This is one of the more unusual items I've seen
on eBay. Featured here is a KFI News script that encourages Angelenos to contact their city council members so as to push them to bring the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles.
According to the seller, it was drafted by a Mr. Earle C. Anthony, a noted Packard motor cars dealer who helped create the car culture in the Southland. The seller states that Anthony was a west coast distributor of Packard Motor Cars, invented the first gasoline service station, built the first car in LA, brought the first neon sign to America, and started FKI radio. Oh... I forgot to add that he was also one of the biggest proponents of bringing the Dodgers out west.
As such, he had the script that is featured here written and read over the air to KFI listeners. I'll let the sellers auction description tell you more about it:
After announcing that
this was a KFI public service to the people of Southern California, the
script went on to enumerate the financial and prestige values of having a
big league baseball team in Los Angeles (there was none at the time).
The script urges listeners to get their pens and papers ready because
the radio station was going to announce the names and private phone
numbers (yes–that's right!) of four Los Angeles city councilmen
(Holland, McGee, Baker, and Royball). The announcement of numbers was
repeated twice and then listeners were told if they missed it to call
the KFI switchboard where they could also get these numbers. Yes, this
actually happened... and the L.A. City Council members' private phones
rang off the hook for days. It was one of the key factors that actually
brought the Dodgers baseball team from Brooklyn, New York to Los
Angeles.
You
may not know this, but a member of the O'Malley family that owned the
Brooklyn Dodgers also became a member of the board of directors of Earle
C. Anthony, Inc. after the move to Los Angeles! (It was Walter O'Malley)
The script is thought to be from 1957.
Go here to see the auction. It had a really high opening bid, so it did not sell. Unfortunately, the seller doesn't provide the entire script for our edification.
BTW, here is a photo of Earle C. Anthony from
antiqueradios.org.
