Audiobooks by Ben Ohmart

Frances Langford: Armed Forces Sweetheart

Everyone was “In the Mood for Love,” when Frances Langford, renowned Big Band singer with a rich contralto voice, rose from performing at hometown parties in Mulberry, Florida, to Broadway, Old Time Radio, and movies during Hollywood’s Golden Era. Her signature song carried her from turntables to troops in World War Two, and then into the stuff of legends. From the airwaves on Louella Parson’s Hollywood Hotel, Rudy Vallée’s The Fleischmann’s Yeast Hour, and Dick Powell’s Campana Serenade (1942–1943), Frances achieved nationwide fame as Don Ameche’s insufferable wife, Blanche, on The Bickersons (1946–1951). Her beauty eclipsed her broadcasts, when the movies plucked her from speakers to screens. Her film debut in 1935 in Every Night at Eight led to Broadway Melody of 1936, in which she popularized “Broadway Rhythm” and “You Are My Lucky Star;” Born to Dance in 1936; and in 1942 in Yankee Doodle Dandy with James Cagney, in which she sang the rousing “Over There.” For the first time, her personal interviews with author–publisher Ben Ohmart bring the treasured memories from her past to light. Return with her to the front lines from 1941 into the 1980s with Bob Hope and Jerry Colonna on USO tours through Europe, North Africa, and the South Pacific, entertaining thousands of GIs throughout the world. Frances Langford. More than a voice. More than the GIs’ choice.

Ben Ohmart (Author), Kathy Garver (Narrator)

Audiobook

Daws Butler, Characters Actor

The official biography of the voice of Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound and all things Hanna-Barbera. This first book on master voice actor Daws Butler has been assembled through personal scrapbooks, letters and intimate interviews with family and co-workers. Foreword by Daws' most famous student, Nancy Cartwright (the voice of Bart Simpson).

Ben Ohmart, Joe Bevilacqua, Joe Bevilacqua (Author), Joe Bevilacqua, Joe Bevilacqua (Narrator)

Audiobook

Buddy Baker: Big Band Arranger, Disney Legend, and Musical Genius

Buddy Baker was Disney music. Mostly known as the composer of the Haunted Mansion song and score, he was also a composer of films (Wicked Woman, The Fox and the Hound), television shows (the original Mickey Mouse Club), and numerous theme park attractions (World of Motion, Wonders of China, Kitchen Kaberet, Impressions de France) around the globe. From a humble beginning in Springfield, Missouri, Buddy Baker began composing and arranging music at an early age. He worked for many of the top big bands, then began arranging music on hit radio shows (the Bob Hope show, the Eddie Cantor show, the Jack Benny program) before getting into film. His thirty-plus-year career with the Walt Disney Company put him at the top of his field, working alongside many of the greats, including Walt Disney himself. This is Buddy's story-not a book on Disney music, but a tribute to one of the greatest musical minds the world has ever known. His music will play on forever. "Author Ben Ohmart is also the proprietor of BearManor Media, which has launched an impressive series of books for film, radio, and TV aficionados. He deserves our thanks and support."-Leonard Maltin, film critic and historian

Ben Ohmart (Author), David Zarbock (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Bickersons' Love Letters

Never before have the infamous love letters between John and Blanche Bickerson seen the light of day. This amazing testament to the strength of marriage at last shows the true depth of feeling the squabbling couple felt for one another. And no, it wasn't always bickering! Now you can find out who they are, how they met, and what their backgrounds are. And you can experience, for a change, the love shared between a couple that was obviously made for one another. "Painstakingly recreate[s] their historical and hysterical correspondence from a high school crush to an elopement in 1939. The results are also painful, as your sides will be aching with laughter."-Philip Proctor, American actor, voice actor, and member of the Firesign Theatre

Ben Ohmart (Author), Fred Frees (Narrator)

Audiobook

Judy Canova: Singin' in the Corn!

Diana Canova delightfully reads Singin' in the Corn!, the biography of her mother, Judy Canova. Judy Canova was a popular American comedienne, actress, singer, and radio personality who appeared on Broadway and in films. The popularity of the Canova family led to numerous performances on radio in the 1930s, and they made their Broadway debut in the revue Calling All Stars. During her career, Judy recorded for the RCA Victor label and appeared in more than two dozen Hollywood films, including Scatterbrain (1940), Joan of Ozark (1942), and Lay That Rifle Down (1955). In 1943 she began her own radio program, The Judy Canova Show, which ran for twelve years. Teeming with family interviews and Canova's own writing, Singin' in the Corn! is the only book that will ever need to be written about "everyone's favorite rube."

Ben Ohmart (Author), Diana Canova (Narrator)

Audiobook

Welcome, Foolish Mortals, Revised Edition: The Life and Voices of Paul Frees

He was Disney’s Haunted Mansion Ghost Host, Boris Badenov, Professor Ludwig von Drake, Pillsbury Dougboy, Toucan Sam, the Green Lama, and thousands of voices you have heard on records, radio, television, and in films. He was voice acting genius Paul Frees. Paul’s son Fred Frees reads this second edition of author Ben Ohmart’s biography. Fred Frees is a successful voice actor in his own right, who has been called upon to recreate his dad’s characters and create new ones all his own. Ben Ohmart says, “He has inherited his father’s amazing, weird gifts.” Fred admits, “I certainly had mixed feelings reading this audiobook about my dad. Of course, there was the inherent pride I always feel about my father’s accomplishments. And a certain awe at the obstacles he overcame in his life. And then, there was this feeling of déjà vu. It was like living parts of my life all over again and revisiting the emotions I had when we didn’t always see eye to eye, or when he was taken from us. But, in spite of everything, my father was always a source of inspiration to me, to appreciate my life. And in that, he never failed me." Bonus Track: An interview with Fred Frees, conducted by Joe Bevilacqua an Lorie Kellogg, for The Voice Actor Show, heard on the BearManor Radio Network. “Ben Ohmart has written several books, and The Life and Voices of Paul Frees is one of his best. This is the first thorough look at the actor who has been in thousands of radio programs, TV shows, and commercials. It is all documented. Very well recommended.”—Jay Hickerson, pianist and entertainer

Ben Ohmart (Author), Fred Frees (Narrator)

Audiobook

Yabba Dabba Doo!: The Alan Reed Story

The autobiography of the voice of Fred Flintstone is brought to life by veteran radio theater producer Joe Bevilacqua and Alan Reed Jr., featuring rare interviews with Alan Reed himself, an interview with Joe Barbera, and clips from Reed’s radio, television, and film career, including The Fred Allen Show, The Shadow, The Life of Riley, Life with Luigi, Duffy’s Tavern, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Viva Zapata, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and The Flintstones.

Alan Reed, Ben Ohmart (Author), Alan Reed, Alan Reed Jr., Bill Marx, Various Narrators, Various Narrators (Narrator)

Audiobook