It's One O'Clock and Here Is Mary Margaret McBride: A Radio Biography
In the 1940s and 1950s, McBride was a prominent voice on radio, interviewing major public figures, but was mocked for her close emotional ties with her eight million listeners, all at a time when women's career prospects were very limited. Drawing on archives that include McBride's radio interviews, as well as letters from former listeners, Ware begins with a description of McBride's radio show when it was at its height. Ware then backs up to tell how a woman from a small town in Missouri came to such an exalted career in radio that her tenth anniversary was celebrated in Madison Square Garden, where she was greeted by Eleanor Roosevelt, a favorite guest and longtime friend. The event was dedicated to recruiting women volunteers for the armed forces. At McBride's fifteenth anniversary celebration, she raised eyebrows when she publicly embraced Walter White, head of the NAACP. The third part of the book explores McBride's career after World War II until her death in 1976. An epilogue examines how McBride's show compares to contemporary talk shows.Vanessa BushCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved