This circa 1952 kinescope film "Hawthorne Looks at the Weather" is a segment featuring comedian Jim Hawthorne. It begins with a station identification for KNBH Channel 4, Hollywood, California. This was the first iteration of what's now known as KNBC or NBC4, with the NBH standing for National Broadcasting Hollywood (the name changed to KNBC in 1962 when the station moved to Burbank). The show features a series of gags while promoting sponsor Armstrong Tires. The actual weather report is finally given at 4:00.

Jim Hawthorne (November 20, 1918 – November 6, 2007) was an American radio personality and comic actor. He was a disc jockey who was a pioneer of "free form" radio. Hawthorne was born in Victor, Colorado and began his career at a Denver radio station. He eventually landed in Los Angeles, California where he worked not only in radio, but also in early television and short films. In 1950, he created, produced and starred in the Saturday night coast-to-coast radio program, The Hawthorne Thing, which was the final network radio show to originate in NBC's Hollywood Radio City. At KLAC/Channel 13 in the early 1950s, he created the first late evening talk show on television, This Is Hawthorne. An article in the LA Times reflecting on early TV described the show as "predecessor of NBC's Saturday Night Live." On KNBH/Channel 4, beginning in 1952, he did a daily five-minute weather show. In 1958, Jim traveled to KYA-San Francisco and created Voice Your Choice, which he brought to KDAY. In the early 1960s, while doing Instant Weather on KTTV/Channel 11, Hawthorne joined KFWB as assistant PD and morning DJ, and eventually became VP, National Program Manager for Crowell-Collier Broadcasting. While still at KFWB he joined Sherman Grinberg Productions as a writer, producer, narrator. He produced Jim Hawthorne's Funny World and Quicky Quiz television comedy shorts.

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com

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