You will now find on the bottom Tab Bar a button for Old Radio Times. By clicking on the button you can select to read on-line some of the current issues. So kick back and be entertained with this great publication. Also if you like the publication would like to subscribe, click here. Enjoy and support The OTRR.
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You will now find on the bottom Tab Bar a button for Old Radio Times. By clicking on the button you can select to read on-line some of the current issues. So kick back and be entertained with this great publication. Also if you like the publication would like to subscribe, click here. Enjoy and support The OTRR.
this site is constantly evolving and growing in many ways. We operate on a shoe-sting budget in a dwindling world economy and try and improve the experience through volunteer effort. We cannot hire state of the art graphic artists to bring more life and variety into our home away from Home. We rely on the amateur ingenuity and efforts of our members. One such member gives an inordinate amount of time and magic to our pages. She is an Administrator who selflessly gives not only of her administrative talent but also of her amateur artistic ability. She has been spending hours of her own priceless time attempting to bring this site out out of the brown and yellow world it is encased in. Though it may not be what would be interpreted by some as state of the art according to professional Graphic Artists.There is nothing professional about this site except the cost to our members. It is simply the combined creativity and effort of our members. While some choose to use their efforts to complain about what is done others are using their time to do and create an evolving unique experience that is us. I prefer to use my time to contribute in any way I can. I do not have the ability or the expertise needed to design web pages, I simply do other things to help out. I prefer to say Thank You Katy for your time and your efforts to bring us out of the drab brown and yellow world of Times Past.
That being said I invite others to contribute to this space their positive or negative thoughts on anything happening on Times Past. Please temper your negative responses with realistic suggestions and hopefully a volunteering of your own talents and time to enrich the experience of Times Past. In other words idle criticism is counterproductive, so please make your negative comments constructive. That is the current end of my thoughts and opinion. Now it is time for all of your comments for the membership to discuss. ------------- Rick (Site Administration).
My Opinion,
I shouldn't have to tell members that other members have the same rights as you do. No matter what you feels about anther member courtesy should be observed at all times. If what you have to say to someone is nasty, then there should be restraint. That is the time to unload the problem to the Administrators or/and the owner of the site. Although we shouldn't have to become involved in petty squabbles we have to when asked to. he said or she said is not what I signed up for when I became an administrator. I became an administrator to physically make this a better site and to keep the outside forces outside.
If you cannot be nice, do not comment. You are not an administrator of the site and you do not set policy. All friendships aside, the site comes first. If you need rules to abide by number One is Do not be nasty to other members. They have as much right to be here as you do. Number Two, Posting is not a requirement for membership but courtesy is. If you request something PLEASE is mandatory as well as THANK YOU.
We all have our own personal problems as well as our own pet peeves. They should be left at the door to the site when we enter. None of us are children chronologically, but childishness appears to be alive and well on Times Past. I am not speaking of any individual, but of a collective we. There are those that choose to rise above the squalor. You know who you are and I commend you. When one of these who rises above has to lower themselves into the muck, then I have no choice but to speak out. This site is here for one express purpose. It is a community of like minded people to preserve, trade and discuss OTR/NTR and Audio Books. Nowhere in that purpose do the words complain, bitch or otherwise harangue other members appear. In the spirit of what I have stated: Please be courteous to other members even when you do not feel that way. There are many ways to say things. Please pick the better way. If the problem is bad enough for you to be angry then place it in the mailbox of the Administrators and the Owner of the site. ---------- Rick (Site Administrator)
Smiley Burnette hosted his own radio show called "The Smiley Burnette Show". It was recorded on large transcription records, which were used in the same manner we use cassette tapes and CD's today. The transcription records were sent to the radio stations to be placed on the airwaves. Smiley produced and transcribed his radio show under the "RadiOzark" recording label.
Smiley Burnett, "the clown prince of Western pictures," throws out jokes and Western music like a real pro in this rare Western radio show. Smiley was the first Western movie musical side-kick. Although a great composer and musical genius (he could play over 105 instruments), he is best known as the sidekick to such greats as Gene Autry, Charles Starrett, Roy Rogers, and Sunset Carson.
However, he hadn't even been in the West when he wrote his first cowboy composition, "The Round-up in Cheyenne," for Gene Autry's recording in 1934. After an inspirational drive through New Mexico and Arizona on his way to LA, Smiley fell in love with the West and went on to write almost all of Gene Autry's movie songs. Smiley performed in many Western movies and was a guest on various Western radio show, such as National Barn Dance.
With all of his fame and several million dollars of fortune, Smiley continued to be a down-to-earth simple man. He loved to cook (although he hated spinach and watermelon). He owned a drive-in chain, "The Checkered Shirt," and lived with his wife in a San Fernando trailer park. (From the Old Time Radio Research Group)
Smiley Burnette Official Web Site
You can find the shows in the Times Past OTR Archives

"Hearts in Harmony” was a five day a week soap opera syndicated in the mid-West from 1941 into the 1950s sponsored by grocery store chain, Kroger. It's the story of a poor young man, Steve Parker, who wants to be a composer and falls in love with a young beautiful singer named Penny from a wealthy family. Drama and heartbreak follow and of course lots of music. A true dramatic soap opera serial.
Added about 450 shows in the here
If you have ever listen to audio recordings of Sherlock Holmes, or any audio book for that matter, the narrator, or what I like to call the storyteller, makes all the difference in how enjoyable the story is. Take for example narrator David Ian Davies from One Voice Recordings. The magnitude of distinctly unique voices he performs of the characters creates a magically ensconce and elegant listening experience. Listen to this sample from Audible.com of "Sherlock Holmes and the Shakespeare Globe Murders" narrated by David Ian Davies: Listen
Whatever has sustained this fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the enduring popularity of Sherlock Holmes will continue no doubt. Is it his savvy logical reasoning, his ability to take on almost any disguise, or his forensic science skills to solve a problematic case. Anyway for all of us Sherlockian enthusiast, it is not just another detective case to be solved, with Holmes it is an adventure.
House on Haunted Hill is a 1959 American B movie horror film from Allied Artists. It was directed by William Castle, written by Robb White, and starring Vincent Price as eccentric millionaire Fredrick Loren. He and his fourth wife, Annabelle, have invited five people to the house for a "Haunted House" party. Whoever stays in the house for one night will earn $10,000 each. As the night progresses, all the guests are trapped inside the house with ghosts, murderers, and other terrors.
Cast
* Vincent Price as Frederick Loren, a millionaire whose first three wives all died suspicious deaths
* Carolyn Craig as Nora Manning, a secretary for one of Mr Loren's companies supports her whole family
* Richard Long as Lance Schroeder, a pilot
* Elisha Cook as Watson Pritchard, a man whose sister-in-law and brother were murdered in the house; the owner of the property
* Carol Ohmart as Annabelle Loren, Frederick's fourth wife
* Alan Marshal as Dr. David Trent, a psychiatrist
* Julie Mitchum as Ruth Bridgers, a columnist with a gambling problem
* Leona Anderson as Mrs. Slydes, a housekeeper
* Howard Hoffman as Jonas Slydes, another housekeeper
* Skeleton - Himself
.
Test Pilot from Lux Radio Theater aired May 25, 1942 starring Robert Taylor, Rita Hayworth and Robert Preston. The show opens with Cecil B. DeMille and Rita Hayworth giving a message to the armed forces.
An irresponsible test pilot''s wife and best friend try to get him to grow up.
Lux Radio Theater 42-05-25 0353 Test Pilot (HQ)
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The Reformer And The Redhead from Lux Radio Theater aired Jun 25, 1951 srarring in their original role Dick Powell as Andrew Rockton Hale and June Allyson as hot-tempered Kathleen Maguire.
A small-town politician falls for an idealistic zookeeper.
Lux Radio Theater 51-06-25 0753 The Reformer And The Redhead (HQ)
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It’s not very often that I find a Media Center plugin that really gets me excited. Despite the platforms popularity and Microsoft support, it just doesn’t seem the draw the developers. That may have something to do with how complicated development is, but also the appeal of easy-money for smart phone app development. Regardless of that, though, I recently came across one that has me jumping for joy! Kylo is a web browser that integrates itself into the Media Center menu, is full-screen by default, has good Media Center-type features, and sports a home page with links to a plethora of content. In short, it’s what Microsoft should have done long ago.
Now Available for the United Kingdom, with a UK-Centric Kylo Directory
There is a massive amount of links such as NFL (which goes straight to the NFL’s video page), MLB, NBA, Yahoo Fantasy Football, Pandora, all of the major (and some of the minor) TV networks, online-only content like Revision3, some games and social networks, and more.
Now let’s take a look at what it does.
During installation you will be prompted to choose shortcuts. Make sure you enable the Media Center menu option.

When you open the browser you will be greeted with an almost overwhelming amount of content links.

There is an on-screen keyboard if you prefer such a thing.

You’ll find a limited, but useful amount of items in the settings.

One thing I found very useful in settings was the ability to manually stretch the screen to match my TV. Perhaps not everyone will need this, but I found Kylo would not open to full-screen until I did this. It remembers the setting so you’ll only need to do this once.
The one problem I have with Kylo is it’s inability to import bookmarks. Previously I was running Firefox on my Media Center PC and I had a sparse, but much needed, set of bookmarks. Some are included, but some are not. It looks as though I will be adding those by hand.
Overall, though, I have found this browser to be just about everything I need in a Media Center browser. It’s a definite add-on to any system I build in the future.
decided they can make a few bucks selling these over Sirius/XM and thru
iTunes. So far, the following series/shows have been removed from
Archive.Org:
Cinnamon Bear
Family Theater
The Shadow
Burns and Allen
Gangbusters
Voyage of the Scarlet Queen
The Witches Tale
The Falcon
On Stage
I was a communist for the FBI
Edgar Bergan Charlie McCarthy program
Jack Benny
Green Hornet
Phil Harris and Alice Faye
Lum and Abner
This is not a DMCA violation, unless it can be proved that the shows were
"ripped" from a copyrighted digital recording.
Radio $pirits claims "rights"
1. Jack Benny -Trust C under Will of Jack Benny
2. Phil Harris - Alice Faye - Alice Fay Trust
3. The Green Hornet - The Green Hornet, Inc.
4. Frontier Gentleman - Janice Ellis O'Hare
5. Burns & Allen - Sandra Burns Luckman
6. Edgar Bergan & Charlie McCarthy -The Bergan Foundation
7. Gang Busters - RSPT LLC, successor in interest of Charles Michelson
8. I Was a Communist for the FBI - Milton Geiger Estate
9. Lum and Abner - Chester Lauck, Jr.
10. On Stage - Elliot Lewis Estate
11. Sam Spade - RSPT LLC, successor in interest of Lawrence White
12. The Falcon - RSPT, LLC, successor in interest of Bernard Schubert
13. The Witch's Tale - Alonzo Deen Cole Estate
It's a confusing mess, to say the least. Archive.Org decided they'd
rather not "fight the 800-pound gorilla," and removed the shows. Radio Spirits may
not actually hold rights, but it would be an expensive process to fight
them in court.
I expect other series/shows to be pulled as well,
(full details and discussion at
http://www.archive.org/post/320881/what-is-gone)
Discussion Content in part from Usenet
Write - Hegel Himself
I hadn't seen it all in one concise spot before, but here is what is going on on the net concerning "Public Domain" Shows ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Rick
P.S. I don't want any of you to be like this

Dad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show. The series regularly gained audiences of 18 million viewers and is still repeated world wide.
The Home Guard consisted of local volunteers otherwise ineligible for military service, usually owing to age, and as such the series starred several veterans of British film, television and stage, including Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Arnold Ridley and John Laurie. Relative youngsters in the regular cast were Ian Lavender, Clive Dunn (who was made-up to play the elderly Jones), Frank Williams, James Beck (who died suddenly during production of the programme's sixth series, despite being one of the youngest cast members) and Colin Bean.
In 2004, Dad's Army was voted into fourth place in a BBC poll to find Britain's Best Sitcom. Previously, in a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, it was placed thirteenth. The series has had a profound influence on popular culture in the United Kingdom, with the series' catchphrases and characters well known. It is also credited with having highlighted a hitherto forgotten aspect of defence during the Second World War. The Radio Times magazine listed Captain Mainwaring's "You stupid boy!" among the 25 greatest put-downs on TV.
Originally intended to be called The Fighting Tigers, Dad’s Army was based partly on co-writer and creator Jimmy Perry’s real-life experiences in the Local Defence Volunteers (later known as the Home Guard). Perry had been 17 years old when he joined the 10th Hertfordshire Battalion and with a mother who did not like him being out at night and fearing he might catch cold, he bore more than a passing resemblance to the character of Frank Pike. An elderly lance corporal in the outfit often referred to fighting under Kitchener against the "Fuzzy Wuzzies" and proved to be a perfect model for Jones. Other influences were the film Whisky Galore!, and the work of comedians such as Will Hay whose film Oh, Mr Porter! featured a pompous ass, an old man and a young man which gave him Mainwaring, Godfrey and Pike. Another influence was the Lancastrian comedian Robb Wilton, who portrayed a work-shy husband who joined the Home Guard in numerous comic sketches during WW2.

Perry wrote the first script and gave it to David Croft while working as a minor actor in the Croft-produced sitcom Hugh and I, originally intending the role of the spiv, Walker, to be his own. Croft was impressed and sent the script to Michael Mills, Head of Comedy at the BBC. After addressing initial concerns that the programme was making fun of the efforts of the Home Guard, the series was commissioned.
In his book, Dad's Army, Graham McCann explained that the show owes a lot to Michael Mills. It was he who renamed the show Dad's Army. He did not like Brightsea-on-Sea so the location was changed to Walmington-on-Sea. He was happy with the names for the characters Mainwaring, Godfrey and Pike but not with other names and he made suggestions: Private Jim Duck became Frazer, Joe Fish became Joe Walker and Jim Jones became Jack Jones. He also suggested adding a Scot to the mix. Jimmy Perry had produced the original idea but was in need of an experienced man to see it through. Mills suggested David Croft and so the successful partnership began.
The show was set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea, on the south coast of England (the exterior scenes were mostly filmed in and around Thetford, Norfolk). Thus, the Home Guard were on the front line in the eventuality of an invasion by the enemy forces across the English Channel, which formed a backdrop to the series. The first series had a loose narrative thread, with Captain Mainwaring’s platoon being formed and equipped—initially with wooden guns and LDV armbands, and later on full army uniforms; the platoon were part of the The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment.
Explore more of Dad's Army in the Collections Group

Candid Camera, the first and longest running reality-based comedy program, premiered on ABC 10 August 1948 under its original radio title Candid Microphone. The format of the program featured footage taken by a hidden camera of everyday people caught in hoaxes devised by the show's host Allen Funt. In the world of Candid Camera mailboxes talked to passers by, cars rolled along effortlessly without engines, little boys used x-ray glasses, and secretaries were chained to their desks--all to provoke a reaction from unsuspecting mechanics, clerks, customers and passers by. In a 1985 Psychology Today article, Funt explained his move to television by saying that he "wanted to go beyond what people merely said, to record what they did--their gestures, facial expressions, confusions and delights.
The program ultimately changed its name to Candid Camera when it moved to NBC in 1949 but did not gain a permanent time slot until it finally moved to CBS in 1960. For the next seven years it was consistently rated as one of television's top ten shows before it was abruptly canceled. Funt was frequently joined by guest hosts such as Arthur Godfrey, Durward Kirby and Bess Meyerson. A syndicated version of the program containing old and new material aired from 1974-78. Aided by his son Peter, Funt continued to create special theme episodes (e.g.: "Smile, You're on Vacation," "Candid Camera goes to the Doctor," etc.) for CBS until 1990 when The New Candid Camera, advised by Funt and hosted by Dom DeLuise went into syndication. Low ratings finally prevented King Productions from renewing the show for the 1992-93 season.
stunts was not always an easy task.
Early attempts to film Candid Camera were hampered by technical, logistical and censorship difficulties. While they appeared simple, the staged scenes took many hours to prepare and success was far from guaranteed. Approximately fifty recorded sequences were filmed for every four to five aired on the program. Funt and his crew had to contend with burdensome equipment that was difficult to conceal. The cameras were often hidden behind a screen, but the lights needed for them had to be left out in the open. Would-be victims were told that the lights were part of "renovations." Microphones were concealed in boxes, under tables and, in a number of episodes, in a cast worn by Funt himself. In his book Eavesdropping at Large (1952), Funt also described his battles with network censors and sponsors who had never before confronted this type of programming and were often fickle in their decisions about what was and was not acceptable material for television at the time. Funt himself destroyed any material that was off color, or reached too deeply into people's private lives. A hotel gag designed to fool guests placed a "men's room" sign on a closet door. The funniest, but ultimately unaired reaction, came from a gentleman who ignored the obvious lack of accommodations and "used" the closet anyway.
Curtis grew up in an impoverished section of the Bronx, and had joined a street gang by the age of eleven. He joined the Navy in 1943, and after the war, attended the City College of New York and took acting lessons at the Dramatic Workshop. In 1948 he moved to California and was placed under contract by Universal Studios, making his screen debut in Criss Cross (1948). Soon afterward, his good looks made him a matinee idol, initially under the name James Curtis, and then Anthony Curtis.
A versatile actor, Curtis sought work in a variety of genres in order to avoid being typecast. His first major film was The Sweet Smell of Success (1957). He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in The Defiant Ones (1958) with Sidney Poitier. He demonstrated his comedic talent in Billy Wilder’s classic Some Like It Hot (1959) with Marilyn Monroe and Jack Lemmon. Other important films include The Vikings (1958), Spartacus (1960), The Great Imposter (1961) and The Boston Strangler (1968). In the early 1970s, Curtis appeared in a British TV series called The Persuaders, and in 1977 he wrote his first novel Kid Andrew Cody & Julie Sparrow.
Curtis enjoyed a close friendship with Hollywood’s “Rat Pack,” a group of entertainers which included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford. Some sources even cite Curtis as an “honorary member.” He appeared in several films with Rat Pack members, including Pepe (1960) and The List of Adrian Messenger (1963)."
Despite a cardiac bypass operation in 1994, Curtis was still vibrantly active and occasionally played supporting roles in films. He was enjoying a successful second career as a fine artist.
Tony Curtis was told by a number of people, including the legendary Billy Wilder, that he was the "best looking kid in show business."
My personal favourites were "Some like it hot", "Operation Petticoat" and his swashbuckling movies. The world has lost a great movie star.

"This hard boiled spy drama began as an RKO Radio Pictures theatrical serial in the 1940s, went on radio in 1943, and then came to TV around ten years later in a Syndicated series produced for distribution by NBC
Films; the series was about an American agent whose code name was "Falcon".
The success of the films led to a radio series that premiered on the American Blue Network in April 1943, and aired for the next ten years on various networks. It was here that his transition into a private eye was finalized, with The Falcon, now called Michael Waring working as a hardboiled insurance investigator, with an office and a secretary, Nancy.
Barry Kroeger was the first radio voice of The Falcon, followed by James Meighan, Les Tremayne, George Petrie, and Les Damon. Nearly all the shows were broadcast from New York.
You can find more about the series and shows in the Collections Group
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