In January, 1933, with George W. Smith as managing
director of Wheeling, West Virginia station WWVA, the idea was conceived
to program something special for late night Saturday listeners. A program
of country style music, called a “Jamboree,” was put together, using local
talent. At 11 p.m. on January 7, country music history was made when the
WWVA Jamboree went on the air for the first time. Listener response was
overwhelming, and for three months regular Saturday night Jamboree
broadcasts were aired.
In response to public demand to see their musical
favorites in person, WWVA moved the show to the Capitol Theatre, where it
opened that first day of April, 1933, to an eager audience of 3,266
people, with still another thousand turned away from the full house.
Because the theatre was used for Saturday night movies,
WWVA officials booked the theatre for Jamboree shows to begin at midnight,
after the movies. The shows were billed “The Greatest Shows on the Air for
a Quarter” since that was the price of admission. A great tradition had
begun.
Who were these fans that were turning Jamboree into a
success? WWVA’s Paul Miller came up with the idea of a “Prowlin’ Mike,”
later to be known as the “Inquiring Mike.” This gave a chance for Jamboree
fans to send greetings and personal messages back home. More importantly,
it showed management that fans were driving hundreds of miles to see the
show they had been listening to over the airwaves.
In 1934, the first Jamboree Harvest Home Festival was
held in the Capitol Theatre before a capacity crowd. During the mid-1930s,
the Air Castle Ballroom opened, offering Saturday night dancing to the
music of the WWVA Orchestra. It was from there that WWVA aired its first
remote broadcast.
The Jamboree’s early success was spreading more than
country music. Many other stations across the country thought they could
duplicate the tradition begun in Wheeling but none came close to
competing. The crowds continued flocking in ever-growing numbers. Special
transit cars and trains ran up and down the Ohio Valley bringing country
fans to Wheeling for a Saturday night of Jamboree entertainment.
1936 brought a first to the Jamboree pages of history
with the first outdoor Jamboree ever held. This forerunner to the current
Jamboree in the Hills, was held in the Wheeling High School football
stadium and drew a crowd of over 5,000 fans.
New names brought new crowds into the Jamboree fold. By
1939 the world’s Original WWVA Jamboree had reached the half-million mark
in attendance. Its popularity increasing regularly, the Jamboree stars
were soon on tour. In the early 40’s, the tours became more popular and
more names were added to the cast of regular entertainers.
The first tour took place in April 1939 as the Jamboree
gang traveled to six towns in Pennsylvania and Ohio giving performances to
large crowds. Because of the success, an annual WWVA Jamboree Tour was
planned but plans for a new tradition were halted when World War II took
center stage around the world.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, the
“Inquiring Mike” feature had to be dropped in response to a National
Defense policy that advised against broadcasts that made a microphone
available to the public. During these years, a songfest called “Keep ‘Em
Singing” took its place and earned special recognition from
Broadcasting, a trade magazine for the radio industry, for building
morale in a country ravaged by the depression and the war.
As many of its stars left for duty in the Armed Forces,
the girls of the Jamboree came into their own and kept attendance up by
singing to crowds that included men in uniform, all of whom were admitted
for free, regardless of their branch of service. The war, however, would
do something that only the flood of 1936 had done until that time. The
Jamboree show would be discontinued for the duration of the war in order
to encourage conservation of gasoline by the public. The last show until
after the war came on December 12, 1942.
The Jamboree show continued during the remaining war
years but only on the airwaves of WWVA. There were no live theater
broadcasts or public shows. Soldiers stationed throughout the United
States were finding the Jamboree broadcasts to be a great spirit booster.
As the war ended, the men of WWVA and the stars of Jamboree returned to
Wheeling and on July 13, 1946, live theatre performances resumed. On
February 28, 1947, another milestone in Jamboree history was crossed when
Miss Laverne Howell became the one millionth visitor to Jamboree USA.
The Jamboree was becoming a national institution. The
first 20 years brought more than 1,750,000 fans to Wheeling for jamboree
performances. Countless other millions heard it on the radio. Listener
surveys showed response from fans in 538 counties in 20 states and Canada.
In its first 20 years, thousands of pieces of mail were received every
week from almost every state in the nation.
In the early 1950’s, it was popular for Jamboree
entertainers to make personal appearances outside of Wheeling. In 1952
alone, Jamboree acts made 761 personal appearances in 436 cities and towns
before a combined audience of 536,789 people.
For the 25th anniversary in 1958, as had been the case
five years earlier, the Jamboree show was featured on the CBS show,
“Saturday Night Country Style.” That nationwide salute was only part of
the acclaim being given the Jamboree locally and nationally.
Basic Communications bought the station in 1962, and
when the Virginia Theatre was scheduled for demolition, the WWVA Jamboree
moved to the nearby Rex Theatre. That same year the station switched to
the ABC Network, bringing listeners such celebrities as Don McNeil, Dick
Van Dyke and Paul Harvey, who highlighted the occasion with a live
broadcast from WWVA.
Needing still more space to accommodate the crowds, the
Jamboree moved next to Wheeling Island Exhibition Hall in 1966 and then
came full swing back to the Capitol in 1969. Basic Communications bought
the Capitol Theatre and moved the entire operation into renovated offices
and studios. Soon after, the Capitol Theatre was renamed The Capitol Music
Hall.
Throughout the late 60’s, something was being felt in
country music, but even Jamboree artists couldn’t quite tell what the
feeling was. It wouldn’t go away however, and growing stronger, finally
burst forth with greater enthusiasm and quality in the 1970’s. After all
these years, country music had finally “arrived.” It arrived largely
because of the influence of the Jamboree.
October 23, 1971 stands alone in the annals of the
Jamboree. On that date, an attendance record was set that has yet to be
equaled. In his first Wheeling appearance, Charley Pride had an
unprecedented four show sell-out by more than ten thousand country music
fans. Having just been named male Vocalist of the Year and Entertainer of
the Year at the annual Country Music Association Awards, Pride brought the
capacity crowd to its feet during his four 30-minute performances.
Each Jamboree performance was as fresh as a new dawn,
but stable as yesterday. The secret to its success lay in Jamboree’s
honest approach to giving country music fans what they wanted… good
country music.
On January 15, 1983, Jamboree USA unveiled its “Walkway
of Stars”, intended to be a lasting tribute to individuals who have made a
significant contribution to Jamboree USA and the ideals of country music.
As part of its 50th Anniversary Celebration, 50 engraved bronze stars were
embedded in the sidewalk leading into the Capitol Music Hall.
The Capitol Music Hall’s doors still open every
Saturday night to thousands of country music fans who come to enjoy the
music of the brightest stars in the country music industry. Built in 1928,
the Capitol Music Hall is not only the oldest theatre in West Virginia,
it’s also one of the largest and is one of the best examples of
architectural beauty in the nation. Its rich brocade and red velvet decor,
ornate statuary and ceilings capture an era gone-by, while offering the
latest in fine acoustics and professional lighting.
The Capitol Music Hall, praised by stars and fans alike
for its warmth and beauty, compliments the fine entertainment of the
weekly Jamboree USA, as well as The Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, touring
Broadway productions, and various other musical and theatrical
productions.
Since its 1933 premiere, Jamboree USA has been a byword
for country music, a genre which has been called “the only truly artistic
musical contribution to the world that Americans can solely claim as their
own.” Gone now are the days of bales of hay adorning the stage, the blue-overalled
male performers and “gals” in cute gingham dresses.
But Jamboree USA -- the second oldest country music
program (next to the Grand Ole Opry) -- continues to lead the way in the
industry. All of the biggest contemporary names in country music regularly
appear on Jamboree USA and its sister, Jamboree In The Hills: Randy
Travis, Tanya Tucker, Reba McEntire, Lee Greenwood, Alan Jackson, Kathy
Mattea, Charlie Daniels, Charley Pride, Tammy Wynette, Willie Nelson, and
the list goes on.
Modern though it may be these days, country music
continues to express sentiments of love or ambition of broken dreams or
wanderings that touch the heart of everyone - whether the subject be
cotton fields or lonesome highways, mountain homes or river boats, empty
pockets or empty hearts. The old-fashioned message is timeless; only the
wrapping is new.
For the last 69 years, Jamboree USA has brought this
music from the heart of America to America’s heart. The Wheeling Jamboree
endures as one of America’s oldest live radio broadcasts and a proud
American tradition.
The Capitol Music Hall and Jamboree USA are currently
owned and operated by Clear Channel Communications.
