Theodora "Tedi" Thurman was a fashion model and actress who found fame in the 1950s as Miss Monitor on NBC's Monitor, a 40-hour weekend radio show developed by Pat Weaver. Born in Midville, Georgia, the daughter of a banker, Thurman originally planned to become a painter, studying at the Corcoran Institute in Washington, D. C.. Her career plans changed, and she went to New York for modeling. Her first shoot wound up as a Vogue cover, bringing with it many other modeling jobs and some work on television soap operas. Columnist Alice Hughes described her appearance: She had film offers, but only one role, in the z-grade 1954 Ed Wood movie, Jail Bait. In 1954, Leopold Stokowski needed an accomplished jaw harpist for a performance of Charles Ives' symphony, . Thurman was one of the 22 who auditioned, but she lost the gig to two professional musicians.
Miss Monitor
Thurman, who lived in Palm Springs, California until her death on September 17, 2012, became one of the most familiar radio voices of the late 1950s in her role as Miss Monitor. Jack Gould, writing in The New York Times, described her as someone who "made the report sound like an irresistible invitation to an unforgettable evening." in a Monitor publicity photo. It began during a modeling assignment on the Today show, where she caught the eye and ear of one of the producers who was part of the Monitor planning team. With her alluring, breathy delivery heard against a background of lush, romantic music, Thurman gave NBC's sexy weekend weather reports from 1955 until 1961. While Bob and Ray stayed at NBC all weekend to spontaneously go on the air in case of technical problems with scheduled remotes, Thurman was there throughout the weekend to do her hourly weather reports. Dennis Hart, the author of Monitor: The Last Great Radio Show, recalled: When Miss Monitor delivered weather forecasts for cities across the country, her forecasts were all real, except for one occasion when Henry Morgan set Thurman's script on fire. She had to complete the segment by making up temperatures for each city. In the mid-1950s, she was lampooned by Edie Adams on various shows hosted by Ernie Kovacs. Bob and Ray also did a Miss Monitor satire, as did The Joy Boys, Willard Scott and Ed Walker in Washington, DC, referring to "Miss Janitor."
Television and films
In 1957 Thurman appeared with Jack Paar on The Tonight Show, and TV Guide did a feature article, "Tedi Thurman: Weathergirl Supreme" that year. She also can be seen as Miss Monitor in the trailer for the movie Ten Thousand Bedrooms. Sammy Davis, Jr. hired Thurman to introduce him when he played Harrah's, Lake Tahoe in April 1961. In "Fair-Weather Friends", Time remembered Thurman: Thurman was interviewed about her life on Fire Island for Crayton Robey's documentary film When Ocean Meets Sky. Edge editor Steve Weinstein, reviewing the film June 4, 2006, noted: On Wednesday, July 14, 2004, 29 years after Monitor ended on NBC Radio; Thurman joined more than 40 former Monitor staff members who gathered in midtown Manhattan for the first Monitor reunion at Hurley's Tavern, a location made famous through many references on the Paar Tonight Show. The event was organized by Dennis Hart, author of Monitor . The book features an introduction by Thurman. Thurman passed away peacefully in her sleep at age 89 on Sept. 17, 2012 in Palm Springs, California.
