Subject: [removed] Digest V2007 #321
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 11/13/2007 2:13 PM
To: [removed]@[removed]
Reply-to:
[removed]@[removed]

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2007 : Issue 321
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                             [removed]
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Re: public reaction to the War of th  [ FabFicBks@[removed] ]
  War of the Worlds                     [ Rentingnow@[removed] ]
  Re: Writers' Strike                   [ Michael Hayde <mikeh0714@[removed]; ]
  Howard Koch on WOW                    [ Frank McGurn <[removed]@sbcglobal. ]
  11-13 births/deaths                   [ Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed] ]
  Re: More on recording on disc         [ "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed]; ]
  Lone Ranger's name                    [ Alan Johns <alanbama@[removed]; ]
  Quiet Please                          [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
  Cavalcade of America                  [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
  Empire Builders                       [ Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed] ]
  WRITER'S STRIKE INFO                  [ PURKASZ@[removed] ]

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

Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 15:37:26 -0500
From: FabFicBks@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: public reaction to the War of the Worlds
 broadcast

I thought I would add a short note to the general  commentary about public
reaction to the Mercury Theater War of the Worlds  broadcast.  I asked my
parents about this in the late 1960s, when I was  already deeply involved in
collecting OTRadio shows.
    My mother and father were both students at the  University of Tennessee
in Knoxville at the time of the broadcast.  My  mother and most of the girls
on
her dorm floor heard about the "invasion"  about fifteen or twenty minutes
into the show.  Alerted by a couple  of agitated students, everybody with
portable radios immediately switched  over to the Mercury broadcast, at which
point
it seemed to be a real series of  news remotes.  More and more students
gathered around the assorted radios  following the happenings.  Mom reported
that
she and the other women in the  dorm were terrified, right up until about two
thirds of the way into the  show, at which point it became obvious that the
program was a complete work of  fiction.  Nobody ran screaming into the
streets;
everyone was glued to the  radio trying to learn what happened next, but
everybody was very frightened and  apprehensive.
    Over at the men's dorm where my father was lodged,  he didn't even know
about the broadcast until the next day, since he was  studying for upcoming
exams in his entomology classes.  Apparently, at  least in his particular
dorm,
the common room radio was tuned to Bergan &  McCarthy, and never left that
dial
setting the whole evening.

---Bob Jennings

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

Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 16:48:09 -0500
From: Rentingnow@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  War of the Worlds

In a message dated 11/12/2007 3:05:45 [removed]  Eastern Standard Time,
[removed]@[removed] writes:
I must've  asked every person I knew who was alive back then

I asked my mother about  it once.  She said she didn't hear it.  She said
that she was  listening to May West at the time.  It doesn't seem logical to
me
considering my mothers propensity to be straight laced. (As an example she
wouldn't allow liquor in the house until a physician ordered brandy for my
father. Happily we avoided the dictum by hiding the beer in the milk cooler
in
the barn! But that is slightly off the subject)  But if she was I sure  would
have loved to watch her reaction to the double ententes. Alas the show
occurred
2 years before I was born.

Any schedules I have seen did not put  May West against "War"  The stations
available in Powell, Wyoming were KPOW  which was later mostly Mutual and KGHL
in Billings Montana which I think was, at  least later NBC.  Since there was
no CBS station there may have been a  combination of NBC and CBS programming
but am not sure on that.

As a note  on the newsgroup [removed] there was a 8 part
version of  "War". I downloaded it but haven't listened yet.

Larry Moore

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

Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 17:27:41 -0500
From: Michael Hayde <mikeh0714@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Writers' Strike

Reflecting on the current strike, John Mayer queries:

I'm wondering if there was a similar upheaval when
programming began to be shifted from radio to
television, often using the same scripts or scripts
only slightly altered.  Did writers demand
and/or receive extra revenue?

I can't speak to the general practice, but I do know
that, around 1953, former DRAGNET scribe James Moser
brought a lawsuit against Jack Webb's Mark VII company
when he was not fully compensated for scripts he'd
written that were adapted for television (he had a
deal in place to be additionally paid for TV
adaptations).  Moser's suit was settled out of court,
for the full amount due to him.

Michael

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

Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 18:13:02 -0500
From: Frank McGurn <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Howard Koch on WOW

On October 6, 1988 Chuck Schaden played a telephone interview he did
with Howard Koch the writer for the "Mercury Theater on the Air". Last
month on his "Those Were The Days" October 30, 2007 Chuck replayed the
interview. It was very informative. On his program he also  played  the
"Chase and Sandborn Hour" that was on NBC opposite WOW on CBS, 7:00PM CST.

According to Howard he rushed the finished script to CBS an hour or 2
before air time. He had working long hours and being pushed to get it
[removed] went home and heard the broadcast and went to sleep no Idea of
the panic until the next morning. He reported that the police
confiscated the scripts etc. There were lots of talk of law suits talked
about, but none were filed.

News paper columnist, Dorothy Thompson, wrote and article saying that
WOW let the government and public had learn what would happen if we were
really invaded, especially with the fear of war in the days just before
World War Two.

It was 2 days before my 8th birthday and was in our living room on the
floor in front of the radio listening to WOW when my father came into
the room and said what kind of junk are you listen to, and changed to
Charlie McCarthy. Never knew how the WOW  ended until Chuck Schaden
played in October 1971 or 2

Steve Allen, Douglas Edwards and Jason Robards stared in a recreation of
"War of The World" On October 30, 1988 I think it was on CBS. They were
carful to let listeners know it was [removed]

Some where there was a radio drama about the WOW and the panic Thought I
have, but I don't and I forget the details.

Frank McGurn
 .
------------------------------

Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 23:18:25 -0500
From: Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  11-13 births/deaths

November 13th births

11-13-1850 - Robert Louis Stevenson - Edinburgh, Scotland - d. 12-3-1894
author: "Mercury Theatre of the Air"; "This Is My Best"
11-13-1886 - Frederick B. Bate - Chicago, IL - d. 12-25-1970
newscaster: "NBC News"
11-13-1903 - Conrad Thibault - Northbridge, MA - d. 8-10-1983
singer: "Show Boat"; "Packard Hour"; "Manhattan Merry-Go-Round"
11-13-1913 - Alexander Scourby - Brooklyn, NY - d. 2-23-1985
actor: Herbert Temple "Young Widder Brown"; Philip Cameron "Against
the Storm"
11-13-1913 - Helen Mack - Rock Island, IL - d. 8-13-1986
producer, director: "Beulah Show"; "Affairs of Ann Scotland"
11-13-1917 - Robert Sterling - Newcastle, PA - d. 5-30-2006
actor: Michael Shayne "Michael Shayne"
11-13-1922 - Jack Narz - Louisville, KY
announcer: "Meet Corliss Archer"; "Tenneessee Ernie Ford Show"
11-13-1925 - Ed Backey - Havre de Grace, MD - d. 5-4-1988
disk jockey: WTOW Towson, Maryland
11-13-1932 - Richard Mulligan - NYC - d. 9-26-2000
actor: "CBS Radio Mystery Theatre"

November 13th deaths

03-03-1924 - Barbara Jean Wong - Los Angeles, CA - d. 11-13-1999
actor: Judy Barton "Cinnamon Bear"
03-15-1905 - Margaret Webster - NYC - d. 11-13-1972
stage actor, director: "Information Please"
04-09-1906 - Antal Dorati - Budapest, Austria-Hungary - d. 11-13-1988
conductor"; "CBS Symphony Orchestra"
04-14-1917 - Valerie Hobson - Larne, Ireland - d. 11-13-1998
actor: Guest Contestant "One Minute Please"
04-29-1915 - Donald F. Mills - Piqua, OH - d. 11-13-1999
singer: (The Mills Brothers) "Mills Brothers Quartette"
05-29-1892 - Mario Chamlee - Los Angeles, CA - d. 11-13-1966
singer: Tony "Tony and Gus"; "Arco Birthday Party"; "Swift Garden Party"
06-13-1903 - Jack Fulton - Philipsburg, PA - d. 11-13-1993
singer: "Ben Bernie, The Old Maestro"; "The Kraft Music Hall"
06-29-1893 - Alma Kitchell - Superior, WI - d. 11-13-1996
singer, commentator: "Melody Hour"; "Brief Case/Streamline Journal"
07-01-1894 - John Lair - Livingston, KY - d. 11-13-1985
announcer, director: "National Barn Dance"; "Sunday Mornin' Gatherin'"
07-25-1901 - Lila Lee - Union Hill, NJ - d. 11-13-1973
actor: "Fleischman's Yeast Hour"
07-26-1908 - Professor Hale Sparks - d. 11-13-1997
director of broadcast University of California: "Edgar Bergen/Charlie
McCarthy"
10-08-1904 - Wally Brown - Malden, MA - d. 11-13-1961
actor: "The Jack Kirkwood Show"; "Joan Davis Time"
xx-xx-1890 - Louis Katzman - Odessa, Russia - d. 11-13-1943
musical director: "Fred Allen's Linit Bath Club"

Ron Sayles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 10:19:52 -0500
From: "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Re: More on recording on disc

Ken Greenwald's information about Orson Welles' disc copies and the story
about what happened to the WOTW rehearsal discs has been very helpful and
confirms some rumors I had not yet discussed in print.  Maybe we will have
the stories straightened out by the time of the FOTR panel next fall.

But there are some misleading or confused info in Ken's posting on recording
technology, and I'll try to clear up some of this.  Part of the confusion
comes from his use of the word "rotate".  In general his first statement is
true:
Any record, be it a 16" ET, a 12" microgroove LP, or a 78
recording, spins at a defined rate of either 33 1/3 rpm or 78 rpm.

The confusion starts in the next sentence:
If you imagine a 78 spinning at that speed, you will discover
that the outer edge of the recording is rotating what seems
to be faster. The inner part of the 78 is near the spindle and
this part does not have to rotate as much.

"Spin" "revolve" and "rotate" mean the same thing--after all, we measure the
spin speeds as "revolutions per minute."  But Ken used "rotate" when he
should have been describing "groove speed" or "surface speed."  The
rotational speed does not vary (in normal records) but the surface speed
under the needle does change just as he describes it.  There is a faster
surface speed nearer the outer edge, while the rotational speed does not
change.  Does __this__ clear it up??

For example, his next sentence:
In effect, it is rotating at a slower speed because the
same point on a groove does not have to travel as far
to make a circle as the outer edge does.
should be changed to read: "In effect, the surface is moving at a slower
speed because the same point on a groove does not have to travel as far to
make a circle as the outer edge does."   Clearer??

Ken's analogy to tape speeds is appropriate, but you can make the actual
measurements of what the surface speed is on different diameters of a disc.
His tape analogy was:
In effect, it's like the outer edge of the disc is recording at
71/2 inches per second, the middle is at 3 3/4 inches,
and the area near the spindle at 1 7/8, like a cassette.

The book that AudioDevices published in the 1940s (I'm using the 1948
edition) "How To Make Good Recordings" actually discusses this very
situation and gives the approximate groove speeds.  At the outer edge of a
16-inch disc at 33 1/3 RPM, the groove speed is about 24 inches per second.
It is reduced to 11 ips at an inner diameter of 7 1/2 inches.  (RCA
specified that Orthocustic recordings should not be cut at diameters less
than 8 inches, and the surface speed would be about 12 inches per second.
This would be a ration of two-to-one comparing the outer and inner groove
speeds.)  They also give the groove speeds for 78 RPM records.  At the outer
edge of a 12-inch record, the surface speed is 17 1/4 inches per second.
Near the label at a diameter of 4 inches, the surface speed is 6 1/4 inches
per second.   This gives a ratio close to three-to-one comparing the outer
and inner groove speeds.  This means that there is a greater contrast of
sound quality on a 78 than on an ET.  You are more likely to hear a contrast
of sound quality when changing sides on a 78 than on an ET.  When RCA
introduced the 7-inch 45 in 1949 they had an outer to inner ratio that was
very small compared with Columbia's LP introduced in 1948.  Theoretically,
that made the small 45 the most ideal disc recording format if the spinning
(or rotational) speeds are to be held constant throughout the disc.  The
outer and inner groove speeds of an LP are quite different, while they are
relatively similar on the small 45.

Later on, Ken brings up another situation:
. . . I forgot to mention in my email one other important factor:
In the days of radio ETs, at 33 1/3 on 16" discs and at 78
speed on 78 discs, the engineers did NOT re-equalize the
sound to boost the treble slowly as the grooves reached the spindle.
. . . Later, as technology increased, the engineers cutting the discs
knew how to re-equalize so the sound was the same at the edge
and at the spindle. As LP technology increased it became automatic
that the sound would be re-equalized on a vinyl recording.

This is confusing because it seems to say that equalization was changed in
relationship to cutting diameter in later years.  That's not true.
Actually, in the mid-1930s there WAS a device that could be added to cutting
lathes that would automatically increase the treble when the cutter was
closer to the center.  The AudioDevices book specifically mentions that this
device has now (1948) become obsolete because of the standardized
equalization curves.  They mention NAB, but there also was RCA's
Orthocoustic.  When the microgroove LP and 45 were introduced, Columbia used
a modified NAB curve and RCA used a modified Orthocoustic which in 1954 was
adopted by the RIAA for all records.  These curves did NOT vary in
relationship to cutting diameter.  They were absolutely constant from the
rim to the label.  They were set so that the sound was very acceptable at
the inner grooves, and would not be too noticeably worse than at the rim.
High frequencies are raised while recording so that they can be reduced in
playback, but the rate was always constant.  This equalization helps give
better high frequency response at the center, but also allows for the
reduction of surface noise when the highs would be reduced during playback.

I should stop here, but at the risk of really confusing everybody I'll
mention that there ARE some disc systems that actually DO change the
rotational speed so that they spin faster when the inner diameters are used
and slower at the rim.  CDs and DVDs run this way.  Their rotation speed
decreases as the laser moves outward.  This creates a constant surface speed
under the laser.  Laser VideoDiscs also ran this way when in the Extended
Play mode, called CLV or Constant Linear Velocity.  In the Standard Play
format, each TV frame took one revolution.  In order to do this, the disc
has to rotate at 60 revolutions per second.  This was called CAV, or
Constant Angular Velocity, and you can see the frame sync pulses in a
V-shape on the disc.  You can easily freeze-frame a CAV disc, but need to
have a memory chip in the machine to freeze-frame a CLV disc.

There were at least three audio recording formats that also used a constant
groove speed system that varied rotational speed.  In the mid-20s there was
a very rare system in England by a company called World (no relation to the
later World Broadcasting System.)  You could only play their records if you
had a speed controller added to your phonograph.  The Gray Autograph
dictating machine and the Memovox broadcast logging recorder in the 30s and
40s speeded the disc up as it approached the center and vice-versa.  The
sound quality of these systems was minimal.  They were really trying to
squeeze more time on a disc rather than improve the sound.

Ken said:
I hope this clarifies everything, Bob. Either that or I
might have confused you more!

The same goes for me!

Ken also said:
If only we could be standing in front of each other
it would be so much easier to show you the discs
and demonstrate the various types of recordings
made and the inherent problems with fidelity and
recorded grooves."

Likewise, Ditto!

And Ken ended by saying:
To those reading this info, many thanks for your time. To those
who skipped over, many thanks for still enjoying the digest.
Ken Greenwald"

And to that I'll add: Sorry, Charlie!!

Michael Biel  mbiel@[removed]

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 10:20:18 -0500
From: Alan Johns <alanbama@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Lone Ranger's name

Jello radio listeners,

Listening to some Thanksgiving shows today, I caught the Lone Ranger's name
in the opening scene of 11-25-1953's "Thanksgiving at Murdoc City."  Who
would've guessed -- "STEDLY" ?!?

Happy pre-Holidays to all who share their stories and expertise here. T
minus 9 and counting.

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 10:20:36 -0500
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Quiet Please

[removed] King mentioned "two allegedly held at the Museum of TV &
Radio in NYC."

Actually, the Museum, now known as the Paley Center, houses three episodes
of the series that is not known to circulate in collector hands.  Two in NYC
and one in Los Angeles.
MG

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 10:28:11 -0500
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Cavalcade of America

About seven years ago I made a list of the 17 episodes of THE CAVALCADE OF
AMERICA not known to exist, and with the help of Neal Ellis, the list has
been revised.  Before I do a revision of the old magazine article, can
anyone verify if any of the above exist and are now in circulation?

11/18/36  The Story of Rubber
8/11/37  The Cavalcade of Music
1/26/38  The Pathfinder
3/16/42  Dear Brutus
3/30/42  The Silent Heart
4/27/42  This Side of Hades
6/1/42  Clara Barton
7/13/42  Man of Iron
8/17/42  Theodore Roosevelt, Man of Action
12/7/42  The Road to Victory
5/29/44  Sing a War Song
2/28/49  Pink Lace
3/21/49  Letter From Europe
5/9/50  Never Marry a Ranger

3/2/42  Accent on Youth (does exist, we're just wondering if anyone actually
has this)

If anyone has any of the above, please let us know.
Martin
mmargrajr@[removed]

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 11:56:59 -0500
From: Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Empire Builders

Folks;

   I was gathering the Empire Builders episodes together, and ran into
something of a problem with the first one, "Armistice Day Reunion."

   On Jerry Haendiges' [removed] in the log for The Empire
Builders, he lists the episode as having aired on December 1, 1930. On
Elizabeth McLeod's article "Documenting Early Radio" availabe at
[removed]~[removed] she lists the date for this
episode (actually the earliest episode she lists) as having aired November
30, 1930.

   But in issue #305, R. R. King posted:

Found a couple of newspaper clippings about the 1930 Armistice Day
episode of "Empire Builders," which was actually broadcast on November
10, the day before the holiday. It's one of the earliest surviving
recordings of a network radio drama in circulation and features a
script by Wyllis Cooper and sound effects by Fred Ibbett.

   ...and included the articles. That date, though, is a pretty serious
difference from the 11/30 or 12/1 dates previously listed.

   Is it possible the Armistice Day episode to which the articles refer is
_not_ the surviving "Armistice Day Reunion" program?

   I'm going to hold off posting this until there's some resolution to the
date - instead, I'll get some of the other programs I've been a bit remiss in
posting up this week.

         Charlie

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

Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 16:13:32 -0500
From: PURKASZ@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  WRITER'S STRIKE INFO

John Mayer brings up an interesting question, for which  I have no informed
answer except to remind everyone that the 'artist' in any  endeavor including
music, writing and acting has always had to fight for a share  of a booming
market that for the first time in history has had to deal with the  reality
that
created items by those 'artists' gets sold over and over again with  very
little or mostly NO recompense to the original  creators.
Does that seem fair?
The  Screen Actors Guild, of which I am a proud member since 1969 has
educated me to  these realities over time and anyone who wants to know a
little more
about this  current strike should go here for a little more  understanding.
This about equity in  sharing.
YouTube - Why We Fight
    _[removed]_
([removed])
Michael C. Gwynne

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2007 Issue #321
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