Powder Box Theater Radio Program

Background

Alexandre-Napoléon Bourjois et Companie began selling cosmetics to the Stage and Theatre trade of Paris in 1863. Over the years Bourjois expanded several of their makeup and scent lines to consumer products throughout France and soon after throughout Great Britain, Canada, and the United States. Primarily concentrating on its unique baking process for its patented face powders, by the 1890s Bourjois had begun acquiring several international awards for it expanding line of innovative products and processes. Its steaming process for a line of 1891 Java rice powder-based products soon translated into a brand new plant for steaming the new patented face powder cakes.

By 1898 Bourjois had diversified into offering nearly 700 unique female--and male--cosmetics, scents, waxes, balms, powders, and requisites. By the 1920s Bourjois was becoming known for it's "Soir de Paris" and "Mon Parfum" lines of perfumes and face powders. During the 1930s Bourjois' Soir de Paris caught on in the United States, soon after renamed Bourjois' "Evening In Paris" line from the mid-1930s forward.

Soon becoming one of North America's most popular perfume lines, Bourjois' Evening in Paris was heavily advertised throughout the Print media of the era, and was also one of Television's earliest sponsors. Indeed Bourjois began sponsoring early Television fully two years prior to its sponsorship of Radio offerings. By 1946, Bourjois had sponsored:

• 1943 The Bourjois Show with Dick Haymes [Television]
• 1943 Here's To Romance
• 1945 Romance, Rhythm and Ripley
• 1945 Powder Box Theater
• 1946 The Bourjois Show with Tony Martin

Bourjois continued sponsoring both Radio and Televsion into the mid-1950s, promoting mostly light orchestral features or romantic vocalists of the era.

CBS and Bourjois roll the dice yet again on a variety format

Since the advent of Bourjois' promotional advertising campaigns over Radio, it was Bourjois' "Evening in Paris" line that it promoted the most. And within that line, it was its Evening in Paris Face Powder that it's Radio advertising most often touted. Capitalizing on that connection, it seemed a natural extension of its advertising campaigns that Boujois' face powder product might be leveraged into the name of one of its Radio series. And so it was that Bourjois' Powder Box Theatre premiered on October 11th 1945 as the successor to Bourjois' previous Romance, Rhythm and Ripley series of twenty-six installments.

Powder Box Theatre got off to a rousing start for its first thirteen installments with a parade of big name stars for its 'guest' segments. The 'theatre' element of Powder Box Theatre was a nod to the infrequent dramatic skits generally performed in participation with the evening's 'Guest' performer. Judging by the sheer quantity of musical pieces included in almost every installment, the dramatized presentations and skits must have been quite abbreviated.

At about the halfway point of Powder Box Theatre's installments, the series abandoned its 'Guest' segments in favor of expanding the music presentations even further. The move also had the unquestionably intended effect of further reducing each production's estimated cost to around $7,000 per half hour.

Series Derivatives:

Notes on Provenances:

The most helpful provenances were newspaper listings.

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