THIS WAS RADIO: A Personal Memoir

Julian's memoir is an informative, not too gossipy recollection of radio in the heyday of ""The Goldbergs,"" ""The Shadow,"" ""The Fred Allen Show,"" kids' programs and the soaps, and those big bromidic American epics by Norman Corwin. Julian tells of his days as a performer and of his attempts to give radio acting a creative seriousness it had never known: he would memorize lines (other players read from scripts) and deliver them naturally. His popularity at times landed him on 25 shows a month, from ""Superman"" to ""The March of Time."" But radio fell apart for him when his name appeared in the semi-official ""Commie-pinko"" blacklist Red Channels and he became a jobless victim of the McCarthy and HUAC demagogues. Due process and the courts were unavailing: his case was dismissed. But a TV show he scripted for the ""Theater Guild-U.S. Steel Hour"" brought him parts once more after three years' dead air. Julian is fairly bland -- but, it must be admitted, some of his memories of the good old days and, especially, his collection of great bloopers -- ""This portion of 'I Dream of Jeannie' is brought to you by Vick's Navel Spray"" -- and ""Jackie Kennedy returned today from her African visit bringing with her a whale's tool for a souvenir"" -- will bring back a smile.