rand's esoteric otr

Coronation Week - Pgm 1

This week, we offer the first of two episodes of the obscure special radio series “Coronation Week”, produced by London Records, and syndicated to stations as part of the celebrations around the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

In Program 1 in this special series, reporter Josephine Hunter interviews Lord Donegal about the special carriage that the Queen will use to ride to and from the Coronation ceremony, a replica of the State Coach is being exhibited in lower level of Rockefeller Center and London Records paid for transporting the replica for the exhibit.  Interspersed with the interview with Lord Donegal, we hear excerpts of London FFRR recordings that can help you get in the spirt of the Coronation. Goldin dates the program to June 1, 1952.

Although this is a show produced by London Records, it appears the discs were pressed by RCA.  I suppose London didn’t have a pressing facility capable of producing 16” transcriptions in the US market at the time.  Our mp3 has been transferred from an original vinyl transcription, matrix number E3-KM-3552.

We’ll have one more show in the series from the other side of the disc next week.

Special Assignment - Pgm 26

And here’s the last program I have in the Associated Press-produced series, “Special Assignment”, which dramatizes the work of reporters on major news stories.

Program 26 deals with Missouri reporter Leo Dolan who learns that dead men can talk. Goldin dates the show to 1941.  The host is Oliver Gramling.

The program was produced by AP Radio Productions, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York.  Our mp3 was transferred direct from an original sixteen inch AP red vinyl transcription disc, matrix number 9-9459.

 

Special Assignment - Pgm 25

“Special Assignment” was an unusual syndicated series from the late 30s and early 40s from the Associated Press that dramatizes reporters pursuing big stories.  Less than a dozen episodes in the series appear to be circulating among collectors.

Program 25 in the series looks at the story of William Miller and his reporting work on the famous Floyd Collins incident.  The host of the series is Oliver Gramling. Goldin dates the episode to 1941.

The program was produced by AP Radio Productions, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York.  Our mp3 was transferred direct from an original sixteen inch AP red vinyl transcription disc, matrix number 10-0106.

American Radio Newsreel - Pgm 4

Rounding out the blog entries this week, the first episode I have in a short run a pioneering radio actuality series from 1939, “American Radio Newsreel”.  The series, produced and syndicated by Ayers-Prescott Inc, Radio City, New York, is much like an audio newsreel, interviewing various prominent figures of the day “on the spot”.

According to John Dunning’s “On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio”, the program was heard on about 300 stations and he describes it as one of the earliest attempts at “cut and edit” syndication, blending the announcer, interview clips, and music into a show that had to be produced, pressed on records, and sent to subscribing stations on a fairly short turnaround.

Program 4 in the series appears to be a previously lost episode and, according to a log of the show at Goldin, likely dates to November or December 1939.

Wyeth Williams, editor of the “Greenwich Time”, talks about his predictions on the political situation in Europe and how he comes to his conclusions.  He predicts that the end of the War will come with the overthrow of Hitler from within Germany and that the US will never enter the conflict because of the dependence on other nations for our industrial might.  A creationist, Rev. Dr. Harry Rimmer of the Central Baptist Church, who placed an ad offering rewards to anyone who could prove scientific inaccuracies in the Bible is interviewed, along with William Floyd, editor of “The Arbitrator”, who is suing him to claim the award.

George Jessel is interviewed, telling stories about working on stage with Sophie Tucker. Jessel tells a “cleaned up” version of the old joke about Tucker saying she was “up to my neck in midgets” in one show.  Football great Tuffy Leemans is interviewed by sports reporter Mike Blair about the differences between college and pro football and other topics. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., attending the Bowl of Rice dinner to benefit refugees from the war in China is interviewed. The announcer is Bill Harding.

Our mp3 was transferred from an original sixteen inch one-sided shellac transcription.