Blue Ribbon Town

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Blue Ribbon Town is a comedy-variety radio series starring Groucho Marx, sponsored by Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, and broadcast on CBS from March 27, 1943, to August 5, 1944. The 30-minute series was heard Saturday nights at 10:30 p.m. until October when it moved to 8 p.m.^[1] It was also known as Pabst Blue Ribbon Town.

The comedy situations, starring Marx, took place in the mythical American community of Blue Ribbon Town where men were men, women were women, and the jokes were mainly puns. Other regulars were

The dialogue of the old radio show is classic Groucho schtick: Co-star Fay McKenzie says to the host, "Oh, Groucho, look, there's Lake Michigan! My, it's choppy today. See all the whitecaps." In his trademark sarcastic tone, Groucho replies, "Yes, isn't it wonderful? You get near the place where they make Pabst beer, and even the lake has a head on it." The Milwaukee crowd erupts in laughter and applause. Announcer Durward Kirby then interrupts the skit to promote Pabst and its 100th anniversary, in a pitch that seems eerily ironic today, given the brewer's demise a half-century later.^[2]

The show was written, directed and produced by Dick Mack. Robert Armbruster supplied the music.

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