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Mohawk Showroom
Mohawk Showroom is an American musical television program that debuted on NBC on May 2, 1949[1] and ended on November 23, 1951.[2] It was sponsored by Mohawk Carpet Mills Inc.[3] In 1951, the program was one of several NBC-TV shows selected to be shown to United States military personnel overseas via kinescope recordings.[4] The same title was also used for a similar radio program in 1951. OverviewMorton Downey and Roberta Quinlan initially shared hosting duties on the 15-minute program,[1] Carmen Mastren and The Chieftains provided music, and Bob Stanton was the announcer.[5] Downey starred on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and Quinlan was the star on Tuesdays and Thursdays.[1] Because of the alternating hosts, the series was sometimes referred to as The Morton Downey Show and The Roberta Quinlan Show.[2]: 563 Downey left the show after the December 9, 1949, episode, and Quinlan became featured on each episode.[1] At some point the Tuesday and Thursday segments were dropped, with broadcasts continuing at 7:30 p. m. Eastern Time on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.[6] Each of the program's episodes had a theme (such as marriage or graduation) to which all of its songs related. Commercials were also tailored to the theme as much as possible.[6]: 50 ProductionRoger Muir was the producer; Clark Jones and Doug Rodgers were the directors. The show originated from WNBT.[7] Critical receptionA review of Downey's show in The New York Times said that most episodes of the show provided "a program with both pace and variety".[8] The review complimented Downey's performance but said that he should not "try to incorporate too much extraneous 'business'", because he came across better with a more relaxed approach.[8] In September 1951, a review in the trade publication Billboard complimented Quinlan's performance and the show's visual presentation. It called the program "one of the really pleasant little musical quarter hours in television".[9] Radio versionSpurred by the success of its TV program, in the spring of 1951, Mohawk began a radio version, also titled Mohawk Showroom. Sponsor magazine reported, "The spot radio effort has grown partially out of the desire of dealers in non-TV markets for support like that furnished their brethren in TV territory via the Mohawk Showroom".[10] Quinlan starred in the radio version, which was 15 minutes long and ran three days per week. It initially ran for 13 weeks in 26 markets with plans for a second 13-week series in the fall of 1951 along with hopes for increasing the number of markets.[10] References
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