An advertisement from a July 1927 Johnson City Staff-News told of the “Famous Paul English Players,” known as “The Show with a Million Friends,” coming to the city, performing in “the finest equipped tent theatre in America. 

The show site was located on the “regular show grounds” next to the Arcade Building (an early indoor mall at 133-135 W. Market Street that extended from Market to Main with shops lined on both sides and upstairs). A 1923 City Directory reveals a vacant lot at 137 W. Market, which is likely where the tent resided. The program was under the auspices of the Moose Lodge (135.5 W. Main Street).

The Paul English Players, a 45-person group of quality actors, offered a new performance each night. People who enjoyed the show one night could return the next and see a different one.

I located two old advertisements in Billboard Magazine. The first was dated September 11, 1920: “Wanted quick by the Paul English Players. Emotional leading woman, not under 5 feet, 5 inches, not over 140 pounds. Must be A-l. Good study and wardrobe. Will pay transportation on show to right party. Wire. Can use good heavy.”

The second one was dated November 25, 1922: “Wanted for the Paul English Players, Kempner Theatre, Little Rock, Arkansas, Piano player with library, to double baritone, tuba, cornet or e-flat clarinet. Also, comedian capable of being featured in stock and repertoire. Wire quick.”

According to the 1927 Johnson City flyer, the show was titled, “Some Baby” and described as being a comedy “direct from a metropolitan run.” To add variety, Paul English employed big time vaudeville performers between acts of first class plays. One group, the Florida Ramblers from Miami Beach, was known as “The South’s Peppiest Musical Organization.”

Patrons had the option of standing in line to buy tickets at the tent or purchasing them at Savoy Drug Store (201 E. Main Street). Doors opened at 7 p.m. with performances beginning at 8:20. Tickets cost 40 cents for adults, 20 cents for children and 20 cents for reserved seats. A special ticket was printed in the newspaper allowing ladies to be admitted free on Monday night when accompanied by a paid adult.

Paul English, as talented as his troupe was, had the good fortune of touring with the legendary Jimmie Rodgers, who became known as “The Father of Country Music,” “The Singing Brakeman” and “The Blue Yodeler.” The singer was riding a whirlwind of success at the time.

Two years prior to English’s coming to Johnson City, he and Rodgers toured together in tent shows that included performances in Alabama and Mississippi. When Rodgers completed his travel of the circuit in December 1928, he joined the Paul English Players, working out of Mobile, Alabama. The employment of a name attraction for limited engagements was said to be something new in tent shows. Rodgers’ appearances significantly increased attendance.

The Paul English Players repeatedly received high marks for their productions and played all over the country before packed audiences. Some of the plays they performed were “The Country Boy,” “While the City Sleeps,” “Which One Shall I Marry?” and “The Girl He Couldn’t Buy.”

Paul English received a good deal of praise for his group’s performances. Large attendance at his plays illustrated the paying public’s desire to keep spoken drama alive, especially when directed by its capable leader. English was credited for acquiring “a most charming and highly qualified special company of players that were able to present high-class plays.”

Paul owned a special train, which he used to carry his vast paraphernalia from city to city. When he came to a locale, he brought quality backdrops with him instead of cheap ones used by lesser-known groups.

After a week’s performances that began on Monday, July 4, the group departed for its next engagement. Tent repertoire shows ran a very successful gamut from 1917 to 1930.

WJSO-AM stories continue to drift into my mailbox. Don Sluder, who became employed at the station on December 1, 1958, within two months of the station’s sign-on, said he enjoyed the two recent Press articles from Don Dale and Ray Stockard on the subject. Don indicated that there was so much that could be said about WJSO that helped cause a revolution in the way a radio station was formatted. 

(The WJSO “Bad Guys” (l to r): Don Dale, Norm Davis, Ray Stockard, Bill Seaver (Jackie London) and Stan Scott attempt to push the station's Chevrolet van.)

“Bob Mattox and I worked the morning shift,” said Sluder. “Seeing the picture you used with the trashcan in the air reminded me of a humorous incident. Bob called me one morning and said that there was something alive in the control room trashcan. It was filled with Teletype paper and I discovered a mouse had made a nice nest and had a large number of little hairless babies. When Bob finished his shift he took the trashcan out and dumped it. Watching Bob run as mother and all the little ones scattered in every direction was hilarious.”

Don related another funny account concerning Bill Bachman who was the station manager at the time. He was an old radioman but was a little rusty with his announcing skills. He was pressed into service one morning to deliver a newscast. As was normal back then, they did a rip and then read the latest five-minute newscast to come across the wire. There was very little preparation time. In Bill’s search for news, he came across a story about a famous actor who had died. He became very serious since this was his final story before doing the weather. Although Don could not remember the actor’s name, he recollected what he said over the air: “Mr. (name) has died; he was 76 degrees.”

“Another tale,” said Don, “involved my doing a five-minute newscast in a small booth facing the control room. My first story had a Johnson City byline and concerned a lady who discovered what she thought was an alligator in her rose garden. There was something about the way it was written that I thought was funny. I began laughing uncontrollably during the entire newscast. My next story concerned a plane crash that killed several people. Yep, I laughed through that one also and on through to the weather. The control room announcer was laughing so hard he didn't think to turn me off and start a record playing.”

While in the same booth but during a different newscast, Bob was to start Don’s first record after the news, which would start his air shift. When he finished the news, he realized that Bob was not in the control room; therefore he proceeded to make his way to start a record. This, of course, was a distraction and led to some dead air space, something that was unthinkable by radio stations. The reason for the blunder was that Bob forgot that Don had left the studio to go up the highway to a store to get some snacks.

“I still keep up with Bob Mattox,” said Shuler, “I talked to Stockard and Norm Davis recently. Ray was still a student at ETSU when he came to the station and worked weekends.

“WJSO had unbelievable power and reach in the surrounding area. The staff regularly received mail from listeners in Knoxville who tuned in every day. When they received permission for an early sign-on, I was working the early shift in Sumter, South Carolina. Bob and I would continue our morning banter by phone until time for me to sign our station on the air.

“I have many fond memories of that time in my career,” said the former announcer. “Our big competition was the duo team of Merrill Moore and Joe Goodpasture, who had a dialog over WETB-AM in Johnson City that was known as ‘The Joe and Mo Show.’ He and Merrill worked together several years later at Channel 5 in Bristol.”

Don concluded his note by saying, “I thought you might like to know what WJSO was like in the real early days.”