From 1939 to 1949, children everywhere didn’t have to look far to find a hero! Captain Midnight provided them with the action of a military aviator who took on the bad guys. Starting on October 17, 1939 the Captain Midnight radio show aired in markets where its sponsor, the Skelly Oil Company, had major customers. Children in the Midwest and southwest regions of the United States tuned in every weekday to find out what their hero was up to. The basic premise of the show centered on the hero himself, Captain Midnight. He was a flying ace in the World War I and his true identity was kept a secret – even from his commanding officers. His nickname came from a daring mission where he returned at midnight unscathed. Every installment of Captain Midnight impressed kids with his ability to fight evil plots and restore justice to the world. Children were also engaged because of his two sidekicks – Patsy Donovan and Chuck Ramsey.
As the show continued it changed hands and was sponsored by Ovaltine and was broadcast more widely. As the years went by and the United States entered World War II, Captain Midnight stayed in line with the times. He began to fight the Nazis and the Japanese.
All over the country, children were joining the Captain Midnight Flight Patrol – a fan club that sent children a junior pilot application card and a bronze medal to commemorate their membership. It also was a decoder that children could use to interpret messages hidden in the serial script. The show also provided children with action-packed shows that they could tune into Monday through Friday. Captain Midnight was known for its amazing sound effects that brought children from their living rooms to the battle lines. As children listened they were transported into machine gun battles and heroic dives through the air. And because of the excitement, children couldn’t wait to become a part of the action. Millions of children joined the Flight Patrol. The success of Captain Midnight is surely tied to the events of the day when war and aviation were on the forefront of American culture.
When looking at the history of premiums on the Captain Midnight radio series, one should understand that there were two separate periods that were determined by sponsor. The type of premiums they offered were very different. During the Skelly years, kids could join the Flight Patrol, an exclusive club for those who had the Flight Patrol Membership Card and the Membership Medal. Only some premiums were mail-ordered; most could be picked up at a nearby Skelly Gas Station. Because Skelly's products appealed to adults, the exclusivity concept of the club was mostly ignored. Anyone could join at anytime if the premiums were still available at the Skelly stations. You did not have to be a member to sign up for the premium. Some items required membership to get, but that was generally relaxed. Some Skelly dealers hated dealing with the premiums and would give them away to anyone who came in.
Premiums offered during the Ovaltine years were handled in the more traditional manner we came to know.
1. The Flight Patrol Reporter, (1938-39), Skelly Oil
A small newspaper which featured information on the cast of characters as well as clues to secret passwords were issued during the Skelly years.
2. Trick & Riddle Book, 1938-39, Skelly Oil
3. Air Heroes Stamp Album,
4 . Flight Patrol Membership Card1940, Skelly Oil
5. Captain Midnight Medal of Membership, (1940), Skelly Oil
This premium was made of "burnished bronze medal" and was bigger than a quarter.
The front shows the Captain and his sidekicks, Patsy Donovan and Chuck Ramsay. Prominately displayed is the password COBRALHOFA* for decoding those all-important secret messages contained in each show. On the back is a clock face pointing to midnight, plus the logo of his show's sponsor, Skelly Oil, and the legend "Medal of Membership, Captain Midnight Flight Patrol, 1940."
In addition to decoding messages, the Captain Midnight medal could be used as a decision-maker. The center of the propeller is raised, so if you spin the medal face-down, the clock hands on the back whirl around and eventually point in a particular direction. According to the radio ads, the decoder is an invaluable aid for those tough choices, like picking kids for your team.
* The not-so-secret word "COBRALHOFA" was regularly announced on the series. During the time that Chuck was captured in some 1940 episodes, he would send out coded messages to the Captain. By taking a message and selecting every tenth word, the messages could be translated. Why ten? Because the COBRALHOFA was equal to ten letters. For example, one message was:
The second message was almost the same as the first in that the code words were repeated. Captain Midnight discovered that every tenth word in both messages were the same. He also knew that the coded words corresponded to the last five letters of the secret password, COBRALHOFA and that it was intentional for Chuck to use the word Cobra:
Hello, Captain Midnight and everybody. Please do not delay long. Fly where Ivan Shark says. I will not be home again if you refuse. To do all these things on my account is a lot, I know. Remember that flying to Ivan Shark's direction as straight as an arrow is essential...
Captain Midnight figured that Chuck would send a third message using the first part of the secret password which he alluded to in the earliest message. And. a third arrived:
Hello Captain Midnight. This is your last chance to come to an agreement with Ivan Shark. Please think it over. If you do not agree, this will be the bridge that will separate us forever. You should do the right thing. The thing that will surely bring us together at last . . .
Once all the messages were placed in the order of the secret word, the message gave away Ivan Shark's hiding place:
COBRALHOFA
Come Over Bridge Right At Long Home On Flying Arrow
(Got that? Me neither.)
6. Ringo-Jumpo Game/Jumping Beans, (1939),Skelly Oil
During the "Perada Treasure" episodes the Skelly dealer offered Mexican "jumping beans" along with an 8 X 10 piece of paper with a game that would allow the beans to "jump" and score depending upon where the beans landed.
7. Mysto-Magic Weather Forecasting Flight Patrol Badge, 1939, Skelly Oil
This was a metal bronze-colored badge shaped like a propeller with the Skelly Logo. Behind the logo sat a piece of litmus paper that changed color as the weather conditions affected it.
8. Mystery Dial Code-o-graph & Manual, (1941), Ovaltine
So called because the center of the inner disk had the cipher alphabet (scrambled letters) on it and was supposed to look like the dial knob of a radio. The secret messages to decode were always given at the end in a "Secret Squadron Signal Session."
8. Flight Commander Ring, (1940-41), Ovaltine
This premium was only available via the 1941 manual; it was not offered over the airwaves. Inside the ring, on the reverse side of the crown, in raised letters, it says, "Captain Midnight Super Code 3." As explained in the manual, a message might be sent to Flight Commanders without a "code" setting. They were to look inside their rings to get the setting for their special messages.
This scarce 1941 ring from Ovaltine has eagle and shield designs on each side. The top has his emblem between the words "Flight Commander."
9. Whirlwind Whistling Ring, (1940-41), Ovaltine
It was a brass fits-any-finger ring with a miniature siren on its crown. This one was used in the program by Chuck and Joyce to summon help from the drains under Hong Kong while being held prisoner by the Barracuda's Tiger Tong. The siren is very similar to others of its kind and they're not loud.
10. Photomatic Code-O-Graph & Manual, 1942-1944, Ovaltine
So called because the owner was to insert a photo of him, or herself, into a small square area at the top of the badge, replacing the supplied photo of a pilot's face. The manual touted it as a personalized identification, like those used in defense plants. Actually, once the user removed the pilot's picture and substituted one of his or her own for it, the user was supposed to use a hammer and nail to fix the picture in permanently. This was shown pictorially, and consisted of pushing down the four metal tabs at the picture corners so that the picture couldn't be removed. There was enough of an overproduction of these so that they were issued throughout the war to new listeners.
11. Captain Midnight Flight Commander Flying Cross Brass Badge & Handbook, 1942, Ovaltine
This was another item orderable only from the catalog accompanying the Code-O-Graph. It was plated in 24 karat gold. The instructions that came with it told of how the inscription on the (back of the) medal had a secret setting for Flight Commanders. The inscription is: "Awarded for distinguished serviceand signed "Capt. Midnight" with the "SS-1" under the signature and in quotes.
It's hard to find since it is two pieces connected.
12. The 1942 Sliding Secret Compartment Ring, (1942), Ovaltine
A brass ring with a crown that slides off and is hollow. Suitable only to conceal a folded postage stamp or microfilm, if the kids could find any.
13. Insignia Shoulder Patch, (1943-44), Ovaltine
This was the conventional winged-clockface-with-hands-at-twelve Secret Squadron symbol/logo. It was introduced in the story where Chuck was flying an experimental jet in England and had to land at a military field, without identification. After he was rescued by the intervention of Sir Allen Brundage, the Squadron decided on a patch ID. Ovaltine offered it as a shoulder patch.
14. Magni-Magic Code-O-Graph & Manual, 1943-44, Ovaltine
So called because the center of the rotor was a magnifying glass. This was the first of the dated Code-O-Graphs. The manual had "key messages" scattered throughout that were printed in a typeface so small that the owner needed to use the lens to read them. Brass was still a critical material, and the badge was actually stamped sheet steel, with a "gold" paint atop it.The lens in the rotor was plastic, of course--indeed, all postwar Code-O-Graphs were at least partially plastic; one was completely plastic--and scratched easily. A Squadron member might pass a note to a friend who was also a Squadron member. The note might say, "KM-3," meaning "Expect important news soon."
15. Mirro-Flash Code-O-Graph & Manual, 1946, Ovaltine
Made from burnished bronze medal, the center of the rotor on this one was a mirror. The manual described the mirror as a "reducing" mirror, so that the user would be able to survey a room unobtrusively. The only weakness this unit had was that the pin on the back snapped off easily.
16. Whistling Code-O-Graph & Manual, (1947), Ovaltine
This was a plastic whistle with the cipher disk on its side. It was the first non-badge Code-O-Graph, and the first, and only, all-plastic one for the radio series. The rotor popped out of this one very easily; and the cipher alphabet was on it. Fortunately, it popped back in easily, too.
17. Spy Scope, (1947), Ovaltine
A miniature Galilean telescope. Extended, it was about the size of a mechanical pencil. It was black with red trim at the lenses. It worked pretty well for a Galilean. Regrettably, the red plastic rings holding the lenses were pretty fragile, so many broke.
18. Orange Shake-Up Mug, (1947-49), Ovaltine
This was an 8-ounce plastic container with a blue top that could be used in the manner of a cocktail shaker to mix up Ovaltine drinks. A bas-relief picture of Captain Midnight is on its outside.
19. Mirro-Flash Code-O-Graph & Manual, 1948, Ovaltine
This code-o-graph was a disaster in engineering. It had a removable red plastic back with a secret compartment. A large stainless steel mirror insert used the sun for signaling. The Code-o-graph, however, was unbelievably awkward. The cipher rotor and numbers were on two disks that held together for deciphering; only one number and one letter were visible through windows on the front. They were kept together with a ring of dimples to prevent slippage, which often didn't work. Also, the red back usually warped severely, both making it impossible to keep as a back for the unit and also causing the stainless steel mirror to pop off.
20. Key-O-Matic Code-O-Graph & Manual, (1949), Ovaltine
This entry into the world of coding had a key to change cipher settings, which most people lost immediately. Some creative soles used a paper clip, or some such, to set the gears. It had no other features than enciphering and deciphering.
