Audio Antiques

Ever wonder what it takes to be a science fiction writer? You will find out as we present, the 1956 NBC radio program Biography in Sound. You will hear interviews with  prominent science fiction authors, including Isaac Asimov one of the greatest sci-fi writers of all time. But first, let's listen to some science fiction. Parts one and two of the Space Merchants from the CBS Radio Workshop in 1957. Then you will hear how writers put these kinds of stories together.

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The Ink Spots were an American vocal jazz group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. The Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame inductees paved the way for rhythm and blues and dew-wop. The Ink Spots began performing in the Indianapolis area around 1931, appearing on radio station WLW in Cincinnati. By 1934 they made it to the Apollo Theater in New York, and started touring in England. In 1936, the Ink Spots were the first African Americans to appear on television, when the medium was in the experimental stage of development. By 1938 they had their own nationwide radio show. In 1939 they recorded a ballad called, "If I Didn't Care", was a smash hit, selling over 19 million copies. Hoppy Jones, Deek Watson, Charlie Fuqua, and Bill Kenny went on to appear in movies, and made many guest appearances on variety shows during the golden age of TV, between 1948 and 1952. You will hear The Ink Spots 1938 radio show, plus an appearance on the Jack Benny radio program in 1948. 

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Mystery dramas were always a listener favorite during radio's classic era. You will hear four such theater productions in this podcast. Mollé Mystery Theater was a 30-minute anthology radio program that ran from 1943 to 1948. It was sponsored initially by Sterling Drugs, manufacturers of Mollé Brushless Shaving Cream. ABC Mystery Theater was a similar series on the air from 1951 to 1954 and made a brief transition to ABC-TV. We have Mystery Playhouse from 1945, and the CBC Radio Mystery Theater which was written, adapted, produced and broadcast by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation from 1966 to 1968. 

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This podcast is about Huddie William Ledbetter. Better known by his stage name Lead Belly, was one of the most celebrated folk and blues singers of his time. His most popular songs "Goodnight, Irene", "Midnight Special", "Cotton Fields", became American classics. Lead Belly was celebrated for his songwriting skills, strong vocals, and virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar. He's a Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame inductee. Lead Belly was born in 1888, and faced many hardships as a young African-American growing up in the Jim Crow South, serving several prison sentences for murder, attempted homicide, and assault.  But Lead Belly spent his time behind bars, performing concerts for his fellow inmates and perfecting his craft. Once he got out for good, Lead Belly was given a radio show, and signed a contract with RCA Victor, one of the biggest record companies at the time. You will hear 3 episodes of the Leadbelly Show on New York Radio Station WNYC in 1940, one with special guest, legendary folk singer Woodie Guthrie. You'll also hear Lead Belly perform on the show, This Is Jazz in 1947, just 2 years before his death. 

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In this podcast, we pay tribute to the Mutual Broadcasting System. It was the fourth nationwide radio network to be established in the United States, after CBS, NBC, and the NBC Blue Network which later became ABC. Mutual was established in 1934 as a cooperative between WOR New York, WGN Chicago, WLW Cincinnati, and WXYZ in Detroit. The network was retired in 1999 after numerous ownership changes. During radio's golden age Mutual was was best known as the home of The Lone Ranger, Superman, and The Shadow, as well as Major League Baseball, the NFL, and college football. Because it didn't have a big budget like it's rivals, Mutual usually avoided airing expensive variety shows, and concentrated on crime, drama, game, music, news and talk programs. For example, you're going to hear, Nick Carter Master Detective from 1945. From 1946 the popular situation comedy Vic & Sade, plus Sherlock Homes starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. From 1947, the game show What Am I Offered, and the Barbara Welles Show with guest James Stewart. Finally, The Saint starring Vincent Price from 1949.

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Jazz and radio broadcasting were born right around the same time, and stuck together well into the Rock-N-Roll age. The early days of radio will filled with lots of jazz. One of the most celebrated shows was This Is Jazz, hosted by music critic Rudi Blesh. He founded Circle Records in 1946 to record new music by aging early jazz stars. You're going to hear two 1947 episodes of This is Jazz, with guest star Blue Lu Barker, one of the biggest blues vocalists in the 1930s and 40s. Making an appearance on the show is jazz fan and pioneering actor Canada Lee. The second episode features the great Sidney Bechet, one of the first important soloists in jazz. Bechet started performing in 1911, but was not fully appreciated until the 1940s. 

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Horror and fantasy shows appeared on radio nearly from the very start. The first horror drama during radio's golden age was The Witch's Tale, which was aired from 1931 to 1938. It featured Old Nancy, the Witch of Salem, who introduced a different terror tale each week. You'll hear an episode from 1937. Another early horror program was Lights Out, which started in 1934 and eventually made it to television. We have an episode from 1939, as well as popular series Inner Sanctum and the Sealed Book both from 1945. Our horror fest ends with the show Quiet Please from 1947, a program that was unique because most episodes featured no more than two or three actors. 

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Marian Anderson was one of the most popular and talented operatic singers in the 20th century. The African-American contralto overcame childhood poverty to sing with major orchestras throughout the United States and Europe between 1925 and 1965. In 1923 Anderson was the first black artist to record for RCA Victor. She became the first African-American singer to perform at the Metropolitan Opera. In addition, Anderson worked as a delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, and as a Goodwill Ambassador for the U.S. State Department. She participated in the civil rights movement in the 1960s, and was awarded the first Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963. Anderson also received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1977, the Kennedy Center Honors in 1978, the National Medal of Arts in 1986, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991. You will hear Marion Anderson perform on the Magic Key of RCA radio show on NBC in 1936. Her legendary 1939 performance before an integrated audience of 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. that racists tried to block. Then finally a 1959 interview with Jeanne Hamm on WWVA Radio.  

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It is often called the Forgotten Conflict. The Korean War was started by North Korea in 1950, assisted by Russia and China. They attacked South Korea backed by the United States and other allies. The fighting stopped 1953. Approximately 3 million people died in the Korean War, the majority were civilians. The United States suffered 54,248 deaths. We have a report on the war by the CBS Radio news program Hear It Now, from the week of December 29th, 1950. This was one of the first news programs to use tape-recorded audio to capture the sound of newsmakers and major events. Then from 1953, we have one of the few Korean War radio dramas from a show called Proudly We Hail about the mission to capture a Russian fighter jet. 

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Jack Webb was an American actor, television producer, director, and screenwriter, who is most famous for his role as Sgt. Joe Friday in the TV police series Dragnet. But Webb was also a crusader in the fight for civil rights. After serving in World War Two, Webb worked in radio, and in 1946 had his own comedy show on ABC. That same year he was host of a one-man program called, One Out of Seven on ABC's KGO Radio in San Francisco. Jack Webb would dramatized a news story from the previous week, performing in as many as seven voices. As you will hear, Webb used his voices to attack racial prejudice. 

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