, the woman he talks to identified herself in the script as “Marian Monahan, escaped from New York.” In the audio, she is instead “Virginia Monahan, escaped from New York.” I suppose that could have been a nod to Empire Builders alumna Virginia Gardiner, but more likely they just preferred the sound of it.

This is from the continuity:

OLD TIMER:  I’d better begin at the right place.

LADY:            Oh, tell me about it, Old Timer ---- if I may call you that?

OLD TIMER:  Sure --- everybody does. I like it. Well, this is about Stephen Burroughs --- a man who’s known throughout the state of Oregon. He was a bachelor, a sort of fidgety cuss, an’ he’s got more money than you could shake a stick at … just a minute …  (STRIKES MATCH;  LIGHTS PIPE)

LADY:            Must you stop now, Old Timer --- Oh. I see. I didn’t notice you were lighting your pipe.

OLD TIMER:  There’s two things I can’t get along without, Miss --- my pipe and my dog January.

LADY:            (LAUGHING)  I’m sorry.

OLD TIMER:  (PUFFING)  Well, it was late at night, and Stephen Burroughs was driving his car around that same curve, tearing along like --- like a wild Indian, when all of a sudden ……

(FADE IN MUSIC.  IT FADES OUT TO ROAR OF SPEEDING AUTO APPROACHING … COMES UP, PASSES, FADES …. REPEAT …. ON THIRD FADE-IN, SHRIEK OF BRAKES … BIG CRASH … SEVERAL MINOR CRASHES WITH SOUND OF BREAKING GLASS, AS THOUGH CAR WERE ROLLING DOWN EMBANKMENT …. BRIEF SILENCE, THEN MUSIC)

Apparently it wasn’t enough for the sound effects crew to simply bust some glass and slam some boards and chunks of metal together to simulate the car crash. No, they got their hands on an entire car chassis and hauled it up to the roof of the 20-story Merchandise Mart, where a couple of sound effects men proceeded to beat the snot out of it when it came time for the crash. Perhaps the questionable quality of the recording is at least partly to blame, but to my ear, the sound of the car crash is underwhelming, and fails to convey what the continuity was calling for. This may also be something to chalk up to the vagaries of practicing in advance with pleasing results and then attempting to replicate an earlier success while on the air live. Any number of variances might have spoiled the intended effect.

 

 

Two sound effects technicians of the Empire Builders radio program, posing for the photographer. This is undoubtedly a recreation of the action taken to produce the sound effect of a crashing car for this night's broadcast of the show.
Photo from the Library of Congress collection
(identified as "Underwood & Underwood", but most likely a Theatrical Chicago photo)

 

After the sound effects of the big crash, the radio story shifted location to a hospital in Portland where the hapless driver, Stephen Burroughs (abbreviated as “BURR” in the script), was just coming to. Burroughs was presented as a wealthy and rather self-important businessman. After a big kerfuffle about his needing to get to a meeting and wanting to get his secretary on the phone, Burroughs passed out again. Then with a short musical bridge to indicate the passage of time, the radio audience found Burroughs had been wheeled to the appropriately named Sun Room for a respite. Burroughs decided the Sun Room was not for him, and he promptly demanded (quite rudely) that the nurse return him to his room immediately. She responded by tagging his arm with a sedative. It wasn’t long before Burroughs was nodding off again.

The next time he came around, he drowsily caught the sound of someone moaning, but shrugged it off in his half-awake stupor as something he had been dreaming. But there it was again … louder and more insistent. No mistaking it this time, there was a little girl across the room in great pain and discomfort.

(ANOTHER MOAN)

BURR:            I wasn’t dreaming that time! Must have been that kid over there … no one else here.

ANNE:            Oh!  Oh!

BURR:            What’s the matter?   (gruffly)   Where’s somebody?   (impatiently)

(ANOTHER MOAN)

BURR:            (Sound of wheel chair)   Now, now --- What’s the matter?

ANNE:            Hold my hand --- tight!   Oh!  Oh!

BURR:            It’s hell to suffer like that! Where’s a nurse? Where’s somebody?  (shouts Hey!)  Here’s a nurse --- (relieved)

MISS GREY:  Here, Anne, take this --- She’ll be better in a minute. Let go of the man’s hand, Anne.

BURR:            Oh, that’s all right.   (Gruffly)

MISS GREY:  You see, if she can grip someone’s hand – she seems to be able to stand it better – the pain.

BURR:            Is she like this often?

MISS GREY:  No – not so often any more, but it’s bad while it lasts. There – she’s better now. Come, Anne!

ANNE:            (In faint voice)  Thank you, Mister.

 

 

 

 

This is Betty White. Betty Reynolds White.
Not Betty Marion White.
Two different women, born more than 15 years apart. Just sayin'.

This is the earliest recording I know of that captured the voice of Betty Reynolds White. She did indeed possess a great talent for portraying a child. Her performance was quite convincing. Here’s an audio sample:

 

 

The character of little Anne Hyland mentioned that her parents died when she was only two years old. In real life, Betty White endured a similar burden. Her mother died when she was about seven; her father when she was about 14.

The broadcast concluded with the revelation that Burroughs had purchased a house up on a hill, visible from the hospital, and that he was going to adopt little Anne and get her settled in to that new home. Even Nurse Grey was enlisted to work at the home to take care of Anne as she continued to recover. And of course, they all lived happily ever after.

Up on the roof and going nowhere
Harvey Hays (the Old Timer) attempts to assist Lucille Husting (Virginia Monahan) and Bernardine Flynn (Nurse Grey)
into the derelict car chassis that was smashed up further for the night's big car crash scene.
Press photo (likely by Theatrical Chicago). Author's collection

Stephen Burroughs was played by Betty White’s husband in real life, Bob White. Other performers identified for this broadcast are: Harvey Hays as the ubiquitous Old Timer; Lucille Husting as Virginia Monahan; and Bernardine Flynn as Nurse Grey. Josef Koester again led the on-air orchestra. Ted Pearson, the announcer, made no mention of Don Ameche. Perhaps he just wasn't needed on this broadcast.

 

 

Until next time, keep those dials tuned to Empire Builders!