Realistic Radio Schedules

[CharlieH.]

Here's something I've been wanting to know for a long time, and that I'm sure others will find it useful. If you were to create a full day of programming to pump into an antique radio, what would you include?
The 1939 broadcast day is a good model, but I'm sure that not all stations had programming like that. Would it be recorded music at morning, soaps by day, comedy and adventure shows at night separated by commercials and network IDs plus band remotes late at night all the time?
And what would you do to for a realistic all-music broadcast?

 

[LizzieMaine]

The WJSV 1939 model was standard issue for network stations from about 1935 thru the early fifties -- prior to that, there were fewer soaps in the daytime and more short, live musical features mixed in with talks on home economics and such.

However, there were plenty of stations that *weren't* affiliated with networks, and on those you'd find a real hodgepodge of programming ideas. Recorded music was very common on these stations, but so also were live musical programs, talks on local topics, and syndicated transcription programs. In addition, many smaller stations in cities carried blocks of program targeted to various ethnic groups, often in foreign languages. There was rarely any pattern to the schedules on these sorts of stations -- basically it depended on what the sponsors wanted.

 

[Fletch]

Was the daytime network fare pretty much just uninterrupted weepies? I can't see how two dozen soaps in a row from 9a-4p wouldn't have pushed the phenomenon waaay past the point of diminishing returns.

 

[LizzieMaine]

There'd generally be a break in the soap block at some point for the occasional news program or cooking show or musical feature or something else that didnt fit the pattern. But it's also important to know that not all "soap operas" were truly soapy -- there were some that played with the conventions of the format without falling into schmaltz. The most notable anomaly was "Vic and Sade," which aired in the midst of prime soap time, and yet presented some of the most brilliant American folk humor of the 20th century -- "an island of delight in a sea of tears," as one critic described it.

Even among the actual soaps, not all were quite as heavy-handed as the Helen Trent/Our Gal Sunday weepers -- "The Goldbergs" was an ethnic comedy-drama serial in the Amos 'n' Andy tradition, and ran for many years in a daytime slot; "Lorenzo Jones" was a humorous soap about a goofy smalltown inventor; and "Front Page Farrell" was a soap that leaned toward crime drama/adventure themes. So even when you had long blocks of serials during the daytime, there was enough variety in the format to keep listeners from getting sated.

Soaps were, by the way, the biggest cash cow, by far, for the networks during the thirties and forties -- Procter and Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive-Peet, and Lever Brothers were consistently the top spenders on radio, and daytime programs made up the bulk of their budgets. They were cheap to produce and were a much better value for the dollars spent than the typical big-budget nighttime program.

 

[Fletch]

Of course mixing up the format would enliven the broadcast day, altho the feeling you get from reading James Thurber's "Soapland" is that the less-banal shows tended to lose sponsors and timeslots and generally had a rough crossing thru that sea of tears.

Just to make insomnia time productive early this morning I lay in bed with my Treo - that's a telephone, not a design for living - and tried to mock up a 1939 radio schedule. I only got thru 10:30am before I ran out of ideas for soap titles and fell asleep yearning for evening variety shows.

– W T F L –

Basic Affiliate, Quality Broadcasting Co.
Schedule for Monday, January 29, 1939​

6:30 A.M. Cup O' Coffee. Transcribed music, local news, weather.
7:00 A.M. Daily Time Signal from U.S. Naval Observatory, Washington.
7:01 A.M. News of the World from the Daily Bugle.
7:15 A.M. Limber and Lissome, physical culturists.
7:30 A.M. Another Cup O' Coffee. See 6:00 for details.
8:00 A.M. Home Helps and Hints. Sponsor: Reliable Food Stores.
8:30 A.M. Dick & Larry, piano & organ.
8:45 A.M. Community Billboard.
9:00 A.M. (QBC) Lydon Critchlow, news and Analysis. S: Roylcord Tires.
9:15 A.M. (QBC) All About Amanda. S: Perko.
9:30 A.M. (QBC) Periwinkle Cottage. S: Dr. Taylor's Crystals.
9:45 A.M. (QBC) Those Barker Boys. S: Bakezall Mix.
10:00 A.M. (QBC) Big City Girl. S: New 14-in-1 Doozit.
10:15 A.M. (QBC) Roses in the Rain. S: Pacific Paper Mills.
10:30 A.M. (QBC) Life Down East. S: Brown's Baked Beans.

 

[CharlieH.]

Thanks for the input!

Fletch, I don't know how, but your mock schedule gave me a momentary idea with a high insanity factor - A full broadcast day with programming done by loungers in OTR style! Just imagine... Cousin Hepcat's Jukebox Jamboree.... Deckard's Sartorial Hour... News at 10 With Lizzie.... and gad knows what the local thespians can come up with.

 

[Fletch]

this evening from WTFL and the Quality Network...


6:00 P.M. Hometown Roundup, from the Daily Bugle, followed by LeBaron's Orch.
6:15 P.M. The Cosmo Toppers. S: Cosmopolitan Hats.
6:30 P.M. (QBC) Quality News Flashes, Elizabeth McLeod.
6:45 P.M. French Casino, transcribed variety. S: Cr?®me Nic?¥le.
7:00 P.M. (QBC) Whoa There!, comedy quiz. S: Respite Cough & Throat Syrup.
7:30 P.M. (QBC) Vern and I, comedy. S: Eta-Bola Oats.
7:45 P.M. (QBC) Today in Europe, news analysis, Kurtz & Scott. S: Horticulture Crumple-Free Cravats.
8:00 P.M. (QBC) Oklaco Playhouse, drama. S: Oklaco Gas.
9:00 P.M. (QBC) The Straight Dope, general knowledge, Cecil Adams. S: Portland Pen & Pencil.
9:30 P.M. (QBC) Rhythmadcaps, James Parry, humorist, with Lindemeyer's Orch. S: Fez Cigarettes.
10:00 P.M. (QBC) Firelight Mysteries, drama. S: Heirloom Linseed Oil.
10:15 P.M. (QBC) Speed Valente's Orch.
10:30 P.M. (QBC) Bob Landis' Orch.
10:45 P.M. (QBC) Janssens' Caf?© Luxembourg Orch.
11:00 P.M. Max Katz' Hotel LaSalle Orch.
11:15 P.M. (QBC) Billy Shelton's Orch.
11:30 P.M. (QBC) Buddy Myers' Obsidian Room Swing Session.
11:45 P.M. (QBC) Orch.
12:00 M. Local Sign Off.

 

[Dismuke]

One good source of information about radio program schedules is old daily newspapers. Chances are that if you live in a decent sized city your library will have copies of old back issues of the big city newspaper of your region available for browsing on micro-film. Most daily newspapers back then had either part of a page, if not an entire page, devoted to radio - just as papers today have space devoted to television news, gossip and program listings. The radio section will most likely have program listings for local radio stations and, in some cases, they might even have listings for out of town "clear channel" stations that could be picked up at night in the area. It was not at all uncommon for people to listen in to the 50,000 watt clear channel stations from other states at night. In fact, in the very early days of radio during the 1920s the Dallas stations for a while all ceased broadcasting one night a week so that people would be able to pick up and listen to out of town stations better. That practice, of course, did not last very long.

 

[The Reno Kid]

One good source of information about radio program schedules is old daily newspapers. ...and, in some cases, they might even have listings for out of town "clear channel" stations that could be picked up at night in the area.

As part of a project I was working on, I compiled the radio listings for Reno, using a typical day in 1937. At that time (and for several other years I looked at) the Reno papers carried both the day-time and night-time program listings for: KOH, Reno; KGO, Oakland; KPO and KFRC, San Francisco; and KSL, Salt Lake City. Also, I believe a lot of locals listened to KFI, Los Angeles after dark.

 

[panamag8or]

One good source of information about radio program schedules is old daily newspapers. Chances are that if you live in a decent sized city your library will have copies of old back issues of the big city newspaper of your region available for browsing on micro-film. Most daily newspapers back then had either part of a page, if not an entire page, devoted to radio - just as papers today have space devoted to television news, gossip and program listings. The radio section will most likely have program listings for local radio stations and, in some cases, they might even have listings for out of town "clear channel" stations that could be picked up at night in the area. It was not at all uncommon for people to listen in to the 50,000 watt clear channel stations from other states at night. In fact, in the very early days of radio during the 1920s the Dallas stations for a while all ceased broadcasting one night a week so that people would be able to pick up and listen to out of town stations better. That practice, of course, did not last very long.

I have a 1953 copy of the Gainesville (FL) Sun, with listings for TV and radio. I'll have to dig it up and post some of it.

 

[The Reno Kid]

I just came across this very cool website so I thought it was time to resurrect this thread: http://www.jjonz.us/RadioLogs/ It has radio logs from various years in the major markets. It's worth a look.

 

[CharlieH.]

That's gold, Reno Kid! Thanks for posting!

 

[LizzieMaine]

Thanx for finding that site, Reno -- I'd seen it once before but forgot to bookmark it, and couldn't for the life of me find it again. It's an excellent quick-reference finding aid for when I can't get at my Radio Guide magazines.

 

[Flivver]

In fact, in the very early days of radio during the 1920s the Dallas stations for a while all ceased broadcasting one night a week so that people would be able to pick up and listen to out of town stations better. That practice, of course, did not last very long.

I believe this practice was referred to as "Silent Night". In the early days of broadcasting, listeners often stayed up into "the wee hours" so as to receive distant stations after their local stations shut off for the night (this worked best for East coast listeners seeking West coast stations).

In 1924, someone suggested the concept of "Silent Night". Apparently, the U.S. (and possibly Canada) was broken into seven zones. The broadcasting stations in each zone would go silent at around 7PM, one night a week, to allow the DX-ers in that zone to "fish" for distant stations. I believe that the practice of "Silent Night" lasted for less than a year and was completely gone by mid-1925. By this time, the DX-hounds were largely disappearing and the radio listening public was focusing more on quality programming than on DX-ing.

I remember reading this in "Radio Digest" many years ago, so some of my details may be incorrect. And, my "Radio Digest's" from this era are inaccessable at the moment.

Lizzie...can you shed more light on the practice of "Silent Night"?

 

[Fletch]

I ain't Lizzie, and this ain't about Silent Night, but DXing as such did not die out completely. During the 30s at least, stations occasionally gave special programs in the wee hours, local time, specifically to encourage faraway listeners to tune in and send "veris" (letters of verification - ie: "Dear Sirs, I heard WTFL with the Xylophonist's Nightmare program at 3:08am June 7 - kindly confirm.")

The station in turn would respond with a QSL card (code for "confirm reception"). They will still do this if you write. This one came from federal standard time station WWV in 1940.

 

[Flivver]

During the 30s at least, stations occasionally gave special programs in the wee hours, local time, specifically to encourage faraway listeners to tune in and send "veris" (letters of verification - ie: "Dear Sirs, I heard WTFL with the Xylophonist's Nightmare program at 3:08am June 7 - kindly confirm.")

The station in turn would respond with a QSL card (code for "confirm reception"). They will still do this if you write. This one came from federal standard time station WWV in 1940.

Thanks Fletch...I didn't realize they had special programs like that in the 1930s. I would have really appreciated those in the 1960s when I was doing lots of DX-ing. At that time I did send for a number of QSL cards from distant stations...and I always look for them at flea markets, particularly those from the 1920s.

Have any of you ever heard of Ekko stamp albums from the 1920s? In 1924, an enterprising company called Ekko came up with the idea of selling a stamp album with "spaces" for stamps representing all the radio stations in North America. "Listener Report" cads came with each album. When a radiofan heard a given station, they would sent a report to the station, with a dime, and receive an Ekko stamp from that station in return. Ekko made money selling albums to consumers and stamps to the radio stations. Kind of an organized system of QSL cards.

Ekko albums are common today, but Ekko albums with many stamps in them are quite rare. The dime that had to be included when requesting a stamp was quite steep in 1924. I suspect that may be one reason why the Ekko idea never took off.

 

[Fletch]

That and the stamps looked a whole lot alike!

QSLs, besides being free for your veri postage and impressive looking on walls, could have a lot of variety and interest, as you'll see here.

As late as the mid 30s some stations would still send an Ekko to you - but it still cost 10¢, better spent on an ice cream soda!

 

[Rafter]

Here's a schedule for one of NYC's famous radio stations of the past.
WEAF was located at 660 on the AM dail and had it's studios in the 'RCA' building at 30 Rockefeller Center. WEAF later became the flagship station of the NBC Radio Network.

WEAF New York - August 10, 1945:

10:30-10:45 a.m. NBC News with H.V. Kaltenborn
10:45-11:00 a.m. NBC News with Don Goddard

11:30-11:45 a.m. NBC News with Barry Cameron
11:45-12:00 p.m. NBC News with David Harum

12:15-12:30 p.m. Maggie's Private Wire (with guest Enrico Caruso, Jr.)
12:30-12:45 p.m. News From The Pacific
12:45-12:55 p.m. Music Room with J. Jerome
12:55- 1:00 p.m. Transcribed Music

1:00- 1:45 p.m. Mary Margaret McBride (with guest Eddie Rickenbacker)
1:45- 2:00 p.m. News Of The World

2:00- 2:15 p.m. General Mills Hour; The Guiding Light
2:15- 2:30 p.m. Today's Children
2:30- 2:45 p.m. NBC News In Brief; Woman In White
2:45- 3:00 p.m. Betty Crocker

3:00- 3:15 p.m. A Woman In America
3:15- 3:30 p.m. Ma Perkins
3:30- 3:45 p.m. NBC News Bulletin; Pepper Young's Family
3:45- 4:00 p.m. NBC News In Brief Special Report; The Right To Happiness

4:00- 4:15 p.m. NBC News In Brief with Morgan Beatty; Mary Noble: Backstage Wife
4:15- 4:30 p.m. Stella Dallas
4:30- 4:45 p.m. Lorenzo Jones
4:45- 5:00 p.m. Young Widder Brown

 

[Flivver]

Wow Fletch...that's the biggest collection of Ekko stamps I've ever seen! And thanks for the link...very interesting.

 

[dhermann1]

Radio re-enacrments

I started this as a separate thread, but it seems that maybe this is a better place to ask this question:
I was curious to know if anyone has ever listened to or participated in re-enactments of old time radio. Anyone ever do a radio play? Or a radio variety show? What are your general opinions of making such an effort?
I asked Rich Conaty of The Big Broadcast what he thought of the subject, and he said he's seen a lot of very disapointing efforts. He said there are a lot of difficulties involved, such as lack of rehearsal. Anyone here have any feedback?
Thanks.