About old time radio the buzzterm for old time radio is otr. He is the last of those old announcers and actually worked at the same time as nuxhall, hoyt, and carey. My entire tenure in boston, almost 20 years was with wror, first nights in 1979, followed by a solo shot in am drive for three years. Comic books on old time radio the horror comics of the 1950s were highly influenced by the creepy stories that were broadcast over the radio years earlier. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early 1920s and lasted through the 1950s, when television gradually superseded radio. The most popular radio adventure show in history, the lone ranger held an audience of millions spellbound for over two decades. Old time radio otr and the golden age of radio refer to a period of radio programming in the united states lasting from the proliferation of radio broadcasting in the early 1920s until televisions replacement of radio as the dominant home entertainment. The eponymous character is a masked texas ranger in the american old west, originally played by paul halliwell, who gallops about righting injustices with the aid of his clever, laconic indian sidekick, tonto.
Conyers old time radio presents the scariest episodes of. Radio and television announcers usually work in welllit, airconditioned, soundproof studios. Early radio tech books technical books from 1900 to the early 40s. The golden age of radio, also known as the old time radio otr era, was an era of radio programming in the united states during which radio was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. See more of vintage broadcast, the best of old time radio on facebook. By searching for classic baseball radio broadcasts on the internet. He dedicated his life to the ministry and often traveled around the country and aired live revivals. Click here for the detailed schedule for the next few days, including schedule changes and live sports.
A dryer weenolsen production, it was the first adult science fiction series on radio, airing one month prior to the better known dimension x. Some of the broadcasts are short, just a few seconds worth of the news of the day. Some announcers have to work weekends or on holidays. Itll be a little more expensive than a lot of books about oldtime radio, but its worth it. Time sharing was popular in the early days of radio, especially in the bigger cities where there were many stations. Tales of the texas rangers, a western adventure oldtime radio drama, premiered on july 8, 1950, on the us nbc radio network and remained on the air through september 14, 1952.
The classic archives old time radio channel youtube. The story of a guy who wrote a lot of stuff for radios greatest. Bob camardella began podcasting at podomatic in october 2005 and at the radio nostalgia network at in january 2006. He also lists major cast members, announcers, producers. Memorable radio personalities from cleveland s past. And listen for great modern radio drama online everyday.
Old time radio news shows are give modern listeners a peek into the major world events of yesteryear. Radio broadcasting at that time was still an experimentalprivate undertaking, and remained so until 1920 when the first commercial stations with regularly scheduled broadcasts were heard. Oldtime radio casts its spell all over again the new york times. The aged voice of old nancy, the witch of salem and her cat satan from the witchs tale is mentioned as a direct influence for the old witch who hosted ecs vault of horror. The encyclopedia of oldtime radio dunning, john on. Granbys green acres grand central station grand ole opry the greatest. Now long out of print, john dunnings tune in yesterday was the definiti. It may not, because the announcer was best known behind the scenes for his more famous program creations on radio and tv. Many announcers work in radio and television studios. Old time sports announcers had a very specific style and cadence to their speech, which can be. Series include gang busters, the line up, broadways my beat, man from homicide, night watch, and more. John dunnings new work is the deepest and richest mine of information yet plumbed in the field of old time radio.
Its an honor to be included with some of the best of the best. World war ii news broadcasts otr free old time radio mp3. From september, 1949 through february 1957, dragnet s 30 minute shows, broadcast on nbc, brought to radio true police stories in a lowkey, documentary style. If the information we crave is from the distant past, it is history, if it is malicious it may be gossip, but if it is relevant and new, it is news. Free old time radio shows from the golden age of radio. History of the old time radio before television, radio was the dominant home entertainment medium. Before television, radio provided entertainment by presenting radio plays and programs of mystery, intrigue, and comedy. Inner sanctum mysteries thriller a popular oldtime radio program that aired from january 1941 to october was created by producer himan brown and was based on the generic title given to the mystery novels of simon and a total of 526 episodes were listen to old time radio shows for free. Many radio and television stations are on air 24 hours a day. Travel back in time and listen to great radio mysteries, dramas and comedies from yesteryear. While some people achieved a good living announcing radio programs, others were trying their best to sell products on the air while hoping for that big break and getting it. After listening to the commercial, does the voice sound familiar to you. Vintage broadcast, the best of old time radio home.
The storehouse, however, has been thoroughly remodeled and refurbished. This site is designed to supply as many collectors as possible a chronology of radio broadcasting through the use of program logs. Celebrating the early era of commercial network radio in the usa. Perhaps one of the appeals of listening to radio drama was how often the fourth wall was ignored. Although commercial stations were broadcasting at this time, commercials as we know them were not allowed. Listed below are actors and personalities heard on vintage radio programs, plus writers and others associated with radio s golden age. I feel sorry for that dog, jace, breaking his heart and dying like he did. Radio and broadcast history library with thousands of. Hyde, and the orson welles halloween classic the war of the worlds. We stream scheduled old time radio shows and classic radio drama. In fact, the tv show would prove to be effectively a visual version of the radio show, as the style was virtually the same. The encyclopedia of oldtime radio by john dunning, jack benny. It contains the most complete and accurate version of this series in the best sound possible at the time of creation.
There was no dedicated classical music radio station like npr at that time, so classical. Youll hear richard widmark starring in inner sanctum mysteries, orson welles in the black museum, peter lorre in mystery in the air, william conrad in the whistler, ernest chappell in quiet, please, everett clarke in lights out, harry bartell in escape, and fredric. Welcome to the home of australian old time radio shows we would like to take you on a journey. All sorts of ghosts, demons and hideous things frankenstein, dracula, dr. One of old time radios otr characters most fondly remembered is the series hostannouncer. Fessendens wife helen recounts the broadcast in her book fessenden. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your favorite series, actor, or episode. Dunning also provides a wealth of information on sports broadcasters of the era. Cbs radio mystery theater was meant to appeal to an audience that remembered when old time radio drama was a popular form of family entertainment. Mystery writer and radio talk show host dunning has expertly compiled and organized a massive amount of research data on hundreds of radio shows aired from the 1920s through the 1960s. Oct 28, 2011 on halloween eve in 1938, the power of radio was on full display when a dramatization of the sciencefiction novel the war of the worlds scared the daylights out of many of cbs radio s nighttime. Vin started almost as a teenager and has been working continuously with the dodgers ever since. Here are some 1,500 radio shows presented in alphabetical order, including all of the great programs of the 1930s, 40, s and 50s. For each, dunning provides a complete broadcast history, with the timeslot, the network, and the name of the shows advertisers.
Radio programs needed a way to introduce the series and episode to the listener. This collection contains twelve of the greatest mystery shows ever broadcast during the golden age of radio. Great book with loads of information about old time radio programs. The encyclopedia of oldtime radio edition 2 by john. Old time radio researchers group thousands of otr shows in mp3 and downloadable. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early 1920s and lasted through the 1950s, when television gradually superseded radio as the medium of choice for scripted programming, variety and dramatic shows. The great announcersvin scully, harry caray, ernie harwellare old friends. Waging the war of the worlds a history of the 1938 radio broadcast and resulting. Listed below are vintage radio programs associated with oldtime radio, also called radios. Our goal is to be the most popular old time radio and audio book channel on youtube. Limited to just words and sounds radio created the host role.
The bbc used to make radio announcers wear dinner jackets. Listen free, online 24 hours a day, to old time radio comedys as well as old time radio detectives and mysterys. Listen to 53 episodes of the green hornet for free. These shows from the pretelevision age include adventure, comedies, mystery shows, western dramas and shows from world war ii. Sep 09, 2014 when the bbc first started delivering nightly radio broadcasts to the british public, the radio announcers they hired had to work under a number of stringent conditions. See more ideas about old time radio, actor and old hollywood. Some radio djs can produce and record their shows while working from home. He also lists major cast members, announcers, producers, directors. The shifts, however, are not as varied today as in the past. Otr usually means radio broadcasting from the golden age of radio, mostly before 1964. Jan 18, 2011 welcome to the world of old time radio. The playlist is loaded up with old time radio s best and scariest shows. The encyclopedia of oldtime radio kindle edition by.
World war ii news broadcasts 54 mp3 downloads available this collection comes from a variety of different sources. Old time radio listen homepage the radio theater channel. Mystery writer and radio talk show host dunning has. Where the author sets the story line and the imagination sets the scene. Home entertainment the comfort of oldtime baseball broadcasts.
The ultimate encyclopedia of oldtime radio prentice hall, 1976, dunning here provides a storehouse of information about the people and programs of radios golden age 1930s, 1940s, 1950s. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early 1920s and lasted through the 1950s, when television gradually superseded radio as the medium of choice for scripted programming. Now, in on the air, dunning has completely rethought this classic work, reorganizing the material and doubling its coverage, to provide a richer and more informative account of radio s golden age. Radio spirits is proud to present 20 adventures from 15 of the best and most unusual programs broadcast in the last dozen or so years of commercial network dramatic radio.
Eleven of the greatest broadcast announcers of all time. Nov 10, 2005 they were the announcers, news and entertainment reporters, sportscasters, show hosts, and others or as author jim cox refers to them, the radio speakers. Buy old time radio all time favorites by smithsonian collection online at alibris. They run the spectrum from old time announcers and personalities. On the wednesday, june 7, 1944 broadcast of nbcs front page farrell, the announcer presented the enclosed commercial for freezone corn remover. Old time radio shows enjoy hours of classic family fun with these greatest old time radio broadcasts on remastered audio compact discs.
Over 14,000 episodes from more than seventy shows are available, all free of charge. On the air the encyclopedia of oldtime radio 1998 by john dunning. The golden age of radio, also known as the oldtime radio otr era, was an era of radio in. Apr 05, 20 why did old time announcers talk that way. Stream or download tens of thousands of your favorite old radio programs otr in mp3 format. Five books every radio broadcaster should read as someone interested in the radio industry, chances are you are focused on the technology at hand, improving your voice and looking into different ways to help yourself stand out. The press brought wwii back to the home front with wwii old time radio shows.
A sampling of programs from the golden age of old time radio. This is a production of the old time radio researchers group located at old time radio researchers website and the old time radio researchers group. Some of the names mentioned here may surprise you, but this article is about some famous people in other lines of work in broadcasting who were announcers. These shows from the pretelevision age include adventure, comedies, mystery. Radio and television announcers typically need a bachelors degree in journalism, broadcasting, or communications, along with an internship or work experience from their college radio or. Rec radio networks station lookup, maps, applications and cps. Back to those glorious days when radio ruled the airwaves. The united press syndicated sponsored soldiers of the press 194245 detailing the adventures of correspondents on the front lines. The encyclopedia of oldtime radio by john dunning is an excellent. The show was lead by pastor charles e fuller who was one of the first radio ministers. The encyclopedia of old time radio 9780195076783 by dunning, john and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books. The radio theater channel is an old time radio streaming web radio station. Part of our over 12,000 show library of old time radio. This article appeared in the books and arts section of the print edition.
Some announcers present early morning shows, while others do latenight programs. Air adventures of biggles adventure old time radio. Oldtime radio listeners guide to dark fantasy otr listeners guides book 1. Funny thing about a dog, a dog never passes judgment just sticks right to the finish whether you are good or bad worth it or not. We have over 12,000 otr shows available for instant listening. Builder of tomorrows 1940, eight years after fessendens death. It may well arrive at classic status not only for its magnitude but for its power to entertain through the vigor and acuity of its assessments. Listen to old time radio shows online enjoy radio shows from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, back before television was popular. The most curious of which was that they had to wear a dinner jacket to read the news.
Thank you so much for including me in your article, the greatest boston, ma, radio personalities of the 1960s and 1970s. Key to its success was the music used on itmusic rendered so beautifully, chosen with such delicate precision, that for half a century listeners have frantically searched for an answer to the question, what was the music used on the lone ranger. Now long out of print, john dunnings tune in yesterday was the definitive onevolume reference on old time radio broadcasting. Dec 09, 2011 eleven of the greatest broadcast announcers of all time. Radio drama had been declared dead twelve years before. This is a useful book for getting the details of old radio shows. Great gildersleeve tuning in the great gildersleeve.
Everybody knows there were no radio announcers onboard the nina, pinta, or santa maria, or from ancient greece, medieval france, or the battle of gettysburg either. List of oldtime radio programs news newspapers books scholar jstor july 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message. With only a limited amount of space on the broadcast band, some radio stations were forced to divide time on a frequency. Ralph blumenthal reports on return of oldtime radio characters, who are making.
Net work library is a free resource for old time radio otr fans. The golden age of radio, also known as the oldtime radio otr era, was an era of radio in the united states where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. In 1974 long time radio producer himan brown convinced cbs to greenlight a new anthology of radio dramas, cbs radio mystery theater cbsrmt. Announcer fred foys later book and presence at otr conventions added to the stations outsized popularity among otr buffs. Now, in on the air, dunning has completely rethought this classic. Old time sports announcers had a very specific style and cadence to their speech, which can be attributed to technique and technology. The correspondents job was to stay out of the way that the soldiers could do their job, and then send reports back to the states. Here you will find some of the most popular radio programs of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. For instance did you know the mother on a date with judy was announcer. Five books every radio broadcaster should read be on air. Boxcars711 old time radio pod originates from the heart of historic germantown, philadelphia, pa.
If i had to limit myself to just one book on old time radio, this would be it. Free old time radio shows from the golden age of radio welcome to old radio world. Dragnet dragnet, the brainchild of jack webb, may very well be the most wellremembered, and the best, radio police drama series. The pressure of deadlines and tight work schedules can be stressful.