Interview with the Actors - "The 1940s Radio Hour" (#2)

Here's the second round of interviews with some of the actors from The 1940s Radio Hour, which wraps up this weekend at Huntington's Renaissance Theater.

In this entry we get to learn more about the character in the show. Our question is: Tell us about the part you play.

Linda Reynolds: Ginger Brooks is a waitress by day, a big band singer by night and a ditz all the time. She is very involved in her makeup (“thick and perfect”) and has a thing for Lou.

Bil Neal: Lou is the second banana in a tiny radio station. He's where he wants to be, and enjoys his job and food. He sings backup to just about everyone else, and handles some of the sound effects. (I get to play with noisemakers onstage with Eric Newfeld while eating Hostess SnoBalls and Baby Ruths. If I could figure out a way to work in a ham sandwich it would be the role of a lifetime.)

David Vickers: I play Clifton Feddington who is the producer and chief bottle-washer of the show. He is an overly anxious person who bursts into tirades occasionally and possibly suffers from ulcers from the stress of dealing with his cast. However, when the show hits the air, he becomes a lovable emcee of the show. Radio entertainment is his passion and he sells it out to any sponsor that will flash him a nickel! (I especially enjoy him plugging a sponsor at the conclusion monologue). He sees the radio show cast as an extended family. He is wanting to use the show as a stepping stone to bigger and better things.

Joshua Jannotta: Johnny Cantone is the featured Vocalist for the radio show. His "real world" problems affect him more and more throughout the show, until he falls apart at the end. He's a hard guy to like, but it's also hard not love him.

Stephen Vance: I play Neal Tilden, taxi driver by day, comic and wannabe balladeer by night. Although Neal has some of the best comedic bits in the show, he always is striving for his chance to be the featured vocalist. He is nearly a Danny Kaye type.

Amy Knell: I play a nightclub singer named Ginny Lee Browne. She is from Kansas City, MO, and she came to NY to follow her dream. She works at the WOV Radio Station as one of her many "gigs." She is a flashy and sassy girl from the '40s and I love getting to play her in this show.