Kraft Music Hall

The Kraft Music Hall debuted in 1933. First billed as The Kraft Program, it aired under several names until settling on The Kraft Music Hall the next year. It continued under that name until going off the air in 1949, an impressive run by any standard.

Over the years, the show had a number of hosts, the longest-serving being Bing Crosby, who hosted it for ten years starting in 1936. During its run, pretty much everyone who was anyone in show business, from Broadway to Hollywood, appeared on the show. Among the guests were personages such as Mary Martin, Lucille Ball, and Boris Karloff.

One of the fascinating aspects of listening to these episodes is hearing how musical styles--not just the music, but singers' styling and presentation--changed over the years. In addition, the programming evolved, as comedy skits became integrated into the performances.

The Kraft Music Hall was revived for television in 1959 and ran until 1971 in various formats--sometimes weekly, sometimes monthly. As with the radio show, several persons hosted the TV show during its run.

For more information, see Wikipedia.

Series description provided by Frank Bell.