Melville Brandt (June 18, 1919 – March 14, 2008)[1] was an actor and NBC staff announcer.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Mel Brandt’s military records state that he attended college for two years, and his civilian occupation was actor. He enlisted on February 17, 1941 in New York City, and served in the Medical Department.[2]
In September of 1945 Brandt auditioned for NBC radio’s Welcome Home,[3] a program started in 1944 as a way to help World War II veterans obtain work in radio.[4] Encouraged by his "A plus" audition rating he auditioned for numerous radio series, and was hired to work in a commercial on a daytime radio serial on another network.[3]
Brandt joined NBC around 1948. His radio announcing credits included The Adventures of Frank Merriwell,[5] Author Meets the Critics, and The Eternal Light. In 1975, he announced for a syndicated radio program called Faces of Love.
He was one of the stars of the first television soap opera, Faraway Hill, broadcast in 1946 on the DuMont Television Network.[6] He announced the opening of the television soap opera, The Doctors.[7] His introduction was "The Doctors: The Emmy Award winning program, dedicated to the brotherhood of healing."
Brandt was the series announcer for other NBC-TV programs including The Bell Telephone Hour from 1959 through 1968,[8] and GE College Bowl on NBC from 1963–70, in which his introduction was "Match wits with the champions in America's favorite question and answer game, live from New York, the General Electric College Bowl,", and after a brief plug for General Electric would introduce "the man with the questions, Robert Earle."[9][10]
From 1962 to 1975 Brandt was the NBC announcer who stated "The following program is brought to you in living color on NBC"[11] as the second animated version of the NBC Peacock was seen.
Brandt reemplazó a Don Pardo como locutor de Saturday Night Live durante la temporada 1981-82, excepto dos episodios de esa temporada en los que Brandt fue reemplazado por Bill Hanrahan , más conocido entonces como la voz de NBC Nightly News . [12]
Mel Brandt fue elegido presidente de AFTRA – la Federación Estadounidense de Artistas de Radio y Televisión – de 1967 a 1970. [13] Estaba especialmente interesado en los aspectos internacionales de los derechos de los artistas intérpretes o ejecutantes, y en 1972 recibió la Tarjeta Dorada en Memoria de George Heller ( una tarjeta de membresía chapada en oro) por sus esfuerzos para mejorar los derechos sindicales y de los miembros. [3] Ese fue el mayor honor de AFTRA. [14]
Durante muchos años Brandt vivió en Montclair, Nueva Jersey . Tenía esposa, Doris, y tres hijos. [15] Más tarde se mudó a Florida y está enterrado en el Cementerio Nacional de Florida . [dieciséis]