Radio in the 1920s

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  • čas přidán 5. 01. 2021
  • This is a re-upload.
    Radio matured quickly in the 1920s, and by the end of the decade, seemed to be the future of entertainment alongside talkies. Here, I'm going to go talk about what radio was like in the '20s.
    Note: I decided to re-upload this video to correct some important information and fix the bad audio.

Komentáře • 225

  • @My1925World
    @My1925World Před 3 lety +107

    Great video. I collect and restore old radio sets from the 1920's to the 1940's. Listening to an old radio is a great way to connect with a decade. You're hearing and looking at the same radio someone did 80, 90 or 95 years ago. Thanks for the video, it may help someone get bit by the radio history bug.

    • @angelinasamson6996
      @angelinasamson6996 Před 2 lety

      ❤️❤️❤️

    • @sharonrynne2242
      @sharonrynne2242 Před 2 lety +1

      Love the horns

    • @seanstipsky9473
      @seanstipsky9473 Před 2 lety +3

      I'm looking for an old radio to replace one that I lost to my ex years ago. Do you sell restored radios? Ebay, or web site?

    • @My1925World
      @My1925World Před 2 lety +3

      No sorry, I don't sell the radios I work on. This is just a hobby for me, I have no formal electrical training. I would hate for a radio to catch on fire or hurt anyone.

    • @My1925World
      @My1925World Před 2 lety +4

      No Sorry I don't sell the radios I work on. This is just a hobby for me. I have no formal electrical training and would hate for one of my radios to hurt anyone or cause a fire.

  • @susanpage8315
    @susanpage8315 Před rokem +11

    My dad played his harmonica on a Toronto radio station in 1926 when he was 6 yrs old. He was so short they had to hold him up to reach the microphone!

  • @WeirdDarknessOfficial
    @WeirdDarknessOfficial Před 3 lety +35

    As someone who has been in radio full-time since 1990... THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!!!!!!!!!

  • @auletjohnast03638
    @auletjohnast03638 Před 3 lety +12

    I WISH I COULD GO BACK IN TIME AND MEET LOUISE BROOKS.

  • @The1920sChannel
    @The1920sChannel  Před 3 lety +67

    Ok, so there's one correction I need to make. At 1:14 I said that the first commercial radio broadcast on made by the KDKA station, but this is an often-repeated myth. There were at least 2 other stations making regularly-scheduled broadcasts to relatively large numbers of people before that time. So while the KDKA broadcast was a notable example of early commercial radio, it was not actually the first. This is a fact I will bring up again later in a future video, so don't forget it!

    • @lucasmembrane4763
      @lucasmembrane4763 Před 3 lety +3

      Simon Winchester, in his book, _The_Men_Who_United_The_States_, wrote that there was a small local, but commercial, AM broadcast station operating in San Francisco, CA, a few hours per day for several years before WWI, starting around 1913 or so, IIRC. He said that it was the first commercial station. Do you agree?

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před 3 lety +7

      @@lucasmembrane4763 Well I don’t know too many details about this myself, but I will talk more about it more in a future video. I know someone who is an expert on early radio that I will ask before I make it.

    • @lucasmembrane4763
      @lucasmembrane4763 Před 3 lety +5

      @@The1920sChannel Well, it was before the 1920's, thus outside your job description, so don't worry about it. What you do is very fine. Thanks much. I believe Winchester explained how those pre-WWI AM stations worked -- by putting the microphone, presumably a carbon microphone like was in old telephones, into
      the antenna circuit. That would mean that with even a paltry 100 watts or so of power, the microphone would get about as hot as an incandescent light bulb, so the audience would also be pretty paltry to negligible.

    • @CJ-uo5cl
      @CJ-uo5cl Před 2 lety

      We are looking for recordings of Negro League broadcasts from 1942. Especially the first one i think in Baltimore Aug 7 or 9, 1942. Any leads you know of?

    • @Me97202
      @Me97202 Před 2 lety

      @@lucasmembrane4763 Wasn’t that KQV in San Jose? Which later became KCBS in San Francisco.

  • @TheMummyAndTheMonkey
    @TheMummyAndTheMonkey Před 3 lety +32

    Just like today, the main reason to broadcast is to advertise. Some things never change. Great videos!

    • @alvincash3230
      @alvincash3230 Před 3 lety +1

      When my children were young, I explained to them that radio & tv programs exist to attract an audience to the commercials.
      Knowing that gives a whole different perspective to entertainment.

    • @johnt8441
      @johnt8441 Před 3 lety

      It's either have ads or pay for a license to listen as they do in the United Kingdom.

    • @rebeccaservais8115
      @rebeccaservais8115 Před 3 lety +1

      @@johnt8441 we don't have to pay to listen to radio, but we do pay to watch TV

    • @sifridbassoon
      @sifridbassoon Před rokem

      those damn capitalists, wanting to make money

  • @1920sman
    @1920sman Před 3 lety +16

    A great and enjoyable video about American Radio in the 1920s. I especially like your use of real '20s music. However, there was also a huge amount of radio broadcasting elsewhere in the world. It is a shame this video assumes that America is the only place anything ever happened in the 1920s and a simple statement or addition of the word American to the title would help to eliminate the impression of American bias or arrogance.
    Unlike in the cinema, where American film had come to dominate the world cinemas, radio was very successful in other countries and often followed a quite different model to the American commercial model. Programming was often quite varied and interesting from the onset, with regular news, sports, weather reports and forecasts, drama, religion, children's shows, gardening, cooking and other interest shows as well as music. Many of these developments would influence the direction American radio would take and many of the firsts happened elsewhere in the world with American radio stations making overseas innovations their own. Music on radio - at least here in New Zealand, could include the full spectrum of what was played at the time, from serious symphonic music and opera to light classical and salon music, from banjo, mandolin and guitar orchestras to brass bands and choirs, from selections from the latest musical hall acts and musicals, to the latest in popular dance music.
    Here in New Zealand the first regular broadcasts started in Dunedin in 1921. Within a year all the major cities had radio stations although the number of listeners would remain small until the end of 1923. Broadcasting was regular but not always daily. The number of people listening in increased substantially after the introduction of more affordable loud speakers and because most radio sets were battery operated in the early '20s, the availability of batteries in some places also influenced who would spend up on a radio set - w3hich would be virtually useless without. By 1924 there were stations in most large towns and in the bigger cities the radio stations often had their own house orchestras and dance bands. They'd feature a large quantity of live local performers, both from the studio and broadcast live from concert halls and night clubs as well as the occaisional gramophone record. The news broadcast in the 1920s in NZ was mostly compiled and edited by secretaries, from cuttings out of the local newspapers and it wouldn't be until about mid 1929 that stations here started employing radio journalists rather than just relying on new readers reading editing newpaper articles. Our stations here were a combination of private and government controlled stations until 1935 when the Labour Government nationalised all the private stations. Private stations of this era were often run as a side line by local business - such as books shops, music shops and similar. The private stations were partially commercial - featured advertisements, but shows tended not to be sponsored in the way they were in the US. The government run stations followed a similar model to the BBC of the same era with no advertising or commercial interests. Many of the private stations would continue to feature advertising after nationalisation.
    Some really important points about American radio that you've missed out on would be a mention of Coon Sanders Nighthawks and their fan club the Nighthawks club. This was band and its broadcasts were a huge development and sensation at the time and set the scene

    • @ingridfong-daley5899
      @ingridfong-daley5899 Před 3 lety +5

      @1920sman This was a fascinating comment... As interesting/educational/informative as the video itself; almost like a 'complete picture' if you put the two together.
      Thank you for your time and thought. I very much enjoyed reading this!

  • @rosieposie6322
    @rosieposie6322 Před 3 lety +15

    Can you cover some of the social aspects; like weird things(by modern standards) that were normal back then? I am interested in the social environment of the 1920’s.

  • @caspence56
    @caspence56 Před 3 lety +8

    I love the 1920's and OTR. Your videos combined the best of both worlds. Thank-you!

  • @jasonz9902
    @jasonz9902 Před 3 lety +12

    Awesome stuff, really excellent. Very well presented. Impressive.

  • @DeeDragoon
    @DeeDragoon Před 3 lety +15

    Excellent; thanks for making and posting this interesting and historically informative video!

  • @RandomRetr0
    @RandomRetr0 Před 2 lety +4

    You do such wonderful videos!

  • @anitarichmond8930
    @anitarichmond8930 Před 3 lety +4

    I am just thrilled with this video , as a kid our picture tube went out on our television so when I got home from school and went to watch my favorite shows such as My Three Sons I would listen to the shows as if they were radio program, of course now on CZcams I enjoy listening to the old-time radio shows such as Suspense, Johnny Dollar,Etc. I also love black and white movies.

  • @osborn.illustration
    @osborn.illustration Před 2 lety +3

    Great video about an often overlooked time period!

  • @djhrecordhound4391
    @djhrecordhound4391 Před 3 lety +8

    This was my first video of yours, and certainly not my last, because I enjoyed this. I'm a lifelong comedy-fan-and-history buff, as well as record collector, so I think this is very well done. The rest is long, and it's just me geeking out immediately after watching... (EDIT: I looked through yer list, so most of what I wrote seems redundant, but I'll leave it anyway...)
    You may have a 'part 2' if you connect records (with recording history) to radio, especially a direct connection to how Amos & Andy became popular. In late '27 into '28, a series of 78s called The Two Black Crows (Parts 1 through several) came out on Columbia Records. Comedians George Moran and Charles Mack were already Vaudeville stars, and developed what became the radio show's famous catchphrases. The Amos & Andy show was directly lifted from Moran & Mack's act. I have parts 1 through 8, with the 'part 7/8' record autographed by both.
    The 1920s radio shows were indeed live, although when recording went electric, huge developments were made in all media involving sound by mid-decade. Vitaphone's new theater system used a then-ridiculously-slow record speed of 33&1/3 (with "telephone-inspired amplification", and running on the same motor for record and film) to reliably match audio and film, soon to be adopted by the Warner Brothers film studio. Many shows stayed live for decades, though the "transcription disc" (at that new, weird, slow speed) was obviously used in the 20s as well, which is why those very few examples of 20s-era radio survive.
    All the best to you, I'm off to check yer channel out!

  • @klyvemurray
    @klyvemurray Před 3 lety +6

    Nice episode...I'm really digging your channel & content...Many thanks my friend

  • @thetooginator153
    @thetooginator153 Před 2 lety +4

    I think you are doing a good job of conveying the zeitgeist of the 1920’s, and there is no end of relevant material. I bet people were more amazed at radio than they were at the advent of the internet. I guess we have become used to what SHOULD be amazing innovation. Just as no one in 1870 could imagine radio, no one in 1970 could imagine powerful computers the size of a tiny notebook, that was a phone, but barely used as one.

  • @johnnyjames7139
    @johnnyjames7139 Před 3 lety +2

    The first radio broadcast from a remote location took place Sunday evening November 19, 1922 when Roxy Rothafel narrated the evenings performance at the Capitol Theatre, New Your City from the wings of the stage over WEAF.

  • @davidbaise5137
    @davidbaise5137 Před 2 lety +8

    “In an age that has nothing to say, the loudspeaker has been invented.” - George B. Shaw.

  • @willardtaylor6249
    @willardtaylor6249 Před rokem +3

    Very interesting video. I have enjoyed having a 1925 Atwater Kent Model 20 which has been working since 1982 when I built a power supply from a kit to replace the batteries. It is interesting to note that scientists were also experimenting with television in the 1920’s. The January 1925 issue of National Geographic, in an article on astronomy, mentions experiments with “radio movies “, which today we know as television. According to the article, scientists were predicting that the public would be able to watch the 1929 presidential inauguration in the comfort of their home. As it turned out, television was first demonstrated at the 1939 Worlds Fair and became available to the public after World War II. That same issue of National Geographic advertises my 1925 Atwater Kent.

  • @terryhoknescomicbookshisto6482

    love your shows - im currently indexing newspaper articles from the 1920s and have been collecting every local radio ad from the entire decade in Saskatoon SK Canada

  • @robertc.johnson310
    @robertc.johnson310 Před 2 lety +2

    The 1920's Channel,
    I take my hat off to the Narrator and his most informative video. His narration is Excellent and his vocal too. Keep up the good work and channel too.
    RCJ/LEO

  • @jeaniechowdury576
    @jeaniechowdury576 Před 3 lety +3

    Thank you - i always wanted to know about this!!!!!
    I love your channel & everyone should be watching it!!!!!!!
    ☮️❤️

  • @thelifemasterclass8465
    @thelifemasterclass8465 Před rokem +1

    Really great show. Thanks!

  • @mistergrandpasbakery9941
    @mistergrandpasbakery9941 Před 3 lety +3

    This is a great video! Bravo!! 👏

  • @robertnjax1
    @robertnjax1 Před rokem +1

    Great show - appreciate the info!

  • @sandydegener6436
    @sandydegener6436 Před 3 lety +8

    "Good evening Mr. and Mrs. America and all the ships at sea!"

    • @stevesloan7132
      @stevesloan7132 Před 3 lety +2

      The opening line from Walter Winchel's News broadcast!

    • @sandydegener6436
      @sandydegener6436 Před 3 lety +1

      @@stevesloan7132, Holy Moly, SOMEBODY knows his American Pop Culture!

    • @stevesloan7132
      @stevesloan7132 Před 3 lety +1

      @@sandydegener6436 My grandparents were young people in the 20s and 30s. So was one of my neighbors. I heard a lot about Walter and other radio personalities. I even heard 78 rpm records of his old broadcasts a few times as a boy. They began with the beeping sound of morse code which was unforgettable.

    • @sandydegener6436
      @sandydegener6436 Před 3 lety

      @@stevesloan7132, legend has it that Walter went on the air with a full bladder, which is what allowed him to attain his vocal speed!

  • @justsumguy2u
    @justsumguy2u Před 3 lety +5

    I'm not really into the broadcasting at the time, but rather the radios themselves (I restore them). Although I don't have any from the 20's, my oldest is from 1932

    • @singlesideman
      @singlesideman Před 3 lety +2

      I used to have several radios from the twenties. I miss them. Beautiful devices... One of my later ones was a 1928 RCA Radiola 60 with the Radiola 103 tapestry speaker - absolutely gorgeous, and one of the very first superheterodyne radio sets ever. It was in magnificent condition and it worked beautifully.

    • @susanpage8315
      @susanpage8315 Před rokem +2

      I have a floor model Crosley from 1947. Beautiful piece.

  • @yankrizzuto6760
    @yankrizzuto6760 Před 10 měsíci +1

    “I don’t hold with furniture that talks” - Fred Allen Show

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 10 měsíci

      Fred Allen also allegedly said “The reason TV is called a medium is that it’s neither rare nor well done.”

  • @Thecorgially
    @Thecorgially Před 9 měsíci

    A classmate of mine from the 1960's was a ham operator and spent all his adult life in that venue.

  • @TheKoolbraider
    @TheKoolbraider Před rokem

    Rudy Vallee sang the college shool song for the University of Maine. We still love it.

  • @katheryneclayton3379
    @katheryneclayton3379 Před 2 lety +1

    Fantastic stuff!!!! Well done!!!!

  • @alexandertroup851
    @alexandertroup851 Před 3 lety +4

    Great story shows how the electronic age began and the end of the Victorian age by 1916 1919 as radio made it when movies came to life then radio is used again to make movies talk by 1929.....thanks.

  • @feralbluee
    @feralbluee Před 11 měsíci

    Great vid!! thanks.
    but hey! we had TV in the ‘5O’s and the shows were terrific and innovative Sid Caesar, Omnibus - BUT! we still listened to the radio. all those great shows and soap operas - i loved them. i remember listening when i was 10 and 11 in the very late 1950’s. so it took a while to fade away. and after the shows like ‘The Shadow’ and ‘Gunsmoke’ went away, we still had the music stations. AM and FM, which was a big deal. DJ’s became part of our lives way into the ‘70’s like Cousin Brucie and Wolfman Jack. there were big personality morning shows, The Arthur Godfry Show, Art Linkletter, and the very incredible story teller Jean Shepard, (who wrote The Christmas Story - “You’re gonna shoot your eye out kid.” and the famous lady leg lamp). really one of the best films ever!
    anyway, it took a long time before radio lost its magic.
    and now we listen to audiobooks, music and stuff on CZcams and podcasts, iTunes and Spotify. Listening and letting your imagination free is still with us. :) ⚡️💿🌷🌱
    i really miss CBS, NBC, snd ABC plus the local TV stations. great kid shows.
    Thanks for this vid - really brought memories and it was interestingly interesting. LOL 🌷🌱
    you should have mentioned “and here’s the President, Hoobert Heever. poor Harry vonZel. lol

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 10 měsíci

      The last great network radio show was Monitor (begin in 1955 and end in 1974 on NBC)

  • @scottlarson1548
    @scottlarson1548 Před 2 lety +2

    I feel that the importance of radio in unifying the U.S. is often overlooked in history. For the first time everyone in an entire country, even a huge one like the U.S., could hear the same thing at the same time. News now happened almost instantly, music and entertainment could happen nationally, and it led to more national brands of products. Some books say this didn't happen until television but it seems like television was more an enhancement of what radio had already created.

    • @michelmotta4339
      @michelmotta4339 Před 10 měsíci

      Aqui no Brazil foi a mesma história. O radio unificou o País.

  • @thegreenman7
    @thegreenman7 Před rokem

    Very interesting! Thanks for sharing!!!

  • @garyfrancis6193
    @garyfrancis6193 Před 3 lety +4

    Guglielmo which is the Italian equivalent of “William” is pronounced /goo-lee-el-mo/. In Italian “gli” is pronounced as /lee/ with a silent “g” which is a diachronic aphthong as “gh” is in words like light, night, tight. We have silent “g’s” in words like sign, gnat, gnome, align. Silent “K” in knight, know, knot and silent “W” in answer or sword. Other languages are no different.

    • @singlesideman
      @singlesideman Před 3 lety +2

      In fact, it's even closer to "Ghoul YELL moe" in pronunciation.

  • @williamporter3806
    @williamporter3806 Před 3 lety +2

    I love you channel and have subscribed! You mentioned Old Time Radio, I'd also like to suggest RadioDismuke that broadcasts 1920s-1930s music.

  • @jimbressler1563
    @jimbressler1563 Před 3 lety +1

    A great time in history, thanks

  • @cherchezlavache4373
    @cherchezlavache4373 Před 3 lety +5

    👍🏻🥂 From the Rudy Vallee Fan Club!

  • @jongalt9038
    @jongalt9038 Před 3 lety +1

    Great topic!!! I have radios but finding suitable channels is tough!!!

  • @sunnybeaches1331
    @sunnybeaches1331 Před rokem

    Great channel!

  • @jackmeeellleee4896
    @jackmeeellleee4896 Před 8 měsíci

    this seems like a good channel, I am a first time viewer....I will try other videos on this channel...thanks for your efforts

  • @manuelkong10
    @manuelkong10 Před 11 měsíci

    Excellent video

  • @PatrickRosenbalm
    @PatrickRosenbalm Před 3 lety +2

    Pretty good video on radio! ;-) Tesla vs Marconi... I guess that depends on what you read. I say they both did. First to patent isn't always first to invent or discover. That old equipment is super rare now. I'm 56 and I grew up in a house of Ham radio operators. The changes I've seen in my life with radio.. I Wonder how many people realize their smartphone has several radios in it? One to talk to the cell tower, one for WiFi, one for Bluetooth, one for NFC and one to receive GPS. Maybe even more than that. One thing you pointed out that hasn't changed. Advertising.
    Looking forward to the next video!! 73s from KC4BGA

  • @gary-pietz4147
    @gary-pietz4147 Před rokem

    Radio signals were developed in the late 19th century, but audio modulation wasn't embedded until 1920 by an inventor engineer in Pittsburgh.

  • @davekanegis8070
    @davekanegis8070 Před rokem +1

    Thanks. Very interesting

  • @Norannmcguire
    @Norannmcguire Před 3 lety +1

    Smiles are beautiful

  • @alandesouzacruz5124
    @alandesouzacruz5124 Před 3 lety +1

    Thanks my brother

  • @samjohnson3431
    @samjohnson3431 Před 3 lety

    EXCELLENT PRODUCTION>

  • @williampalenik7306
    @williampalenik7306 Před rokem

    Yep I heard that KDKA in Pittsburgh was the first or one of the first stations on radio air waves

  • @garymattscheck9066
    @garymattscheck9066 Před rokem

    I saw a Cygnet horn in one of the photos being used for a loudspeaker.

  • @jeaniechowdhury6739
    @jeaniechowdhury6739 Před 3 lety

    Thank you!!

  • @WmGood
    @WmGood Před 2 lety

    When radio became a widely accepted and available medium, many in the newspaper businesses feared it would replace them. Well, radio actually stimulated newspaper sales and the advertising revenues. Many newspapers bought their own stations. Then came post WWII and television and again there was concern that TV would replace radio entirely. And it did cause a major shift in radio formats but thanks to the automobile manufacturers there are more radio stations in operation today than ever before. People in cars need radios to get the news and local information such as weather and sports. And let's not forget about pure audio entertainment of all types of music. As people began to spend more time driving, the demand for radio got even broader. You can't really watch TV or read a paper while driving so listening is the next best thing. Now we have newer mediums of entertainment and who can predict what that's going to lead to. Personally I listen to old time radio plays on thumb drive plugged into my car radio. Especially when I have to take a long trip.

  • @kyleoshields3088
    @kyleoshields3088 Před 3 lety +4

    "...had it's roots in an earlier show called Sam and Henry, which began in January 1926 on the Chicago network WGN, owned by the Chicago Tribune newspaper." WGN, by the way, stands for World's Greatest Newspaper.

    • @ingridfong-daley5899
      @ingridfong-daley5899 Před 3 lety +2

      @KyleO'Shields Ahaha--i was just wondering about them/their call letters yesterday.
      I feel like you just dropped the answer straight out of the sky to me! :) thanks for that!

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 2 lety +1

      @@ingridfong-daley5899 WLS Chicago stood for Worlds Largest Store. WLS was originally owned by Sears. WMAQ was owned by the Chicago Daily News. WMAQ stood for We Must Ask Questions. WOC Davenport Iowa was owned by the Palmer Family and stood for World Of Chiropractic

  • @uslines
    @uslines Před 3 lety

    Well done!

  • @michaelmcgee8543
    @michaelmcgee8543 Před rokem

    Enjoyed!

  • @singlesideman
    @singlesideman Před 3 lety +1

    I find it really interesting that your understanding of 1920's radio is essentially the programming from the period (as evidenced by the ending of the video where you refer those "who are interested in vintage radio" to a site that contains examples of radio broadcasts of the period), rather than the actual devices of the period, radio transmitters and especially receivers, and related accessories. To me it's all of it, with more of an emphasis on the devices of the period. I collected radios from the 1920's, but I don't think that I had a single recording of a radio broadcast from that time. I did have many records, though, and still do. Go figure...

  • @tinkerwithstuff
    @tinkerwithstuff Před 11 měsíci

    From what I read, the patent wa latr changed to state Tesla as the first - Marconi was using things from several of Teslas earlier parents, after all, without asking, and it is known that he has seen those patents.

  • @Jlevin1955
    @Jlevin1955 Před rokem

    Very interesting!

  • @colemaster6668
    @colemaster6668 Před 2 lety

    You saved my life. I have a speech about this subject🙏🙏🙏 tyyyy

  • @mauriceupton1474
    @mauriceupton1474 Před 3 lety

    15 June 1920...Dame Nellie Melba ( Helen Porter Mitchell) was the first person & Australian to be heard broadcasting her singing via Marconi works factory in Chelmsford.
    She features on the Aussie $100 note.
    Auckland New Zealand.
    ZL1MPU

  • @glorbohoh7864
    @glorbohoh7864 Před 2 lety +1

    The author is in error with regards to who first filed for wireless patents. Nikola Tesla was the first to file and received a number of fundamental patents with regards to the transmission and reception of what we now call radio signals. Furthermore; Tesla gave the first public demonstration of radio transmission and reception in a lecture in St. Louis MO on the evening of March 8th 1893. In the end the US Supreme Court upheld Tesla's claims and struck down the Marconi patents in July of 1943 but sadly Tesla had passed away in January of that year.

  • @maryrafuse3851
    @maryrafuse3851 Před rokem

    Spark wireless and Radio are very different things. The first Radio Broadcast, the very first, is properly credited to a Canadian Citizen living and working in America. Prof Reginald A. Fessenden broadcast a program of live music and talk Christmas Eve 1906 from Brant Rock, Massachusetts. His signal was picked up by wireless telegraphy operators nearby and at a considerable distance. Like so many inventions Radio Broadcasting originated in North America.

  • @RK-rj2sc
    @RK-rj2sc Před rokem

    Cool insight 👄👄😊👍👍

  • @dontaylor7315
    @dontaylor7315 Před rokem +1

    It's been decades since I heard an article about early radio (probably on some NPR show) so I may not be remembering correctly, but I think it said ALL radio was once public radio (like the channels now found on the left end of the FM dial) supported voluntarily by community donations just because people wanted to keep their local stations on the air. I assume that was before radio went full-bore commercial.
    About the original Amos 'n' Andy: I knew they were white men speaking white America's idea of a black dialect, but I had no inkling that the theme music came from Birth of a Nation - that's creepy! Btw I think a lot of people don't realize the "silent" movies of the 1920s weren't really silent. Soundtracks hadn't been invented yet but films were accompanied by music scores played by orchestras in the large theaters and by an organ or piano in the smaller ones. Charlie Chaplin composed his own scores in the 20s and continued to do so after sound recording became part of the films themselves.

  • @Michael-hb4wc
    @Michael-hb4wc Před 3 lety

    I was just thinking about how nice your voice is, then I read how bad it is.
    I like it.

  • @karenhargis9824
    @karenhargis9824 Před rokem

    I want to go there.

  • @jayrogers8255
    @jayrogers8255 Před 10 měsíci

    Radio was revolutionary, TV is evolutionary.

  • @stischer47
    @stischer47 Před rokem

    One of the first radio stations here in San Antonio, WOAI (one of the few radio station west of the Mississippi that began with a W), was primarily a station for news and agriculture (weather, prices at the stockyards, shipping). Thus its call letters: WOAI - World Of Agricultural Information. It was primarily that even into the 60s.

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 10 měsíci

      Another station west of the Mississippi was WOC Davenport Iowa WOC meant World Of Chiropractic since the Palmer School of Chiropractic owned the station. Now it means With Our Compliments. At least that’s what a plaque in their building lobby says.

  • @qzorn4440
    @qzorn4440 Před 9 měsíci

    Amos 'n' Andy, Easy Aces, Ethel and Albert, Fibber McGee and Molly, The Goldbergs, The Great Gildersleeve, The Halls of Ivy, Meet Corliss Archer, Meet Millie, and Our Miss Brooks
    Most interesting. 😎 Thanks.

  • @romanivanovich6717
    @romanivanovich6717 Před 3 lety +1

    and in 2020 in a hundred years the whole world is in the palm of your hand in little computer )

  • @jongalt9038
    @jongalt9038 Před 3 lety

    You dont really need to do a program on it, but as your channel is all about the 1920s, you would enjoy reading the book, "Dandelion Wine", by Ray Bradbury. He touches on new areas for you!
    I found this elsewhere, but what kids listened to after school in the 1920s was not the jukebox of course, but the Player Piano! Neat stuff, history!!! 📯

  • @marypalmer00
    @marypalmer00 Před rokem

    _Invisible airwaves crackle with life_
    _Bright antenna bristle with the energy_
    _Emotional feedback on timeless wavelength_
    _Bearing a gift beyond price, almost free_

  • @detroitjack0325
    @detroitjack0325 Před 3 lety +3

    I always thought Detroit (WWJ), made the first radio broadcast on August 31, 1920.

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před 3 lety +1

      You are absolutely right. Well, it's kind of hard to say who was truly the first, but the WWJ station did, in fact, begin broadcasting before KDKA, so they may very well be. I should have changed that information when I re-uploaded this video. but I was focusing too much on other corrections. The KDKA claim is a common myth. Another person also pointed this out to me, so I made a correction in the pinned comment at the top of this page of this video. Props to you, sir!

    • @detroitjack0325
      @detroitjack0325 Před 3 lety +3

      @@The1920sChannel The information I have read about on who was the first, WWJ or KDKA is WWJ did make the first radio broadcast on August 31, 1920 but without a license. KDKA on the other hand, made their initial
      broadcast the following October (1920) but with a license to broadcast. This is why there has been controversy over the years on which radio station made the first radio broadcast;. WWJ or KDKA.

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 10 měsíci

      @@detroitjack0325I think I read that WOC Davenport is the 3rd oldest continuously broadcast radio station in the country.

  • @butthetruth
    @butthetruth Před 2 lety

    That makes the station - which became CFCF in 1922 - the first in Canada, and possibly the first in the world. “The Americans will say they had the first,” said Dufour.

  • @baire702
    @baire702 Před 3 lety +3

    The patents that Marconi stole from Tesla were restored to Tesla 6 months after he died in 1943.

    • @sanjanewmoonlife
      @sanjanewmoonlife Před rokem

      Tesla sold his patent to Marconi ,I think so ,he needed money for food .

    • @sanjanewmoonlife
      @sanjanewmoonlife Před rokem

      en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nikola_Tesla_patents

    • @mrwittyone
      @mrwittyone Před rokem

      @@sanjanewmoonlife False. Marconi STOLE Tesla's patents. In 1903, the patent office wrote: "Many of the claims are not patentable over Tesla patent numbers 645,576 and 649,621, of record, the amendment to overcome said references as well as Marconi's pretended ignorance of the nature of a "Tesla oscillator" being little short of absurd... the term "Tesla oscillator" has become a household word on both continents [Europe and North America]."
      In 1904, the court mysteriously reversed itself and awarded the patent to Marconi - though Tesla was too involved with other problems to do anything. However, in 1915, three years after Marconi won the Nobel Prize, a furious Tesla sued Marconi for patent infringement. The court finally upheld Tesla's patent in 1943.

  • @jimmyflanagan5938
    @jimmyflanagan5938 Před rokem

    Two most influential decades of the 20th century was the 20s and 60s

  • @antonnym214
    @antonnym214 Před 2 lety +1

    You can pay cash for a radio, but you still have to charge the battery. 😃

  • @patrickdees5256
    @patrickdees5256 Před 3 lety +5

    What's funny, while watching this, all I could hear was, "tv killed the radio star".

    • @jongalt9038
      @jongalt9038 Před 3 lety +2

      The Buggles!!! Great comment!!!

    • @patrickdees5256
      @patrickdees5256 Před 3 lety

      @@jongalt9038 thanks.

    • @PatrickRosenbalm
      @PatrickRosenbalm Před 3 lety +2

      Video Killed the Radio Star ;-)

    • @singlesideman
      @singlesideman Před 3 lety

      Yes, video not TV. Trevor Horn is a God. I absolutely adore his work. Incredible. Genius. His arranging and production of 'Welcome To The Pleasuredome' by Frankie Goes To Hollywood is still mind boggling - or is that mind BUGGLING? Just brilliant, and absolutely gorgeous. Extremely impressive.

    • @garymattscheck9066
      @garymattscheck9066 Před rokem +1

      Radio made quite a dent in the phonograph business.Thomas Edison said that the present radio is certainly a "lemon ".

  • @john-paulderosa356
    @john-paulderosa356 Před 3 lety

    I love this video. But I think there was a lot more programming right at the start of commercial broadcasting than I think you are saying. I know there were regular shows in 1922 including radio dramas, and that the pace of radio set sales was so fast then that Weston Electric couldn't make enough speakers and people had to listen on earphones. Have I misunderstood you?

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před 3 lety +1

      There were definitely a bigger amount of programs, but I just super-simplified it. You can find program listings from the early 1920s showing a plethora of local programs. There was little in the way of national programming, since the biggest stations, NBC and CBS, wouldn't be set up until later in the decade. 1922 was the time when radio really began taking off. Music programs were the most popular kind, though there were other kinds of programs as well.

    • @john-paulderosa356
      @john-paulderosa356 Před 3 lety

      @@The1920sChannel I have read that the first national broadcast was from Frank Daily's Meadowbrook in Cedar Grove, which did not open until 1931.

  • @kelanjones7281
    @kelanjones7281 Před 3 lety

    By 1943, another radio network joined in. The American Broadcasting Company aka ABC when it was used to be called the blue network.

  • @TF2SlyGuySaysHi
    @TF2SlyGuySaysHi Před 3 lety

    What sources do you use?

  • @cristalovelee
    @cristalovelee Před 2 lety

    I've been searching endlessly for video or radio of my papa trav aka vern Rollin Traver who won 1st & second place on these radio shows from that era he was from McPherson Kansas New York Seattle Chicago & los Angela's dinuba died in Fresno he did a skit called the telephone I believe possibly Columbia I can't find him although he looks alike like Robert young can u please help me find him??

  • @AntiHydra747
    @AntiHydra747 Před 2 lety

    I have the "Birth of A Nation" on reel

  • @charleshunziker7416
    @charleshunziker7416 Před 10 měsíci

    The international silver string submarine band (in person)

  • @arthurdalton517
    @arthurdalton517 Před rokem

    Hy what about how it was like being a kid
    During that time. What they did what games, the fashion for teenagers boys and girls

  • @butchbateman457
    @butchbateman457 Před 3 lety +3

    I thought this was really interesting & the commentator had a good “radio voice”.😊 I was wondering if you already haven’t, if you could talk about religion in the 1920’s. Keep up the good work, these videos are great!

  • @maxpayne2574
    @maxpayne2574 Před rokem

    AM radio bounces off the atmosphere and comes back down. With enough power AM can go around the Earth.

    • @glennso47
      @glennso47 Před 10 měsíci

      And play the same song over and over again ad nauseam

  • @jourwalis-8875
    @jourwalis-8875 Před 2 lety

    Where can I check out "OTR"? Any link?

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před 2 lety

      I'm not sure if CZcams will let me send the link in a comment, but if you go to the Internet Archive website, you can go to the "audio" tab at the top of the page, and under "featured," there is an "old time radio" collection listed.

  • @thechicagobox
    @thechicagobox Před rokem

    Amos and Andy were great!

  • @butthetruth
    @butthetruth Před 2 lety

    It’s National Radio Day in the U.S., but it’s time Canada claimed its place in radio history

  • @infantinofan
    @infantinofan Před rokem

    You said "Amos & Andy" used as their theme song something from the film "Birth of a Nation". Wasn't that a silent movie, so no music?

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před rokem

      It's actually pretty interesting. An elaborate musical score was composed for "Birth of a Nation" that included existing melodies as well as new ones. It's a very early example of such a film score. Of course, this music would have been played live, not on a recording. It's another example of how "Birth of a Nation" had so many innovative elements to it despite an unfortunately bad message.

  • @danrichards9516
    @danrichards9516 Před 3 lety

    Listened close to see why this was reuploaded...
    Did you get that much hate over A&A?

    • @The1920sChannel
      @The1920sChannel  Před 3 lety +4

      Not really, but one person mentioned it, and when I looked back at it, and I had said the show wasn't racist, which was an unfounded claim and very one-sided. I guess I just got carried away playing devil's advocate. Since I want to present this information as fact, I really shouldn't say things like that. It was bothering me, so I just decided to change it a little bit and re-upload it.

    • @danrichards9516
      @danrichards9516 Před 3 lety +1

      @@The1920sChannel fair enough, I was just curious, it didn’t seem like something worthy of hate, but it did get changed so I was wondering.
      Keep up the good work

  • @deaddocreallydeaddoc5244
    @deaddocreallydeaddoc5244 Před 10 měsíci

    The idea that radio was over by 1955 and the arrival of television is totally incorrect. It is only true where the radio serials were concerned. Radio for music and news broadcasting remained very popular and every car had a radio built in as standard equipment. By the late 1950s, the transistor radio, which replaced tubes with transistors made small portable radios possible. I was born in 1952. The radio was always on in the car, and often at home. I had my first transistor radio at 12 years of age. I made a crystal radio that year in the 6th grade. Radio continued as the dispenser of pop music and news for a long time after, with FM arriving in the late 80s and opening up stereo broadcasting for the Boomers. I still listen to FM radio during the daytime whenever I'm working on my computer or around the house. Plus I have a radio out in my shop and even one in the chicken coup; all tuned into the local classical radio!

  • @GeraBrown
    @GeraBrown Před rokem

    Bing Crosby? Eddie Cantor? Rudy Vallee wasn't the only big name performer. Just saying.
    Btw I already saw the later video where you corrected the KDKA myth. Thanks. 👍👍

  • @elbarosa2084
    @elbarosa2084 Před 3 lety

    So cute🐪🐪

  • @thebeardedseeker5633
    @thebeardedseeker5633 Před 3 lety +6

    i enjoyed this, but let's be clear, Amos n Andy was indeed a racist caricature of African Americans. it doesn't matter if whites didn't think it was.

    • @wareforcoin5780
      @wareforcoin5780 Před 3 lety +1

      I think it's evidence of an honest to god phobia. Like, literally so afraid of black people, that to enjoy stories _about_ black people, they need two white guys to pretend to be black.
      In any rate, the people were fucked up back then and I'm glad we're at least past blackface. At least. Maybe even a little bit of other stuff too.

    • @john-paulderosa356
      @john-paulderosa356 Před 3 lety +2

      I am white and I totally agree with you. I checked out this famous radio show and a movie with the same characters and their white creators--horrible, impossible to stand for its racism and mockery. But then I found the television version of this program starring black actors. It is simply the funniest, most professional show you could find. I think it is comic genius. It was taken off the air because the NAACP objected to way it portrayed blacks and I can see why because it was just about the only presentation of blacks on tv and it showed them as stupid or crooked and inarticulate. But I think Sanford.& Son suffered from similar stereotypes.and it stayed on.

    • @MirlitronOne
      @MirlitronOne Před 3 lety +1

      "it doesn't matter if whites didn't think it was."
      No, but it DOES matter if non-whites DO think it was, one hundred years later. This is called "racial equality".

  • @travelandjapan438
    @travelandjapan438 Před 3 lety

    Mass transit in the 1920’s

  • @cristalovelee
    @cristalovelee Před 2 lety

    He also looked similar to Walter mcgrail.I know he sang with Dorris parker in the uso with Dorris parker in San diego at the mission beach ballroom..I have sum on tape recordings lol