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Books > Arts & Architecture > Performing arts > Radio
Before television, radio was the sole source of simultaneous mass entertainment in America. The medium served as launching pad for the careers of countless future stars of stage and screen. Singers and conductors became legends by offering musical entertainment directly to Americans in their homes, vehicles, and places of work and play. This volume presents biographies of 24 renowned performers who spent a significant portion of their careers in front of a radio microphone. Profiles of individuals like Steve Allen, Rosemary Clooney, Bob Crosby, Johnny Desmond, Jo Stafford, and Percy Faith, along with groups such as the Ink Spots and the King's Men, reveal the private lives behind the public personas and bring to life the icons and ambiance of a bygone era. Jim Cox, a leading historian of radio programming, is an award-winning author of numerous books about old time radio. A retired college professor, he lives in Louisville, Kentucky.
"Broadcasting Diversity" explores modes of migrant representation
and participation in Irish radio, focusing on the national public
broadcaster Raidio Teilifis eireann and Dublin community stations
and examining the opportunities provided for voicing migrant
experience in transcultural program production. Investigating the
intersection between an established Irish culture on the one hand
and the nascent emergence of a transnational culture on the other,
this book focuses on the ways in which migrant representation and
self-representation have been variously effected in the Irish
public sphere via the medium of radio.
These two volumes, Zenith Radio, The Glory Years, 1936-1945, tell the story and highlight the products of the Zenith Radio Corporation between the early years (1919-1935) and the end of World War II. History and Product begins with an exploration of the history of the corporation from 1936-1945 in a profusely researched and illustrated way. It continues with color photographic portraits of outstanding examples of many of the products manufactured by Zenith in this period, providing a visual survey of the wide range of Zenith radios produced during the Glory Years. The Illustrated Catalog and Database includes a catalog that gathers the most complete collection of Zenith images ever published, followed by a Database which is the most complete listing of Zenith products. In addition, appendices to this volume include Commander Eugene MacDonald's Presidential speeches, information on telepathy experiments at Zenith, Zenith in the movies, and Zenith Annual Reports from 1936-1945. All told these two volumes represent a treasure trove for radiophiles in general and Zenith fans and historians in particular.
During the Cold War, radio broadcasting played an important role in the ideological confrontation between East and West. As archival documents gathered in this volume reveal, radio broadcasting was among the most pressing concerns of contemporary information agencies. These broadcasts could penetrate the Iron Curtain and directly address the 'enemy'. Radio was equally important in keeping sustained levels of support among the home public and the public of friendly nations. In the early Cold War in particular, listeners in the West had to be persuaded of the need for higher defence spending levels and a policy of containment. Later, even if other media - and in particular television - had become more important, radio continued to be used widely. The chapters gathered here investigate both the institutional history of the radio broadcasting corporations in the East and in the West, and their relationship with other propaganda agencies of the time. They examine the 'off-air' politics of radio broadcasting, from the choice of theme to the selection of speakers, singers and music pieces. The key issue tackled by contributors is the problem of measuring the impact of, and qualifying the success of, information policies and propaganda programmes produced during the Cultural Cold War. This book was originally published as a special issue of Cold War History.
Science and technology had a significant influence on American culture and thought in the years immediately following World War II. The new wonders of science and the threat of the Soviet Union as a powerful new enemy made science fiction a popular genre in radio, television, and film. Mutant creatures spawned by radioactive energy and intergalactic dictators unleashing horrific weapons upon Earth were characteristic of science fiction at the time and served as warnings to the very real dangers posed by the atomic age. This work examines science and science fiction in American culture beginning in the year World War II ended and going to 1962, the year of John Glenns orbital flight and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The radio work of Arch Oboler and the significance of his "Rocket from Manhattan, " which aired only one month after the dropping of the first atomic bomb and asked serious questions about the use of atomic energy, are examined. Other topics are the conflict between the free world and the Communist world in the context of science fiction plot lines, the dangers of science as shown in films like Godzilla, Them!, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and radio and television programs, the flying saucer phenomenon and the treatment of such stories in the media (with special attention given to the 1956 documentary UFO), the changing and more positive depictions of scientists, television programs like Flash Gordon and Space Patrol, the shift in the balance of world power due to the successful launching of Sputnik I by the
Many stars of classic horror movies crossed over to radio during and after their careers. This book chronicles the radio appearances of several horror genre stars, including Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Peter Lorre, Vincent Price, and two dozen more, including 'Scream Queens' like Fay Wray. It contains script excerpts from radio shows as well as narrated albums and music singles. Each star's appearances are listed by show and air date, with descriptions of the subject matter.
The last decade has seen a flurry of experimental research into the neurocognitive underpinnings of illusory memories. Using simple materials and tests (e.g., recalling words or pictures), methods such as the famed Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) task have attracted considerable attention. These tasks elicit false memories of nonstudied events that are vivid, long lasting, and difficult to consciously avoid. Additional research shows that these memory illusions are fundamentally related to more complex memory distortions. As a result, this rapidly expanding literature has generated a great deal of excitement - and even some controversy - in contemporary psychology. Associative Illusions of Memory provides an ambitious overview of this research area. Starting with the historical roots and major theoretical trends, this book exhaustively reviews the most recent studies by cognitive psychologists, neuropsychologists, and cognitive neuroscientists. The strengths and limits of various experimental techniques are outlined, and the large body of existing data is meaningfully distilled into a few core theoretical concepts. This book highlights the malleability of memory, as well as the strategies and situations that can help us avoid false memories. Throughout the review, it is argued that these basic memory illusions contribute to a deeper understanding of how human memory works.
This book explores the idea of the poetic in radio and sound as well as the concept of pure sound as poetry, both historically and within a contemporary perspective, examining examples of makers and works internationally. The work examines the development of poetic forms in sound broadcasting historically and geographically through chapters taking narrative themes. It includes primary source material gathered through interviews conducted by the author with distinguished producers and poets. Among these are producers Piers Plowright, Matt Thompson, Alan Hall, Simon Elmes and Julian May (UK) Edwin Brys, (Belgium) Hildegard Westerkamp (Germany/Canada) Chris Brookes (Canada) Robyn Ravlitch, Michael Ladd and Kaye Mortley (Australia) as well as poets, including Michael Symmons Roberts and Jeremy Hooker. There is a chapter on the poetic sound in the natural world, which focuses in particular on the work of the renowned UK sound recordist, Chris Watson. Alongside audio poetry, the book discusses the spoken word including documentaries and public announcements, the radio feature, soundscapes, sonic art with contributions from key figures such as Colin Black (Australia) and Marcus Leadley (UK)and the poetry of the vernacular in speech and sound. It considers new platforms for listening including podcasts and developments in mobile technologies, examining the work of current practitioners including Francesca Panetta, who is responsible for The Guardian's podcasts as well as the award-winning Hackney Podcast, and Tim Wright.
Words at War describes how 17 radio dramatists and their actors fought a war of words against fascism abroad and injustice at home. Beginning in the late 1930s, the commercial networks, private agencies, and the government cooperated with radio dramatists to produce plays to alert Americans to the Nazi threat. They also used radio to stimulate morale. They showed how Americans could support the fight against fascism even if it meant just having a "victory garden." Simultaneously as they worked on the war effort, many radio writers and actors advanced a progressive agenda to fight the enemy within: racism, poverty, and other social ills. When the war ended, many of these people paid for their idealism by suffering blacklisting. Veterans' groups, the FBI, right-wing politicians, and other reactionaries mounted an assault on them to drive them out of their professions. This book discusses that partly successful effort and the response of the radio personalities involved. This book discusses commercial drama series such as The Man Behind the Gun, network sustained shows such as those of Norman Corwin, and government-produced programs such as the Uncle Sam series. The book is largely based on the author's interviews with Norman Corwin, Arthur Miller, Pete Seeger, Arthur Laurents, Art Carney and dozens of others associated with radio during its Golden Age. It also discusses public reaction to these broadcasts and the issue of blacklisting. Words at War weaves together materials from FBI files and materials from archives around the country, including the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the National Archives and a dozen university special collection libraries, to tell how the nation used a unique broadcast genre in a time of national crisis. Readers in the era of the current World Trade Center terrorism crisis will be particularly interested to read about censorship, scapegoating, and the government's role in disseminating propaganda and other issues that have once again
First Published in 1969. Written in 1950, this book seeks to answer the three questions of how is it that broadcasting in Great Britain came to be organised on a monopolistic basis? What has been the effect of the monopoly on the development of, and policy towards, competitive services such as wire broadcasting and foreign commercial broadcasting intended for listeners in Great Britain ? Finally, what are the views which have been held on the monopoly of broadcasting in Great Britain?
Annotated, scholarly edition of the original landmark anthology, Voices of Ghana, containing poetry, plays, stories and essays first broadcast on radio in the years leading up to Ghana's independence. Ghana's first radio programme of original literature, The Singing Net, began in 1955 as part of the development of a national radio station in the years leading to independence in 1957. Its central aim was to bring Ghanaianwriters to the forefront of cultural programming as part of the Africanisation of radio in Ghana. It was a critical cultural expression of the radical changes that were unfolding across the colonial world. The programme successfully introduced listeners to a series of pioneering Ghanaian authors who would go on to become significant figures of Anglophone West African literature in the early postcolonial decades: Efua Sutherland, Frank Parkes, Amu Djoleto,Geormbeeyi Adali-Mortty, Albert Kayper-Mensah, Kwesi Brew, Cameron Duodu, J.H. Nketia and many others. The anthology, Voices of Ghana (1958) is a collection of the poetry, short stories, play scripts and critical discussions that were aired on the Gold Coast Broadcasting Service (later the Ghana Broadcasting System) (1954-1958). Both The Singing Net and Voices of Ghana were edited by the BBC producer, Henry Swanzy. The context of Ghana's independence, the singularity of the anthology's history, and the significance of many of the writers all contribute to the importance of this text. This second edition is a timely intervention into recent debateswithin postcolonial studies and world literature on the importance of broadcast culture in the dissemination of "new literatures" from the colonial world. It includes an unabridged version of the 1958 text, a new introduction andfootnoted annotations, which draw on extensive research undertaken in Ghana and Britain. It will appeal to a general readership with an interest in Ghanaian literature, 1950s broadcast culture, the figure of Dr Kwame Nkrumah and the making of a national literature in the era of decolonisation, as well as engaging scholars. The new edition presents a deeply insightful and engaging history of Voices of Ghana and reintroduces the original works on theoccasion of the anthology's 60th anniversary. Victoria Ellen Smith is a Lecturer in the Department of History, University of Ghana, Legon Ghana & Nigeria: Sub-Saharan Publishers
It all begins in a small town in Belgium near the French border, on the morning of the festival of St. Woelfred. There are dead fish scattered everywhere seemingly blown in by the wind. The lives of six people who live in the town are about to be changed forever. Journeys of selfdiscovery are experienced through the eyes of a magician, a writer, the town Casanova, a clairvoyant married to a drunk, a priest and a Rimbaud scholar; each seeking the answers to their individual tribulations. Despite their differences in status and occupation all characters follow a path towards recognition, whether it be of love, courage, rage, illusion or acceptance. Yet, the mystery behind the scattered fish remains unexplained. This is a story with magic and fish... and the lost poems of Rimbaud.
The macabre world of monsters, killers on the loose and revenge from beyond the grave existed not only in the movies, but also on the radio before television's dominance in American homes. One of many distinct genres born of early broadcasting, horror radio thrilled millions. Creeping out of the speaker night after night came stories that chilled the listening public--everything from creature features to sophisticated noir suspense. So eager were Americans to be scared that nearly 80 horror programs aired every week in the late 1940s. This first full-length study of golden age horror radio focuses on six representative programs, starting with The Witch's Tale in 1931 and ending with The Mysterious Traveler in 1952. Each chapter provides the reader with a critically and historically informed study of one series. The book ends with a look at the demise of horror radio and its influence. Photographs are a delightful revelation, revealing the previously unseen (but much heard) work of stars like Agnes Moorehead and Orson Welles as they broadcast famous tales of terror.
Born in Ujpest, Hungary, in 1919, George Jellinek began his musical career playing violin with gypsies in the family's garden restaurant. He spent his adolescence doing much the same, honing his talent and enriching his own musical education with frequent trips to the Hungarian Royal Opera House. But when Hitler and Chamberlain signed the Munich Pact in 1938, Jellinek's quiet life was shattered. How the exiled teenager survived World War II, worked his way up from a poor Hungarian immigrant in Cuba and became one of the most important and influential musical administrators in New York is an unconventional but truly American success story. This memoir documents the inspiring life of George Jellinek, beginning with his childhood in his beloved Hungary. The crisis of World War II soon invaded his life and, leaving behind his family and homeland, he fled west. Having been finally allowed to enter the United States, he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1942, obligated to bear arms against the country of his birth. This ironic turn of events culminated in his firsthand role in the capture of Ferenc Szalasi, the leader of Hungary's Hitlerite faction. The latter half of the book reveals how music helped Jellinek piece back together his broken life in America. After rising to the post of musical director for radio station WQXR, he went on to become the producer and host of The Vocal Scene. His 36 years with that program established it as a revered fixture of New York's opera life. The epilogue documents the day on which Hungary's president bestowed upon Jellinek the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary.
As World War II drew to a close and radio news was popularized through overseas broadcasting, journalists and dramatists began to build upon the unprecedented success of war reporting on the radio by creating audio documentaries. Focusing particularly on the work of radio luminaries such as Edward R. Murrow, Fred Friendly, Norman Corwin, and Erik Barnouw, Radio Utopia: Postwar Audio Documentary in the Public Interest traces this crucial phase in American radio history, significant not only for its timing immediately before television, but also because it bridges the gap between the end of the World Wars and the beginning of the Cold War. Matthew C. Ehrlich closely examines the production of audio documentaries disseminated by major American commercial broadcast networks CBS, NBC, and ABC from 1945 to 1951. Audio documentary programs educated Americans about juvenile delinquency, slums, race relations, venereal disease, atomic energy, arms control, and other issues of public interest, but they typically stopped short of calling for radical change. Drawing on rare recordings and scripts, Ehrlich traces a crucial phase in the evolution of news documentary, as docudramas featuring actors were supplanted by reality-based programs that took advantage of new recording technology. Paralleling that shift from drama to realism was a shift in liberal thought from dreams of world peace to uneasy adjustments to a cold war mentality. Influenced by corporate competition and government regulations, radio programming reflected shifts in a range of political thought that included pacifism, liberalism, and McCarthyism. In showing how programming highlighted contradictions within journalism and documentary, Radio Utopia reveals radio's response to the political, economic, and cultural upheaval of the post-war era.
In the 1970s, '80s and '90s Britain witnessed what many in the business saw as the second great age of radio. It was a period when FM radio blossomed and local stations opened and broadcast across the land. It was a step away from the output of the national broadcaster, the BBC, which had held a monopoly on the airways since its inception. Broadcaster, station manager and regulator for over forty years David Lloyd was very much a part of this revolution and is, amongst his peers, well placed to tell that story. Lloyd describes the period as one of innovation, his aim to create a timeline of radio of this era through to the present day, to capture those heady days, the characters, the fun and heartache, life on the air, life off the air. And to revisit those station launches, company consolidations, the successes and the failures. Told with the insight of an insider, with his characteristic wit and a huge dollop of nostalgia, David Lloyd brings to life a unique age in broadcasting in this fascinating account.
Despite the all-pervading influence of television ninety per cent of people in Britain still listen to the radio, clocking up over a billion hours of listening between us every week. It's a background to all our lives: we wake up to our clock radios, we have the radio on in the kitchen as we make the tea, it's on at our workplaces and in our cars. From Listen With Mother to the illicit thrill of tuning into pirate stations like Radio Caroline; from receiving a musical education from John Peel or having our imagination unlocked by Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; from school-free summers played out against a soundtrack of Radio One and Test Match Special to more grown-up soundtracks of the Today programme on Radio 4 and the solemn, rhythmic intonation of the shipping forecast - in many ways, our lives can be measured in kilohertz. Yet radio is changing because the way we listen to the radio is changing. Last year the number of digital listeners at home exceeded the number of analogue listeners for the first time, meaning the pop and crackle and the age of stumbling upon something by chance is coming to an end. There will soon be no dial to turn, no in-between spaces on the waveband for washes of static, mysterious beeps and faint, distant voices. The mystery will be gone: we'll always know exactly what it is we're listening to, whether it's via scrolling LCD on our digital radios, the box at the bottom of our TV screen or because we've gone in search of a particular streaming station. And so, as the world of analogue listening fades, Charlie Connelly takes stock of the history of radio and its place in our lives as one of the very few genuinely shared national experiences. He explores its geniuses, crackpots and charlatans who got us to where we are today, and remembers its voices, personalities and programmes that helped to form who we are as individuals and as a nation. He visits the key radio locations from history, and looks at its vital role over the past century on both national and local levels. Part nostalgic eulogy, part social history, part travelogue, Last Train To Hilversum is Connelly's love letter to radio, exploring our relationship with the medium from its earliest days to the present in an attempt to recreate and revisit the world he entered on his childhood evenings on the dial as he set out on the radio journey of a lifetime.
The average American listens to the radio three hours a day. In light of recent technological developments such as internet radio, some argue that the medium is facing a crisis, while others claim we are at the dawn of a new radio revolution. The Concise Encyclopedia of American Radio is an essential single-volume reference guide to this vital and evolving medium. It brings together the best and most important entries from the three-volume Museum of Broadcast Communications Encyclopedia of Radio, edited by Christopher Sterling. Comprised of more than 300 entries spanning the invention of radio to the Internet, The Concise Encyclopedia of American Radio addresses personalities, music genres, regulations, technology, programming and stations, the "golden age" of radio and other topics relating to radio broadcasting throughout its history. The entries are updated throughout and the volume includes nine new entries on topics ranging from podcasting to the decline of radio. The Concise Encyclopedia of American Radio include suggestions for further reading as complements to most of the articles, biographical details for all person-entries, production credits for programs, and a comprehensive index.
"Handy writes with the eloquence of simplicity and his gift to us is an enjoyable, profound, and reliable guide toward meaning and direction."--Max De Pree, author of Leading without Power and chairman emeritus, Herman Miller Inc. Charles Handy's reflections on work and life have earned him legions of fans throughout the world. His previous books have together sold over a million copies. And his "Thought for the Day" series on BBC radio is celebrated throughout the U.K. Now present and future fans in America can sample what his BBC listeners have enjoyed for so long. Waiting for the Mountain to Move includes the gifted commentator's best essays, culled from ten years of radio broadcasts. These succinct writings draw poignant lessons from everyday occurrences and cause us to examine our lives, our institutions, and our society in a different and revealing light. NOT FOR SALE OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA
A fascinating tour of baseball's greatest moments and iconic stadiums, told through the reminiscences of 50 play-by-play broadcasters. With careers spanning two to three times that of an average player, baseball's best broadcasters have no shortage of history to offer. They have witnessed opening days, no hitters, slugfests, and perfect games, all from arguably the best seats in the house. Broadcasters know their clubs, their stadiums, and their teams in a way that no one else can. In The Voices of Baseball: The Game's Greatest Broadcasters Reflect on America's Pastime, Updated Edition, Kirk McKnight provides an in-depth look at each of Major League Baseball's thirty ballparks from the perspectives of the game's longest-tenured storytellers. Fifty broadcasters reflect on their most iconic calls, fondest memories, what makes their ballparks unique, and more. This updated edition includes 14 additional broadcasters, two new stadiums, the latest World Series calls from the booth, and a special tribute to the recently-departed Vin Scully. With decades of broadcasting between them, their stories encapsulate some of Major League Baseball's biggest moments. Generations of baseball fans will all enjoy the historic and triumphant memories shared by some of the game's greatest broadcasters in The Voices of Baseball.
The term Old Time Radio refers to the relatively brief period from 1926, when the National Broadcasting Company first began network broadcasting, until approximately 1960, when television became the dominant communication medium in the United States. During this time, radio was as popular and ubiquitous as television is today. It was amazingly varied in the types of programming it offered; many characters and programs were so popular that virtually everyone was familiar with them. Even today, recorded versions of these programs are still extremely popular and widely available, both from commercial outlets and from hobbyists. Behind the production of these programs was a complex technological and financial infrastructure that had to be developed virtually from scratch in a world unaccustomed to the rapid communication and technological marvels that we take for granted today. The A to Z of Old Time Radio provides essential facts and information on the Golden Age of Radio. This is accomplished through the use of a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on the radio networks, programs, directors, producers, writers, actors, radio series, and radio stations. Entries on your favorite shows The Lone Ranger, The Shadow, Dragnet, and Suspense and actors Bob Hope, George Burns, Gracie Allen, and Edgar Bergen will have you jumping from one entry to the next as you relive old favorites and discover hidden treasures from the Golden Age of Radio.
'This innovative and clearly written handbook does exactly what it claims on the cover, providing students with accessible and authoritative knowledge of the essential topics in Radio Studies... Chignell writes about radio with an engaging mixture of scholarly detachment and private passion' - The Radio Journal 'There is a need for a straightforward, wide-ranging, and up-to-date introduction to ways to study radio and other new audio-based media. Hugh Chignell's new book certainly fits the bill, and admirably takes the reader from initial ideas through to additional readings which explore the core issues in greater depth. It is crisply and engagingly written, draws upon a very good range of scholarship, and provides many useful contemporary examples... Students will find it an essential aid to their studies, and it may even go someway to ensuring that the study of radio is as important in the academy as its visual cousins' - Viewfinder 'This book is a useful starting point for radio students and staff, packed with citations and pithy comment from the author. It is a rich resource book for academic radio study at all levels' - Janey Gordon, University of Bedfordshire The SAGE Key Concepts series provides students with accessible and authoritative knowledge of the essential topics in a variety of disciplines. Cross-referenced throughout, the format encourages critical evaluation through understanding. Written by experienced and respected academics, the books are indispensible study aids and guides to comprehension. Key Concepts in Radio Studies: " Provides a comprehensive, easy-to-use introduction to the field " Grounds theory with global examples " Takes it further with recommended reading " Covers the central ideas and practices from production and media studies " Situates radio studies within its historical context and contemporary auditory culture
Since its initial publication in 1978, "Stay Tuned" has been
recognized as the most comprehensive and useful single-volume
history of American broadcasting and electronic media available.
This third edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to bring
the story of American broadcasting forward to the 21st century,
affording readers not only the history of the most important and
pervasive institution affecting our society, but also providing a
contextual transition to the Internet and other modern media.
More than 700 uncredited scriptwriters who created the memorable characters and thrilling stories of radio's Golden Age receive due recognition in this encyclopedia. For some, radio was a stepping stone on the way to greater achievements in film or television, on the stage or in literature. For others, it was the culmination of a life spent writing newspaper copy. Established authors dabbled in radio as a new medium, while working writers saw it as another opportunity to earn a paycheck. When these men and women came to broadcasting, they crafted a body of work still appreciated by modern listeners.
For the first time in print, celebrated storytelling phenomenon The
Moth presents fifty spellbinding, soul-bearing stories selected
from their extensive archive (fifteen-plus years and 10,000-plus
stories strong). Inspired by friends telling stories on a porch,
The Moth was born in small-town Georgia, garnered a cult following
in New York City, and then rose to national acclaim with the wildly
popular podcast and Peabody Award-winning weekly public radio show
"The Moth Radio Hour." |
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