OLD-TIME RADIO: DUNNINGER THE MENTALIST

Dunninger the Mentalist, with guest Dorothy Killgalen, February 23, 1944

Joseph Dunninger (1892-1975), "The Amazing Dunninger," was a world-famous mentalist and magician who was one of the first to perform magic on radio and television.  Granted, it is difficult to do this type of act on radio.  I mean. really.  But if Edgar Bergan could get away with ventriloquism on radio, I suppose Dunninger could do his act on radio.

Dunninger was a noted debunker of fraudulent mediums, although he also offered $10,000 to anyone who could prove he used confederates in his act.  However, like James Randi later, he also offered the same sum to any medium who could prove any physical phenomena by psychic or supernatural means that could not be explained by scientific means.

Dunninger wrote many books on magic, some of which were published by Hugo Gernsback.  a number of articles published under the Dunninger name were ghost-written by Walter B. Gibson, and it has been suggested that Gibson used Dunninger as a model for The Shadow.

Dunninger's radio program ran under different titles and on various networks from 1943 to 1946.  This particular program ran on the Kem-Tone Blue Network from January 5 through December 27, 1944.

Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGWBnsD2O8s