RANDOM THOUGHTS: Creating a signature sound

Opinion

May 4, 2010

By Dorothy Brush Chronicle correspondent The Crossville Chronicle Tue May 04, 2010, 03:38 PM CDT

CROSSVILLE — The name of a person as written by him/herself is a signature. It is a very personal piece of one’s identity. Doctors have been the butt of many jokes because of their unreadable signatures.

There are individuals whose goal is to rise to the top in their chosen profession. They believe a distinctive signature becomes part of that expectation. Often their efforts are artistic but if a typewritten name doesn’t appear below the scrawled writing they might as well be anonymous.

There is another meaning for a signature: a distinctive mark, characteristic or sound effect indicating identity. Early radio personalities discovered the importance of this kind of signature. In 1931 Kate Smith began her shows on radio and her theme song was “When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain” but she ended each show with, “Thanks for listening.” In that same time frame the Eddie Cantor Comedy Hour was popular. He ended each show singing, “I love to spend this hour with you. As friend to friend I’m sorry it’s through.”

During the Big Band period each musical group developed a distinctive sound and were identified by that sound in their theme song. Edward R. Murrow became a familiar voice during WWII. His reports ended with “Good night and good luck.”

As television nudged radio aside many performers continued ending their shows with spoken signatures. Newsmen Chet Huntley and David Brinkley simply said to each other, “Goodnight, David” and “Goodnight, Chet.” Walter Cronkite wrapped up his nightly news with, “And that’s the way it is on (giving the date).”

Entertainers too left their audience with a final thought. Red Skelton said, “And God bless.” For Lawrence Welk it was, “Keep a song in your heart.” Carol Burnett’s comedy show ended on a quiet tone as Burnett sang “This Time Together” and tugged at her ear. Still in 2010, talk show host Tavis Smiley ends his show with, “Keep the faith.”

These examples have worked well for those in the public eye. Just as written signatures are a personal part of an individual’s identity the spoken signature fits the same role. Recently we observed that many in the public judge an individual’s identity by a much different gauge — their physical appearance.

Just a little over a year ago the name of Susan Boyle appeared often in the news. This plain looking, stout, Scottish lady appeared on the "Britain's Got Talent" show and was greeted with rolled eyes and stifled laughs until she sang. The sneers turned to applause. She said later, “I knew what they were thinking, but why should that matter as long I can sing? It isn’t a beauty contest.”

She had learned to cope with rejection during her school days. Boyle heard bullies calling her “Susie Simple” in those early days. Another talented singer years ago faced similar snide remarks at the beginning of her career. Physically, Kate Smith was even more full-figured than Boyle. At age 30 she weighed 235 pounds.

Smith began making records in 1926 and was soon discovered by Ted Collins. By 1930 he was her partner and manager of her career. She was aware that fellow performers and managers made remarks about her size but it didn’t bother her.

Smith explained, “Ted was the first man who regarded me as a singer and didn’t even seem to notice that I was a big girl. I’m big and I sing, and boy, when I sing, I sing all over!”

For five decades Kate Smith was heard on radio and seen on television and movies and managed by her life long friend Ted Collins. She died in 1986 at age 79 but she had become a good luck symbol to the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team. Each time her recording of God Bless America was played before their critical games they won. She became an important part of their history and in 1987 a statue of her outside their arena was dedicated in her memory.

Both these women could have used Red Skelton’s words to their detractors, “And God bless.”

Text Only

Opinion

Lion and the Lamb: When politics and religion meet
Several wealthy contributors to the Republican presidential campaign are once again trying to figure out how they can use a video clip containing three words that the Rev. Jeremiah Wright used in a sermon on April 13, 2003. Wright, now retired, had been pastor of the 6,600-member Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago when Barack Obama was a member there.

May 22, 2012
Random Thoughts: Returning vets fight fire
Cemeteries are given special attention this week in preparation for Memorial Day next Monday. During the Civil War gracious ladies of the south laid flowers on the graves of fallen soldiers from both sides. The custom spread across the country and was called Decoration Day until the early 20th century.

May 22, 2012
Tidbits: Finding more time in your day
If we had another two hours in every day, we'd all probably still be begging for just a little bit more to get all our stuff done before that clock strikes midnight and it's game over.

May 21, 2012
Stumptalk: Hooray for the innovators
In his brilliant article in the Free Market, Daniel Sanchez says, “There will always be a one-percent. The well-being of the 99-percent depends on who makes up the 1-percent: innovative entrepreneurs or the state and its cronies. This in turn depends on the ideologies adopted by the 99-percent.” This is the way societies have always been organized and always will be.

May 21, 2012
GARY'S WORLD: Graduates, create your own opportunities
Time flies. One day you have a baby boy who is fascinated with stuffed Miss Piggy and Kermit rattles and the next day he wants to wear his cowboy boots and hat with every outfit no matter what the occasion. Before you know it, he's playing in the elementary school band, going into high school, learning how to drive, driving to school, going to prom and graduating.

May 17, 2012
RANDOM THOUGHTS: Truly a January in May
“It’s June in January” became a popular standard after Bing Crosby introduced the song in 1934. A strange thing happened last week. I call it a tale of ‘It’s January in May.’

May 15, 2012
LION AND THE LAMB: Our challenged nation
Three major social justice issues have been a source of contention in our nation over the years, and interestingly, each of them has involved the subject of equality.

May 15, 2012
WE THE PEOPLE: Repressing the ‘Grapes of Wrath’
Sometimes a hole appears, ever so briefly, in the curtain that hides the plans of those who control our government. One such opening occurred when Alan Greenspan testified to the Federal Reserve Board on Feb. 26, 1997. During that testimony, Greenspan revealed that “worker insecurity” was (in his view) a boon to the economy, allowing productivity to increase without causing workers to demand increased earnings.

May 15, 2012
TIDBITS: Never stop moving forward, grads
This week is a week of celebration. According to my files of graduating seniors, Cumberland County will see more than 550 students earning their high school diplomas this week. Now, those youngsters will venture out into the world, armed with the knowledge and character instilled in them by their parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, teachers, principals, classmates, coaches and others.

May 14, 2012
STUMPTALK: Please do not feed the animals
The food stamp program, part of the Department of Agriculture, is pleased to be distributing the greatest amount of food stamps ever. In the mean time, the National Park Service, also part of the Department of Agriculture, asks us to "please do not feed the animals" because the animals "may grow dependent and not learn to take care of themselves."

May 14, 2012
More Opinion Headlines

Opinion

Search Results

RANDOM THOUGHTS: Creating a signature sound

Site Map

Contact Us