Playing for Pride

It’s 6:59 PM on Thursday, January 10, 1935...and a major change awaits at the Lincoln, Nebraska residence of schoolteacher CARRIE KNIGHT and of her furniture-salesperson husband, PAUL.

With the flick of a radio dial, nurturing-and-sympathetic Carrie switches her allegiance from Rudy Vallee’s popular extravaganza to a still-obscure offering now back for a second season: "The Hour of Charm..." the half-hour show featuring Phil Spitalny’s All-Girl Orchestra.

Later that night, Carrie and the philosophical-but-still-floored Paul discuss her new favorite show...the lead catalyst for the creation of the fulfillment of a longstanding dream: A women’s orchestra.

Carrie’s search begins at Willard School, where she teaches history...and whose own orchestra features a resourceful, sports-loving sixth-grader named LILY MATTHEWS.

Lily not only outplays the rest of the school orchestra...she’s a world-class violinist. And she becomes Carrie’s first recruit in what becomes the Lincoln Women’s Symphony Orchestra.

The budding organization’s next two finds emerge at a grocery store: Spunky, unsinkable EILEEN MANDERSON, one of Carrie’s old professors at the University of Nebraska who now gains a chance to realize her dream of becoming a great concert pianist; and CORINNE MCMICHAEL, the friendly butcher at that very store...who also plays flute, guitar, cello, and bagpipes.

When Carrie, Eileen, and Lily take their search to the Conservatory of Music on the NU campus on February 16, the new aggregation lands twenty more instrumentalists. The standouts include perky harpist JERRINE BOEHM, a private music instructor whose insurance-agent husband JOE keeps trying to steer her into a movie career because she’s “too pretty to play in an orchestra;” team-oriented GRACE ANNE LOGAN, a trombonist who’s back at NU, this time as a teaching assistant; kooky CHLOE BOYD, who works at a service station when she isn’t playing marimba; KITTY WALDBAUM, a witty clarinetist who helps her worry-wart husband SOLOMON run a clothing store; and IDA MAE ARD, a confident bassist who teams up with her jovial hubby RAYMOND to operate their own barber shop.

Another top-flight performer, trumpet-playing food server ROCHELLE COLCLOUGH, proves to be the fly in the LWSO ointment: She’s the daughter of now-deceased husband-and-wife Ku Klux Klan members...and determined to carry on their legacy.

While Carrie’s unit tries to deal with Rochelle’s animosity toward Ida Mae and Kitty, it also seeks to dodge a would-be bullet: Jerrine and jealous Joe travel to Los Angeles so that she can do a screen test...arranged without her knowledge or consent.

The Lincoln Women’s Symphony breathes more easily when Jerrine’s Tinseltown test blows up...just in time for the orchestra’s debut concert, set for March 31 at M Street Methodist Episcopal Church.

CHURCH STAFFERS cancel the concert when they find out the LWSO has a Black member in Ida Mae and a Jewish musician in Kitty: “Do you understand how this looks, Mrs. Knight?”

Never mind that the same congregation gave the all-male Lincoln Symphony Orchestra a place to launch...in 1927.

In response to the church backing out of its commitment, Eileen hosts an emergency meeting...and offers to move the orchestra’s maiden concert to the Lincoln Theater, the downtown movie house where she accompanied silent movies after her teaching stint at NU ended.

So...on April 26, the Lincoln Women’s Symphony Orchestra finally debuts at the Lincoln Theater, right after Mae West’s latest movie. The mix of familiar classical selections, some rarely-heard pieces, and even a pair of popular tunes brings down the house...and leads to the possibility of a Sunday-afternoon radio show for Carrie’s orchestra.

From an Omaha station...not a Lincoln one.

Everything’s set for a Midlands version of "The Hour of Charm..." except seed-company magnate LYLE SAMPSON tells Carrie to get rid of Kitty and Ida Mae before “you can be on my program.”

The already-abrasive Rochelle goes after Ida Mae...only to destroy the latter’s double bass. And the Klan wannabe charges after Kitty...but gets: “Don’t even think about it.”

When the Knights go fishing at Lincoln’s Salt Creek, Paul sticks a bug in Carrie’s ear about ditching Rochelle on the heels of Ida Mae and Kitty quitting the LWSO over Rochelle’s hate-filled antics. Carrie agrees to kick Rochelle out “if that’s what the other musicians want,” but will reinstate her if Rochelle repairs Ida Mae’s bass, apologizes to her and to Kitty, and makes amends to the rest of the orchestra.

After the unit’s remaining twenty musicians confront Rochelle, it brings in three new members: Curious THELMA JAMES, a trumpet-playing classmate of Lily’s; demure bassist CAROLINE PEDULLA; and her Lincoln High School classmate, brash BEATRICE ANGELINI...who prefers the clarinet to the instrument she and LWSO members HELEN and ESTHER KOUBEK play at LHS, the violin.

While the LWSO holdovers bring Beatrice, Caroline, and Thelma up to snuff, Rochelle starts a fund for Carrie’s organization upon finding out Ida Mae’s bass fiddle is a total loss.

Rochelle’s efforts to turn over a new leaf culminate at the Ards’ house...where Ida Mae, Raymond, Kitty, and Solomon greet Rochelle herself as well as all the members of the retooled LWSO...which grows to twenty-six players when Kitty and Ida Mae agree to return and Rochelle apologizes to all.

The mea culpas continue when Carrie and Co. turn in a bravura performance at Pioneers Park...where Rochelle isn’t the only one to admit wrongdoing: M Street Church’s staff offers the LWSO an October opportunity...and Lyle agrees to help bring the orchestra to the airwaves. As is.

Even Jerrine agrees to another screen test in Hollywood...but only if her orchestra mates can come along and test, too.