Story Princess of the Music Box (Alice in Wonderland)
WBOW 1230 AM on the Banks of the Wabash
The above image was taken from a promotional pamphlet owned by Dr. Mary E. Myers, which was sent to WBOW 1230 AM listeners ca. 1948-1950. For over 30 years, a cooperative partnership between Terre Haute commercial radio station WBOW 1230 AM and Indiana State University, first under the leadership of Joseph Bernard Hershman (1929-1933) and then under the leadership of Dr. Clarence M. Morgan (1934-1969) resulted in over 9,000 live student broadcasts using over 125,000 free minutes of air time and reaching thousands of Wabash Valley listeners (Myers, 2018).
The WBOW 1230 AM of those days is long gone and its history almost forgotten, yet in the last few years it has resurrected from the historical ashes to become 102.7 WBOW The Valley’s Greatest Hits after its call sign was purchased by Midwest Communications, Inc.
It may be streamed live at https://1027wbow.com, which is something a progressive man like Dr. Morgan probably could have imagined and would have loved.
Story Princess of the Music Box
The Story Princess of the Music Box was one of the longest running children’s educational radio programs in broadcasting history (Myers, 2018). It was created by Dr. Clarence M. Morgan and eventually became a class project in Indiana State University’s radio production courses taught by Morgan. The image above is of students performing live and is used with permission and courtesy of Indiana State University Archives.
The Story Princess of the Music Box actually began as the Fairy Princess of the Music Box in 1936-1937. The original Fairy Princess, Ruth Butts, became an instructor in the radio division after graduating from the program. She worked there for many years and her office was down the hall from Ruth Morgan’s.
The influence of the Story Princess of the Music Box may be found in the following anecdote.
In 2018, while sitting on a park bench in Epcot, during a visit to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, Morgan’s researcher, Dr. Mary E. Myers engaged in conversation with an older woman sitting next to her. To Dr. Myers’ amazement, the woman had met her husband while attending college in Terre Haute, Indiana in the late 1960’s. Although she did not attend Indiana State University, she did listen to the Story Princess of the Music Box program during her time there.
Children’s Education Programs
Children’s Programming
The effect of children’s rado programs on their young listeners was the subject of much debate during the Golden Age of Radio. Some claimed many of the popular adventure serial programs, such as Jack Armstrong, Buck Rogers or Sky King, provoked a strong emotional response in children and negatively influenced their daily lives. Others claimed these stories taught children “expressive language” and encourged listeners to use their real world knowledge (Beagles-Roos & Gat, 1983, p. 131).
Advertisers found children to be indirect consumers because the sales of products advertised during these programs would increase after the program aired.
The need to understand children’s programming, keep sponsors, and reduce parental pressure resulted in CBS establishing an Advisory Committee. Viewed in today’s context, the eight themes devised by the committee, such as “disrespect for authorities” or “exalting gangsters” s seem obsolete (“Children’s Programs,” 1935).
Story Princesses
Julie Reder Fairley
To be a Story Princess on the Story Princess of the Music Box radio program was a coveted honor for an Indiana State Teachers College young woman.
Former 1963 Story Princess Julie Reder Fairley (pictured above) was one of the honored few, specifically chosen by Dr. Morgan for her voice, acting, and storytelling abilities.
To find out what she has done since her Story Princess days, she may be contacted at jrfcoachlight@msn.com.
Headshot courtesy of Julie Reder Fairley