------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2007 : Issue 256
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Transcription recording response [ "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed]; ]
Re: networks and their affiliates [ "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed]; ]
Lux version of "Laura", et al. [ Martin Fass <watchstop@frontiernet. ]
Sleepy Lagoon Murder Case [ Steve Kostelecky <doyasteve@[removed] ]
#OldRadio IRC Chat this Thursday Nig [ charlie@[removed] ]
Balto [ Rentingnow@[removed] ]
CBS Radio Dept of Public Affairs [ "wayne_johnson" <wayne_johnson@mind ]
Cooking Shows [ Russ Butler <songbook2@[removed]; ]
Journalist writing about Arch Oboler [ Jason Boog <jason@thepublishingspot ]
Re: new shows? [ EDWARD CARR <edcarr@[removed]; ]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Sep 2007 22:13:18 -0400
From: "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Transcription recording response
This might get a bit technical for many of the digest readers, but I think
there are enough techies here that will be interested.
Joe Salerno asked whether "anyone ever encountered pristine copies of the
same radio program in both vertical and lateral formats?" I have, and I
thought that I had discussed this with Joe personally at the time he dubbed
the Little Orphan Annie discs for First Generation. I had been skeptical
for decades about the claims of superiority of vertical recording until I
got a pair of World Broadcasting System test pressings of Chevrolet program
number 368 in both lateral (matrix BB 14613-A2) and vertical (matrix BB
14613-B1) formats. While the lateral sounds quite good, the vertical of the
exact same program sounds GREAT!!! The contrast becomes more evident as you
get towards the end of the program near the outer edge of the discs (these
are recorded center-start.) This has got to be the most high-fidelity
recording I have ever heard of Graham McNamee's voice -- and as Elizabeth
knows, I am not much of a McNamee fan.
But unlike historian Walter Welch and list poster Don Shenbarger, I don't
think it is due to any inherent superiority of vertical modulation of a
groove. In this instance I think it is because of the emphasis World and
Western Electric made in improving the vertical cutting heads they used. In
a book I highly recommend for anybody interested in the technological
history of disc recording, "Disk Recording 1930-1960: Equipment, Techniques,
Recollections" by the late Robert K. Morrison, he mentions a report by two
Bell Labs engineers at the Oct 1937 [removed] Motion Picture Engineers meeting
on "Recent Developments in Hill and Dale Recording" (which is another term
for vertical recording.) They mention that the original lateral cutter had
been modified to cut vertically, had its frequency range extended to beyond
10 kHz. which is what the recordings were rated to, but that the cutter head
itself had a range from 30 to 17,500 Hz. Elsewhere in the book Morrison
discusses how this "rubber-line" cutter head was quite variable in quality
in relationship to how it was modified and maintained, and it doesn't seem
that World or anybody else was as concerned with making the lateral versions
of this head meet the same specs as their vertical versions. "10 kHz and
beyond" seemed to be good enough for lateral recordings. But either lateral
or vertical, modern reproduction equipment can get more out of these
recordings than they were able to do with the equipment that was used at
that time, and this would account for Dick Fisher's feeling that the
response of his ET's of violin music could be even beyond 15 kHz. (Were
they Rubinoff programs, perhaps?)
By the way, Joe, if you don't have the Morrison book, drive over to Kurt
Nauck's place and get a copy, that's where I got mine. For the others on
the list, go to [removed] and look thru the books in the accessories
section. (Usual disclaimers, except that Kurt is a pal of mine, but that
didn't help because not only didn't give me a discount, he even charged me
Texas sales tax! "Either shipping costs to Kentucky or sales tax while
you're here in Texas, take your choice," he said.) For the person who
asked a few weeks ago whether any of the machines used for disc recording
broadcasts were still around, this book will answer the question, because
there are many full color pictures of details of machines that exist in
private collections.
I disagree with Ken Greenwald when he says that airchecks rarely have
response beyond 5k because AM tuners and radios were rarely made with
response beyond 5k because "To build a radio or tuner that would pick up the
full range of sound transmitted by the network would mean buying a radio
would be far too expensive for the average person." While it is true that
most people would not have been able to afford wide-range radios like those
made by [removed] Scott, professional recording studios could -- and did.
Considering how expensive high quality studio recorders were in those days,
a high quality wide-range tuner was a minor cost-of-doing-business purchase.
And in the cities where FM existed, most major recording studios probably
invested in FM tuners very quickly. That could have been as early as 1938 in
some places. (My parents bought an multi-band radio-phono console in June
1940 which had an FM band and what seems to be a wide range AM tuner.)
Don Shenbarger's discussion of vertical vs. lateral was very interesting,
especially when discussing acoustical recordings. But let me warn Don to
not rely too strongly on Read and Welch's "From Tinfoil To Stereo" when it
comes to comparing Edison with anybody else. I knew Walter Welch -- some of
my copies of his books are autographed personally to me -- but Walter was a
VERY strong advocate of anything Edison. Edison was his god and could do no
wrong. So this book tends to come on a little too strong in favor of Edison
and vertical recording. The "Tone-Tests" you mention, where a live audience
apparently could not distinguish between the live and recorded voice of a
singer, have mystified researchers for scores of years. None of the
newspaper accounts or Edison publicity materials seem to give full details
of how these really worked. I don't think anyone has found detailed
instructions in the Edison files either. What we have known is that the
actual pressings of the records used in the tone-tests were manufactured
much better than the usual discs sold in the stores. The powder-blank cores
were much smoother, the condensite surfaces were much thicker, and the
pressing cycle times were much longer. But we've wondered about the
recordings themselves. I discussed this a few months ago with noted Edison
expert, Ray Wile, who is about to publish a complete matrix listing of
Edison disc recordings. His research thru the Edison files is leading him
to believe that the actual takes used for the tone-tests were never used on
copies of the records that were sold to the public. Indeed, it seems that
most, if not all, of the selections used in performances were not in the
regular catalog and were sold only at the tone tests to those in the
audience as souvenirs. But even those that were sold were different takes
from those used on stage and were of normal manufacture quality. As these
tone-test numbers and takes become known, there probably will be a search
thru the Edison site to see if any of the tone-test takes still exist. But
as of now, anybody who has heard an Edison Diamond Disc Phonograph is still
mystified how anybody could be tricked by it to think it was the live voice
of a performer who had been standing right next to it. And that included
Edison's own son, Theodore, when I asked him about it back in the 1970s! He
did think that maybe the discs had lost some of their volume over the years,
that the plastic might have settled back to original form slightly. Maybe
we will find that the special masters used for the tone-tests were recorded
especially close and loudly if they can be found.
As for the development of the lightweight crystal reproducer heads, they
were rarely used by broadcasters. Brush did try to sell them to
broadcasters, but the crystals were too unreliable. They broke or swelled
too easily and unexpectedly. As for their relationship with the
introduction of the lacquer-coated disc (incorrectly called acetates in the
posting) the coated disc was introduced in 1934, which was two or three
years before the Brush crystal pickup. They were played with the moving
coil pickups of the day, most of which were still using steel needles at
that time. The use of "shadowgraphed" needles, those with optically
verified smoothly rounded tips, was recommended. The softer un-coated
aluminum discs used in the earlier years, were to be played only with softer
fibre needles usually made of bamboo. These might have been playable on
with a Brush reproducer arm when that became available in the later 30s, but
this was not discussed because very few people were still using uncoated
aluminum recordings by then.
Vertically recorded cylinders did not have stronger and louder modulations
than discs. Indeed, the lateral disc recordings of the same era were
advertised as being louder. When making pressings of cylinders these had to
shrink slightly in order to slide out of the mould. If the recordings was
too loud or strongly modulated, the deep parts of the groove would be too
deep to allow the cylinder to be removed from the mould. Additionally, what
goes down must also go up. If the sound wave cut downwards in the groove is
too strong, it might cause the cutting stylus to leave the wax surface on
the upwards stroke of that wave. So the deepness of cylinder grooves had to
be carefully controlled which limited the loudness. Ironically, vertical
recordings on discs could be stronger because the grooves could be deeper.
And this is definitely the case when it comes to the World Broadcasting
System Wide Range Vertical Recordings. Even a casual look at the grooves
show them to look much more strongly recorded than the World lateral discs.
If you needed the recording to be louder or have more bass, you could do it
by cutting deeper on vertical recordings. But if you made a lateral
recording too loud or too bassy, you would risk cutting into the next groove
unless you spaced them wider apart. This, not skating force, was the
defining limit to the levels of lateral recording, at least when it came to
professional broadcast recording.
When considering commercially available phonograph records, there was
another factor. The record companies put their records thru wear tests to
make sure that they would not wear out too quickly, even on old obsolete
players. They had to last at least 100 or 150 plays (the companies never
really publicized the number of plays in the wear test, so this is a guess.)
It is known that some records were not released because they sounded too
good but would fail the wear test because of this. For this reason, some
companies "dumbed down" the quality of their recordings. There are some
Victor records from around 1932 that were made on new equipment that show
very high frequencies on the original masters in the company files. These
were probably filed down by over-polishing the masters used for pressing the
copies being sold. This is probably why the English Decca FFRR records from
1944 on were thought to be the first records sold with a publicized 14,000
top frequency. By that time, with lighter weight pickups being used by most
classical music lovers, the company didn't care if the records wore out
faster on older heavyweight equipment. But I can also tell you from
personal experience -- I have a lot of those English Decca FFRR 78s -- the
noisy shellac material they used for their pressings has covered up those
high frequencies if they are there.
Michael Biel mbiel@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Sep 2007 22:13:39 -0400
From: "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: networks and their affiliates
Last week Bob Cockrum asked if there was a source of a year-by-year listing
of [removed] radio stations' network affiliations. I don't recall seeing any
answer. Starting in 1936 this can be found in the annual Broadcasting
Yearbook, but unfortunately the microfilm copies of Broadcasting magazine do
not include the yearbook issues, so you have to find a library with a
hard-copy file. The listings can also be found going back into the 1920s in
the monthly issues of the Standard Rate and Data Service listings of radio
advertising rates. But I know of no library, except maybe the Library of
Congress and perhaps the Library of American Broadcasting, that have these
available. The Radio Annual published by Radio Daily starting around 1938
will also have this information. So magazines like Radio Guide, or White's
Radio Log would have listings that are probably incomplete because they were
sometimes regional or did not include the smallest local stations. Along
those lines, any listing really needs to include information that can only
be found in the professional trade press guides because there were different
levels of affiliation to the networks. Some stations were in regional
groups that might not be part of the main network. I think the SRDS
listings would give the most accurate descriptions of the status of
different stations, and this publication came out more frequently than any
other.
Michael Biel mbiel@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 00:10:54 -0400
From: Martin Fass <watchstop@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Lux version of "Laura", et al.
To my own ear, "Paul" sounds much more likely to be the name of a
German character than Waldo.
In any event, it seems to me that writers who adapt material from
another medium often make arbitrary choices in changing things, be it a
name or an item of detail in the dialogue. Maybe they want to
demonstrate they are working hard and earning their fee, When it comes
to radio, writers may believe certain changes are needed because the
words cannot be supported by pictures, except for the images, if any,
created in the heads of the listeners.
But I remember once many years ago, I can't recall the reason for my
action, I was comparing the texts of 'SOLID GOLD CADILLAC" as a stage
play, and as a movie. It's true that one major change in characters
turned the leading lady from an elderly woman into a young one,
portrayed on the screen by Judy Holliday. Still, there were numerous
other differences, especially in naming the other people in the story,
and I never could figure out why, especially in such instances as
turning a "Joe" into a "Jim.". It was not, to my mind, a particularly
successful picture, either. Much better on the stage.
Then there is such an example as the transformation of "Front Page"
into "His Girl Friday." Never mind that the hero in the original was
named for an actual person. "Hildy" is far from a common name, too.
Regardless, when the hero became a woman in the Howard Hawks picture,
Roasalind Russell carried on with the name of Hildy Johnson.
--Martin Fass
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 01:02:43 -0400
From: Steve Kostelecky <doyasteve@[removed];
To: OTR Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Sleepy Lagoon Murder Case
I posted this on the Welles Forum I moderate but
thought I'd do the same here. Thanks, Charlie. I
am working on a paper about the Sleepy Lagoon Murder
Case and Welles's involvement in it as part of the
Sleepy Lagoon Defense Committee. I don't have my radio
material with me (I'm going to school away from home)
and wondered if anyone can remember if he mentioned
the case in his radio work at the time, 1943. I He
wrote a forward a pamphlet I found at the UC site
online but I seem to remember some radio mention
somewhere.
Thanks,
P. Nussbaum
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 02:12:02 -0400
From: charlie@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: #OldRadio IRC Chat this Thursday Night!
A weekly [removed]
For the best in OTR Chat, join IRC (Internet Relay Chat), StarLink-IRC
Network, the channel name is #OldRadio. We meet Thursdays at 8 PM Eastern
and go on, and on! The oldest OTR Chat Channel, it has been in existence
over nine years, same time, same channel! Started by Lois Culver, widow
of actor Howard Culver, this is the place to be on Thursday night for
real-time OTR talk!
Our "regulars" include OTR actors, soundmen, collectors, listeners, and
others interested in enjoying OTR from points all over the world. Discussions
range from favorite shows to almost anything else under the sun (sometimes
it's hard for us to stay on-topic)...but even if it isn't always focused,
it's always a good time!
For more info, contact charlie@[removed]. We hope to see you there, this
week and every week!
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 08:59:59 -0400
From: Rentingnow@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Balto
"A statue of Balto still
stands in New York's
Central Park"
And Balto is not forgotten to this day and still makes the papers. In the
"Diary" section of the New York Times this week was this item:
Who says New Yorkers are not nice or accommodating?
Overheard in Central Park (near the Dairy):
Tourist: Where are all the cows?
New Yorker passing by: In the building. They get up later on weekends.
(Near statue of Balto):
Different Tourist: Why in the world would New York need a sled dog?
Different New Yorker passing by: In case of power outages.
Keep the spirit of Gracie alive
Gracie for President
Larry Moore
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 09:06:40 -0400
From: "wayne_johnson" <wayne_johnson@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: CBS Radio Dept of Public Affairs
At the end of a Gunsmoke episode ("Greater Love" 4/10/54) was the following
announcement (the words are theirs, not mine):
Tomorow afternoon for the 11th feature report to America, the CBS Radio
Department of Public Affairs tells the story of "The Wet-Back"; the
thousands of illegal immigrants who cross our southern border through
America's back door to look for work and wages. Hear "Wet-Backs", Sunday
afternoon on most of these same stations. George Walsh speaking.
Several points:
1) Does this show survive/exist today and does anyone have it? I would like
to give it a listen especially in light of current immigrations "troubles".
2) Not long ago, I was interviewed by our local small town weekly newspaper
and when the subject of hobbys came up they were surprised at my OTR hobby.
They (the reporters) were again surprised at my insistance that many of
today's problems existed 50 years ago albeit with just a little change.
(Energy conservation then concerned coal more than gasoline.) This is just
more proof. Immigration was a great enough concern in 1954 to rate a
special program on CBS radio.
3) Depending upon the content of this program, if some of the same issues
are being address 53 years ago as are today ... what inferences could be
drawn? That there is NO cure or that there never has been any real effort?
4) I have noticed that Dragnet episodes seem to have a lot of PSAs in them
and I suspect that this is due to the nature/format of the program and the
audience that is attracted. I can easily remember announcements concerning
polio, drunk driving, hunger, and forrest fires. Does anyone remember
others from 50-plus years ago that are still of concern in 2007?
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 12:21:14 -0400
From: Russ Butler <songbook2@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Cooking Shows
There might be some airchecks of Gus Saunders of his cooking shows on
WNAC radio in Boston in the 1940's with his "Boston Kitchen" program for
23 years, then later his "Yankee Kitchen" on other stations. He had a
long career related to food and cooking, including reading recipes on
the air from listeners, publishing a popular cook book and as a food
critic for a Boston newspaper.
He was also a member of various culinary and wine organizations. He
belonged to wine and food societies at Harvard and later belonged to
Chaine des Rotisseurs, the Paris-based international gastronomic
society. He had been the organization's chambellan provincial for the
Northeast region. He was also a member of the L'Ordre Mondial and Les
Amis d'Escoffier, and that he had been a commandeur in the Confrerie des
Chevaliers du Tastevin. Gus died this past May at age 86.
Tom Heathwood's Heritage Radio collection may have airchecks of Gus
Saunders or other New England radio cooking shows: heritageradio@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 13:11:45 -0400
From: Jason Boog <jason@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Journalist writing about Arch Oboler
Dear OTR mailing list,
Almost a year ago, I wrote this list looking for support on an article
about Arch Oboler and Lights Out. You helped me discover the important
work of Howard Blue, John Dunning, and many others.
It was a real education working with you, and I hope you approve of my
work--the story finally came out in this month's issue of The Believer
magazine. Here's a link, if you are interested:
[removed]
Thanks for all your support, and I enjoyed sharing your memories. Keep
up the wonderful scholarship on this site.
Sincerely,
Jason Boog
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 22:47:25 -0400
From: EDWARD CARR <edcarr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: new shows?
i 'd like some help in determining if i have new shows in the series
"GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD"
i have prog #51/52/53/54/55/56/58 these are all on 16in
transcription discs,any help out there?
many thanks.
edcarr@[removed]
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2007 Issue #256
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