Subject: [removed] Digest V2003 #252
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 6/26/2003 11:49 PM

To: <[removed]@[removed];

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2003 : Issue 252
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Guide dogs on ole time radio:         [ "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed] ]
      Converting real player files to MP3?  [ "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed] ]
      Today in radio history                [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
      Tales from the "Billy Rose"           [ Derek Tague <derek@[removed]; ]
      car radios                            [ "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed] ]
      The March of Time                     [ "Alan B. Howard" <abh9h@[removed] ]
      inside out                            [ "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed] ]
      Earl of Loxley (sp?)                  [ Wich2@[removed] ]
      "Pay attention, Son!"                 [ Wich2@[removed] ]
      Re: More Barnouw                      [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
      Lone Ranger's "music" now in paperba  [ bruceglazer@[removed] ]
      June 27th birth                       [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      Gunsmoke                              [ dantrigg422@[removed] ]
      Arch Obler                            [ dantrigg422@[removed] ]
      CBS/NBC and Barnouw                   [ Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed]; ]

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:29:52 -0400
    From: "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Guide dogs on ole time radio:

    I haven't posted lately so I will ask a question and then tell you'll why I
    was absent.

    Back in March I had to retire a guide dog.  Shadow had a form of low grade
    bone cancer so he had to be retired.  We took him to a doctor Hamilton in
    Cleveland Ohio and he removed Shad's front left leg and shoulder.  I was
    crushed but felt better when we decided to get in touch with his puppy
    raisers in MI.  They took him back in to the household and he has passed his
    exam and will be a therapy dog.

    Now my question,  Does any one know if any radio shows were ever done with
    guide dogs in the story line.

    I know that The Seeing Eye was the first school in this country so they got
    a copy right on that name, so the get credit when folks call the dogs Seeing
    Eye Dogs.  How ever The generic name is Guide dogs.

    It seems to me that Hank Snow did a song called The Blind Boy's Dog and I
    have heard tell of a song by Red Foley with a guide dog theme.

    Seeing Eye started I believe in the 30's and I think Leader was the 2nd
    school in this country.

    I have seen Guide dogs as the subject matter in some old TV shows and may I
    add that mistakes were sometimes made in the portrayal.

    Just some things to think about.

    I will not be such a stranger.

    Bob Taylor with Black lab Cole.

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:30:14 -0400
    From: "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Converting real player files to MP3?

    I realize that this question came up before and I didn't save the info so,
    If someone can tell me how to convert real player files to mp3's I will be
    very glad.

    We don't use real one because it seems to take over the computer so if any
    programs work with real player 8 that would be even better.

    Bob Taylor

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:30:20 -0400
    From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
    To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Today in radio history

       From Those Were The Days --

    1933 - The Kraft Music Hall debuted.

    1949 - Fred Allen had his final program, though he continued for several
    years to guest on other shows.

       Joe

    --
    Visit my homepage: [removed]

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:33:27 -0400
    From: Derek Tague <derek@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Tales from the "Billy Rose"

    Hi Gang:

       With both Prof. Biel and Chris Werner commenting on their respective
    research experiences at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at
    Lincoln Center--Billy Rose Theatre Collection, Third Floor [phew!
    henceforth to be referred to as "Billy Rose"], I'd like to share a few stories
    of my experiences there.
       I'd like to think I have "Billy Rose" down to a science. Personally, I have
    a "love/hate" relationship with it. It can prove to be a frustrating place
    wrapped in a bureaucratic tangle of paperwork required to access materials.
    The clerks who fill your call-slip orders oft-times bring  the wrong files,
    which necessitates another 20-30 minutes of down-time waiting for the correct
    ones. I once asked for the "My Friend Irma (radio)" file only to be brought
    the "My Friend Irma (cinema)" files. Another time I asked for the file on
    "Alfred Hitchcock Presents (tele.)," which was under "A" & the net result was
    a file marked "Hitchcock, Alfred (obituaries)", kept under "H." My advice to
    my fellow etheResearchers is to clearly underline or highlight on your
    call-slip anything that might prove problemmatic. In the above cases,
    underline the word "Radio" or draw an arrow under the "A" in "Alfred
    Hitchcock."
       If you think accessing files is herculean, wait 'til you want to make
    photocopies at the prohibitive price of 25-cents per page. Another form has to
    be filled out, and depending on the librarian on-duty, you may be limited to
    20 or 25 items per trip.  The young ladies who do the copying for you are very
    nice. At least for 25-cents per sheet, a library staff member does the actual
    copying; the one bright thing about this is that you don't have to pay fo rthe
    "misfires." However, the configuration  of articles is totally at the
    discretion of the copy-er. This means, if the article is too long for one 8" x
    11" sheet, it's the copy-er's choice whether the piece gets "auto-fitted" on
    to one sheet, or whether the client has to pay for two copies.
       Some files are in the Special Collections section, & the use of them are
    even more restrictive. You'll be required to be escorted  to a special room.
    In most cases, you won't be allowed to photocopy this booty especially if the
    items are brittle & yellowed by age. Sometimes, the staff require you to wear
    white gloves  (which they provide) to handle certain items.  If you find
    yourself not being allowed to photocopy, you might want to resort to hand
    copying the info you desire; oh, pencils only & you  may not use your own
    notebook(s)--"Billy Rose" provides you with the scrap paper. If anytbody is
    interested in writing a book on Staats Cotsworth &/or his OTR shows ["Casey,
    Crime Photographer," "Front Page Farrell"], there is a veritable mountain of
    stuff [removed] file box (probably from Mr. Cotsworth's personal collection)
    with several folders therein, each dedicated to a different stage production,
    & a nice hefty file devoted to his radio work].
        A real annoying facet of the place is how staffers switch off on jobs
    every hour. The librarian on duty who stamps all your paperwork is always
    different each time you need to hand in a fresh  batch of call-slips. A great
    nuisance is how you'll find yourself in a long line waiting for "reproduction
    services" [don't go there], with only one staffer on-duty while the other one
    is on break. When you think the line is going to move when t'other staffer
    comes back from her break, the first one takes hers. I was once stuck behind
    two middle-aged woman who drove from Philadelphia having every last scrap of
    paper pertaining to Barry Manilow
    being Xeroxed. To add insult to injury, that line ends & is cut off 15 to 30
    minutes before closing regardless how long you've waited.
        Scared off yet? From my own experiences, I can tell you that sometimes the
    things you find there & the little-known gems you learn & discover are well
    worth the hassle. If you go, here are my tips to make the Billy Rose
    experience more pleasant.

    1) If you're traveling cross-country, try to make your research part of a
    vacation to NYC (theatre, sightseeing, etc.). I'd hate to see someone making
    the trip here to discover that "Billy Rose" doesn't even have a  file folder
    on "Candy Matson." Sometimes the file folders are unavailable due to misfiling
    & sometimes come up empty.
    2) The materials yielded are a "crap-shoot." The file for "Bold Venture"
    consists  solely of a full page ad from "Variety." When I was helping Martin
    Grams w/ his "Inner Sanctum" research, the call-slip clerks brought out about
    ten big boxes of material. Happy hunting!
    3) While waiting for call-slip orders to be filled, spend the down-time
    filling out a new batch, or reading the OTR reference books from the
    accessible shelves.
    4) Try to get there when they open at 12 Noon in order to mavximize your
    research time.
    5) Eat a big lunch before going if you intend to be there for hours being that
    there are nary a moderately priced restaurant in the Lincoln Center
    neighbourhood.
    6) Try to have small bills on-hand with maybe two or three dollars worth of
    quarters. This will prove helpful when using the automated machine which fills
    up the "copy cards" needed to make copies from the microfilm readers. Also,
    the nice ladies who do the copying appreciate exact change.
    7) Use the entrance adjacent to the Lincoln  Center plaza where you can check
    your bags upon arrival. The other entrances ([removed], from Amsterdam Avenue)
    require you to walk through the entire library until you get to the
    coat-and-bag check. Bags are subject to inspection, so pack light.
    8) Bring your own stationery (paper clips, stapler, scissors, etc.) and maybe
    a deck of cards so you can use the down-time to play solitaire.
    9) If you have absolutely no patience for library workers who pronounce the
    word as "li-berry," this is no place for you!
    10) Bring a friend if you can to assist your efforts. Your time will be
    greatly minimized first by being able to access twice as much stuff. Also, you
    can take turns standing on lines & co-ordinating your materials in order to
    lessen your frustration.
    11) Always check your copies to see that A) the right side of the page in
    question got copied, and B) to see that nothing got "cropped."
    12) "Research fatigue" is a sad reality. Sometimes, you'll find yourself there
    for three hours straight, and all of a sudden,  you have no desire or
    motivation to look through another file folder. Rest up the night before.
    13) While in the neighbourhood, check out the Barnes & Noble Superstore [I met
    John Dunning there during a book-signing], the big Tower Records,  the
    overpriced Sony Imax Theatre, & Gray's Papaya hot dog stand at Broadway and
    West 72nd Street.
    14) If you can't make it to NYC, you can always post here on the Digest [at
    Listmaster Summers' discretion, of course]  a call for help from NYC-area
    readers to do the "leg-work" for you.

        I hope this helps all you fellow researchers, both the veteran and the
    novice.

    Yours ever in the ether,

    Derek Tague

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:37:52 -0400
    From: "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  car radios

    Since the subject of car radios has gone on longer than I thought it would,
    I will add my little story:
    Chris Holm wrote

>     I believe there are several companies who make aftermarket AM/FM/SW radios
>     for cars.

    I know that these aftermarket sets were available in the '60s because I had
    one.  It was made by Sony and the radio was not directly installed in the
    car.  A "docking station" was installed under the dash, antenna and power
    attached to it.  The radio slid in to the docking station and used the cars
    antenna and power, it could be locked in the docking station with a key
    operated lock.  You could slide the radio out and take it with you.  It had
    it's own batteries, fold-up antenna and a handle on top, it received AM/FM
    and several SW bands-the reception was fantastic.  I lived in Europe at the
    time and used to take the radio to my flat to listen to Radio Luxemborug on
    AM and Radio Prague and Radio Moscow on the SW.  I was listening to Radio
    Prague the night that Soviet Tanks rolled in to that city to end Alexander
    Dubchec's (sp) experiment in 1968.  Wish I would have kept that radio.

    Roby McHone
    Fairbanks Alaska

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:38:21 -0400
    From: "Alan B. Howard" <abh9h@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  The March of Time
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    Listmembers:

    I am a professor at the University of Virginia who has been working with
    students on a website on America in the 1930s:

              [removed]~1930[removed]

    This has a variety of kinds of materials including Radio and Music.

    Next year, I want to ask my students to work on documentary and docu-drama
    programs from the period, programs like the March of Time and its imitators.

    But I'm having some trouble actually locating materials on tape.

    I would appreciate it if anyone who has such materials and would consider
    sharing or selling them will contact me directly at:

              abh9h@[removed]

    Thank you.

                      alan

                             Alan B. Howard
                             Daniels Family Teaching Professor
                             Director, American Studies Program

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    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:51:54 -0400
    From: "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  inside out

    A friend recently told me about the Library of Congress' Phonograph Loaner
    Program, for visually impaired persons.  He said that his uncle was provided
    with a phonograph and lent records by the program, the record speed was 16
    RPM and the records played from the inside to the outside.  This was in the
    1940s, does anyone know anything else about this?

    Roby McHone
    Fairbanks, Alaska

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:52:46 -0400
    From: Wich2@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Earl of Loxley (sp?)

    From: "Mark E. Higgins" <paul_frees_fan@[removed];

>           Al also holds what I believe is the only existing copy of Douglas
>     Fairbanks Sr.'s portrayal as Robin Hood.  Clips from it were shown in
>     the promotional documentary on Robin Hood that was shown in connection
>     with the release of Kevin Costner's "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" on
>     network TV.  Al was credited for the clip.

    Mark & [removed]
    ...Then he must allow greater use of it than FRANKENSTEIN. I was fortunate
    enough to see a screening of same here in NYC years ago, accompanied by the
    redoubtable Lee Irwin. Also, it was released on laser disc after that; music
    by (I think?) Gaylord Carter. It's a gorgeous, literate telling of the story.
    (And, though I was on the side of "older isn't always better" in the debate
    here a few weeks ago, it runs repeated circles around Kostner's joke.).
    More on topic: did Senior do any radio work?
    Best,
    Craig Wichman

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:53:17 -0400
    From: Wich2@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  "Pay attention, Son!"

    From: Roo61@[removed] (Randy Watts)

>     "It's a Joke, Son" has been preserved by the UCLA Film and Television
>     Archive, mostly from the original nitrate negatives.  So far as I know,
>     UCLA's restoration has never been released commercially.

    Actually, it was put out on VHS by Republic in '91. I'm ASSUMING this is the
    best print, as I think they hold the rights? It's a decent-if-not-stunning
    copy, a little better than the previous Hal Roach version. Fun movie.
    -Craig Wichman

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 12:59:36 -0400
    From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: More Barnouw

    On 6/26/03 11:12 AM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:

>     	Secondly, my friend Mike Biel commented a) that he often takes what
>     Barnouw says with a "bucket of grains of salt" and b) he often finds
>     that Barnouw misinterprets the info in the  original source or, as
>     Elizabeth indicates, twists it towards his own
>     theories and views. I would be very interested if Mike and Elizabeth
>     would elaborate on these two points.

    Well, I can't speak for Mike -- I'm sure he'll have plenty to say on his
    own behalf. And I'm not quite sure that I'd say this quite the way that
    Mike did. Rather, I find that Barnouw often imposes his own cultural
    biases/political leanings on the material in a manner that can't be well
    supported by reference to original documentation. He constructs a very
    simple platform of facts, but then uses that platform to jump to
    highly-debatable conclusions. His discussion of soap operas is one
    example -- his discussion of "Amos 'n' Andy" is another. I found both of
    these sections of the book to be dismissive and rather condescending in
    their examination of programs and program formats which had an enormous
    impact on the business of broadcastin.

    To sum up, I think the overall emphasis Barnouw gives to "cultural"
    programming compared to his dismissive attitude toward more "popular"
    fare is all out of proportion to what the actual facts would suggest
    should have been his emphasis if he were writing a straightforward
    history. It's all well and good to devote large sections of chapters to
    Corwin's work, or to other upscale programming because Barnouw,
    personally, found them to be fulfilling and worthwhile -- but the fact
    remains that far more people were interested in the "National Barn Dance"
    than anything to come out of Corwin's typewriter, or out of Oboler's, or
    out of those of any of the other darlings-of-academia. Downplaying or
    subtly denigrating popular tastes -- as he definitely does, thruout the
    trilogy -- gives the work a definite and distinctive ivory-tower flavor,
    and that's a perspective that I personally don't much care for.

    Elizabeth

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 17:16:57 -0400
    From: bruceglazer@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Lone Ranger's "music" now in paperback

    For those of you who have been seeking "The Mystery of the Masked Man's Music",
    it is now available, in paperback, at:  [removed] and
    [removed].
    I am sure other book vendors will carry it as well.

    BRUCE

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 17:17:05 -0400
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  June 27th birth

    June 27th birth

    06-27-1907 - John McIntire - Spokane, WA - d. 1-30-1991
    actor: Benjamin Ordway "Crime Doctor"; Lt. Dundy "Adventures of Sam Spade"

    June 27th deaths

    02-08-1925 - Jack Lemmon - Boston, MA - d. 6-27-2001
    actor: "Dimension X"; "X Minus One"
    06-09-1910 - George Bryan - NYC - d. 6-27-1969
    announcer: "Helen Hayes Theatre"; "Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts"
    10-14-1908 - Allan Jones - Old Forge, PA - d. 6-27-1992
    singer: "The Chicago Theatre of the Air"; "The New Old Gold Show"

    Ron Sayles
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin
    Hometown of [removed] Kaltenborn and Spencer Tracy

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 19:52:10 -0400
    From: dantrigg422@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Gunsmoke
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    Episode 294 "Odd Man Out" Starts out by saying On West meaning Dodge and on
    the way out west where America was heading.
    Dan

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    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 20:42:19 -0400
    From: dantrigg422@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Arch Obler
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    In response to Howard Blues comment that Arch Obler was accused of plagiarism
    by his former assistant, I have found that former assistants, wife's, inlaws,
    and friends need to be taken with at least a touch of salt.

    Dan

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

    Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 21:59:34 -0400
    From: Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  CBS/NBC and Barnouw

    Elizabeth first said:

>     And my third misgiving about Barnouw is his "Columbiacentric" point
>     of  view.

    Then Mike Martini responded:

>     IMHO, CBS (even before Paley "bought" what he needed in '47 and '48) was
>     the more creative network during that period and so why should Barnouw
>     ignore this?

    And Elizabeth replied:

>     Barnouw seems to imply that true creativity in broadcasting began with
>     Robson and Corwin and their contemporaries -- and this simply isn't true.

    And also:

>     Examine the full output of NBC and CBS during the 1930s, and you'll find
>     that NBC's creative contributions to broadcasting were quite significant
>     during this period, and that much of what CBS
>     accomplished came in *response* to prior efforts by NBC.

    Then Chris Chandler joined in with:

>     Then of course there's the huge disparity between press and historical
>     treatments of the two networks' news operations, a well known pet peeve of
>     mine.

    And I wonder:

    All of this leads me to wonder - aren't we really just talking about who
    had the better PR machine? If not that, then why does Columbia always seem
    to stand out in all the historical treatises I have come across. Yes,
    Corwin is still around to be able to tout his own history, Barnouw has his
    three volume "encyclopeida", Murrow has his books as well as books on him.
    Many of the CBS reporters wrote their own books (Sevareid, Collingwood,
    Howard K. Smith and others) and yet there were NBC-centric books - Max
    Jordan's book, Kaltenborn.

    But where are the NBC books? There's a plethora of CBS-centric books
    readily available. Why not NBC?  Is this perhaps because CBS was more savvy
    in making the public aware of their "creative" side?

    All of this leads me to then ask - why?  What has given CBS it's staying
    power within the world of radio history?  If not PR, then could there be
    substance to the Columbia arguments?

    On a related note to what started this thread, I just wanted to point out
    that editor Christorpher H. Sterling ("Encyclopedia of Radio") is also the
    co-author of a book written with John M. Kittross called "Stay Tuned: A
    Concise History of American Broadcasting" published by Wadsworth Publishing
    Company.

    Jim Widner
    jwidner@[removed]

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2003 Issue #252
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