The Lost Episodes of Fibber McGee and Molly
A Tuesday night tradition for well over a decade, "Fibber McGee and Molly" set the standard for what a successful radio situation comedy could be. Starring Jim and Marion Jordan, as well as a host of radio's greatest comic character actors, the series began in 1935 and ran well into the late 1950s as a special feature of NBC's weekend "Monitor" show.

Once the half-hour weekly series came to an end, the Jordan’s were hired by NBC to create a new series of "Fibber McGee and Molly" shows in a fifteen-minute format that would run twice each weekday: once during day time hours and once in the evening. This change of pace resulted in a successful three-year run for multiple sponsors, with the comedy couple prerecording the programs for broadcast.

Programs from this quarter-hour series have been rare and hard for OTR collectors to find, with most coming either from edited Armed Forces Radio rebroadcasts or home recordings made by a hard-core Fibber Fan by placing a microphone in front of his radio speaker when the shows were first aired. Recently, however, the Archives made an amazing discovery: over TWO HUNDRED 16" NBC lacquer transcriptions, originally stored in the basement of NBC at their Sunset and Vine studios, and kept in deep storage for over fifty years. At long last, fans of the "Fibber McGee and Molly" show can now hear these programs as they were originally aired - in high fidelity sound and complete with commercials for Richard Hudnut, Tums, and other sponsors.

1 two-sided lacquer disc/2 shows - ONE OF A KIND AND UNCIRCULATED, from NBC Hollywood
15:00 each - NBC

^{The Fibber McGee and Molly Show transcription disc $50.00}

Adventures By Morse
Created by Renaissance man Carlton E. Morse, "Adventures by Morse" is an acknowledged radio classic, filled with the sort of "blood and thunder" adventure that was a hallmark of his success. Though designed for syndication and, thus, pressed and distributed on 16" vinyl discs, original 16" release recordings of the series are almost impossible to find at any price. We're very excited to be offering a series of original vinyl test pressings of the series - literally the first copy off the record press, used to determine the quality of all of the additional discs that would be subsequently made. As you might well expect, the audio fidelity of these discs is phenomenal - the very best copies of these shows known to exist today – and these are definitely one of a kind recordings that will deserve a special and honored place in your personal library.

Two one-sided vinyl discs/one show - One of a kind test pressings

^{Adventures By Morse transcription disc $200.00}

The Lone Ranger
The ‘Masked Rider of the Plains’ is featured in a series of extremely rare discs of "The Lone Ranger" radio series - 16" vinyl syndication recordings released by NBC. It is almost impossible to find these discs today at any price. If you're a long-time Ranger fan, you might want to do what many of your fellow enthusiasts have done: buy one of these, frame it, and hang it on wall right next to your favorite photos of the masked man. It’s sure to be a conversation piece for years to come!

1 two-sided disc/1 show - VERY RARE
30:00 - NBC Radio Recording

^{The Lone Ranger transcription disc $50.00}

Komedy Kingdom
Throughout the 1930s and into the early 1940s, the Transcription Company of America - more commonly known as Transco - gained a reputation for producing some of the highest quality syndicated programming available to local stations. Headquartered in Los Angeles, with sales offices in Chicago and New York as well, Transco is best remembered today for "The Cinnamon Bear," a juvenile musical serial first heard in 1937. But, in their heyday, they produced literally hundreds of different series of all types - everything from “live” band remotes to religious programs to musical shows to variety series - many of which sounded remarkably similar to network programs of the time. Since so few network airchecks exist from the 1930s, Transco programs are often the best way to hear what radio was like when it was still young and inventive.

"Komedy Kingdom," created around 1935, emulated many of the typical network variety shows of the period by offering music, comedy skits, and general hi-jinks built around a weekly theme. A good example is show #1, where royalty is the theme, the Rhythmettes sing a song or two, we get a comedy skit starring the team of Blow and Broder, and vocalist Tony Romano sings a number -- all in 15 minutes, including time for a commercial break or two.

The discs are mint condition 16" shellac discs from Transco. These recordings were intended as "file copies" and, as such, have been stored away unplayed since they were originally pressed over seventy years ago. The fidelity is wonderful and, best of all, these programs have been unheard and still remain uncirculated after seven full decades!

One two sided thick shellac disc/two shows - Uncirculated and Unplayed Reference Copy
1930s - 15:00 each - Transco/Radio Transcription Company of America

^{Komedy Kingdom transcription disc $50.00}

Chuck-Wagon Jamboree with Ken Curtis and the Novelty Aces
It's not well remembered today, but actor Ken Curtis - famed for his role as "Festus" in the long-running CBS TV series "Gunsmoke" - began his career as a big band vocalist and B-western star. Beginning as a staff vocalist at NBC Hollywood, he worked briefly with Tommy Dorsey and later starred with Shep Fields before serving a stint in the infantry between 1942 and 1945. After his return, he appeared as a singing cowboy in a series of musical westerns costarring the Hoosier Hot Shots, produced by Columbia Pictures, and also guest starred on a number of radio shows - most notably with his friend Jo Stafford. His brief role as a matinee idol later led to his becoming the lead vocalist with The Sons of the Pioneers from 1949-1952.

Prior to his joining the Pioneers, however, and thanks to the positive buzz he received from his radio shots, he was given the opportunity to star in his own syndicated radio series for Teleways Radio Productions, "Chuck Wagon Jamboree," which also featured The Novelty Aces, a group already recognized for their many appearances on radio powerhouse WLW's "Boone County Jamboree."

The Hollywood-based Teleways Radio Productions produced a number of well-recorded musical series in the post-war years -- most notably programs featuring The Sons of the Pioneers and Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage -- and had the formula for syndicated success down quite well: diverse but tuneful musical numbers, light comedy banter between the performers, the occasional novelty song by the Aces, and plenty of breaks for local sponsors to hawk their wares. Curtis' smooth but powerful tenor voice - a far cry from the cackling "dry land" character voice he would later use as Festus - brought a considerable degree of sophistication to the proceedings; his appearance on these programs may, in fact, well have led to his joining the Pioneers in 1949. An extra added bonus was the high technical quality which Teleways insisted upon for all of their releases; anyone who has heard the recent CD re-releases of some of The Sons of the Pioneers shows from the same producer, recorded at about the same time, can attest to their impressive range and fidelity.

All of these recordings are in beautiful condition, with only a few light scratches here and there, and are an extremely rare find for anyone interested in well-recorded western music.

1 two-sided disc/2 shows
1940s - 15:00 each - Syndicated - Teleways Radio Productions, Hollywood

^{Chuck-Wagon Jamboree transcription disc $15.00}

Rare Cisco Kid Commercials
It is little remembered today, but many syndicated programs had commercials specially recorded for them by the regional sponsors who paid for their broadcast on local stations. Here's an excellent example of this: a one-of-a-kind disc containing a series of 1953 commercials for the Frederic Ziv series "The Cisco Kid".

1 two-sided disc/24 One-Minute Commercials
1953 - 24:00 total - Dan B. Miner Advertising

^{Cisco Kid Butter-nut Bread Commercials transcription disc $30.00}

Calling All Cars
The granddaddy of all the police procedural programs to come, William N. Robson's "Calling All Cars" set the standard for such radio classics as "Dragnet," "The Line-Up," and even influenced TV classics like "The Naked City" and "Hill Street Blues." Heard via the CBS Pacific and Don Lee Networks throughout the 1930s, this weekly dramatic series was aired live from Los Angeles and sponsored by the Rio Grande Oil Company. Recorded during their initial broadcast, the programs were later aired on both a syndication basis throughout the Southwestern United States and, shorn of their commercials, in other areas of the US as well.

"Calling All Cars" has long been a favorite of radio enthusiasts - and now you have the chance to own some of the discs from which most of the circulating copies were transferred. All of the discs listed below are early 16" vinyl recordings, many pressed especially for the collection of the otherwise unknown H. E. Britzman whom, it may be assumed, was either an executive with either Rio Grande, the sponsor, or MacGregor/Sollie, the production company that pressed the discs. All of the discs are in very good condition and provide a rare window into both dramatic radio of the 1930s and the burgeoning early career of a man who would some become a legend in network radio.

1 two-sided disc/1 show
30:00 - CBS Pacific/Don Lee, Rio Grande Oil Company

^{Calling All Cars transcription disc $25.00}

Turn Back The Clock
Co-hosts Andy and Virginia Mansfield are featured in broadcasts of "Turn Back the Clock," a series of AFRTS broadcasts from the early 1960s. These half-hour programs feature the "oldies" of their day, including a wide variety of 78s from the turn of the century and beyond, and are a treasure trove of rare recordings from a time when so many now impossible to find discs were readily available and still in good condition.

Since these are microgroove recordings, all of the discs below contain two 25 minute shows - almost sixty minutes of delightful musical entertainment from the past and a perfect way to acquire recordings that may well be unobtainable anywhere else.

Turn Back the Clock
One two-sided vinyl microgroove disc/two shows - Uncirculated
25:00 each - AFRTS

^{Turn Back The Clock transcription disc $15.00}

The Longines Symphonette
If you remember radio during its "golden age," it's likely that you remember announcer Frank Knight extolling the virtues of Longines, "The World's Most Honored Watch." It was only fitting, after all, that the World's Most Honored Watch should also sponsor a radio program named after it: "The World's Most Honored Music," featuring light classical favorites and heard throughout the 1940s and well into the 1950s. In addition to their network programs, however, Longines Wittnauer also pre-recorded quarter-hour music shows to be aired on local stations, often programmed on Sunday afternoons, and featuring the same basic format and high quality music. These rare and, to our knowledge, uncirculated programs from this series, dating from about 1947.

The Worlds Most Honored Music Program w/The Longines Symphonette
One two-sided vinyl disc/two shows - uncirculated
15:00 each - WOR Syndication for the Longines-Wittnauer Watch Company

^{The Longines Symphonette transcription disc $15.00}

Here's to Veterans
The post-war years saw a tremendous rise in the issuing of licenses for radio stations. Along with the proliferation of new broadcasting outlets, the US Government began production of a variety of well-produced programs, sent free to radio stations to help in fulfilling their public service requirements and as a promotional tool for various government agencies and the armed services.

Among the best produced and most popular series, the Veteran's Administration's "Here's to Veterans" featured a host of top stars from radio, recordings, movies, and television. In the early years of the show, the programs were recorded in the Hollywood and New York studios of the radio networks and featured the complete casts of such popular radio shows as "Your Hit Parade," "The American Album of Familiar Music," "A Day in the Life of Dennis Day," and “The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show.” These 15-minute "vest-pocket" versions of hit shows used scripts adapted from the regular series’ runs and, aside from their brevity and interest in veteran’s affairs, are almost indistinguishable from their network counterparts.

These very well recorded discs will make an excellent addition to your old time radio library - particularly at these low prices - and check out some of the stars featured on these shows. It's a virtual cavalcade of 20th century entertainment!

1 two-sided disc/2 shows
15:00 each - Veteran's Administration

^{Here's to Veterans transcription disc $10.00}

Forward March!
For those who miss those by-gone days of marching in formation, sweating in the hot sun on the parade ground, and being yelled at by the Drill Sergeant, the US Army is proud to present "Forward March," featuring The US Army Band, Orchestra, and Chorus in a rousing series that will make you want to join up all over again! (Seriously, these are really pretty good shows. The Army’s musical groups have always been top notch and, since the government could always afford the best, they're quite well recorded, too.)

With the US Army Band Orchestra & The Army Band Chorus
1 two-sided disc/2 shows
15:00 each - US Army Recruiting

^{Forward March transcription disc $10.00}

Westinghouse's Adventures in Research
Remember the 1950s, when we thought that every one of our problems could be solved by science and technology? For those who do - and also for those with a yen to find out just what industry was up to in those early days of the cold war - we offer a series of really fascinating documentary programs from "Adventures in Research," as presented by Westinghouse in the early 1950s. Reminiscent of the better educational films of the period, Bell System science programs, and Walt Disney’s Tomorrowland, these programs give us a unique glimpse into a "world of tomorrow" that has never quite turned out to be as gee-whiz as we might have hoped -- but, just the same, is still a pretty nice place to live.

1 two-sided disc/2 shows
15:00 each - Westinghouse Syndication

^{Adventures in Research transcription disc $10.00}