Subject: [removed] Digest V2002 #204
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 6/4/2002 6:54 PM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2002 : Issue 204
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  "Love it" does not = "Own it"         [ wich2@[removed] ]
  mp3: free for all                     [ Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed]; ]
  Re: Voice-Tracking                    [ Roger Lorette <roger@[removed]; ]
  What is "Voicetracking"?              [ Henry Howard <hhoward@[removed] ]
  Father Knows Best                     [ Dennis W Crow <DCrow3@[removed] ]
  Re: Women as boys                     [ John Mayer <mayer@[removed]; ]
  Voicetracking; Coverless magazines    [ danhughes@[removed] ]
  Voices & Farewells                    [ "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@ezlin ]
  Gordon or Nelson                      [ "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@ezlin ]

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 18:04:22 -0400
From: wich2@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  "Love it" does not = "Own it"

From: John Mayer:

And, let's face it, though the transcription may belong to Mr. Farquand,
the show doesn't.

Boy, have I been waiting for someone to say this simply and clearly! Two
wrongs don't make a right; all the corporate ignorance, irresponsiblity,
venality, and just plain stupidity in the world don't negate original
production/possession rights. I've salivated as much as anyone over rumors of
"lost" films, radio shows, books, et al.; I've rejoiced as much as anyone
over the love labors of collectors, who have rescued same.
And those labors well and truly earn such folks the moral prize- but not the
legal one.
(As Jack Kennedy said, "It's not a fair world.").
Here's the rub: some of that moral highground is forfeited, if said holder
then becomes guilty of the same sin as the corporate entity: witholding the
creators' work from it's desired audience.
-Craig Wichman
Quicksilver Radio Theater

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 19:03:47 -0400
From: Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  mp3: free for all

John Mayer quoted me:
 >> I do not agree ...that all otr should be free.

 >Never? Why not; that is, after all, the reason that copyrights are not
 >infinite (despite the efforts of our legislators to change that for the

In this context yes. I was actually referring to otr which is known to be
protected by copyright currently. Sure, after the copyright runs out or is
not renewed and goes to public domain, then, yes, of course. Right now,
there are lots of questions as to just what is really in the public domain
right now. Above all else, I believe that the network productions are still
technically under various copyright protections - but much is just not
enforced.

 >Their costs of production and marketing are irrelevant if the same show
is available elsewhere for free;

This is precisely my point. What is getting passed around in a lot of cases
are the output of organizations such as Radio Spirits and so forth. After
all, their copies of certain Superman productions, for example, are very
very good. If I had a choice between an encoded copy from their CDs versus
an inferior copy, I'd take the former. This is where the violation begins
to enter in. Yet, unless there were some digital marking, whose to know for
sure?  All that Radio Spirits did is pay someone for clean originals,
further enhance them then take these copies and market them. This is a lot
of money and investment. What gives me the right to take their copy and
compress it, upload it for everyone, or put them all on CD and sell it?  I
say, nothing gives me the right. Just because it originated from a copy
(prior to the enhancing) that might have been freely distributed
(forgetting that DC Comics owns rights to the audio) does not mean I have
the right to take RS's copy and pass it around for free.

 > License fees are another matter; those who created and produced these
shows are entitled to
 > whatever rewards their efforts can generate, but, sadly, there are fewer
and fewer of these folks
 > to profit from whatever renewed interest there is in their artistry, and
I doubt that many of these
 > survivors are lining their pockets with Mediabay license fees.

Licensing is licensing whether I am making much from it or not. Keep in
mind that the licensing can come from estates too, such as the Jack Benny
estate, etc.  The original artist does not have to be around - just the
rights owners.

 > There were pirated copies of _Star Wars Episode II: the Clone Wars_
...but that had no impact
 > on the box office

Big difference for me between a film that will draw people multiple times
and huge audiences many of whom never had access to that pirated copy which
generally passed mostly among the true Star Wars fanatics and a rather
small (by comparison) community of those who like old time radio. We are a
major part of the market versus those who had the pirated Star Wars. Even
though I have been collecting for as long as I have, I still buy items from
the likes of a Radio Spirits at times because of the quality of their
material. If the basic core fan base of otr went away, I really don't think
that the Radio Spirits of the marketplace would ultimately survive. What
helps them is most likely their market penetration among the casual
shoppers who peruse a Cracker Barrel Restaurant, or a Sam's Club or Costco,
etc and stumble across these shows. As long as they make the effort to
penetrate those markets, then they might survive beyond the fan base.

 > I've heard that fewer than 5% of internet users are newsgroup users.

The dynamics are changing now that broadband is ubiquitous. The
replacements for the Usenet downloads have become the FTP sites that offer
most shows either free or by becoming part of a support structure either
through uploading new shows, or paying a small fee for a byte size download
of files.  While there are lots of shows available, there are still rights
protected copies being downloaded.

If I had my way, sure, it would all be free. But the world "ain't" that
way. Whether it is Advance Publications protecting its Shadow name and use
of phrases, or Himan Brown trying to protect his Radio Mystery Theater, or
DC comics wanting to control their Superman, or a First Generations
protecting its output, or even some radio actor who had something written
into their contract on re-broadcasts, the Internet has made it virtually
unable to be controlled.

Ah well, it's not going to change anytime soon, so it is all really
academic, I guess.

Jim Widner
jwidner@[removed]

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 19:04:52 -0400
From: Roger Lorette <roger@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Voice-Tracking

Lee Munsick Wrote:
This is from "PirateJim's Radio Site".  Can anyone tell me what this
is all about?
What is "Voicetracking"?

Up until a year ago the term "voice-tracking" was new to me as well.  Having
spent 15 years in radio (ending in 1989) I was amazed at how much the
industry had changed in the decade that I was out.  In various emails with
friends still in the industry I found that Voice-Tracking is now VERY widely
used in the majority of radio [removed] those smaller market
stations on shoe-string budgets.  A DJ can sit in a studio for 30 minutes and
pre-record all of his/her "bits" for a 3 to 5 hour show then let a computer
conveniently insert those "bits" between songs or commercial spots.  The
logic being that the DJ now has those hours free to other duties in the
stations.  I have one friend still in radio who is DJ/News Copy
Writer/Continuity Writer and part-time engineer.

The majority of radio people in the "trenches" don't like V-T but (of course)
management is in love with it.  The big complaint is that the "personality"
is gone from radio.  It's quite difficult to be "spontaneously" entertaining
when you record the "bit" hours in  advance.  For those of you who listen to
radio (I mean modern radio) in the [removed] you ever wondered why you
rarely (if ever) hear a DJ break in with a sports score update or a late
breaking news story.  As far as current commercial radio is concerned those
thing more often than not have to wait till the morning crew comes in.  The
early morning Drive-Time (6 AM - 10 AM) in many cases is the only shift where
the on-air staff are actually "live".

Hope this enlightens you somewhat.  I'm happy that I could contribute a
little to the digest.

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 19:12:43 -0400
From: Henry Howard <hhoward@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  What is "Voicetracking"?

What is "Voicetracking"?

Voice tracking is a growing practice of having an announcer/dj record
all the "talk" or patter that goes between songs to be played in one
short setting.  These bits are then played back in the radio station
automation sounding like the talent is there live at the station.

The practice has been around for some time as I remember
tracking sessions in the very early 70's.

What is newer is corporations that own many stations using
a few "good" djs to voice track for multiple stations in multiple
markets.

One give a way is the lack of local time and temp.  Another is the
missing or slightly stilted interaction between the "on the air" talent
and the "traffic reporter" etc.

Good tracking is hard to spot.

Of course with many small market stations taking the satellite feed
all day and night, and the medium and larger stations tracking
fewer and fewer djs, where is the next generation of talent going
to come from.  If we loose our "farm" system, what's next?

  Henry Howard - moderator of  radiodrama@[removed]
770 923 7955                   [removed]

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 19:44:27 -0400
From: Dennis W Crow <DCrow3@[removed];
To: OTR Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Father Knows Best

Ian Shreve makes a good point about the radio version of "Father Knows
Best."  Robert Young's characterization of Jim Anderson has nothing in
common with how he portrayed the role on television.

On radio, Young was domineering, scolding, loud, often tuning out his own
kids, particularly Bud played by Ted Donaldson.  The youngest child was
particularly obnoxious, with an annoying, plaintive wail that introduced
each program.

Only occasionally, did Young exude any warmth. His television
characterization was completely different. On TV, he emerged as everybody's
favorite father --- wise, non-condemning, and infinitely patient.   I don't
know of any radio series which had a reincarnation on television that
changed as much as this one did.

Dennis Crow

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 19:54:16 -0400
From: John Mayer <mayer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Women as boys

John Francis MacEachern <johnfmac@[removed]; stated:
 > Most annoying is when a middle aged woman tries to sound
 > like a teenage [removed]

Well, surely that depends on how good a job they do. I, for example,
completely accept Bart Simpson's voice as that of a boy in early
adolescence, even though I know he's really Rhoda's sister (sorry, can't
quite think of her name).

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 20:19:48 -0400
From: danhughes@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Voicetracking; Coverless magazines

For Lee:

Voicetracking is where the DJ inserts his comments between songs on a
computer in the production studio, and his resulting computer program
will be played on the air at a later time.  Since the DJ doesn't have to
actually play all the music--he just clicks between songs on the computer
menu to insert his voice tracks--he can do a 4-hour show in about a half
hour.  So the audience thinks the DJ is there live, but it's just a
computer recording.

The good side of voicetracking (for the station) is that on-air talent
doesn't work as many hours; payroll goes down.  And no DJs are needed for
overnights because the afternoon guy can voicetrack the overnight show.
As a broadcast instructor, I hate voicetracking because my students have
a much harder time finding entry-level jobs.  Novices used to do
overnights; now the computer does it.  Arg!

The downside is there is no live announcer, so if a big news story breaks
the audience will know nothing about it.  Weather reports are usually
fudged, with no current temps announced because the show was recorded
hours earlier.

For Andrew:  That note on magazines (and especially comic books in
America) that prohibits them from being resold in an "incomplete" form
arises from this situation:  When new issues of magazines come out and
there are still copies of the old issue left on the newsrack, the vendor
gets a refund for the unsold magazines.  To prove they were not sold, he
is required to send back the COVERS of the unsold magazines.  He is
supposed to destroy the coverless magazines and comic books.  (It would
cost too much to send back the entire magazine, plus the publisher really
doesn't want old magazines cluttering up the warehouse).  Some vendors
send in the covers for a refund, then sell the rest of the magazine at a
cutrate price rather than destroy them as they are supposed to do.  This
note gives the publisher legal recourse to go after those vendors who try
to profit twice on the same magazine.

---Dan

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 20:41:40 -0400
From: "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Voices & Farewells

The most distinctive voice for me would have to be
William Conrad. He appeared in many radio programs
and I could recognize his voice even if he didn't get credit.

A I recall, Have Gun Will Travel wrapped up that series.
It's been a while since I listened to it but I think
Paladin went back east for some reason. I'm sure some one
will set us straight on that.

Don Dean

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

Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2002 20:41:49 -0400
From: "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Gordon or Nelson

Herb Harrison commented in the last Digest:

Does anybody else remember Mr. Gordon's "YYEEESSS!!!???" line when dealing
with Jack Benny on radio or with Lucy on TV?

That was Frank Nelson who did that on the Jack Benny Show.
Gale Gordon was also a favorite of mine on Lucy and in many radio
shows.

Don Dean

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #204
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