The concept for the show was that Godfrey had several "talent scouts" who brought their discoveries onto the program to showcase their talents. The winner of each show was determined by a
meter that judged the audience's applause. The radio series began July 2, 1946, and was heard on CBS Tuesday evenings at 9pm. The winner on October 1, 1946, was pianist
José Melis, who later became a familiar late night television personality as the orchestra leader on
Jack Paar's
Tonight show. In the summer of 1947, ''Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts'' moved to Fridays at 9:30 p.m. After August 1947 it aired on Mondays at 8:30 p.m. The radio show continued until October 1, 1956. With Archie Bleyer leading the orchestra, the show's announcer was George Bryan. The show's opening (to the tune of "Four and Twenty Blackbirds") featured Peggy Marshall and the Holidays singing: :Here comes Arthur Godfrey :Your talent scout emcee :Brought to you by Lipton :Brisk Lipton Tea :You know it's Lipton Tea :If it's B-R-I-S-K :You know it's Arthur Godfrey :When you hear them play ... At that point, the music would segue into trombonist
Lou McGarity and the orchestra playing Godfrey's familiar theme song, "Seems Like Old Times", sometimes with Godfrey singing or humming along. Contestants on the show included
Pat Boone,
The Chordettes,
The McGuire Sisters and
Carmel Quinn, all of whom went on to perform on
Arthur Godfrey and His Friends. Other contestants included
Tony Bennett,
The Blackwood Brothers,
Lenny Bruce,
Laurie Carroll,
Roy Clark,
Rosemary Clooney,
Ken Berry,
Florian ZaBach,
Wally Cox,
Vic Damone,
The Diamonds,
Eddie Fisher,
Connie Francis,
Don Knotts,
Steve Lawrence,
Al Martino,
Barbara McNair,
Marian McPartland,
Johnny Nash,
Leslie Uggams, Lorraine Donahue (who later appeared on
The Voice of Firestone),
Joe Negri,
Roger Williams (pianist), and
Jonathan Winters. Swedish singer
Kjerstin Dellert won a contest in 1948 with
Someone to Watch Over Me, beginning her career as a vocalist there.
Patsy Cline first gained national attention with a winning performance of ''
Walkin' After Midnight'' on the January 21, 1957, broadcast. Among those who auditioned but were not chosen to appear on the broadcast were
Buddy Holly,
The Four Freshmen, and
Elvis Presley. ==Television==