What do Frank Sinatra, José Feliciano, Gladys Knight, Redd Foxx, and Pat Boone have in common? I could sit here twiddling my thumbs and give you a moment to google but nobody’s got time for that. The answer is: They all were discovered on a radio and (later) a television show called The Original Amateur Hour.
The concept for the program was created by a guy named Ted Bowes (who called himself “Major”). In 1935, Bowes inked a deal with NBC for a national radio show called Major Bowes and the Original Amateur Hour. The show opened with Bowes spinning a loudly clacking “wheel of fortune,” as he intoned, “’Round and ’round she goes, where she stops nobody knows!” Sound familiar? Bowes also came up with the concept of having a gong next to him, so he could stop the performance of any act he deemed not worthy of the show.
The Original Amateur Hour soon became the most popular program in the country, with 10,000 applications to perform coming in each week to fill the show’s 16 spots. In 1948, the show moved to television, where it was hosted by Ted Mack and ran until 1970, making it one of the longest-running shows in history.
The Original Amateur Hour spawned numerous other shows, including America’s Got Talent, The Voice, American Idol, and the second administration of Donald Trump, to name a few.
Last week, Brendan Carr, the amateur who Trump appointed to run the Federal Communications Commission, took issue with some remarks made by ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, and suggested he be removed from the air for daring to make jokes that Carr deemed not sufficiently respectful of the late Charlie Kirk and Carr’s boss, Donald Trump. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said, using his best mobster voice, adding: “These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action on Kimmel or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
The Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, got the message and caved immediately, pulling Kimmel from its airwaves “indefinitely.” You might say Jimmy got the gong.
But then a funny thing happened: Several Republicans discovered a spine, including senators Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Lisa Murkowski, Representative Don Bacon and several other GOP congressmen, broadcaster Tucker Carlson, and podcaster Joe Rogan, all of whom were critical of the government’s censorship. Lots of people canceled their Disney Channel subscriptions and their family trips to Disneyland. Other performers from all sides of the political spectrum spoke out on the air, online, and in print. And, perhaps most galling for Trump, Jimmy Kimmel replaced Charlie Kirk at the top of the news cycle for several days. Within a week, Kimmel was back on air, a clear victory for the First Amendment and a clear loss for Dear Leader’s hurt fee-fees.
For eight months now, Trump has been throwing the government’s weight around, using its power and influence to extort concessions (and money) from law firms, universities, medical researchers, automakers, pharmaceutical companies (Tylenol??), tech bros, and media companies. It’s something of an irony that the president’s clumsy attempt to silence a TV comedian was what it took to get most Americans to notice — or care about — his strong-arm tactics.
Kimmel showed grace and courage in his return to the air. He conceded that his remarks could have been misconstrued. He praised Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, for her forgiving attitude. He thanked — humorously but sincerely — Ted Cruz and other conservatives who had stood up for him, but he didn’t back off from criticizing Carr and Trump: “The president of the United States made it very clear he wants to see me and the hundreds of people who work here fired from our jobs. Our leader celebrates Americans losing their livelihoods because he can’t take a joke.”
The real punch line to Kimmel’s monologue was serious and to the point: “This show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this,” said Kimmel. And, I might add, that sentiment extends to your choice of podcasts, news sources, radio shows, and yes, the local newsweekly that you’re reading right now, which has for 36 years been the only progressive news voice in Memphis. No joke. Thanks for reading.
