Subject: [removed] Digest V2002 #68
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 2/22/2002 7:26 AM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

------------------------------


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2002 : Issue 68
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  RE: RA files to MP3                   [ "D. Fisher" <dfisher@[removed]; ]
  Re: Scopes Recordings?                [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
  Let's pretend episode "Charlotte's w  [ "Christian Blees" <christian-blees@ ]
  Re:Nielsen corections by Elizabeth M  [ Eric J Cooper <ejcooper2002@[removed] ]
  Prentis Capt Midnight Episodes        [ "Thomas Mason" <batz34@[removed] ]
  Harry Townes                          [ sojax@[removed] (Roger S. Smith) ]
  Philco radios                         [ leemunsick@[removed] ]
  R&B on the radio                      [ "bill Scherer" <bspro@[removed] ]
  Bygone Trademarks                     [ Richard Pratz <[removed]@[removed]; ]
  Radio Premiums                        [ "Ron Vickery" <RVICKERY@anchorwall. ]
  Re: Ratings                           [ Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed]; ]
  BBC and Aussie OTR                    [ "John" <glowingdial1@[removed]; ]
  Sherlock Holmes OTR                   [ Arcane <arcane@[removed]; ]
  Whither Philco?                       [ Richard Carpenter <sinatra@ragingbu ]
  nbc chimes//cbs affiliate compensati  [ "Chris Chandler" <chrisc@[removed]; ]
  Supreme Court - Copyright case        [ Herb Harrison <herbop@[removed] ]

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 10:43:10 -0500
From: "D. Fisher" <dfisher@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: RE: RA files to MP3

I've been using a program called "RA2WAV" that I've had for quite sometime,
but I believe has been replaced by another program called "Streamripper" or
something like that. The one I use converts RA to a Wav file which can then,
of course, be converted to any size MP3 you want with any number of Wav to
MP3 programs. I usually use Goldwave.

Don Fisher

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 11:17:11 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Scopes Recordings?

On 2/21/02 10:46 AM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:

Speaking of the trial, do any recordings of the WGN broadcasts exist?
I'd love to hear some of that.

Unfortunately, none are known. There have been persistant rumors over the
years, but nothing has ever emerged to back them up, and given the
extreme rarity of any genuine broadcast recordings prior to 1930, I have
to say that there is little-to-no chance that these rumors have any
substance. Silent newsreel footage does exist, but there is no genuine
audio.

For what it's worth, I haven't personally encountered genuine off-air
recordings of *any* WGN broadcasts until 1933 -- a few supposed ones have
turned up from the late twenties, but when investigated they invariably
turn out to be misattributed dubs of National Radio Advertising Inc.
syndication discs. (Sunny Meadows Program, Maytag Frolic, Bremer-Tully
Broadcasters, etc. etc. etc.)

Elizabeth

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 11:17:18 -0500
From: "Christian Blees" <christian-blees@[removed];
To: "OTR digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Let's pretend episode "Charlotte's web (wed?)"

Hello,

I'd like to know the air dates of the "Let's pretend" episode's
installments
"Charlotte's web (or wed?)", with Charlotte, the spider, and Wilbur, the
pig, in it. Written by E. B. White. Can anybody help? It must be either
from
1953 or 1954.

Thanks a lot,

Christian

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 11:37:34 -0500
From: Eric J Cooper <ejcooper2002@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re:Nielsen corections by Elizabeth McLeod

I want to publicly thank Elizabeth McLeod for correcting the Britannica
information that I relied on for my reply about Nielsen and radio
ratings. However, the 1958 (or perhaps '59) yearbook, in my memory seemed
to almost imply that Nielsen as well as Encyclopedia Britannica was
giving up radio ratings list at that time. Obviously Nielsen hung on for
a few years longer

 By the way, the Britannica yearbooks prior to that are an excellent
source of Annual audience ratings averages for the top 10 or 15 programs
of each year. The 1950's volumes especially show the dramatic decline in
radio audiences after 1950

Eric Cooper

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 11:37:44 -0500
From: "Thomas Mason" <batz34@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Prentis Capt Midnight Episodes

Thanks to Mr. Kallis for his post of the mysteriously missing Golden Days of
Captain Midnight episodes that starred Ed Prentis.   But he does give some
hope with his comment that there are about two dozen of those episodes in
circulation.   My question is:  who has them and are they available?
Tom Mason

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 12:08:50 -0500
From: sojax@[removed] (Roger S. Smith)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Harry Townes

  The other day while surfing I happened to think of one of my favorite
character actors Harry Townes.  So I put up a search and instantly found
a very nice bio.  All these years I thought that Harry had been on radio
because of his excellent voice.  The bio listed no radio.      So my
question goes out to Hal Store seeing he was in that other medium and
may have worked with Harry.  Hal did Harry ever do radio?
Hal you may be interested in where I obtained the bio as your ole
working buddy Bob Hastings is listed plus many other old radio
personalities. Hal doggoneit (one word?) you were not there.  I suspect
the reason being that all listed were also in movies or tv and your mug
was only on radio.
Anyway it is a great cite and you can get there by ---
[removed]                         So long for now, Roger

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 12:37:14 -0500
From: leemunsick@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Philco radios

As John Henley noted, the Philco company supplied radios for Ford
automobiles.  Philco was gobbled up years ago by Ford, ostensibly at the
time because it was a prestige name which Ford wanted to keep exclusive in
their auto radios and burgeoning electronics requirements.

Not long after, they simply dropped the Philco name and called them Ford
radios.

A few years later, there was the Esso/Imperial/Humble Oil combine, which
announced to the world that they were changing all their names worldwide to
Exxon.  This to avoid confusion and do everything under one recognizable
name.  They had, they told us, searched high and wide for a name easily
which would be recognized everywhere, but which they'd found was not a word
in any language, and had no meaning or use anywhere.

Of course there is the well known Senator Exxon - I don't think he suddenly
chose that name, and was probably already well known in his own state when
this went on.  And, belying their widely publicized change, Exxon still
uses the names Humble and Imperial in various areas of the world.  I get
their quarterly magazine, which regularly shows the other names plastered
on refineries, tankers, delivery trucks, and service stations.

Now of course we have all the multiple-name oil companies, like Exxon
Mobil.  I still can't get used to the historic, vaunted Saturday
Metropolitan Opera radio programs brought to us by Chevron-Texaco.  Texaco
didn't even get top billing!

Especially interesting, along the lines of our Westwood One-NBC-CBS-Mutual
comments here, that three of those oily names were changed from their
previous ones (Esso, Socony Mobil Vacuum and Calso) which themselves were
new ones from their original over-all owner, Standard Oil Company, for
which I believe the senior Mr. Rockefeller worked for a time.

I wonder how many people knew of the following:

Esso (some people thought it meant Eastern States Standard Oil, but the
company claimed not) was essentially the east coast or New Jersey-plus
operation of the old Standard Oil Company.  It was broken up by the
anti-trust people with consent from Standard Oil, similar to what happened
to AT&T with Judge Green, and much earlier to United Fruit, purveyors of
the once ubiquitous Chiquita Banana.  United Fruit is gone.  Their Carmen
Miranda image is now the name of one of the surviving pieces of the former
giant.

Incidentally, United Fruit, because if its once-huge worldwide spread of
plantations, ranches and seagoing freighters, was a pioneer in radio,
needed to tie it all together.  Thus it was one of the original big holders
of early radio patents, along with AT&T, GE, and Marconi.  The patent pool
was dubbed "Radio Corporation of America", owned by all the above.  Some of
you may recall the name.  It, of course is gone, and its midget likeness
RCA is now merely a brand name.

Back to Esso.  That name was chosen because it sounded like S. O. for the
old Standard Oil.  Others coming out of the "split in addition to

 >Esso<, were
 >Amoco< (American Oil Company) was Indiana Standard (long headquartered in
Chicago, which you may recall is in Illinois.  As I have said before, "go
figure".
 >Calso< was California Standard Oil, more recently changed to Chevron, the
shape of their  trademark; as I noted it's now part of ChevronTexaco
 >Sohio< was Standard Oil Company of Ohio
 >Socony< was Standard Oil Company of New York, which became
Socony-Mobil-Vacuum, and eventually settled on Mobil but is now ExxonMobil
 >Boron< figured in there somewhere, and I think even
 >Texaco< had something to do with all that.  You may have known that there
was a lot of oil in Texas, and a lot of oil companies have made their homes
there.  But perhaps you hadn't heard.
There's also a lot of natural gas involved there, which some describe
simply as "hot air".  Apologies to our lurking Texas friends.

Various of these companies, especially Amoco, until a few years ago - and
possibly still - marketed outside of their "home territories" under the
name Standard in the familiar oval sign.

And many or all of the "baby Standards" jointly owned and profited from the
Atlas company, that produced fine motoring accessories and necessities such
as tires, drive belts and batteries.  These were sold by all those former
Standard operations.  Sadly, Atlas is gone now.  I for one can attest to
the quality of their products, especially so their glass-belted radial
tires.  I found them far superior to the much more expensive (and early on,
very dangerous) steel-belted variety.  I bought them exclusively for years
to replace original-issue tires on our autos, until suddenly I found they
just weren't there anymore.  That history reminds one of the government
breaking up AT&T but leaving in place Bell Telephone Laboratories, from
which all could benefit.  Yeah?  Where is it now?

So it's not just broadcasting firms and "big telephone" which have been
through turmoil.  Not anything new, it can drive one bonkers.  The
difference is that in the communications business especially broadcasting,
cable, and dish-satellite television, instead of breaking up, they're all
joining, so we have one company owning all kinds of so-called "competing"
firms.  One cable giant I think owns more than one-third of the cable
operations in the country, and one doesn't have to be a genius to figure
that third is in the highest-population areas, serving the most
people.  The two largest competing dish satellite companies, DishTV and
DirecTV, have just been allowed to combine.  In some large markets a
half-dozen broadcasting stations are owned by the same company.  Seemingly
competing news stations are actually owned by the same firm.  An OTR reader
reminded me yesterday that for a time the news broadcasts on all the radio
networks of Westwood One, Mutual, NBC, and CBS all actually came from the
CBS newsroom.

I see this as a very dangerous trend, and cannot understand why the FCC and
Justice allow it.  It's like one newspaper publisher operating all the
newspapers in one city.  Divergence of public information suffers, to say
the least.  I think it bodes ill for the future of our nation.

The old bugaboo "big brother" of "1984" was only a few years off.  It's no
coincidence that the great 1936 film "Things to Come" and other glimpses of
the future showed the government controlling the masses through giant
television screens all over the place.  H. G. Wells and George Orwell were
prescient in more ways than one.  The only difference is that we have lots
of smaller screens in our homes, rather than on the sides of
buildings.  [removed]

You all recall that the FCC broke up NBC's pre-war dual-network
system.  Sorry, people my age still consider World War II to be "the
war".  The government decided to cure NBC of a case of "The Blues", saying
it would concentrate too much influence to have one firm own two such
outlets.  Hah!  They were pikers!  FCC, where are you now?

The phrase "in bed [removed]" comes to mind.  We should have seen it
coming.  First the same FCC allowed NBC and CBS to then operate television
networks, and rape radio in the process.  Then they allowed ABC to own not
two but a handful of "separate" networks, so they could have affiliates in
virtually every outlet in any market, if they could sign them up.

While I empathize with the people screwed by the Enron mess, I find all
this tampering with communications far more frightening for our nation at
large.  I for one think it's very scary.  What's anyone else think?

Lee Munsick - The iconoclast, I guess

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 13:14:04 -0500
From: "bill Scherer" <bspro@[removed];
To: "" old-time radio digest ">" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: R&B on the radio

Hi all,
Were there any shows that featured R&B artists performing live in the 50's?
If so are there any in circulation?
Thanks.
Bill

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 13:23:50 -0500
From: Richard Pratz <[removed]@[removed];
To: "OTR (Plain Text Only)" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Bygone Trademarks

Seeing John Henley's Digest musings about bygone trademarks, brought back a
lot of OTR-related memories for me I'm passing along just for the heck of
it. In the 50'[removed], Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Beane (which I still
love to say because it rolls so trippingly off the tongue) used to have
offices in a skyscraper on the famous corner of Wacker Drive and Michigan
Avenue on the perimeter of Chicago's "Loop." A huge sign on the building
pronounced that fact. I was a CBS Pageboy in '54 and often called upon to
deliver inter-office mail between CBS Radio in the Wrigley Building and CBS
Television on North State Street. As I crossed the Michigan Avenue bridge
headed South, I'd always look up and see that sign and giggle to myself
because of the Jack Benny running gag about MLPF&B. Repeating the corporate
name over and over to myself in my mind provided a great cadence for my
trek, and to this day I recall those memorable years just because of it!
Thanks for reminding me John.

Rich

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 14:51:30 -0500
From: "Ron Vickery" <RVICKERY@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Radio Premiums

In [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #67, Stephen A. Kallis, Jr.
indicated he checks out auctions for radio premiums.  Stephen (or anyone
else), are these actual sit down with real people auctions, or are these
on-line auctions?  I've been checking around some antique stores for
several items (Johnson's Wax or Glo-Coat from the Fibber McGee & Molly
era, primarily), and have had absolutely no luck finding any.  Any
suggestions, besides ebay?  I could only find a Car-Nu newspaper or
magazine ad at ebay.

Also, Stephen suggested we "check out" unfamiliar premiums.  Please
advise this poor ignorant guy how I would do this.  Are there sites
on-line or reference books?

Thanks,

Ron

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 14:55:27 -0500
From: Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: Ratings

          I agree with Eric J Cooper that the only time I
ever used to hear about A. C. Neilsen ratings were
in connection with television ratings.  The only
ratings systems I ever remember connected with
OTR were the Hooper and Crossley ratings (there
might have been more).

          One more question for the members of the
mailing list.  During the proverbial golden age of
radio, which stars had the highest salaries?

Kenneth Clarke

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 17:34:22 -0500
From: "John" <glowingdial1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: BBC and Aussie OTR

Hi folks, I don't post that often but do read the digest regularly.
Wondering if anyone can help me out with a few shows I'm looking for.  I'd
like to find the BBC series, "I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again".  I think
there was another series with a similar title featuring most of the same lot
but can't remember that title.  Only have a few episodes of ISIRTA now and
want to increase the collection.  Also any BBC Radio episodes of Dr. Who,
Dad's Army.

I'm also looking for a source for Australian OTR, especially their versions
of The Shadow, Inner Sanctum and other successful American OTR shows.
Please feel free to respond to me directly at glowingdial@[removed] .

Thanks a bunch, John W. Matthews

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 18:56:13 -0500
From: Arcane <arcane@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Sherlock Holmes OTR
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain

Greetings to all;

I've been collecting Sherlock Holmes radio stories for some length of time
now and am converting any I find to MP3 files.
I have a little over 400 files now, but have made up a list of about 910
stories that have been broadcast in the USA and England.  I am interested in
finding other Holmes collectors that may wish to trade [removed] on
tape, CD or over the Internet.  If you're  a Holmes fan as well, please drop
me a note and I'll get back to you asap.
I will be posting the list of all Holmes stories on the internet as soon as
I've finished my home page. ( within 2 weeks)
ps.  I also have a good collection of Mercury Theatre, Lux Radio, X Minus-1
and CBSRMT stories.  ( more into collecting mysteries than comedy)


Cheers
Len Moss

*** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
***                  as the sender intended.                   ***

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 20:04:49 -0500
From: Richard Carpenter <sinatra@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Whither Philco?

   According to [removed], here's what became of the Philco name, a
topic being discussed in the Old Time Radio Digest:

   "The Philco name survived for a time as Philco-Ford, but Ford sold Philco
to GTE-Sylvania in 1974. Ironically, when Philco began to market radio tubes
under the Philco brand name, the tubes were made for Philco by Sylvania. Both
Sylvania and Philco eventually became part of Philips Consumer Electronics
Corporation, known today for their Philips Magnavox line of consumer
electronics products.

  "Today, the name "Philco" can be found in Kmart stores on a line of
value-priced televisions, boom boxes, and clock radios. Meanwhile, Philco
International Corporation, which had since become a producer of home
appliances for the export market, continues today as part of the Nordyne
Corporation."
   I bought my first replica radio about 30 years ago, and it was a Philco. I
guess now it is a genuinely old radio!

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 20:43:58 -0500
From: "Chris Chandler" <chrisc@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: nbc chimes//cbs affiliate compensation

Lee Munsnick [removed]

Anent the chimes, perhaps older posters and lurkers will pardon me,
while for newcomers I re-tell the story of NBC radio being sold.
But these radio folk did NOT want to use the NBC RADIO chimes!


What a wonderful story!  However, it isn't true.

Yes, NBC Radio used the peacock logo for its imaging and other marketing.
However, NBC Radio also continued to use the chimes
for a decade after the sale to Westwood [removed]
possibly still using them today.

The 1980s and 90s radio version was a variation on
what NBC television had just put on the air, circa
1983: chimes, embedded in a lovely swirling electronic
sound.  (You may remember on TV the sound was used to
accompany an animated picture of a spinning globe.
There was some controversy at the time, because it turns out the globe was
actually spinning backwards!  It had to be re-done.)

In any event, the chimes were in use up through 1996,
that I know of, and possibly beyond.  The other poster
who noted NBC is now nothing but a morning-drive news
service is correct; affiliates are given CNN radio
news the rest of the day.  For several years before
that, WW1 ran NBC and Mutual as one operation; NBC
radio had limited access to audio from the NBC-TV
network, mostly from the 'Today' show.  Otherwise, the
network used the Mutual net correspondents and audio.

Secondary newscasts and special reports carried no
network labels at all; at night and on weekends, the
two network feeds were identical, except for the
opening sounders!

Also, the radio personnel were VERY careful not to
associate themselves with the NBC-TV news operation:
I used to send liners off to talk show host Jim
Bohannan to record, saying something like "NBC News on
the hour is [removed]" and they'd always, always come
back "NBC RADIO News on the hour is next".  They were
very specific about it.

Finally, on a sort-of related subject, CBS radio is
now telling affiliates that the decades-old tradition of the
network paying compensation to the local stations is
completely dead, at least on the radio side.  The compensation had already
been dropped in favor of a straight barter system; now the network is
telling at least some affiliates THEY will
have to pay to take the network service!  This is a major change of policy,
more proof that times are still tough--and it will be very interesting to
see how many affiliates say "Fat chance!", and what effect this has on the
CBS radio operation.

Chris

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2002 09:23:26 -0500
From: Herb Harrison <herbop@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Supreme Court - Copyright case

The [removed] Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to a recent federal
law that extends existing copyrights for films, books, music, and AUDIO
recordings far into the future.
If the Court overturns this law, some radio recordings from the '20s &'30s
could be released into "public domain" status, which means that anybody
could copy and distribute shows that are currently locked up in legal
fights, such as local stations' vs. networks' ownership [removed]
This could be a BIG THING, leading to the free availbility of lots early
OTR recordings.
Any comments?

Herb Harrison

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #68
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