How Did You Discover Old Time Radio?

[LizzieMaine]

There's a name I hadn't heard in years. I was a customer of Gary's as well, and still have many of the tapes I got from him -- he was the first dealer I ever ran across who offered recordings of baseball broadcasts in his catalog, which started me on a whole new phase of collecting. I was disappointed when he closed down.

Another dealer I was very enthusiastic about was the late Larry Kiner of Richland, Washington, who had the most impressive collection of 1930s music and variety programs I'd ever seen. He was a personal friend of Rudy Vallee and was responsible for circulating many of his early broadcasts. Years later I had the chance to do some transcription disc transfers of these Vallee recordings for Larry's son David, who kept the business running for several years after his dad passed away.

And of course, everybody who collected OTR in the '70s did business at one time or another with Dave Goldin and Radio Yesteryear/Radiola. My original RY catalogs from those days are still on my shelf as useful research tools. Later on I got to know Dave personally, and had the chance to tour his secret woodland hideaway and visit his vast personal vault. One of the most unforgettable people I've known in radio.

 

[Hektor]

There's a name I hadn't heard in years. I was a customer of Gary's as well, and still have many of the tapes I got from him -- he was the first dealer I ever ran across who offered recordings of baseball broadcasts in his catalog, which started me on a whole new phase of collecting. I was disappointed when he closed down.

Another dealer I was very enthusiastic about was the late Larry Kiner of Richland, Washington, who had the most impressive collection of 1930s music and variety programs I'd ever seen. He was a personal friend of Rudy Vallee and was responsible for circulating many of his early broadcasts. Years later I had the chance to do some transcription disc transfers of these Vallee recordings for Larry's son David, who kept the business running for several years after his dad passed away.

And of course, everybody who collected OTR in the '70s did business at one time or another with Dave Goldin and Radio Yesteryear/Radiola. My original RY catalogs from those days are still on my shelf as useful research tools. Later on I got to know Dave personally, and had the chance to tour his secret woodland hideaway and visit his vast personal vault. One of the most unforgettable people I've known in radio.

 

[Hektor]

There were a couple of other reel tape sellers but that was a long time ago. I think there was a class action lawsuit by collectors against Radio Spirits as I recall. RS wanted to prevent people from getting public domain programs but I do not believe Radio Spirits ever stopped anyone on the internet. I still find programs that I had never heard before and there are a lot of HQ stuff out there. Some of my favorites are Gunsmoke, CBS Radio Mystery Theater and Johnny Dollar. (among many others) Old Time Radio Researchers Library is a great place to find OTR.