OTR faq

Radio Active!
Date: 7/04/2003

Old Time Radio faq

1
Date: 8/01/2003
OTR is an acronym for "Old Time Radio", a term loosely applied to radio programs broadcast from the dawn of broadcasting to the very early 1960s. Alternate names are "radio nostalgia", "golden age of radio", etc. Usually this applies to radio drama, mystery, comedy and adventure. Some individuals classify the resurgence of this type of radio programming in the '60s and '70s as "Revival Radio", and similar programming since the '70s as "Modern Radio Drama". Purists even discriminate between the "Golden Age" (late '30s and the decade of the '40s) and the "Silver Age" ('50s). In any case, there are plenty of programs of various types that are enjoyable entertainment. Best of all, they don't require a large screen TV to enjoy as the pictures are provided by the listener's imagination.

2
Date: 8/05/2003
WHA, originally 9XM, Madison Wisconsin was constructed in 1909 by Edward Bennet and Earle Terry. The University of Wisconsin claims WHA "the Oldest Station in the Nation ... in existence longer than any other." However, when the station converted from telegraphy to telephony and began regular operations is open to question. Interestingly, in a booklet issued in 1969, the University of Wisconsin comments on the debate over the definition of oldest, and refers to the "controversial puzzles: "When does an "experiment" become a "broadcast?" and "What do the words 'regularly scheduled' mean?" It was quite interesting to see the author of the booklet take the high ground and declare "We were all responsible for the birth of broadcasting."

3
Date: 8/10/2003
Westinghouse Radio Station KDKA was a world pioneer of commercial radio broadcasting. Transmitting with a power of 100 watts on a wavelength of 360 meters, KDKA began scheduled programming with the Harding-Cox Presidential election returns on November 2, 1920. A shed, housing studio and transmitter, was atop the K Building of the Westinghouse East Pittsburgh works. Conceived by C.P. Davis, broadcasting as a public service evolved from Frank Conrad's weekly experimental broadcasts over his amateur radio station 8XK, attracting many regular listeners who had wireless receiving sets.

3.5
Date: 8/11/2003
Most radio historians assert that radio broadcasting began in 1920 with the historic broadcast of KDKA. Few people actually heard the voices and music which were produced because of the lack of radio receivers at that time. The public, however, was overcome by a radio craze after the initial broadcast. Radio became a product of the mass market. Manufacturers were overwhelmed by the demand for receivers, as customers stood in line to complete order forms for radios after dealers had sold out. Between 1923 and 1930, 60 percent of American families purchased radios. Families gathered around their radios for night-time entertainment. As radio ownership increased, so did the number of radio stations. In 1920, KDKA was not actually the only operating radio station, but it remains a benchmark in most accounts. By 1922, 600 radio stations had sprung up around the United States.

4
Date: 8/15/2003
CRASH-BOOM-KAWHUMPF-CRACKLE-WHOOSH-BANG-CRASH-SMACK-BANGLE-SNAP .........tingle-ling-a-ling . "Gotta clean that closet out one of these days" !!! The preceding scene is from the classic radio comedy, "Fibber McGee and Molly", a mainstay from the 1930's until the late 1950's. One of the running gags on the show was Fibber's closet, and what was in it. It was always packed to the rafters with all sorts of junk and other stuff. When it was opened at some point in the show, everything in it fell out with a cacophony of sound effects. The show was an American classic, and the characters had a combination of warmth and raucous but family-friendly Vaudevillian corn that makes it a lot of fun even today. It is remembered as one of icons of old time radio.