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American radio program

Vic and Sade was an American radio program created and written by Paul Rhymer. It was regularly broadcast on radio from 1932 to 1944, then intermittently until 1946, and was briefly adapted to television in 1949 and again in 1957. During its 14 year run on radio, Vic and Sade became one of the most popular series of its kind, earning critical and popular success: according to Time, Vic and Sade had 7,000,000 devoted listeners in 1943. For the majority of its span on the air, Vic and Sade was heard in 15 minute episodes without a continuing storyline. The central characters, known as "radio's home folks", were accountant Victor Rodney Gook, his wife Sade (Bernardine Flynn) and their adopted son Rush (Bill Idelson). The three lived in "the little house halfway up in the next block."

All of the action of Vic and Sade, all of the people and all of the places in the town were created strictly through the dialogue. Listeners heard just the voices of the three, later four, principal speaking characters, embellished with very few sound effects. This effect is lost as the series progresses and more and more voices are added.

Victor Rodney Gook was the chief accountant of the Consolidated Kitchenware Company Plant Number Fourteen. He was the Exalted Big Dipper of the Drowsy Venus Chapter of the Sacred Stars of the Milky Way, a fraternal order founded by R. J. Konk. Vic's passion was parades, alarm clocks, cigars, wide brimmed hats and doorbells. He was often asked to submit articles to the Kitchenware Dealers Quarterly and the lodge magazine. Rush's/Russell's nickname for Vic was "Gov." Vic's good deed was always looking out to help Hank Gutstop get a job, allowing Hank to pay Vic back (Sade thought little of Hank, a constant source of friction with Vic). Vic's opening line upon entering the house through the kitchen screen door was usually, "Hi dee hi, Ho dee ho," a borrowing from Cab Calloway's version of "Minnie the Moocher."

Sade, the straightwoman of the cast, was a housewife who took pride in her housekeeping. Her interest outside the home was primarily focused on the Thimble Club sewing circle where she and the thimble ladies would get together to sew and gossip. She was very pragmatic about things and had little sense of humor. Her world extended to a very small radius and she cared little for anything outside her tightly drawn circle. Vic has addressed Sade as "Uncle Harry" and "Corporal Johnson," but his usual nickname for her was "Dr. Sleech" (he also called her "kiddo" quite a bit) and Rush/Russell just called her "Mom". Her unfulfilled goal was to go shopping with Ruthie and have each come out even in their money when they got home; it never balanced as she felt Vic and Rush would make fun of her money struggles.

Paul Rhymer had intended to introduce Rush by having Sade give birth to an 8 year old boy, but the sponsor objected. On July 8, 1932 Vic and Sade discussed the plight of 9 year old Rush Meadows, who was the son of one of Sade's school friends. On July 15th Rush arrived, and soon listeners forgot that the boy had been adopted by the Gooks. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Jean Shepherd, James Thurber, Tom Lehrer and Hendrik Willem van Loon. Nash and O'Hara both compared Rhymer to Mark Twain, while others made a comparison with Charles Dickens, but Rhymer defies comparison since his work is basically a sui generis. The series had an influence on the writing of Kurt Vonnegut, who called it "the Muzak of my life." Bernardine Flynn said the show once received a letter from a judge who called a recess each afternoon so he could listen to Vic and Sade.

Despite such high praise, 2000 disc recordings of the show were destroyed just before 1940 and some 1200 have been lost since that time, including all episodes made before 1937. Today only about 330 original recordings have survived. (See #Audio downloads.) It is estimated that Rhymer wrote more than 3500 scripts for the show. Some of his scripts were collected in books (See #Bibliography).

Paul Rhymer's papers, including many Vic and Sade scripts and recordings, are held at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Announcers included Bob Brown (from 1932 to 1940), Ed Herlihy, Ed Roberts, Ralph Edwards, Mel Allen, the legendary New York Yankee broadcaster (went by Melvin) and Jack Fuller. In addition to Rhymer himself, directors included Clarence Menser, Earl Ebi, Roy Winsor, Charles Rinehardt, Homer Heck, and Caldwell Cline. The organist for the 15 minute version was Lou Webb.