''When Radio Was'' is a syndicated radio program that re-airs

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...

programs.

History

The series began as a local program in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, hosted by Carl Amari, who was the founder of Radio Spirits, Inc., which sells tapes and CDs of old time radio programs. Former CBS Radio executive Dick Brescia heard an in-flight version of the program, and soon mounted a nationally syndicated version of the show (through Dick Brescia Associates), beginning Jan. 1, 1990 and hosted by

Art Fleming Arthur Fleming Fazzin (May 1, 1924 – April 25, 1995) was an American actor and television host. He hosted the first version of the television game show ''Jeopardy!'', which aired on NBC from 1964 until 1975 and again from 1978 to 1979. ...

. (Amari continued to do the local Chicago version until shortly after selling Radio Spirits to MediaBay in 1998.) The show was first syndicated by Dick Brescia Associates (1990–2003), and later Wilbur Entertainment (2003–2006), and Matrix Media, Inc. (2006–2007). In the summer of 2007, the series owner MediaBay announced the company would be going out of business in September of that year and the show was subsequently purchased in September by a group headed by Norton Herrick, former CEO of MediaBay, Inc. (the company that had purchased Radio Spirits, and thus ''When Radio Was'', back in 1999). The company has since changed ownership again in 2008, and is now owned by the former Radio Again (although the company retains the name Radio Spirits). As of 2011, ''When Radio Was'' appears on over 200 stations in the U.S., as well as one Canadian station, CHPQ-FM in

Parksville, British Columbia Parksville is a city on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Census, Parksville's population was 13,642, representing a 9.5% increase over the 2016 Census. Parksville is well known for its large, sand ...

. The program is also carried on the

Radio Classics Radio Classics is a US old time radio network owned by RSPT LLC. It provides the programming content for Sirius XM Radio's 24-hour satellite radio channel of the same name. Radio Classics also syndicates the Radio Spirits-branded program '' ...

channel on

Sirius XM Satellite Radio Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merger ...

and streamed on the Internet. Radio America currently handles syndication of ''When Radio Was'' on behalf of Radio Spirits. For a time in the late 1990s, audio from the show was used by a TV station,

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

's WAMI-69, then embarking on a locally-led programming philosophy; the audio would be heard underneath footage of people at popular neighborhoods in the Miami area, the result was dubbed ''RadioVision''.

Hosts

Art Fleming continued to host the nationally syndicated version until shortly before his death from cancer in 1995. Satirist

Stan Freberg Stan Freberg (born Stanley Friberg; August 7, 1926 – April 7, 2015) was an American actor, author, comedian, musician, puppeteer, radio personality and advertising creative director. His best-known works include " St. George and the Dragonet ...

, then writing and hosting "Stan Freberg Here", a syndicated daily commentary for Brescia, replaced Fleming. Freberg continued in the emcee role through the first week of October, 2006. For a brief period during the early Freberg years, the show's announcer was the legendary Fred Foy (of ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in a ...

'' fame, who would introduce Stan with "Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear, on ''When Radio Was,'' with your host, Radio Hall-of-Famer Stan Freberg!") Veteran Chicago radio personality

Chuck Schaden Charles Leroy "Chuck" Schaden, born June 29, 1934, is a Chicago-area broadcaster and historian who hosted the program ''Those Were the Days'' on local radio from 1970 to 2009. Schaden played recordings of classic old-time radio shows and remini ...

became the next host beginning with the October 9, 2006 episode, "A Salute to Stan Freberg". A recurring feature of this version was "Speaking of Radio...", featuring excerpts from Chuck's historic interviews with many of the stars and "behind the scenes" people responsible for the classic shows (also a feature of Chuck's long-running "Those Were The Days"). It was at this time that the series expanded to seven shows per week (a format which continues with the Greg Bell version). Illinois native Greg Bell, host and programmer for Sirius XM's Radio Classics channel, became the fourth national host of the series as of October 8, 2007. The longtime ''When Radio Was'' theme music, titled "Swing and Sway", has been discontinued with the Bell series. In addition to opening and closing the show, the host introduces the radio programs, usually mentioning such facts as their original airdates (when available) and incidental trivia.

Typical programs

''When Radio Was'' re-airs a wide variety of old time radio shows, typically pairing a drama and comedy, but the most frequent programs are noted below: *

Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...

: ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central charact ...

''; '' Have Gun – Will Travel''; ''

Tales of the Texas Rangers ''Tales of the Texas Rangers'' is a 20th century Western old-time radio and television police procedural drama which originally aired on NBC Radio from 1950 to 1952 and later on CBS Television from 1955 to 1958. Film star Joel McCrea voiced the ...

''; ''

''. * Crime Dramas: '' Dragnet''; ''

Gang Busters ''Gang Busters'' is an American dramatic radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered on January 15, 1936 and was broadcast for more 21 years through November 27, 1957. H ...

''; ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by American magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by Gibs ...

''; ''

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell (director), James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas i ...

''. *

Comedies Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Gr ...

: ''

Our Miss Brooks ''Our Miss Brooks'' is an American sitcom starring Eve Arden as a sardonic high-school English teacher. It began as a Old Time Radio, radio show broadcast on CBS from 1948 to 1957. When the show was adapted to television (1952–56), it became ...

''; ''

The Great Gildersleeve ''The Great Gildersleeve'' was a radio situation comedy broadcast in the United States from August 31, 1941 to 1958. Initially written by Leonard Lewis Levinson, it was one of broadcast history's earliest spin-off programs. The series was buil ...

''; ''

The Jack Benny Program ''The Jack Benny Program'', starring Jack Benny, is a radio and television comedy series. The show ran for over three decades, from 1932 to 1955 on radio, and from 1950 to 1965 on television. It won numerous awards, including the 1959 and 19 ...

''; ''

Fibber McGee and Molly ''Fibber McGee and Molly'' (1935–1959) was a longtime American husband-and-wife team radio comedy program. The situation comedy was a staple of the NBC Red Network from 1936 on, after originating on NBC Blue in 1935. One of the most popular ...

''; '' The George Burns & Gracie Allen Show''. *

Drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

s: ''

Lux Radio Theatre ''Lux Radio Theatre'', sometimes spelled ''Lux Radio Theater'', a old-time radio, classic radio anthology series, was broadcast on the Blue Network, NBC Blue Network (1934–35) (owned by the National Broadcasting Company, later predecessor of A ...

''; '' Campbell Playhouse''; '' Escape''; ''

Suspense Suspense is a state of anxiety or excitement caused by mysteriousness, uncertainty, doubt, or undecidedness. In a narrative work, suspense is the audience's excited anticipation about the plot or conflict (which may be heightened by a viol ...

''. * Private Eyes & Detectives: ''

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar ''Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar'' is a radio drama that aired on CBS Radio from February 18, 1949 to September 30, 1962. The first several seasons imagined protagonist Johnny Dollar as a private investigator drama, with Charles Russell, Edmond O ...

''; '' The Adventures of Sam Spade''; ''

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

''; ''

The Adventures of Philip Marlowe ''The Adventures of Philip Marlowe'' was a radio series featuring Raymond Chandler's private eye, Philip Marlowe. Robert C. Reinehr and Jon D. Swartz, in their book, ''The A to Z of Old Time Radio'', noted that the program differed from most othe ...

'', ''

Boston Blackie Boston Blackie is a fictional character created by author Jack Boyle (1881–1928). Blackie was originally depicted as a jewel thief and safecracker in Boyle's stories, and became a private detective in adaptations for films, radio and televisi ...

''. *

Science Fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

: '' Dimension X''; ''

X Minus One ''X Minus One'' is an American half-hour science fiction radio drama series that was broadcast from April 24, 1955, to January 9, 1958, in various timeslots on NBC. Known for high production values in adapting stories from the leading American ...

''.

External links

''When Radio Was'' official website.
(A part of th
Radio Spirits
website).
''When Radio Was''
at Radio America When Radio Was

History

Hosts

Typical programs

See also

External links