Subject: [removed] Digest V2005 #367
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 11/29/2005 6:31 AM
To: [removed]@[removed]

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2005 : Issue 367
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                             [removed]
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  11-28 births/deaths                   [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
  OTR Across The Pond                   [ dougdouglass@[removed] ]
  Golden Age of Radio/One Night Stand   [ "Bob Scherago" <rscherago@[removed]; ]
  A new book                            [ <otrbuff@[removed]; ]
  War of the worlds mention             [ Melanie Aultman <otrmelanie@[removed] ]
  Just The Facts ...                    [ "Stephen A Kallis, Jr" <skallisjr@j ]
  radio and tv repair                   [ "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed] ]
  Eternal Light                         [ JayHick@[removed] ]
  Bulldog Drummond                      [ "Karl Schadow" <bluecar91@[removed] ]
  80 years [removed]                       [ "Bill Knowlton" <udmacon1@[removed] ]
  Wrong Terry and Hop H. dates          [ Philip Chavin <pchavin@[removed]; ]
  Radio programming about Dust Bowl of  [ "apcohen" <apcohen@[removed]; ]

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 09:57:47 -0500
From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio List <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  11-28 births/deaths

November 28th births

11-28-1894 - Frank Black - Philadelphia, PA - d. 1-xx-1968
conductor: "Jack Benny Program"; "NBC String Symphony"; "Cities Service
Concert"
11-28-1895 - Jose Iturbi - Valencia, Spain - d. 6-28-1980
pianist, conductor: "Telephone hour"; "Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra"
11-28-1906 - Helen Jepson - Titusville, PA - d. 9-16-1997
singer: "Kraft Music Hall"; "Show Boat"
11-28-1909 - Rose Bampton - Cleveland, OH
singer: "Palmolive Beauty Box Theatre"
11-28-1916 - Richard Tregaskis - Elizabeth, NJ - d. 8-15-1973
author, war correspondent: (Guadalcanal Diary) "Lux Radio Theatre"
11-28-1917 - Elliott Lewis - New York, NY - d. 5-20-1990
actor, director: Frankie Remley "Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show"; "On Stage";
"Mr. Aladdin"
11-28-1925 - Gloria Grahame - Los Angeles, CA - d. 10-5-1981
actress: "Hollywood Star Playhouse"
11-28-1925 - Robert Readick - d. 5-xx-1985
actor: (Son of Frank) Bill Roberts "Rosemary"; Don Cornwell "Second Mrs.
Burton"
11-28-1925 - Virginia Hewitt - Shreveport, LA - d. 7-21-1986
actress: Coral Karlyle "Space Patrol"

November 28th deaths

01-31-1915 - Garry Moore - Baltimore, MD - d. 11-28-1993
host, comedian: "Garry Moore Show"; "Camel Caravan"; "Take It or Leave It"
02-27-1880 - Georgia Burke - Atlanta, GA - d. 11-28-1985
actress: Lily "When A Girl Marries"
03-04-1934 - John Dunn - Glasgow, Scotland - d. 11-28-2004
announcer, newsreader: "Roundabout"; "Housewive's Choice"; "Breadfast Special"
04-03-1783 - Washington Irving - New York, NY - d. 11-28-1859
author: "House of Mystery"; "Tomorrow Calling"; "American School on the Air"
04-27-1898 - George McCall - Renton, Scotland - d. 11-28-1952
host: "Man About Hollywood"
05-11-1910 - Johnnie 'Skat' Davis - Brazil, IN - d. 11-28-1983
trumpet: "The Fred Waring Show"
06-04-1907 - Rosalind Russell - Waterbury, CT - d. 11-28-1976
actress: "Four-Star Playhouse"; "Silver Theatre"
06-29-1899 - Lester Vail - Denver, CO - d. 11-28-1959
director: "Aldrich Family"; "March of Time"; "World's Most Honored Flights"
07-24-1914 - Vicent Bogert - New York - d. 11-28-1978
writer: "Duffy's Tavern"
09-24-1911 - Edmund L. Hartman - St. Louis, MO - d. 11-28-2003
screenwriter: "Lux Radio Theatre"
10-06-1912 - Mel Dinelli - d. 11-28-1991
writer: "Advs. of Philip Marlowe"
10-11-1920 - Ralph Paul - Denver, CO - d. 11-28-1987
announcer: "Aldrich Family"; "True Detective Mysteries"; "Might Casey"
12-16-1911 - Howard Reilly - d. 11-28-1991
producer: "The Fred Allen Show"
xx-xx-1908 - Fred Uttal - New York, NY - d. 11-28-1963
quizmaster: "Detect and Collect"; "What's My Name"; "Melody Puzzles"
--
Ron Sayles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 09:58:00 -0500
From: dougdouglass@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  OTR Across The Pond
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BBC's Broadcasting House built in 1932.  Lots of studio and equipment
photos.

Doug Douglass
[removed]

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Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 10:25:23 -0500
From: "Bob Scherago" <rscherago@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Golden Age of Radio/One Night Stand

The latest "Golden Age of Radio" programs with
Dick Bertel and Ed Corcoran, and "A One Night
Stand with the Big Bands" with Arnold Dean can
be heard at [removed].

In the coming weeks we will feature three complete
shows in MP3 format for your listening pleasure or
for downloading; two "Golden Age of Radios" and
one "One Night Stand." We present new shows every
week or so. The current three programs will be
available on line at least until the morning of
December 5th.

Here's this week's lineup:

We begin the rotation of "Golden Age" programs this
week in order of their original broadcast, starting with
the first two shows in the series; Stanley Quinn, Writer
and Producer for the radio department of the J. Walter
Thompson Advertising Agency, and Charles Harrell,
Eastern Program Director for the NBC Blue and ABC
Radio Networks.

Program 1 - April, 1970 - Stanley Quinn

(Note: This program has been restored;  the version
last posted here was reconstituted from an incomplete
show from Dick Bertel's collection; this version is as
originally broadcast by WTIC in 1970.)

Stanley Quinn was a writer and producer for the radio
department of The J. Walter Thompson Agency. He
was also the first guest on the new program, which,
for the first few installments was called "The Golden
Era of Radio." (Dick can't remember what brought about
the change of the title.) The first few shows were actually
done live in the studio, but later it was more efficient to
record the guests whenever they were available and put
the show together on tape. It was also handy, since Ed
was able to look in his collection for shows mentioned
in the interview.

Program 2 - May, 1970 - Charles Harrell

Charles Harrell was the Eastern program director for the
NBC Blue and ABC radio networks.  NBC was founded
in 1926 by RCA, GE, and Westinghouse Electric
Corporation. The network started with 24 stations on
November 15.

The National Broadcasting Company was created when
RCA purchased radio stations WEAF-New York, WCAP-
Washington, [removed], and the radio programming network
from American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) in 1926
and merged those assets with its own WJZ New York,
WRC Washington and radio programming network. The
WEAF stations and network would become known as the
NBC Red network; the WJZ stations and network would
be dubbed the NBC Blue network, which later became
the American Broadcasting Company.

Legend has it that the color designations originated from
the color of the push pins the engineers at AT&T used to
designate the affiliates of WEAF (red push pins) and
RCA's WJZ (blue push pins). At various times in the
1930s there were several other color designations, with
the NBC White, Gold and Orange networks operating in
various configuration of the west coast.

"A One Night Stand with the Big Bands"
With Arnold Dean

Ray McKinley

A top drummer during the swing era Ray McKinley was
most significant in the 1940s in several settings. He
played at the start of his career in territory bands, with
Smith Ballew and then the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra.
He stayed with Jimmy Dorsey after the battling Dorseys
went their separate ways.  In 1939 McKinley became
the co-leader of the new Will Bradley Orchestra. His
vocals and the piano playing of Freddie Slack made the
band a hit with numbers such as "Beat Me Daddy, Eight
to the Bar" and "Celery Stalks at Midnight."  By 1942
trombonist Bradley had become sick of the repertoire
and the group broke up.

Ray McKinley first met Glenn Miller when they played
together from time to time in the old Ben Pollack band
and then worked together in the Miller army air force
band up to the time of Glenn's disappearance over the
English Channel in 1944.

There were several attempts in the past to recreate the
Miller style with bands led by Tex Beneke, Ralph
Flanagan, Ray Anthony and Jerry Gray.  But the elusive
quality that made Miller's name a sweet and swing
byword in the late '30s and early '40s never was entirely
captured.  Ray was one of the most sought-after
drummers and most respected band leaders in the
history of the business.

Arnold Dean began his love affair with the big band
era in his pre-teen years and his decision to study
the clarinet was inspired by the style of Artie Shaw.
When he joined WTIC in 1965 he hosted a daily program
of big band music.  In 1972, encouraged by the success
of his daily program and The Golden Age of Radio
series, he began monthly shows featuring interviews
with the band leaders, sidemen, agents, jazz reporters,
etc. who made major contributions to one of the great
eras of music history.

In the 1970's Dick Bertel created The Golden Age of
Radio for WTIC in Hartford, CT. The idea came to Dick
after he interviewed radio collector-historian Ed
Corcoran a few times on his radio and TV shows. "The
Golden Age of Radio was first broadcast in April,
1970;  Ed was Dick's co-host.

For the next seven years the program featured interviews
with actors, writers, producers, engineers and musicians
from radio's early days. Each show featured excerpts from
Ed's collection.

"WTIC's Golden Age of Radio" can also be heard Saturday
nights on Walden Hughes's program on Radio Yesteryear.

Bob Scherago
Webmaster

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:03:01 -0500
From: <otrbuff@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  A new book

Thinking you might have missed the announcement in the Thanksgiving
celebration, my latest book was released last week:  "Historical Dictionary
of American Radio Soap Operas" ([removed], 800-462-6420, fax
717-794-3803, $70).

It's a hardback containing synopses of 293 audio serials (most of them
daytime, plus evening and weekend, too); biographical vignettes of 70 key
figures linked to those dramas; approximately 500 entries on the genre; a
20-page overview of the species; a 40-page bibliography; a chronology
covering the years 1925-1960; and a photo gallery, too.  The tome provides
new information on every serialized adult narrative that I could discover
which was broadcast on a network, in a geographic region or via syndication.
I can assure you it is the most comprehensive work issued to date about the
aural daytime dramas.

Jim Cox

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:09:30 -0500
From: Melanie Aultman <otrmelanie@[removed];
To: OTRDIGEST <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  War of the worlds mention
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Found it interesting that the new movie "Chicken Little" includes a nod to
one of otr's favorites: during an alien invasion, one of the characters says
something like, there's a war of the worlds going on out there.

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Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:10:15 -0500
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr" <skallisjr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Just The Facts ...

Michael J. Hayde, speaking of  echoes in cartoon, observes,

And (unrelated to Jack and company), the set also includes "Rocket
Squad" (1956) - a "Dragnet" parody featuring Daffy Duck and Porky Pig as
Joe and Frank.

In addition to Dragnet, there was another show that appeared on early TV
called "Racket Squad," which provided stories about scams and
apprehending the scammers.  As far as I know, it wasn't on OTR.

Stephen A. Kallis, Jr.

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:11:37 -0500
From: "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  radio and tv repair

In the late1950s my "Uncle George" used to repair ours and neighbors'
television sets using some "do-it-yourself" manuals. They illustrated
common picture and/or sound problems, and had printed charts showing what
vacuum tubes or other parts needed to be replaced or repaired in order to
fix the TV's problem.

There were a good many of these, and they were derived from the greed of the
radio manufacturers, who tried to make a killing on repair parts.  A
resistor would burn out, and because it was burned out, you couldn't measure
its resistance and thus buy a replacement.  No, you'd have to send back the
old one, which was marked with a special, unreadable code, to the
manufacturer, who for like, two bucks would send you a new mystery resistor.

A guy name of Howard W Sams in Indiana found opportunity in this.  Taking
advantage of the notorious 19th-century short-sightedness of outfits like
RCA and Zenith and them, he'd buy a particular model of radio and dissect
it.  He'd measure the values of all the parts and list these values along
with easily-available replacements.  He'd measure the voltage at each pin of
each tube socket.  And he'd trace out the circuitry of the whole device and
make it into a schematic.  To show you where everything was on the chassis,
he'd take pictures of both sides of the thing and label each component.
Eventually he had a good-sized factory for the purpose, and you could buy
Sam's Photofacts either by subscription or by the bundle at your local TV
parts store.  I can only imagine the fury of the manufacturers, the thought
of which fills me with glee.

There were other manuals of this sort--Rider's was the biggest competition,
I think--but Howard had the market.

Use of these books saved us a lot of money, since, in many cases, we could
bypass the local radio/TV repair shop's diagnostic charges by going down to
the local drugstore and plugging in the repair manual's suggested "problem
tubes" on their "automatic test" machine. For any tubes that rated bad or
weak, we could buy replacements from the handy rack next to the testing
machine.

Except that the machines weren't very good tube testers. They'd check for
emission ([removed], how easy it was to get current through the tube), which
after about 1940 was always pretty good; and for short-circuits and gas.
But it didn't do these latter all that well, and tube-testing was always
pretty much of a gamble.

I think this system worked because by that time most televisions were being
built more or less to a common platform, as far as vacuum tube technology
was concerned. (Later, as transistors, etc. were introduced, things got
more complicated.)

TV's were often built with common circuitry, but only within one
manufacturer's product.  For example, I think GE always used the same
(lousy) design for its power supplies.  The whole repair-manual system fell
apart gradually in the 1970's, when an incredible multitude of devices
started flooding in from the Orient during and after the Viet Nam war.
Nobody could keep track of the things, though Sams sure tried.  Eventually
the manufacturers started to cooperate and just supplied Sams with
schematics and parts lists, and that's what his 'Photofact' manuals
consisted of the last I looked.  The problem, of course, is that factory
manuals were never anywhere near as useful as the stuff Sams' engineers
created.

My question:
In the later OTR days, were there similar "generic" do-it-yourself repair
manuals for most radios, or did owners have to depend on local repair shops
to fix their sets?

I dunno for sure, but my sense is that the radios were all pretty simple,
and that their repair was covered in radio magazines.  As the field grew,
repairmen had their own magazines--Electronics Illustrated,
Radio-Electronics, and Popular Electronics all had substantial repair
components, and the articles became a genre of their own.  Art Margolis and
Jack Darr were two of the best.  To bring things up to the present day, Jack
Darr's old chair at Radio-Electronics is now occupied by Sam Goldwasser.  He
also runs the 'electronics repair faq' web page, and I've been privileged to
contribute some stuff to that.

The earliest radio repairs were done at the local hardware store, and I
think also by electrical shops.  It is said that, while employed as a
delivery driver for one of the latter in Memphis, Elvis Presley studied
radio theory in his spare time.

About resistor color codes:

Eventually all the manufacturers started using the same secret codes for
parts, and this comes down to us today as that pointless color code found on
resistors today.  There used to be color codes for capacitors and inductors,
too, but only resistors have retained theirs.  It's a very poor practice and
is gradually being abandoned.

M Kinsler

who clearly feels strongly about the matter.  grrr.

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:12:46 -0500
From: JayHick@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Eternal Light

New York, NY, December 1, 2005 Faith broadcasting is a prominent feature of
American media today. A new documentary takes a timely look back at a
pioneering radio and television series that, over the course of its
forty-year run, brought religion to the mainstream American culture and
helped to forge the current paradigm for faith communications today.

"The Eternal Light: A Historical Retrospective" takes a trip down memory
lane, bringing to life the Peabody Award-winning radio and television
series, The Eternal Light, which was produced by The Jewish Theological
Seminary and NBC during the heyday of radio and the rise of television. The
first religious program ever to present its message in dramatic form, its
two-thousand episodes had a profound impact on broadcast and American
Jewish history.

"The Eternal Light: A Historical Retrospective" is scheduled for broadcast
nationwide on ABC-TV beginning January 8, 2006. See local listings for
broadcast dates and times at

[removed]

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 15:02:56 -0500
From: "Karl Schadow" <bluecar91@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Bulldog Drummond

Alan Hewitt also played Capt. Drummond during January/February 1943 in
between Santos Ortega and Ned Wever.
---Karl Schadow

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 16:48:32 -0500
From: "Bill Knowlton" <udmacon1@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  80 years [removed]

80 years ago tonight George D. Hay, the Solemn Old Judge, introduced
octogenarian fiddler Uncle Jimmy Thompson on the WSM airwaves.

The program would become a regular feature of WSM as the "WSM Barndance" on
Saturday night, Dec. 26th.

Toot toot!

Bill Knowlton, the "Solemn Old [removed]"

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

Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 20:16:35 -0500
From: Philip Chavin <pchavin@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Wrong Terry and Hop H. dates

A recording of a particular 'Terry and the Pirates'
broadcast in circulation for the past thirty years or
more is incorrectly dated as [removed], 1942.  The episode
is included in "Radio's Super Heroes At War" (Radiola
album). [removed] lists the episode as
undated (bottom of his 'Terry' list; #17629).

The broadcast can be identified by the premium offer,
in its commercials, by Quaker (Sparkies cereal) for a
color photo of a B-25 and a pilot's mascot button.

>From evidence heard on the broadcast I've concluded
that its correct date is:  a Friday in early 1943,
possibly in February.

Question: Does anyone have more precise date info for
this broadcast?

By the way, the 'Hop Harrigan' episode on the
above-mentioned "Super Heroes" album is incorrectly
dated also, as [removed], 1942.  I've figured its correct
date to be: [removed], 1943. (Its story: Hop, in the
[removed], escapes Japanese baddies but ends up trapped in
a tunnel. No sponsor.) Seems Goldindex has the 2-19-42
date. I believe 'Hop Harrigan' wasn't even on the air
until Aug.'42.

If anyone would like detailed justification for my
1943 dates, I'd be glad to supply same, off-list or
on-list.

-- Phil C.

[removed] By the way, the "Super Heroes" album's title and
cover picture imply World War Two but a Sky King
episode in the album is from 1947. A minor example of
misleading titles of albums, books, etc.

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

Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2005 00:14:23 -0500
From: "apcohen" <apcohen@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Radio programming about Dust Bowl of 1930's

I am in the process of helping a member of our faculty put together
information about the Dust Bowl of the 1930's.  She wondered about radio
programming.  While I have a modest number of news broadcasts from the
1940's and a few from the 1950's, I was surprised at how little I had from
the 1930's.  In addition I wondered whether "The Grapes of Wrath" had ever
been done on radio.  Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Al Cohen

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2005 Issue #367
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