The American Forum of the Air, hosted by Theodore "Ted" Granik (1907–1970), is apublic affairs panel discussion program, the first series of its kind on radio.[1] It aired on theMutual Broadcasting System andNBC from 1934 to 1956. Notable guests, such asFranklin D. Roosevelt (before he waspresident),journalistDorothy Thompson,New York mayorFiorello H. La Guardia,U.S. SenatorsHarry Truman andRobert A. Taft, discussed a wide range of topics, from theNew Deal tofascism.[2] The series won aPeabody Award in 1940.
The program's origins can be traced back to 1928 when Brooklyn-born Granik was alaw student employed byGimbelsdepartment store, which then had its own radio station,WGBS. While writing copy for the station and doing sports reporting, Granik started his own program,Law for the Layman. When Gimbel's station was sold toWilliam Randolph Hearst in 1932, Granik continued doing his panel discussions on New York'sWOR. The program attracted national attention with aprohibition debate in which theWoman's Christian Temperance Union'sElla A. Boole made the startling claim that drunken Congressmen were wandering through "underground passages" to go from their offices to Washingtonspeakeasies.
The program becameThe Mutual Forum Hour when the Mutual network was launched in 1934. After Granik opened hislaw office inWashington, D.C., he moved the program there in 1937 with a title change toThe American Forum of the Air. Within the rigid format, opening remarks by the debating opponents led to the panel discussion, followed by Q&A with the audience and closing summaries.
Transcripts were published in theCongressional Record, and the debates often sparked activity in Congress. The series moved totelevision in 1949,[3] continuing on NBC Radio until March 11, 1956.[4]
Theodore Granik, the radio and television broadcaster and lawyer, died of a heart attack Monday in his office here. He was 63 years old.
Theodore Granik, whose "American Forum of the Air" made its radio debut more than twenty years ago, has come up with a new half hour show, "American Television Forum," which will have its premiere over NBC-TV at 3 P. M. on Sunday, May 22.