Subject: [removed] Digest V2001 #360
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 11/10/2001 9:03 AM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2001 : Issue 360
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Re: MP3                               [ Fred Berney <berney@[removed]; ]
  Words, words ...                      [ "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@ ]
  BBC finds over a hundred programmes   [ Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed] ]
  Re: SW Feeds                          [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
  History schmistory                    [ "J. Pope" <jpope101@[removed] ]
  Re: Disney and Amos N Andy            [ "Greg Willy" <Gregw@[removed]; ]
  Ampex 671                             [ Neal Ellis <bstenor@[removed]; ]
  Hadacol                               [ "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@ezlin ]
  looking for Paul Urbahns              [ Osborneam@[removed] ]
  Re: Hadicol                           [ "Robert M. Bratcher Jr." <bratcher@ ]
  Documentaries Instead of Commercials  [ "Jimidene Murphey" <jimimark@[removed] ]
  Owens and "Band"                      [ hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed]; ]
  Will pay $ for Washington Post        [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
  BBC archives                          [ Roo61@[removed] (Randy Watts) ]
  Jelly Rolls                           [ "Arte" <arte@[removed]; ]
  HADACOL                               [ HERITAGE4@[removed] ]
  Fwd: WBCQ? : SHORTWAVE "PIRATE BROAD  [ "Owens Pomeroy" <opomeroy@[removed]; ]
  Hey Hal                               [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 10:13:25 -0500
From: Fred Berney <berney@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: MP3

Bryan Wright said it all in his post about MP3. I agree with him completely
on trying to get the best quality when encoding to MP3. I have been pushing
for a 128/44 standard and his posting reflects my thoughts.

I had been suggesting the stereo mode only because some MP3 CD players
require the file to be in stereo.

Which bring up a point. Many of the older MP3 CD players require the file
encoding to be at a sample rate of [removed] and a bit rate of not less than 32
and in some cases not higher than 256. The 128/44 falls right in the middle
and I feel I can safely say that if an MP3 file is encoded at this rate it
will play in all MP3 CD players.

The only exception is the Classic Boom Box, which requires the file to also
be in stereo. Of the four CD MP3 players I own, this is the only one that
requires a stereo file. That is the reason that all the MP3 files I was
selling at the NJ convention were in the stereo mode. I could then say that
I would guarantee that they would play in "every" MP3 CD player.

I am also happy to report that I have been acquiring a lot of transcription
discs. The process of transferring to CD and cassette is slow, but the end
result is worth the wait. For the most part, the quality of these disks has
been near excellent.

I am transferring them first to a WAV file and then to an audio CD. Audio
cassettes are then made from the audio CD. Non of the transcription disks
are being transferred to MP3. This way I know that I'm putting out the
highest quality of sound possible at this moment in time.

Fred Berney
[removed]

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 10:18:35 -0500
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Words, words ...

Kenneth Clarke, commenting on broadcasting then and now, asks,

Were these controls (from censors and sponsors) any more restrictive
then than those which are in control today?  I'm certainly no prude, but
I doubt most of the stuff which gets broadcast on todays radio and
television would have been approved by these people during the days of
OTR.  True or not?

Well, back then, it wasn't just OTR.  You'd only hear a word like, say,
"Hell," broadcast when referring to a World War II Grummann fighter (the
Hellcat) or when listening to broadcast services from a local church, as
some stations did back then.  But this was also true in films, etc.  I
recall on one Jack Benny show, he kidded that they had to call one of the
South Pacific songs "Stomach Hai," because the censors wouldn't let them
say "belly."

Today, on broadcast talk shows, and some commentary programs, there are
lots of words that would never have made it over the air in the days of
OTR, including "son of a bitch" and "a**hole."  A far cry from the days
where there had to be a special ruling that allowed Gone With The Wind,
the motion picture, to retain Rhett Butler's famous line, "Frankly, my
dear, I don't give a damn."

Stephen A. Kallis, Jr.

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 10:55:00 -0500
From: Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: BBC finds over a hundred programmes

Folks;

   There's a link on The News Pages today to a CNN article detailing the
successes the BBC has had in finding lost (read: unrecorded) programs, both
television and radio, including a 1931 adaptation of, "A Christmas Carol,"
the earliest complete BBC drama in existence:

[removed]

   The News Pages, which contain both OTR-related and non-related links to
news stories (serious and not-so-much) around the Net, is available at:

[removed]

         Charlie

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 11:35:17 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: SW Feeds

Ed Ellers notes:

Actually the reporters in the field often did their reports "blind," since
overseas telephone circuits were so scarce.  A reporter in London might be
told to start talking at exactly 2214 GMT, and the anchor in New York would
watch the clock and say "Go ahead, London!" at 6:13:55 Eastern War Time,
creating the effect of a cue.

There are in the NBC Collection at the LOC a number of recordings from
1943-45 of the raw feeds of various overseas inserts heard during the NBC
Morning News Roundup, and these offer a fascinating window into exactly
how the programs were assembled. The Allied military authorities
maintained broadcasting facilities in London, Algiers, and (after
Liberation) Paris, from which all correspondents were required to file
their reports. This was done sequentially -- correspondents from NBC,
CBS, Blue-ABC, Mutual, the BBC, and the CBC would line up in the studio
in an agreed-upon sequence, and would take their turns at the mike. (At
times, the language in each correspondent's report is near-identical,
demonstrating that all of the correspondents were being fed the same
heavily-censored military press-release material, and simply rewrote it
for their individual broadcasts.) Between reports, an engineer would be
heard delivering a series of audio countdowns, "woof-woof" sound cues,
and timechecks intended to ensure that the network clocks remained in
synchronization with the clocks at the origination point.

These circuits were also used by the AP, UP, and INS for transmission of
print copy from field correspondents. Several of the surviving recordings
include an operator reading these texts aloud at dictation speed for
stenographic transcription on the stateside end. There are also
occasional technical messages for the network operators -- one such
recording includes lengthy instructions from Algiers on pending
arrangements for a live insert to be broadcast on an upcoming broadcast
of "The Army Hour," including exact details on time synchronization. The
recordings confirm that there was usually talkback between RCA
Communications in New York and the military stations overseas, but the
New York end of the conversation is never heard on the recordings --
indicating that a separate frequency was used for that part of the
conversation.

Given how crude this system was, and how unpredictable shortwave
transmission conditions could be, it's astonishing that it worked as
smoothly as it did.

Elizabeth

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 12:40:42 -0500
From: "J. Pope" <jpope101@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: History schmistory

THEY WERE RUSSIAN BOMBERS!!!

    How do you know?  They never showed up! ;)  I hope everyone here finds
it as disconcerting as I do that they put Jughead in charge of a 50
caliber anti-aircraft gun.
    To keep this on topic, how much of an impact did the Korean war
have on OTR?  Were a good number of performers and behind-the-scenes
personnel called to active duty?

Jennifer

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 12:41:02 -0500
From: "Greg Willy" <Gregw@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re:  Disney and Amos N Andy

Elizabeth notes:

"Correll and Gosden had further interaction with Disney in the late
forties, when "Song of the South" was being made. It was partly on the
strength of James Baskett's work as Gabby Gibson on the A&A sitcom that
he was cast as Uncle Remus/Br'er Fox in that film, "

When I was a little kid we had a single 45 rpm record of uncle Remus telling
about Brer Rabbit and the tar baby that my brotherand I played over and over
until it drove my Mother crazy.  I don't know what happened to it but I have
my suspicions.  I feel sure it was done by James Baskett but it was not the
same as that on the soundtrack to Song of the South movie.  We would love to
hear that recording again.  Does anyone know anything about it or where we
could get a copy?  Thanks.

Greg

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:50:42 -0500
From: Neal Ellis <bstenor@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Ampex 671

I have several hundred reels of Ampex 671 that I am looking to clear
out at a very inexpensive price.  Let me know if you are interested.  I
am also clearing out my old reel to reel collection of shows.  First
come first serve.

 =====
Neal Ellis
Audio Engineer (National Public Radio)
Librarian (First Generation Radio Archives)

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:50:58 -0500
From: "Donald & Kathleen Dean" <dxk@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Hadacol

I certainly remember the Hadacol craze. Bill Knowlton
said in the last Digest:

I know that Hadicol sponsored a series of Hank Williams Broadcasts,
referred
to as the "Health & Happiness Show."

That's correct Bill and I have most of those shows in my
collection. Also a  country music star wrote a song called
"The Hadacol Boogie" which is also in my collection. I
can't recall now who wrote it. Was it Merle Travis?

Don Dean N8IOJ

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:56:40 -0500
From: Osborneam@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: looking for Paul Urbahns

Would Paul Urbahns please send me email?  I've lost you address.

Arlene Osborne

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:51:28 -0500
From: "Robert M. Bratcher Jr." <bratcher@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: Hadicol

I know that Hadicol sponsored a series of Hank Williams Broadcasts, referred
to as the "Health & Happiness Show."

I've got 2 shows from 1949. The opening announcer calls it Health &
Happiness Time while Hank calls it (a little later) Health & Happiness
Show. Still it's good [removed]

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:51:57 -0500
From: "Jimidene Murphey" <jimimark@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Documentaries Instead of Commercials

Doug Leary wrote:

A couple of the Scarlet Queen episodes I have (mp3) contain little
mini-documentaries, not commercials. In one of them Bob Hope tells a short
history of the Pony Express.

I remember a series (for the life of me, can't remember precisely which one)
in which the announcer, during a "commercial" break, gave the histories of
all the states' flags instead of running a commercial.  Does anybody know
anything about this - was it an Armed Services Radio Network thing possibly?

Jimidene Murphey
"Keepin' It Alive"

jimimark@[removed]

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 18:56:38 -0500
From: hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Owens and "Band"

"Owens Pomeroy"  recently posted:

I just finished watching an excellent TV Series "Band Of Brothers" on HBO.
As I was watching I couldn't help but wonder what an excellent vehicle that
would be to produce on NPR radio today.

Owens, you know I always ask your indulgence when I can't respond to your
e-mails due to time constraints, but I just couldn't let your posting pass
without comment.

I totally agree that "Band of Brothers" was an excellent TV series on HBO.
As a former TV Producer/Director, I'm think I'm fairly qualified to pass
judgement on "quality", and know a little bit about Production costs.

Being produced by Speilberg, one usually expects the best that MONEY CAN
BUY! After the success of his "Saving Private Ryan", and Tom hanks as
Co-Producer, they certainly did not spare any expense.

As I understand it, each episode cost close to i million dollars to produce.

Where did you hear that? One does not even get Speilberg and Hanks as
producers for 1 mil per episode, much less Talent and the bottom line
production costs. (Did they donate their services?). There is no way, on
God's green earth, that the entire 10 episodes cost a mere $10,000,000.
Maybe they only charged HBO a mil to air each episode, but you can bet your
butt that they will edit it into a feature length movie for theatrical
release. (After all, only a small percent of the population gets HBO). If
that was the case, the Domestic and Foreign gross from such a release will
be the real payday for them.

this series could probably be oroduced for about 10,oo oer episode,
considering
the actors working for union scale ($300) per episode.

And who is going to pay for this? (Even if your math were accurate). Do you
know what local radio stations charge for advertising these days. As for
NPR, dream on.

Does anyone think tghis would be fesiable with other TV series into
radio?

Obviously, I don't. Just because something is "wonderful" on TV, does not
mean that it would "translate" well to radio. And particularly, this series.
There is no way that radio could "capture" the horrors of war, the
devastating effects of an artillery barrage, the fear on Men's faces in a
heated battle, etc. etc. etc. And what about the tears in the eyes of the
actual veterans who recounted their experiences. To tell a story like
[removed] MUST BE VISUAL!

Does anyone think tghis would be fesiable with other TV series into
radio?  I know I am "whipping a dead horse" to expect a miracle like this -
but - I think it would be worth a try.

Yes Owens. That "Dead Horse" has been whipped to shreds. I realize you are a
die-hard fan of radio, but you need to face reality. (Sorry "Virginia"...
there is no Santa Claus). TV has a firm grip on the viewing public, and
justifiably so. Radio had it's day, and back then, it also had a firm grip
as well. We, as a society, have evolved. (For good or bad is debatable). But
we are dealing with Economics 101. (Just as we did during Radios Golden
Years). Viewership, (ratings) cost of production and cost of "Air-time" are
intertwined.

Enjoy OTR as a unique form of early mass media entertainment, and primarily
for it's nostalgic value. And accept TV for it's vastly superior visual
impact. Never the twain shall meet. Welcome to the 21st Century.

Hal(Harlan)Stone
Jughead

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 21:50:21 -0500
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Will pay $ for Washington Post

This is an odd-ball query, but I was wondering if anyone on the digest here
knows of an on-line source that offers back issues of The Washington Post.
I have tried searching [removed] but their archives only
goes as far back as 1977.  Only three libraries within driving distance
offer Washington Post on microfilm, but the farthest the one has is 1966.

I was hoping to check out old articles from 1935, but have not found a
source to browse [removed] even the Post themselves don't have a library of
back issues!  I figure there has to be some source on the web that allows
one to browse old issues of The Washington Post that far.  If any one can
offer me a successful web-site that can allow me to browse back issues of
WP, I'll pay handsome $.  They can contact me privately.

Martin

[removed] For anyone looking for a great source on OTR spoofs done in by Merrie
Melodies and Looney Tunes, I recently purchased a book entitled LOONEY TUNES
AND MERRIE MELODIES: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros.
Cartoons by Jerry Beck and Will Friedwald.  Although it's not really
illustrated, it's wonderfully researched, and you can find tons of spoofs
(in detail) from Truth or Consequences to Duffy's Tavern.

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

Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2001 22:16:07 -0500
From: Roo61@[removed] (Randy Watts)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: BBC archives

Was just reading an article concerning the results of an appeal by the
BBC to the public for any broadcast material missing from their
archives.  Among the one hundred or so items they recovered was a 1931
production of "A Christmas Carol," described as the oldest complete BBC
drama in existence.  There was also a passing mention that "more than
20" radio dramas from the 1960s existed in BBC vaults.

Seems the American networks aren't alone in their failure to hang on to
their older radio material.

--Randy

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

Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2001 00:29:20 -0500
From: "Arte" <arte@[removed];
To: "OldRadio Mailing List" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Jelly Rolls

As a teenager in Illinois in the 1960's, I remember
listening one night to a program over WFAA/WBAP in Dallas/Ft
Worth.
I didn't hear the beginning and the station faded at the
end, so I never knew the name of the program.
The story was about a man whose wife and his friend (her
boyfriend) had tried to kill by arranging an accident. He
survived but suffered a head injury. When he awoke in the
hospital he discovered that he could "hear" what people were
thinking. His wife, playing the innocent, loving spouse,
brought him some of her jelly rolls that he liked. Only he
"heard" her and his friend thinking about how she had
poisoned them.
Needless to say he didn't eat them.
When he awoke the next day he could no longer "hear" them
thinking, but he had lost his taste for ... jelly rolls.

Does anyone remember a plot line like this, and what series
it was on. I sure would like to get a copy of this show.

Arte

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

Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2001 00:29:37 -0500
From: HERITAGE4@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: HADACOL

With regard to the (unexpected) thread developing about HADACOL
as a sponsor;  It was alledgedly a "tonic" for the blood, to make you feel
more alive and dynamic.  The common saying by young people
during those days when the subject of why it was called HADACOL
went:  "They Had a Call it Something, so they called it HADACOL."
Tom Heathwood - Heritage Radio Classics     [removed]
 11/09/01

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

Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2001 00:31:03 -0500
From: "Owens Pomeroy" <opomeroy@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Fwd: WBCQ? : SHORTWAVE  "PIRATE BROADCAST"

I received this email tonight from a fellow GRB Club member.  I thought it
would be a good thread for the Digest. If anyone on the Digest has a
shortwave receiver, he gives the dial setting.  Check it out.

Owens

 -----
From: Jack Bond <bondpaper@[removed];
To: opomeroy@[removed]
Subject: WBCQ?
Date: Fri, 09 Nov 2001 23:47:51 -0800

Here's a new one, at least it is news to me.

Don't know if you ever try shortwave listening, but I do
some times. Picked up a station not long ago--and again last
night--that offers a most unusual program. They call it
"Amos n Andy" and act as tho it is an original. They take a
show--usually from the early days, last night it was the
very early 30's--and recreate it. They imitate Freeman and
Gosden, and all the other characters, and don't do a very
good job of it. They also have an announcer that imitates
Bill Hay, and he doesn't do too well either. The organ,
however--playing the "Perfect Song" of course-- sounds
exactly like the original, in fact it may be an actual
recording.

After the program is over--there are no commercials and no
ackowledgment that the program is a recreation--they sign
off as an NBC show, with the usual three gong notes. Then
comes the station letters--WBCQ--in very strong tones,
unmistakable letters, and the words "World wide
radio."That's all, no location identification. If you are
interested and have the equipment,  try tuning in the 49
meter band some midnight, at [removed] megacycles (or as they
say these days, megahertz.) Very curious. Jack

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

Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2001 00:54:28 -0500
From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Hey Hal

Hey Hal, any baseball memories about those Brooklyn Dodgers?  Some how, fit
in a references with Radio that way we can call it part of OTR.  Take care,

Walden

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2001 Issue #360
*********************************************

Copyright [removed] Communications, York, PA; All Rights Reserved,
  including republication in any form.

If you enjoy this list, please consider financially supporting it:
   [removed]

For Help: [removed]@[removed]
To Unsubscribe: [removed]@[removed]

For Help with the Archive Server, send the command ARCHIVE HELP
  in the SUBJECT of a message to [removed]@[removed]

To contact the listmaster, mail to listmaster@[removed]

To Send Mail to the list, simply send to [removed]@[removed]