The Radio Planet
Cavalcade of America
Cavalcade of America
Cavalcade of America cover art
Radio

Cavalcade of America

NBC

NBC · 1935–1953

Broadcasts

1729

Cadence

Weekly

Rated

PG

Since

1935

The run

Network
NBC
Years active
1935–1953
Surviving broadcasts
1729
Genre
docudrama

The Cavalcade of America is an anthology drama series that was sponsored by the DuPont Company. It was initially broadcast on radio from 1935 to 1953, and later on television from 1952 to 1957. Originally on CBS, then later changing to NBC, the series pioneered the use of anthology drama for company audio advertising.

1938 · 21937 · 41936 · 41935 · 2

Restoration quality — measured from the surviving files

Listenable · 45 of 45

Source collection

Old Time Radio Researchers Group

Rights

Public domain — no renewed US copyright

Cataloguing

Air dates and notes from the Archive item record

Every broadcast below carries its own provenance sheet — transfer quality, file source and rights.Archive record: OTRR_Cavalcade_of_America_Singles

The shape of the run

What survives, year by year

12 dated broadcasts across 19 years on the air, with 15 years where nothing is known to survive. Brightness is transfer quality; empty cells are months lost to time.

JFMAMJJASOND
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
Clean transferListenableRough but complete No surviving recording

Episodes

Start here

Listen to the run in order

Restored broadcasts from 1935, in original transmission order.

  1. 1. CALV No Turning Back Sponsored by Bell Telephone · 6 Oct 1935
  2. 2. CALV Defiance of Nature · 18 Dec 1935
  3. 3. CALV Songs That Inspired the Nation · 4 Mar 1936
  • 01

    CALV No Turning Back Sponsored by Bell Telephone

    6 Oct 1935 · 59 min

    Broadcast 6 October 1935. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

  • 02

    CALV Defiance of Nature

    18 Dec 1935 · 30 min

    Broadcast 18 December 1935. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

  • 03

    CALV Songs That Inspired the Nation

    4 Mar 1936 · 30 min

    Broadcast 4 March 1936. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

  • 04

    CALV Hardiness

    20 May 1936 · 30 min

    Broadcast 20 May 1936. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

  • 05

    CALV The Evolution of Dance Music in America

    26 Aug 1936 · 29 min

    Broadcast 26 August 1936. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

  • 06

    CALV 060 The Story of Christmas Seals

    9 Dec 1936 · 30 min

  • 07

    CALV 072 National Parks Pioneers

    2 Mar 1937 · 30 min

  • 08

    Cavalcade Of America 083 Thomas AEdison The Man

    19 May 1937 · 29 min

Same night on the air

11 May 1938

Everything else the archive still holds from the night of 11 May 1938.

Transmission

11 May

1938

Lights Out

Lights Out 1938-05-11 (90) It Happened

Network

NBC

Slot

Wednesday

Running time

29 min

Originally broadcast on NBC, 11 May 1938.

Internet ArchiveLightsOutoldTimeRadioRough but complete · 16 kbps

Transmission

11 May

1938

The Lone Ranger

Bob McAlister Framed for Murder

Network

Mutual

Slot

Wednesday

Running time

29 min

Broadcast 11 May 1938. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.

Internet ArchiveOTRR_LoneRanger_SinglesListenable · 64 kbps

Also on NBC

NBC in 1935–1953

Other series the network carried while Cavalcade of America was on the air.

Same seasons

docudrama on the air then

Series in the same genre whose runs overlapped this one.

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