G. Emerson Cole
Encyclopedia
George Emerson Cole is an American radio, television, and special events producer/announcer pioneer whose weekly radio program "The Big Bands Are Back" is now in its 32nd consecutive year in Pinehurst, North Carolina. It is said to be the longest-running big band
radio program in history.
to help other universities build similar stations.
Cole was graduated from Cornell in 1941 with BAs In Mechanical Engineering and Business Administration. He joined the United States Navy on December 8, 1941.
After Communication School at Harvard, Cole was sent to Melville, Rhode Island to train for PT boat duty. He sailed from San Francisco to the Philippines in 1944 to join the Pacific Task Force.
On the way to Balikpapan, Borneo the last invasion of WW II
, Cole joined Squadron 10, the remainder of John F. Kennedy's PT-109 boat squadron, on PT-171.
On one of his 13 patrols the boat's radar malfunctioned and the operator was unable to get it back on the air. By coincidence it was the same General Electric model SO-2 that Emerson had helped to develop at General Electric and he was able to restore it in less than a minute.
During his tenure in the Navy Emerson Cole took many historic photographs and sketches of the people and places in Pacific wartime and some have found their way into private and public collections as valuable relics of life in the wartime Navy in the South Pacific.
At the end of the war, PT-171 with Lt.(jg). Emerson Cole as skipper patrolled the coast for holdouts with a Japanese prisoner on the bow of the boat who called out to the shoreline over a speaker saying "It is over, don't shoot!"
Surrender terms for the Dutch West Indies were signed on an Australian cruiser and then skipper Lt.(jg) Emerson Cole sailed PT-171 back to the Philippines where the boats were burned to the waterline while their crews awaited the trip home.
working directly under Shepherd Mead
, author of the best-selling book How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
. Cole claims he was featured in chapter 7, which did not appear in the movie that was made from the book.
In those days television shows were produced live and some of the programs he worked on included "The Colgate Comedy Hour"; "The Jackie Gleason Show
"; "Life Begins At 80"
; "Ford Star Time"; "Omnibus"; "Captain Video"; and "The Gale Storm Show
".
on 7.5 acres on Long Island Sound from an estate sale, and with community donations spearheaded the remodeling of existing structures into a state-of-the-art Darien Community YMCA facility that features a 6-lane swimming pool looking out to the sound. There is an underwater window for checking on divers.
Property and construction costs were paid off in only five years and a second campaign resulted in the addition of another pool, handball courts, and gymnasium that were also paid off in five years.
Cole has produced a four-hour radio documentary about the December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor invasion which has been required listening for some Moore County, NC school children.
The Pearl Harbor special includes original recordings of famous speeches, and eclectic sketches such as a rare Armed Forces Network recording of Glenn Miller broadcasting to the German troops in what Mr. Cole calls "terrible" German.
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
radio program in history.
College
After graduation from high school with honors in Peoria, Illinois in 1936 Cole entered Cornell University where he began his career in broadcasting by building and operating a wired college network station which has become the Cornell FM radio station. He was involved in the creation of the Intercollegiate Broadcasting SystemIntercollegiate Broadcasting System
Intercollegiate Broadcasting System is an organization of over 1000 non-profit, education-affiliated radio stations .Founded in 1940, IBS is headquartered in New Windsor, New York, with a legal office in Washington, D.C., and frequently represents its members with FCC negotiations, copyright...
to help other universities build similar stations.
Cole was graduated from Cornell in 1941 with BAs In Mechanical Engineering and Business Administration. He joined the United States Navy on December 8, 1941.
WWII
Emerson Cole joined the Navy the day after the Pearl Harbor invasion on December 8, 1941 and was sent to General Electric to work with their radar development programs until he was called up for active duty in 1944.After Communication School at Harvard, Cole was sent to Melville, Rhode Island to train for PT boat duty. He sailed from San Francisco to the Philippines in 1944 to join the Pacific Task Force.
On the way to Balikpapan, Borneo the last invasion of WW II
Battle of Balikpapan (1945)
The Battle of Balikpapan was the concluding stage of the Borneo campaign . The landings took place on 1 July 1945. The Australian 7th Division, composed of the 18th, 21st and 25th Infantry Brigades, with support troops, made an amphibious landing, codenamed Operation Oboe Two a few miles north of...
, Cole joined Squadron 10, the remainder of John F. Kennedy's PT-109 boat squadron, on PT-171.
On one of his 13 patrols the boat's radar malfunctioned and the operator was unable to get it back on the air. By coincidence it was the same General Electric model SO-2 that Emerson had helped to develop at General Electric and he was able to restore it in less than a minute.
During his tenure in the Navy Emerson Cole took many historic photographs and sketches of the people and places in Pacific wartime and some have found their way into private and public collections as valuable relics of life in the wartime Navy in the South Pacific.
At the end of the war, PT-171 with Lt.(jg). Emerson Cole as skipper patrolled the coast for holdouts with a Japanese prisoner on the bow of the boat who called out to the shoreline over a speaker saying "It is over, don't shoot!"
Surrender terms for the Dutch West Indies were signed on an Australian cruiser and then skipper Lt.(jg) Emerson Cole sailed PT-171 back to the Philippines where the boats were burned to the waterline while their crews awaited the trip home.
Television
After the war, Cole became a television commercial writer, director, and producer at Benton & Bowles Advertising AgencyBenton & Bowles
Benton & Bowles was a New York-based advertising agency founded by William Benton and Chester Bowles in 1929.-History:The agency's success was closely related to the rise in popularity of radio. Benton & Bowles invented the radio soap opera to promote their clients' products, and by 1936 were...
working directly under Shepherd Mead
Shepherd Mead
Shepherd Mead, born Edward Mead, , was an American writer. He is best known as the author of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which was adapted into a hit Broadway show and motion picture....
, author of the best-selling book How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (book)
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying: The Dastard's Guide to Fame and Fortune was a humorous 1952 book by Shepherd Mead. It inspired a successful 1961 musical of the same name, which was made into a movie in 1967.-Description:...
. Cole claims he was featured in chapter 7, which did not appear in the movie that was made from the book.
In those days television shows were produced live and some of the programs he worked on included "The Colgate Comedy Hour"; "The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show is the name of a series of popular American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970.-Cavalcade of Stars:...
"; "Life Begins At 80"
Life Begins at Eighty
Life Begins at Eighty was a panel discussion series which aired on American television from 1950 to 1956.-Broadcast history:The show first aired on NBC on January 13, 1950, then on DuMont from March 21, 1952 to July 24, 1955, and finally on ABC. The last show was aired on ABC on February 25, 1956...
; "Ford Star Time"; "Omnibus"; "Captain Video"; and "The Gale Storm Show
The Gale Storm Show
The Gale Storm Show is an American sitcom starring Gale Storm. The series premiered on September 29, 1956, and ran until 1960 for 143 half-hour black-and-white episodes, initially on CBS and in its last year on ABC...
".
Civic
For 35 years Emerson Cole lived in Darien, Connecticut. While serving as president of the YMCA, which had no building, Cole found an opportunity to acquire property formerly known as the Convent of the Sacred HeartHistory of Darien, Connecticut
The history of Darien, Connecticut, has been shaped by its location on the shore of Long Island Sound as the main route from Boston to New York City, initially with sailing ships and dirt roads for transportation, and later with locomotives and highways...
on 7.5 acres on Long Island Sound from an estate sale, and with community donations spearheaded the remodeling of existing structures into a state-of-the-art Darien Community YMCA facility that features a 6-lane swimming pool looking out to the sound. There is an underwater window for checking on divers.
Property and construction costs were paid off in only five years and a second campaign resulted in the addition of another pool, handball courts, and gymnasium that were also paid off in five years.
Big Band Radio
Emerson Cole moved his family from Connecticut to Pinehurst, North Carolina and on February 24, 1980 began his epic series of broadcasts, "The Big Bands Are Back" on radio stations WIOZ and WIOZ-FM which, at the age of 92 he continues to produce and broadcast on a weekly basis; a record for longevity which is without equal in known radio broadcast history.Cole has produced a four-hour radio documentary about the December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor invasion which has been required listening for some Moore County, NC school children.
The Pearl Harbor special includes original recordings of famous speeches, and eclectic sketches such as a rare Armed Forces Network recording of Glenn Miller broadcasting to the German troops in what Mr. Cole calls "terrible" German.