AMATEUR RADIO - BROADCAST RADIO: TOM GLOVER LOOKS BACK

1977: IS CB STILL ALIVE AND WELL?

2011-12-08T19:18:00.000-08:00

fraternityI never worked the CB bands. My very limited SWL'ing on that band which was at least 7 or 8 years ago was not positive. The in-your-face foul language I heard was not what I was accustomed to when compared to the more disciplined amateur operators. On the other hand, there are honest and disciplined CB operators who are always ready to assist those in need of assistance in emergency situations, and I am sure they would be equally valuable in a national emergency. Converts from CB to the Ham fraternity often bring with them the CB jargon, "what's your 20," "10-4," and where Hams use actual first names, in CB they are tricky "handles" like "Jackhammer," "Noisy lady," etc. Different strokes for different folks.

2011-11-21T08:25:00.000-08:00

2011-11-20T19:48:00.000-08:00

I have exported this blog to my "main" blog,

www.glover320.blogspot.com

MANY THANKS FOR VISITING!

73's to the guys,
88's to the gals!

TOM GLOVER
WA2RVU

USE THE WHITE SEARCH BAR DIRECTLY UNDER MY HOME PAGE GRAPHIC TO SEARCH FOR AMATEUR RADIO RELATED POSTS; IE: "AMATEUR" - "RADIO" - "HAM", ETC.

WHEN THE SEARCH IS COMPLETE, ARROW DOWN PAST THE HOME PAGE AND YOU WILL FIND THE SEARCH RESULTS.

2011: DVRA AMATEUR RADIO "FIELD DAY"

2011-09-29T07:21:00.001-07:00

"Old Friends are the Best Friends." Above is a photo of two of my friends from the "DVRA;" (Delaware Valley Radio Association) during my 15 or so years as a member of that organization. An unfortunate and UN-deserved personal email attack some years ago effectively severed my relationship with the group for which I still hold great respect. I fondly recall the wonderful "Hamfests" we had over in the Lawrence National Guard Armory where I was the official sign-maker and general "helper outer." During those pre-cell phone years, I was part of the W2ZQ "commuters' net" which met each morning on the way to work, and each evening on the way home. We came from all points of the compass: Hopewell, Ewing, Hamilton Bucks County, Bordentown and other Burlington County areas. "K2AAR," "AB2F," "K2ZSY," "K2ITX" "W2SVV," "WB2EIZ," "W2BOO," "W2AEI, K3MNX," "W3ZLP," "WA2JZF," "KA2BJC," "KA2DHA," and I could go on and on. All were a part of a very wonderful era in my life. How time has flown! I was in my 40's when I became a licensed amateur back in the mid 1970's. Today happens to be my 78th birthday, and the memories of the wonderful years I spent communicating with all those wonderful "hams" are indelibly imprinted in my memory. I fully intend to keep my WA2RU amateur license and at some point, I hope to pop up a vertical antenna in my back yard and go international. (Thanks to my dear friend W2AEI who gave me a Kenwood TS820 "work horse," I hope to one day get back on the "DX" trail as I become less and less physically active.)
As a personal observation, amateur radio will still prove to be the saving grace for any terror attacks or other disaster that could come at any time,any place. There will always be those of us who know the Morse code, and those dedicated hams who practice emergency message handling on a daily basis in the event of a national disaster. We seldom hear of them in the local press now that the cell phone has become fashionable. However, during any real emergency, cell phone phones become virtually useless as lines become overloaded. Fortunately there will always be the ham radio fraternity standing by to fill the communications void. We have all heard of the the lack of communication during 911 when the New York Police Department and the New York Fire Department had communication problems. Such would not be the case with amateur radio should a national disaster occur. These dedicated hams are quietly standing by, ready to spring into INSTANT action!
That's what the above field day illustrated above is all about.

1925: RADIO CLUB AT TRENTON'S WOOD SCHOOL

2009-11-28T08:55:00.001-08:00

Unfortunately the paper didn't list the names of the boys in the photo. I would bet that most of them went on to become amateur radio operators. Wouldn't you like to find one of those "superhets" at a flea market?

2009 TRIBUTE TO A SILENT KEY, K2DQR

2009-10-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

As an amateur radio operator for more than 25 years, I am sure I "worked" Joe Lewandowski at some time during the past. I am not a collector of QSL cards, so I really can't verify the contact. However, I did converse on many occasions with Benny Civiletti and a number of other Chambersburg Hams, and I would bet that Joe was one of them. Thanks to the Lewandowski family for the tribute to still another "silent key." R.I.P. and 73's, Joe.

2009: HAROLD VAN DYKE IS A SILENT KEY

2009-10-13T15:33:00.000-07:00

One of my friends on the old DVRA 2 meter radio net was the gentleman above. "Van" was a dedicated radio man and a true gentleman. How I miss those guys and gals who were so much a part of the DVRA "Commuter Net" back in the 1970's. Rest in peace harold, and best 73's.

Tom Glover
WA2RVU

1921: THE PRINCETON "WIRELESS CLUB"

2009-09-04T20:04:00.000-07:00

1937: AMATEUR LEGEND (W2ZI) ED RASER'S SON BOB

2009-06-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

Even though I am posting the graphic when school is about to close, it is a reminder that it's a very short time from June to September. Here we see a group of Parkway School students all ready for the 1937-38 school year. Below is a picture of young Ed Raser, son of the Trenton area's expert amateur radio operators of years gone by. Young Bobby's dad, Mr. Ed Raser, was really the "grandfather" of amateur radio in the Delaware Valley-Trenton area back in the first half of the 20th century.

1925: SLOGANS OF EARLY BROADCAST STATIONS

2009-04-05T19:28:00.001-07:00

I found this article to be completely fascinating. "My Old Kentucky Home" used as station I.D. by a Kentucky station; how interesting! I remember when WOR Newark New Jersey identified itself as a Bamberger Broadcasting station. (Before the moved to NYC). Egad, I'm getting old!

1925: HARRY KIDDER'S RECEIVER

2009-04-05T19:17:00.001-07:00

When I got into ham radio back in the 70's, the veteran hams were QSO'ing each other with the observation that we newcomers were nothing but "appliance operators." Indeed, I would assume that to be the truth. All the work was done for us, and few indeed were guys (and gals) who were interested in taking on a Heathkit, or other home-built rig. My very first rig was an Eico 723 (?) I'm not sure of that nomenclature and too busy to search on the web. I remember that black and gold cabinet and the thrill I got in the 1960's when I had the call sign WN2NXX. (Remember novice calls?) I even recall my first contact on CW. It was a station in Kansas and I was completely bowled over by the contact. (I let it that novice call sign lapse and renewed my interest in amateur radio in the 70's. Ahh, the memories!)

2009: MY SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY COLUMN I S NOW ONLINE

2009-04-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

Talk about "hi-tech!" As I was writing this post, I recalled with bittersweet memories how as a lonely and homesick soldier, serving two and a half years in Italy and Germany, I was starved for hometown news, I asked Mom and Pop Glover to send me the Trenton Times. It took upwards of two weeks to cross the ocean and be put in my barracks mailbox, but I savored each and every paper. Now, those lonely G.I.'s and others who yearn for the news from home, can just click on their computer and journey across the miles to read their hometown newspaper. Incredible!

Online newspaper readership is growing rapidly and a portent of things to come in this digital age. Personally, I don't think anything will ever replace my first-thing-in-the-morning cup of coffee with my favorite morning newspapers spread across my breakfast table. Most of my fellow senior citizens prefer reading the morning paper as they have been for decades. Conversely, most of the younger generation are computer users, and reading the local news online. Realizing the changing demographics, Times Editor Brian Malone has brought the "Times of Trenton" (known to we old timers as the "Trenton Times") into the digital age with a much easier to negotiate website. The Times is the oldest daily newspaper in Trenton, and among the oldest in the Trenton-Bucks-Burlington-Delaware Valley area. The website is very attractive, and those who prefer to read their local news via the online newspaper, along with those who live anywhere in the world can now read comprehensive daily hometown news in brilliant, living color.
My bi-weekly "Sentimental Journey" column, along with all of your other favorite Times columnists, is now available online and quite easy to access. The graphic above is a cut and paste of today's "Sentimental Journey" column. Bookmark the website below for your daily online read of the Times of Trenton, and thanks for being a reader!

Go to:

http://www.nj.com/times

Arrow down to "COLUMNISTS" and click on my name, along with any of the many Times columnists.

1954: CURT CARLSEN "FLYING ENTERPRISE"

2009-04-02T06:25:00.001-07:00

THIS UPDATE RECEIVED FROM STEVE CSORGO, JR. ADDS AN INTERESTING BIT TO CAPTAIN CARLSEN AND W2QJO.
THANKS, STEVE.

April 3, 2009 9:09 PM

Hi Tom,

Glad to see this posted and the story about his accident with the Flying Enterprise II. Just wish to add that Capt. Curt, before leaving his ship, stayed awake by talking to other amatuer radio operator including dad. It was many hours before the ship was going to be a loss and he finally left her. Steve Jr.

Thanks to Kathy Csorge Annaccarato and her brother Steve for a nice collection of the late Steve Csorgo's amateur radio adventures. Steve was an avid amateur radio man and counts among numerous notable peopele, this QSL card from Captain Curt Carlsen, hero skipper of "The Flying Enterprise." As I age, I note that many visitors to my site are not familiar with some of the newsmakers from a mere 50 years ago. Herewith some background on W2ZXM, AKA Capt. Curt Carlsen:

From the website http://www.communigate.co.uk/ne/lookback/page15.phtml
The Flying Enterprise was an American ship built in 1944 and named Cape Kamukaki and owned by a Steel Co in the USA. In 1947,she was renamed the Flying Enterprise and sailed between Hamburg and the USA.
On December 21st 1951,she set sail from Hamburg to the US with a cargo of pig iron and coffee and ten paying passengers.After steady progress on December 25th,she encounted very heavy seas and gale force winds,approx. 400 miles west of Lands End and Capt Carlsen decided to hove to and ride out the storm. These conditions continued unabated and during this time she suffered considerable structural damage and her cargo started to shift. On December 28th Capt Carlsen sent out an SOS,which was picked up by quite a few ships who went to her aid.Early on December 29th the steamer 'Southland' arrived and tried to get alongside but it was too dangerous,so the passengers and crew jumped into the raging seas and were all picked up safely.

FYI: THE TRENTON TIMES WEBSITE

2009-03-29T19:35:00.000-07:00

They tell me that multitudes are reading newspapers on line. Personally, I don't think anything will ever replace my first-thing-in-the-morning cup of coffee and my favorite morning newspapers. But for the growing internet newspaper readership, the folks at the Times of Trenton have made it easier to surf their website. It will be much easier for out of towners to access my latest
"Sentimental Journey" column. Go to:

http://www.nj.com/times

Arrow down to "COLUMNISTS" and click on my name.
Thanks to all my loyal readers!

1940: Ca. 1940 Allen and Hurley Display Window

2009-02-02T20:00:00.000-08:00

Many thanks to Bob Ballentine for this excellent photo of (W2CCO) Les Allen's "Allen and Hurley" Trenton radio store. The photo is un-dated, but I would guess that it would be in the early 1940's.

2009-01-30T19:47:00.001-08:00

Wireless was coming of age! Imagine ordering a life saving prescription through thin air! In my mind, the very early years of wireless are completely fascinating and intriguing,.

1922: "BICYCLE MOBILE"

2009-01-27T11:18:00.001-08:00

Even thought the young lad was "broadcast radio mobile" he was completely enthralled with the concept of going mobile with his rig. Apologies for the poor photo. The newspaper industry hadn't quite figured out to reproduce an offset photo.

2008: REMEMBERING "THE DICK AND BENNIE SHOW"

2009-01-02T05:44:00.001-08:00

Many thanks to Bob Ballantine, W8SU for still another local Trenton area amateur radio "Classic." Bennie was a regular on 147.24 back in the 70's. He and Dick Parent became local legends with their daily banter on the "Cream Ridge" machine. Every one was fair game for their
entertaining 2 meter daily QSO's.

1944: HALLICRAFTERS HT4 CONVERTED TO SCR299 MOBILE

2008-12-31T10:09:00.000-08:00

Don't miss this incredibly interesting of a World War II film which details Hallicrafters Corp. Engnering workers converting an HF transmitter to mobile military use. Many thanks to an old time amateur radio buddy, N2HX (Bob Schroeder) for forwarding it.

http://www.w3vpr.org/node/509

2008: VERONICA HORVATH GARNIER

2008-12-28T08:23:00.001-08:00

Here's the QSL card from Matt Horvath's daughter, lovely Veronica Horvath Garnier. She and husband Bob were both members of the amateur radio fraternity. Like a number of amateurs, the hassle with antenna restrictions, the arrival of the internet and cell phones, and the prohibitive cost of equipment, has resulted in rendering many facets of our facinating hobby irrelevant, resulting in the Garniers letting their licenses lapse. Rhode Island Red must have really been proud of his daughter achieving the very difficult process of passing the original FCC tests which are much easier to get today. Many thanks, Bob and Veronica. Even though amateur radio has lost some of its popularity due to the aforementioned situations, I still intend to keep my license updated. One never knows what the future holds. Recent disasters have proven that amateur radio reigns when all other communication methods fail.

BOB GARNIER WROTE:

Hi Tom

Dug around our old junk and found my wife's QSL. She is daughter of Matt, W2 Rhode Island Red. Her last call was VK4SM.

Have a great 2009 Tom

Regards

Bob & Veronica Garnier

Brisbane, Australia

Being 'over the hill' is much better than being under it!

2008: AMATEUR RADIO: FRIENDS FOREVER!

2008-12-26T19:14:00.000-08:00

I received the following email and the above photo from Bob and Veronica Garnier. Bob is a native Hamiltonian from the White Horse area, now calling Brisbane, Australia home. Bob recalls his and Veronica's years as amateur ops, and also recalls "RIR" as we called him "Rhode Island Red."
Bob, I couldn't get past 35 words per minute in morse, and you navy coast guard guys were always the best when it came to ultra high speed C.W. I spent 3 years in the Army Security Agency where I reached 35 wpm, and with that speed was assigned to copy the Russians during the cold war. Russian ops are also aces with the bug. Thanks so much for writing. It is a pleasure to hear from you. I have been concentrating on my local history website, www.glover320.blogspot.com and will be adding more to my amateur/broadcast radio site in the future.
73's to you and 88's to Veronica.

Tom Glover
WA2RVU

BOB WROTE:

Greetings from Brisbane Australia

I just finished chatting with my good friend Byron, w7swc in seattle on skype. We got around to talking about the "old days" of amateur radio and Byron said "I wonder if w2rir was ever reissued"

(w2rir was my wife's father) so I did a google of w2rir and up popped your website on Rhode island red a local legend. I know everyone on that photo, it brought back memories. W5MLU is my wife's godfather. All the guys in photo were local Trenton burg guys, w5mlu met a gal from Villa Platt La while in the army and after ww2 moved to Villa Platt.

My wife was WA2IMR, then KP4BIE, then KH6FRT, and finally VK4SM.

I started out WA2AFT first lic in 1957 (Hamilton High West class of 60)

held KP4BHR, KH6FRT, VK4EA.

I was born a Hamilton guy, norton avenue in the white horse area of Hamilton. Moved around a lot due to 10 years in the Coast Guard where I was a distress radio operator. Have certificate for 40wpm which as you know is about as fast as you can get. My last duty in CG was Hawaii and it completely spoiled us, after leaving the CG we just couldnt resettle in Trenton area. Missed the warm climate so we moved to Australia on what was going to be a 2 year job assignment but after 2 or 3 weeks we knew we had "found our final home". Its been 38 years now and have made the long flight back to Trenton 14 times. No one left now, last time back we paid our final visits to all the graves so doubt that we will be back any more. Just too long on a plane for my old bones....

Anyway - starting to ragchew too much, just wanted to drop a short email to let you know your webpage was viewed down here and it sure brought back memories of all the old gang...

Regards

Bob & Veronica Garnier

(we both are no longer licensed hams, it was part of our lives for many years but the internet is now where we communicate, no antennas to worry about blowing down hehe)

Being 'over the hill' is much better than being under it!

1979: MR. AND MRS. GARY KATONA CONVERSE WITH A KING

2008-12-16T07:32:00.000-08:00

As I advance in age, I realize that I have acquired a large number of folks whom I can call
"old friends." Once such is Gary Katona, a gentleman I met way back in the mid '70's when we were both "young men." As seen in the graphic above which I extracted from one of the Mercer Messengers in my collection, along with a photo of King Hussein of Jordan, whom Gary and Carol had the honor of conversing with through that wonderful media we all know as amateur radio. In my lengthy radio career, I can only claim conversing with two celebrities. Larry Ferrari, and my favorite satirist, Jean Shepherd.

2008: Doug Mertz-The Gentleman Ham

2008-11-17T06:42:00.000-08:00

K2ITX, W2AEI, W2FDE, N2HX (Formerly WA2JZF), K2AAR, W3SHY, W3GWZ, WB2EIZ, N2GJ, K2ZE (Formerly K2SNK), K2ZSY, W2SVV, W2CCO, -----oh my gosh, I could go on and on! We have just lost one of the finest gentleman it was my privilege to call a friend. Along with the aforementioned call signs, and many more whose call signs elude me at this particular moment, Doug Mertz was one of our regulars on the morning and evening "Commuter Net" which was a very popular morning QSO center back in the mid 1970's. One of the real treasures to be found in the hobby of amateur radio is the acquisition of life long friends. The memories of our DVRA "Commuter Net" will be with me until we hams all join Doug, K2ITX, in that eternal DX-pedition which will come when we receive the final "CQ" from above. RIP, DOUG!

YOU CAN SIGN DOUG'S TRENTON TIMES GUESTBOOK.
CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING URL:

http://obits.nj.com/trenton/GB/GuestbookEntry.aspx?&PersonID=120246757

1977: DVRA RADIO LEGEND "B.B." WENTZEL

2008-11-10T08:41:00.001-08:00

Amateur radio also had a proliferation of members of "The Greatest Generation."
Back when I became involved in amateur radio, those of us who constituted the "new breed" were derisively called "appliance operators." In the photo above, B.B. Wentzel is holding a revolutionary "HT," or in technical amateur talk, "Handy-Talky." The demise of the WWII tube type behemoth known as a "Walky-Talky" was replaced by the revolutionary transistorized HT seen in the photo. I would guess that it was a "Wilson," but I am probably incorrect.
I humbly ask that a more knowledgeable ham who is able to properly identify that radio come forward and rescue me.

LEFT CLICK TO ENLARGE

2008-10-24T05:07:00.000-07:00

REMEMBER:

TO SEE THE FULL SIZE GRAPHIC,

LEFT CLICK ON YOUR MOUSE!

1947: BLIND AMATEUR RADIOMAN JOE PIECHOWSKI

2008-08-06T08:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks to amateur radio operators like Joe Piechowski, many lonely military men and women were treated to a trans-oceanic telephone conversation with their loved ones stateside. I was also privileged to have a phone patch from my Army A.S.A. barracks in Bad Aibling, Germany, all the way home to an amateur radio operator in the Bucks County area. It was that Christmas Eve contact with home that led to me becoming an amateur radio operator. (WA2RVU).

1925: SECRET ANTENNA

2008-04-22T15:54:00.001-07:00

EVEN BACK IN THE EARLY YEARS OF BROADCAST RADIO, MANY RADIO LOVERS HAD NEIGHBORS WHO OBJECTED TO UNSIGHTLY WIRES POLLUTING THEIR ENVIRONMENT. TODAY APARTMENT AND GATED COMMUNITY DWELLERS EXPERIENCE THE SAME SITUATION. I KNOW A NUMBER OF AMATEURS WHO ARE IN A SITUATION WHERE THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO INSTALL AN ANTENNA.

DVRA NEWSLETTER FEATURES COVERAGE OF SUNSPOTS

2008-04-22T15:52:00.001-07:00

THE SUN SPOT PROBLEM GOES ALL THE WAY BACK TO MARCONI AND EVEN EARLIER. EVERY 11 YEARS THE SUNSPOT CYCLE REVOLVES FROM GOOD RECEPTION TO BAD.

1980 DVRA CELEBRATES 50 WONDERFUL YEARS

2008-04-22T15:49:00.001-07:00

IT IS ONE OF THE OLDEST AMATEUR RADIO CLUBS IN EXISTANCE. IT IS APPROPRIATE THAT ED RASER, THE GRAND OLD MAN OF LOCAL AMATEUR RADIO, WAS FEATURED ON THE ANNIVERSARY QSL CARD.

1940 DVRA HAMFEST AND OUTING COMBINED

2008-04-22T15:44:00.000-07:00

THE HAMFEST WAS HELD IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST. IT IS INTERESTING TO NOTE THAT THE OUTING WAS INCLUDED AS PART OF THE FESTIVITIES.

DVRA "OLD TIMERS" NO. 5

2008-04-22T11:53:00.001-07:00

THANKS TO STEVE CSORGO'S DAUGHTER KATHY, IHAVE MANY AMATEUR ITEMS TO POST AS TIME PERMITS. BILL PETTY WAS ONE OF THE MAIN COGS IN THE WELL-OILED MACHINERY OF THE DVRA IN THE EARLY YEARS.

DVRA "OLD TIMERS" NO. 4

2008-04-22T11:47:00.001-07:00

HERE'S GARY KATONA'S NOVICE AND UPGRADED K2BDK CALL. I WISH THE OLDTIMERS HAD STAYED WITH THEIR ORIGINAL CALLS. EARL, W2UNT WAS A REGULAR 4 PM 2 METER VISITOR WITH JIM SINCLAIR, FRANK BIJASICK, CARL POLHEMUS IN THE 70'S.

DVRA "OLD TIMERS" NO. 3

2008-04-22T11:44:00.001-07:00

THESE CARDS REPRESENT 4 GENTLEMEN WHO WERE CONSUMMATE AMATEUR RADIO MEN. THEY ALL HAD VERY FAMILIAR SIGNALS ON THE W2ZQ TWO METER REPEATER.

DVRA "OLD TIMERS" NO. 2

2008-04-22T11:34:00.001-07:00

K2DOV AND K2DPS ARE "REGULARS" ON THE W2ZQ PEPPER NET EACH NIGHT AT
10. PM. K2ASG IS THE SON OF HERB SPAIR, K2ASF. THESE TWO HAMS LIT UP THE AIRWAVES BACK IN THE 70'S AND 80'S WITH THEIR 147.075/675 ROBBINSVILLE REPEATER.

DVRA "OLD TIMERS" NO. 1

2008-04-22T11:29:00.000-07:00

THIS IS ONE IN A SERIES OF QSL CARDS FROM THE COLLECTION OF W2AEI. THEY ARE "OLD TIMERS" WHO WERE ACTIVE ON 146.07/67, THE DVRA 2 METER REPEATER. MORE TO FOLLOW. MANY THANKS TO PAUL, W2AEI FOR SAVING THESE GREAT OLD CARDS.

PRESS RELEASE FROM HAMILTON TOWNSHIP

2008-04-11T14:35:00.001-07:00

I HOPE SOME OF THE LOCAL VISITORS TO MY WEBSITE WILL JOIN ME THIS COMING WEDNESDAY AS I PRESENT A PROGRAM OF LOVE SONGS AT THE KUSER FARM MANSION. I HAVE SEEN POLITICALLY MOTIVATED SUGGESTIONS IN THE LOCAL NEWS THAT THE PROGRAMS ARE AN UN-NECESSARY EXPENSE. NOTE THAT ALL OF MY EFFORTS ARE ON A VOLUNTEER BASIS, AS ARE ALL THE OTHER CITIZENS WHO BELIEVE IN GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY WE LOVE. HERE'S THE TOWNSHIP PRESS RELEASE; I SURE HOPE TO SEE A FEW OF YOU THERE:

“April Love”

Wednesday, April 16^th at 7:00 p.m.

Advance Reservation Required

Musical ProgramBy To lover

Enjoy an evening musical program presented by Tom Glover in the 45 foot dining room of the mansion. Tom will bring his music on his computer, and you’ll have a lovely evening listening to his love ballads. Guests are invited to join in, by singing along during the entire evening. Tom always presents a memorable evening.

NOTE: Tom Glover presents this program on a volunteer basis – and therefore it is not at taxpayer expense. Residents may call 890-3630 to confirm reservations.

==============

(WHEN YOU CALL, WAIT FOR THE RECORDED MESSAGES TO PLAY, THEN LEAVE YOUR MESSAGE AT THE BEEP.)

1931: RADIO COMING OF AGE

2008-03-31T19:58:00.001-07:00

FROM ITS INCEPTION IN THE 1920'S, RADIO REALLY BEGAN TO BECOME A NECESSARY PART OF AMERICAN LIFE IN THE 1930'S. BY THE LATE 1930'S NETWORK RADIO WAS AS IMPORTANT TO AMERICAN AS TODAY'S TELEVISION. (AND THE PROGRAMMING WAS SUPERIOR!)

1930: WHEN RADIO WAS KING

2008-03-28T12:19:00.001-07:00

WHAT AN INCREDIBLE ESCAPE FOR THOSE OF US WHO RECALL THE MAGIC OF BROADCAST RADIO! MOM COULD READ A BOOK, DAD THE NEWSPAPER, AND WE KIDS COULD PLAY WITH OUR ERECTOR SET WHILE LISTENING TO AN INCREDIBLE NUMBER OF RADIO PROGRAMS. FROM "MR. KEENE, TRACER OF LOST PERSONS," TO "YOUR FBI IN PEACE AND WAR," TO THE "LUX RADIO THEATER," "CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT, AND OH SO MANY EXCITING BROADCASTS THAT USED THE "THEATER OF THE MIND."

1922: LONG BEFORE TRANSISTORS AND PORTABLES

2008-03-25T05:01:00.001-07:00

THIS YOUNG LAD PROBABLY WENT ON TO BECOME A RADIO AMATEUR. HERE HE PROUDLY EXHIBITS HIS MOBIL BROADCAST RADIO PROVING THAT HE WAS RIGHT IN THE MIX WITH THE BROADCASTING CRAZE WHICH WAS SWEEPING AMERICA.

UNFORTUNATELY, THE OFFSET PHOTO PROCESS IN THE 20'S WAS LACKING IN MANY RESPECTS....ONE OF WHICH WAS THE DIFFICULTY IN PRINTING A CLEAR IMAGE. HOWEVER, IT IS STILL INTERESTING TO SEE HOW BROADCAST RADIO, SCARCELY TWO YEARS OLD, WAS CAPTURING THE IMAGINATION OF AMERICA'S YOUTH.

1922: RADIO OUT OF CONTROL

2008-03-20T10:54:00.001-07:00

I found this article of great interest. Broadcast radio was only a couple of years old when the airwaves were filled with very strange transmissions.

BOB BALLANTINE'S GPR90

2008-02-21T18:30:00.001-08:00

THIS FROM W8SU, BOB BALLANTINE:

These babies were made out on Long Island and were considered top of the line in the 50s. They also had a military contract and made a lot of money engineering radio and transmitting equipment for them and the amateur community.

1941:DVRA EXTRACTS

2008-02-21T05:06:00.000-08:00

SEVEN MONTHS PRIOR TO THE JAPANESE ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR...THESE OLD DVRA NEWSLETTERS HOLD A CERTAIN FASCINATION. LIKE MY TRENTON NEWSPAPER COLLECTION, I NEVER TIRE OF PERUSING THE PAGES AND TAKING A TRIP BACK TO THE YEARS WHEN LIKE TODAY, THE TYPICAL AMATEUR WAS AN ELECTRONIC "TRAILBLAZER."

HERE'S RHODE ISLAND RED = TNX W8SU

2008-02-20T15:12:00.001-08:00

Following i	s a note from Bob Ballantine, referring to his amateur radio experiences as a younger man in the Trenton area. Bob has been sending some really nice amateur radio memorabilia to me for on this site, (SEE THE ACCOMPANYING QSL CARD BELOW FROM "RHODE ISLAND RED," W2RIR. This website was established with the idea of touching on the fascinating past of central Jersey amateur radio, and the many friends we hams have had over the years.
THIS FROM BOB:
	Tom, my friend Margie K2UTS told me of your great work on area history. I am spending a lot of time here and appreciate what you are doing. I love wireless and area radio history, Mr. Raser and Carl Dannerth & Bob Singer were hero's to me when I attended THS in the 50s. I am searching for a picture of Mr. Dannerth but as yet can't locate anything. I got my chance there in Trenton and joined the CG and eventually Ohio State Highway Patrol. I look back with appreciation to my amateur radio heritage in Trenton, Thanks. Bob - Warren, Ohio W8SU

"THE BRETING 14"

2008-02-20T15:08:00.001-08:00

RIGHT ON THE HEELS OF MY POST SHOWING STEVE CSORGO'S SHACK AND MY QUERY AS TO WHAT THAT STRANGE RIG WAS, ALONG COMES BOB BALLANTINE WITH THE ANSWER! WHAT A GREAT OLD RADIO! I WISH I HAD THE AFFLUENCE TO BEGIN A COLLECTION OF THOSE VINTAGE RIGS.

1975: W2QJO, PORTABLE 2, TROUT CREEK

2008-02-19T20:07:00.001-08:00

I REMEMBER EVESDROPPING ON STEVE AS I WENDED MY WAY HOME FROM NEW BRUNSWICK BACK IN THE 60'S AND 70'S. WHAT A GREAT LOOKING SHACK! WHAT A GREAT PANORAMIC VIEW OUT HIS WINDOWS! DON'T MISS THE D104 LOLLIPOP!

1938: STEVE CSORGO BEFORE HE BECAME W2QJO

2008-02-19T19:59:00.001-08:00

FROM THE CSORGO SIBLINGS STEVE, JR. AND KATHY, MORE ON SILENT KEY WQJO, STEVE CSORGO. HERE IS A FASCINATING SET OF PHOTOS OF HIS SHACK, THE SLOPING CEILING LEADING ME TO BELIEVE THAT HE HAD HIS EQUIPMENT IN A SECOND FLOOR BEDROOM.

CAN ANY VISITOR TELL ME WHAT THAT STRANGE LOOKING RIG IS THAT STEVE IS TUNING?

1949: (Circa 1949)WPTZ CHANNEL 3 PHILADELPHIA

2008-02-19T19:45:00.001-08:00

BACK THEN IT WAS CHANNELS 3, 6 AND 10 AND A BIT LATER CHANNEL 12, WDEL-TV, WILMINGTON, DELAWARE. I WONDER HOW MANY VISITORS EMBIBED IN ONE OF MY FAVORITE PASTIMES KNOWN AS "TVDX." I REMEMBER THE THRILL OF RECEIVING WLAN-TV (?) CHANNEL 8 IN LANCASTER, PA. i'M NOT QUITE SURE IF MY MEMORY IS CORRECT BUT I THINK THE CALL WAS WLAN. AS I RECALL I ALSO RECEIVED WMAR-TV IN WASHINGTON, D.C., AND WRVA IN RICHMOND. NOT BAD FOR VERY MODEST SINGLE STACK ARRAY FACTING THE SOUTHWEST!

THANKS TO BOB BALLANTINE FOR THIS
INTRIGUING VESTIGE FROM THE PAST.

2008: FASCINATING ED RASER FROM BOB BALLANTINE

2008-02-18T19:32:00.001-08:00

Tom, you can still hear the fist of W2ZI Ed Raser today on vinyl or CD. What a Legacy he left us! In the 1960's Avant/experimental, electronic genius Vladimir Ussachevsky showed up on Mr. Rasers door step to record old style cw and examples of spark transmissions. Ed graciously complied and the recording track "Wireless Fantasy" is history. In the 4 minute plus recording Ed Raser sends various cw calls, Wannamakers Department Store WA, Then Radio Cape Cod DF a few other assorted things and Finally "AR GN" which meant end of transmission and Good Nite!

The recordings are very hard to find today and at least "Wireless fantasy" can be heard on the Internet with the following addressee. Click on Wireless Fantasy and have fun. It was a LP recording thus a few clicks but very intelligible.

w8su (ZUT) CW forever!

http://waxidermy.com/2006/06/19/music-for-electronic-older-instruments/

DF on the recording is the ID call of the
Manhattan Beach Radio Station, one of
the best known of the early broadcasters
with a range from Nova Scotia to the
Caribbean; WA NY is the ID for
Waldorf-Astoria Station which started
broadcasting in 1910; DOC DF DeForest's
own code nickname.
I have a PDF and will send it, you are
welcome to any of the material plus new
pictures OF Ed Raser in this months QST
under John Dilks section of Old Time radio.

W8SU

2008: "OLD FRIENDS ARE THE BEST FRIENDS"

2008-02-15T05:47:00.000-08:00

HERE'S A FASCINATING STORY TOLD BY BOB BALLANTINE AND HIS REMINISCENCES OF SIDE DEITZ'S 49 PLYMOUTH AND ALSO SID'S MOBILE AM RADIO.

2008: BOB BALLANTINE REMEMBERS W2POC, GEORGE LECK

2008-02-14T15:29:00.000-08:00

HERE'S ANOTHER HIGH PROFILE AMATEUR OF THE PAST FROM THE FILES OF BOB BALLANTINE. BOB WROTE:

George Leck W2POC of Princeton Corners NJ - RCA scientist and researcher, I met George through ham friend Bob Singer K2LEM mid 50s - George lived in a nice country home, older and plenty of space for ham radio. George liked CW and you could tell by his signal that he took pride in a clean sounding station. He maintained daily schedules with friends he met along the way especially in the evening hours. K2UTS in Trenton advised me of a huge Harley Davidson cycle would come into their back yard that Leck owned visiting her father K2LEM.

I found some good personal information about Mr. Leck from the David Sarnoff Library and listed our subject W2POC - In 1934 Irving Wolff and Ernest Linder of RCA's research staff in Camden were conducting restricted radar experiments at the Atlantic Highlands for the U.S. Army. The two scientists were testing an odd looking collection of apparatus - a transmitter a small receiver, an audio amplifier and two four foot dish shaped antennas. the Wolff/Linder research team was reinforced by RCA in 1937 by Rene Braden and George W. Leck (who moved on to historic achievement in the first microwave scanning radar equipment capable of displaying visually the distance and angle of the objects it detected)

Our subject W2POC was mentioned again involved with RCA Labs in Princeton NJ, as W.D.Harshberger accomplished prewar fundamental studies in useful effects of materials used in microwaves. Those pioneering studies were continued by a staff consisting of a team Dr. N.E.Norton, MS Eliz Bush and Mr. George Leck W2POC.

George has written prefaces in the art, Cryoelectric receiver techniques and microwave applications. By the way, his home address was "Grover's Mill Road" Do you remember the Orson Wells infamous 1938 Halloween broadcast of War of the Worlds?

The question as to who invented radar is likely to remain buried forever beneath a mass of conflicting claims, yet the work at Camden during the 1930s period clearly made a basic contribution to the effective development of the system. It was to have such a radical effect upon military and naval tactics in WW2, testifying to this contribution, the Navy awarded Irving Wolff in 1949 the highest honor it can bestow upon a civilian - the Distinguished Public Service Award -- George W2POC expired October of 1982 at Princeton Junction. One of Mr. Leck's sons is Dr. Charles Leck retired professor of ecological sciences who can be found giving young people tours on the ornithologist trails at the Hamilton-Trenton Marsh. Before Geo. expired he picked up a call change to a K2 extra class style which I've forgotten but still appreciate W2POC. Statements and QSL aided by K2UTS. W8SU

1949: SID DEITZ, IS THIS FAMILIAR?

2008-02-14T11:50:00.001-08:00

HOW WELL I REMEMBER THAT AUTOMOTIVE FOURSOME BACK IN THE 40'S AND 50'S: PLYMOUTH, DODGE DESOTO AND CHRYSLER! ONE OF THE SADDEST EVENTS OF THE CENTURY WAS AMERICA'S AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING DECLINE. I REMEMBER BACK IN 1949 OR SO, WHEN SIMCA, OPEL, DATSUN, AND OTHER FOREIGN AUTOS BEGAN TO COME IN TO AMERICA. I DIDN'T KNOW IT THEN, BUT IT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE END FOR HUDSON, NASH, KAISER-FRAZER, AND PACKARD. THE GAS PRICES CAN'T BE SEEN IN THIS PHOTO, BUT I WOULD GUESTIMATE THAT IF THEY WERE, YOU WOULD SEE THAT IT WAS 19.9 PER GALLON! HOW DO I KNOW? THAT WAS THE ERA WHEN I WAS OF "CRUSING" AGE. YOU DO REMEMBER CRUISING, DON'T YOU?

THIS BEAUTIFUL PHOTO CAME TO ME COURTESY OF BOB BALLANTINE, A NEW FOUND HAM RADIO FRIEND WHO IS SHARING SOME VERY INTERESTING HISTORIC/NOSTALGIC ITEMS FROM "THE GOLDEN YEARS." BOB RECALLED THIS VEHICLE AS SIMILAR TO ONE OWNED BY SID DEITZ FROM HIS YOUNGER YEARS AS A TRENTON AREA RESIDENT WHEN SID WAS A PIONEER MOBILE OP.

UHH.....LET ME SEE....WE WERE YOUNG ONCE WEREN'T WE? IT SEEMS SO VERY LONG AGO. THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES BOB! I HAVE ALSO POSTED THIS ON MY MAIN WEBSITE, WWW.GLOVER320.BLOGSPOT.COM.

2008: BOB BALLANTINE - W8SU - RECALLS ANOTHER LOCAL HAM D

2008-02-14T04:36:00.001-08:00

Hey Bob: As long as you have all these wonderful memories of your amateur radio years, I'm sure you won't object if I share your impressive retrospectives with the visitors to this site. Your submission recalling Sid Dietz and his ' 49 Plymouth are equally interesting. I am having problems with the graphic, but I will eventually get it on this site. THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR INPUT; PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTRIBUTE AS YOU RECALL OTHER MATERIAL FROM THE PAST.
TOM GLOVER
===========================******************==========================

FROM W8SU:

Tom, here is a gifted Trenton Area amateur W2HX A.G. Wentzel Jr 1904-1995 Affectionately known as "BB" - Wentzel expired at age 91 in 1995 - He was born in Philadelphia and resided in Trenton since 1912 - A grad of Trenton School System and the School of Industrial Arts - now Mercer county Community College. BB completed a four year technical course and three years of evening classes in electrical engineering. Mr. Wentzel taught electrical engineering laboratory at the School of Industrial Arts for 36 years.

WW2 came along and he was a field engineer with Aluminum Company of America. He later joined Princeton Univ Palmer Labs for telemetering of unmanned missiles and airplanes. At wars end transferring to Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory as an electrical engineer and designed a power sub-station for the hydrogen fusion project. While at the University he designed and built the transmitter for measuring the pressure of the atomic bomb drop at Bikini Atoll.

After his retirement from the fusion project he was in charge of the communications for Mercer County Radio System, which included the highway department, airport and sheriff's department for 18 years. He was a volunteer with the Office of Emergency Management for 30 years.

Mr. Wentzel was one of the oldest radio operators in the U.S.A. licensed in 1919 continuously with 2HX. In 1920 he built the first radiophone station in the world equipped with two way radios for the Trenton Fire Department. Our subject was the oldest continuous member since 1922 of the Engineers Club of Trenton, the 1989 recipient of the Certificate of Merit Award, life member of IEEE, AMSAT, SOWP, QCWA, DVRA of Trenton and also a fellow in the Radio Club of America. He was awarded a 75 year plaque by National QCWA as a licensed radio amateur. His gift and talent was enormous.

Your author had worked BB many times on 75 Meter Phone in the 50's especially on Saturday mornings on the old AM group. He was cordial and always helpful. Partially scripted from QCWA Chapter 5.

W8SU 2008

1940'S: A WFIL-TV TEST PATTERN!

2008-02-13T09:46:00.001-08:00

I'LL NEVER FIGURE THIS ONE OUT! BOB BALLANTINE SENT THIS VERY FAMILIAR TEST PATTERN FROM WFIL-TV AS IT APPEARED DURING THEIR OFF THE AIR HOURS. DUE TO THE EXTREME CLARITY OF THE IMAGE, I WOULD ASSUME THAT IT CAME FROM A RECENT PUBLICATION. THANKS, BOB! I REMEMBER IN THE EARLY YEARS OF COAXIAL CABLE TELEVISION, TURNING ON MY 10" ADMIRAL TV AND DX-IN THE TV CHANNELS. I RECALL RECEIVING THE TEST PATTERN OF WDEL-TV IN WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, AND WLAN-TV IN LANCASTER PA. WHAT A THRILL!

1938: THANKS AGAIN BOB BALLANTINE!

2008-02-13T09:43:00.001-08:00

THANKS TO BOB BALLANTINE FOR THESE TWO ADDITIONAL QSL CARDS FROM THE LATE, GREAT ED RASER. IF ANY OTHER VISITORS TO THIS SITE HAVE MATERIAL OF THIS TYPE, EMAIL IT TO ME AT homglo@verizon.net. LET'S KEEP THE RADIO PAST ALIVE.

2008: FROM A REAL, GENUINE, AMATEUR OP!

2008-02-11T04:55:00.000-08:00

THIS INCREDIBLY INTERESTING EMAIL FROM BOB BALLANTINE (W8SU) AND FORMER W2RIE CAME IN THIS MORNING'S EMAIL BOB, THIS IS LIKE GETTING AN EMAIL FROM THE GREAT BEYOND. THANKS SO MUCH FOR WRITING. I WILL CERTAINLY TAKE THE TIME TO VISIT WWW.W8JYZ.COM AND VISIT WITH MY FELLOW MORSE INTERCEPT COLLEAGUE.

Tom, what you are doing is priceless! Keep up the good work. I came thru Trenton as a boy in the 50s -- got my Novice ticket and then 1958 General class (W2RIE) I'm now W8SU and a lot of mileage. Sid Dietz is an old friend, bless him, I used to talk to him on his noon break on 75 Meter phone, he operated in his car out in the lot and I was at home on Hamilton Avenue with a cheap Knight Kit and army surplus receiving gear wondering what I would become in life. Soon I knew.

I have a lot of data on the www.w8jyz.com internet page and one you might like is Sgt Johnny Cash, USAF Intercept Operator. Scroll down on the left side and click on him.

I have made it a habit to write about VIP hams and everyday people who have influenced me over the years and tributes. Because of ham radio, it kept me off the streets and gave me direction and many life long friends. If there is a picture of Carl Dannerth W3LH in any Trenton HS publications, I'd appreciate one, would insert it on his tribute page that I wrote. Carl was a long time, well respected THS teacher who is a silent key.

By the way, I noticed the R390 that you fondly speak of, it was a top secret receiver early on and the USS Pueblo (Elant) ship had several racks of them. They were not destroyed and the ship is on public view in North Korea.

I considered Ed Raser a personal friend. I only wish his extensive collection remained in Trenton but that is ancient history. He was a Society of Wireless Pioneer of which I also belonged and had many fond hours over the years chatting with him. His wife Polly was also a pioneer ham. Ed talked about stringing a wire along the river bridge in the early radio days, the bridge that has the "Trenton makes" sign, he said it got out well on the air!

Radio is my life and recently I put together a Elecraft amateur HF kit, I no longer lament Heath Kit going out of business, Elecraft out of California is the real deal! It is a fabulous kit and as good or better than any imported rig on the market! and I doood it myself! It is the K2 and I've got a special serial number, yes - 6 1 4 6 - the old power tube that we grew to love over 50 years. One word to the wise, the Kw is sweat equity, don't undertake unless you mean business. My old eyes could not do the job, I needed a desk mag lite. It took two weeks of extensive wiring and a final tune up and I was amazed and pleased to say the least.

I have a WTNJ story, TNJ always ran low power and the tower just outside of town was not very high, they would run weekend contests where one would call in and win a hour or two on the air and you played disc jockey. I won two sessions in the 50s, I can't remember the location but the studio was a two story home, residential type, somewhere near the State Prison. the Gent on duty was a friend of Bob Keesham who became Capt Kangaroo! I've often wished I could remember who the guy on duty was then, he was polite and understanding to a kid.

Regards, keep well and hope to hear from you Sir!

Bob Ballantine W8SU -- Warren, Ohio formerly W2RIE and former active USCG radioman and former Ohio State Highway Patrol. E-gads, I'm getting old.

1910: THEY HAD "BANANAS" IN THE EARLY YEARS OF RADIO, TOO!

2008-02-07T19:25:00.001-08:00

SEE, EVEN IN THE EARLIEST YEARS OF "WIRELESS" THEY HAD THOSE DREADED "BANANAS" WE HAMS HAVE ALL COME TO KNOW AND LOVE. THE BIG BLACK RECTANGLE IN THE GRAPHIC REPRESENTS A MISSING LINE OR TWO IN THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE. IT DOESN'T SHOW IN THE SCAN, BUT THE ORIGINAL PAGES ON MY 1910 VOLUME ARE REALLY IN SAD SHAPE. I WAS ABLE TO BRING 98.9% OF THE GRAPHIC BACK BUT THE BLACK RECTANGLE REPRESENTS A TEAR IN THAT AREA WHICH ELIMINATED A COMPLETE LINE.

1938: FROM THE STEVE CSORGO W2QJO COLLECTION

2008-02-02T10:39:00.001-08:00

KATHY AND STEVE BROUGHT A NUMBER OF STEVE CSORGO'S AMATEUR RADIO MEMORABILIA TO THE LIBRARY THIS WEEK. THE GRAPHIC ABOVE IS A VIGNETTE OF A FEW OF THE PHOTOS FROM THE LATTER 1930'S. I WILL BE POSTING OTHER CSORGO-RELATED GRAPHICS IN FUTURE POSTS AND AS TIME PERMITS. STEVE JR. ALSO BROUGHT SOME VERY INTERESTING STEINERT AND GRICE MATERIAL WHICH WILL BE POSTED ON WWW.GLOVER320.BLOGSPOT.COM. OVER THE MANY YEARS I HAVE BEEN COLLECTING, MY INTEREST WAS ON KUSER SCHOOL AND HAMILTON HIGH WHERE I WAS A STUDENT. I HAVE PITIFULLY LITTLE ON STEINERT AND GRICE. FOR SOME STRANGE REASON THE POWERS THAT BE AT STEINERT DO NOT WANT TO SHARE THE CONTENTS OF HISTORIC YEARBOOKS FROM YEARS PAST. WHEN SUPREME COURT NOMINEE SAMUEL ALITO WAS APPOINTED, I RECEIVED CALLS FROM CNN, ABC, MSNBC AND FOX NEWS; ALL REQUESTING A PHOTO. UNFORTUNATELY, I HAD NO STEINERT YEARBOOKS IN MY LOCAL HISTORY COLLECTION.

Circa 1960 VIKING RANGER

2008-02-02T10:29:00.001-08:00

trIt will take a radio guy with far more knowledge on the evolution of amateur radio to determine the age of the Viking Ranger . When I entered the fraternity in the early 1970's, there were still a number of hams who were using the "Viking." I wish I were financially able to start a museum for some of these classic rigs. I can't even begin to recall all the radios I have owned over my lifetime. I do remember my very first ham transmitter. It was an Eico 723 CW. For extra dollars, one could add a modulator to that Eico. I also had a Swan 350 which I procured back in the late 70's or early 80's from a ham buddy, Doug Mertz, K2ITX.

1987: CABLE TV: WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

2008-01-27T14:08:00.000-08:00

CABLE TV HAS SEEN REMARKABLE TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES OVER THE PAST DECADES. AS I RECALL, MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WAS IN AN ARTICLE TELLING OF NEW BRITAIN CONNECTICUT PLANNING A TEST PROJECT LABLED AS "PAY TV." THE ARTICLE SAID IT WOULD BRING UP TO DATE THEATER MOVIES TO THE TELEVISION SCREEN. WHAT AN EXCITING CONCEPT THAT WAS WAY BACK THERE IN THE 60'S WHEN I THINK IF FIRST HEARD ABOUT IT.

OTR: WE HAD TO USE OUR IMAGINATION

2008-01-25T19:41:00.001-08:00

THOSE OF US WHO COLLECT OLD TIME RADIO PROGRAMS ARE INVOLVED IN A FASCINATING COLLECTOR'S PASTIME KNOWN AS "OTR;" OLD TIME RADIO. I COULD NEVER BEGIN TO LIST ALL THE GREAT RADIO PROGRAMS THAT I LISTENED TO AS A YOUNG BOY, AND THEN INTO ADULTHOOD. THE DAILY EPISODES OF TERRY AND THE PIRATES, HOP HARRIGAN, TOM MIX, AND LATER, THE LUX RADIO THEATER, MR. DISTRICT ATTORNEY, GANG BUSTERS, THE GREAT GILDERSLEEVE, AMOS AND ANDY, LUM AND ABNER.....I COULD GO ON AND ON. THANKFULLY, THOUSANDS OF THOSE OLD RADIO SHOWS ARE AVAILABLE IN MP3 FORMAT. I AM BUILDING A COLLECTION AND LULL MYSELF TO SLEEP EVERY NIGHT LISTENING TO JEAN SHEPARD, SPEED GIBSON, HOP HARRIGAN, DICK TRACY, OR COUNTLESS OTHER RADIO SHOWS I HAVE IN MY NUMEROUS MP3 PLAYERS.

FOR THOSE VISITORS TO THIS WEBSITE WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR BUT INTERESTED IN OLD TIME RADIO ("OTR"), CHECK INTO EBAY AND SEARCH FOR "OTR," OR "OLD TIME RADIO." YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE HOW MANY HOURS YOU CAN GET ON A CD AT SUCH AN INCREDIBLY LOW COST, AND HOW EASY IT IS TO DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAMS INTO YOUR MINI MP3 PLAYER. WHO NEEDS AUDIO BOOKS WHEN YOU CAN LISTEN TO EVERYTHING FROM WWII WAR NEWS TO THE OLD "SUSPENSE" OR "INNER SANCTUM" RADIO DRAMATIZATIONS?

1943: ED RASER: ANOTHER LOCAL DVRA PIONEER

2008-01-24T12:36:00.000-08:00

W3ZI: I'M SORRY TO SAY THAT I DIDN'T HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF MEETING ED RASER. HOWEVER HIS PLACE IN LOCAL RADIO HISTORY IS WELL DOCUMENTED.

1941: LES ALLEN W2CCO

2008-01-24T12:23:00.001-08:00

MANY OF US HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF KNOWING AND "WORKING" LES ALLEN. HE WAS A GENTLEMAN FROM THE OLD SCHOOL AND ONE OF THE MOVERS AND SHAKERS WHO FOUNDED THE DELAWARE VALLEY RADIO CLUB. LES LIVED ON QUINTON AVENUE IN TRENTON AND HAD A RADIO BUSINESS BACK IN THE 30'S AND 40'S. IN HIS LATER YEARS HE RESIDED IN NORMANDY BEACH.

1941: A DVRA HAMFEST

2008-01-24T12:12:00.001-08:00

WITH THE ARRIVAL OF THE COMPUTER AND EBAY AND YAHOO AUCTIONS, ONE OF MY FAVORITE PASTIMES, THE HAM FLEAMARKET HAS BEEN RENDERED MORE OR LESS IRRELEVANT. WHEN I ENTERED THE HAM FRATERNITY MANY YEARS AGO, THE FLEA MARKETS WERE CROWDED WITH HAMS AND OTHER RADIO DEVOTEES LOOKING FOR BARGAINS. I REMEMBER A NUMBER OF DVRA HAMFESTS WHERE THE "ARM AND A LEG STORE" HAD A HUGE DISPLAY OF THEIR AMATEUR GEAR, ALONG WITH MANY OTHER COMMERCIAL ENTITIES, AND OF COURSE THE MANY HAMS WHO HAD TABLES OFFERING EVERYTHING FROM PARTS TO USED RIGS, TO TV PARTS, ETC. THEY WERE WONDERFUL YEARS AND I MISS THEM.

A NOTE FROM TOM

2008-01-21T15:24:00.000-08:00

1) CLICK THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT.

2) IF YOU WANT TO SAVE A SPECIFIC POST, RIGHT CLICK YOUR MOUSE, CHOOSE "SAVE IMAGE AS" OR "SAVE PAGE AS" AND SAVE IT TO A FOLDER ON YOUR COMPUTER.

3) AS THE SITE GROWS, SO GROWS THE NUMBER OF POSTS AND THE "SEARCH" FUNCTION WILL BE MORE CONVENIENT. IN THE UPPER LEFT OF THE SCREEN, GO TO THE WHITE "SEARCH BLOG" SPACE AND FILL IN A KEY WORD.

I SUGGEST VIEWING MY SITES IN
"FULL SCREEN"MODE.
(GO TO "VIEW" CLICK "FULL SCREEN")

ENJOY!

1927: WOAX, TRENTON

2008-01-16T19:18:00.001-08:00

IF MEMORY SERVES ME, WOAX WAS LOCATED ON INGHAM AVENUE NEAR THE TRENTON-EWING BORDER. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF ARTICLES IN MY FILES WITH PROS AND CONS OF THE STATION. SOME WERE WRITING LETTERS TO THE NEWSPAPERS BEMOANING THE BORING CONTENT THE STATIONS WAS AIRING. COVERSELY, THERE WAS AN EQUAL NUMBER OF LISTENERS WHO WERE HAPPY WITH THE PROGRAMMING.

1928: IS THIS THE GENESIS OF THE FAX?

2008-01-16T19:11:00.001-08:00

"PHOTOTELEGRAPHY:" IT SOUNDS TO ME THAT THE TERM IS BEING APPLIED TO THE SCANNING OF A PHOTOGRAPH AND TRANSMITTING IT VIA ONE OF THOSE OLD FASHIONED FACSIMILE MACHINES.....YOU REMEMBER THEM......A ROUND ROTATING DRUM THAT SENT PHOTOS ALL OVER THE WORLD FROM VARIOUS NEWSPAPERS AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS. TELEVISION WAS IN IT EMBRYONIC STAGES WITH CUMBERSOME WIRES AND EQUIPMENT.

1935: BEFORE THERE WERE SCANNERS

2008-01-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

I REMEMBER MONITORING A COUPLE POLICE FREQUENCIES ON THE VERY TOP OF THE BROADCAST BAND ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE 1600 KC FREQUENCY. THIS WAS IN THE LATE 50'S AND THE TRANSMISSIONS WERE IN A.M. (AMPLITUDE MODULATION). ADDAITIONALLY, OUR BIG MOTOROLA CONSOLE RADIO HAD SHORTWAVE CAPABILITIES. MANY AM POLICE RADIO STATIONS WERE ON MY SWL LOG. I VIVIDLY RECALL THE THRILL OF HEARING AMATEURS AND BROADCAST STATIONS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD WITH OUR VERY PRIMITIVE "LONG WIRE" ROOF ANTENNA.

1943: TRENTON'S NEW RADIO SQUAD CARS

2008-01-15T18:54:00.001-08:00

GREEN AND WHITE POLICE CARS! COOL! I AM HAVING A TOUGH TIME IDENTIFYING THE MAKE. IS IT A PONTIAC?

1925: HARRY KIDDER WORKING ON HIS "WAS" AWARD

2008-01-14T11:59:00.001-08:00

1906: GUGLIELMO MARCONI BRINGS "WIRELESS" TO TRENTON!

2008-01-14T11:53:00.001-08:00

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE THRILL THOSE AREA RESIDENTS EXPERIENCED WHEN THEY ATTENDED THAT PROGRAM ON WIRELESS RADIO. IT WAS THE DAWN OF A NEW CENTURY, AND THE AMATEUR RADIO GUYS WERE ALREADY EXPERIMENTING IN THEIR "HOME-BREW" RIGS.

1925: WWV, 1920'S STYLE

2008-01-14T11:36:00.001-08:00

I COULD NEVER COUNT THE NUMBER OF TIMES I ACCESSED WWV, THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS TIME KEEPERS. WHEN I WAS AT MY INTERCEPT STATION MANY YEARS AGO, IT WAS MY CUSTOM AT THE BEGINNING OF MY "TRICK" TO DIAL UP WWV FOR THE EXACT TIME. I CAN STILL HEAR THOSE "CLICK CLICK CLICK" SOUNDS AND THE LITTLE "DING" AS THE TIME WAS AUDIBLY TRANSMITTED ALL OVER THE WORLD ON VARIOUS FREQUENCIES.
I DON'T KNOW IF THE ARTICLE ACCOMPANYING THIS POST IS THE PREDECESSOR TO WWV AND WWVH, BUT I SUSPECT IT IS. PERHAPS SOMEONE MORE
KNOWLEDGEABLE THAN I CAN FILL IN THE DETAILS.

1991: Electronics: New today, Obsolete Tomorrow

2008-01-12T19:19:00.000-08:00

WHEN I RECALL MY LENGTHY JOURNEY INTO THE WORLD OF COMPUTING, I AM CONSTANTLY AMAZED AT HOW A STATE OF THE ART ELECTRONIC DEVICE I PURCHASED MANY YEARS AGO BROUGHT ME INTO THE COMPUTER WORLD.

1941: REMEMBER TOM DURAND?

2008-01-11T18:24:00.001-08:00

HE WAS A LOCAL BROADCAST LEGEND ON WTTM FOR YEARS TOM AND BILLIE DURAND WERE FAVORITE RADIO PERSONALITIES WHEN WTTM WAS IN THEIR GLORY YEARS.

1915: MARTIN PILLSBURY; A LOCAL AMATEUR PIONEER

2008-01-11T18:11:00.001-08:00

THE WASHINGTON MARKET REFERRED TO IN HIS ARTICLE WAS ONCE LOCATED IN CENTER CITY TRENTON. IT HAD FRUIT AND VEGETABLE STANDS, NUMEROUS BUTCHERS AND OTHER MERCHANTS.

THIS SITE IS BEST VIEWED IN 800 X 600 RESOLUTION

2008-01-11T17:51:00.000-08:00

DEPENDING ON THE RESOLUTION OF YOUR (DISPLAY) MONITOR, SOME OF THE TEXT ON THE DVRA NEWSLETTERS MAY BE TOO SMALL TO READ. IF YOU CHANGE YOUR SCREEN RESOLUTION TO 800 X 600, YOU WILL FIND THAT THE PRINT IS LARGER.
GO TO"START." CLICK ON "CONTROL PANEL." LOOK FOR THE "DISPLAY" ICON. CLICK ON IT. CLICK ON "SETTINGS." SLIDE THE RESOLUTION SWITCH ALL THE WAY TO THE LEFT. THE RESOLUTION WILL ENLARGE FROM 1024 TO 800 X 600. CLICK ON "APPLY." YOUR SCREEN WILL BLACK OUT FOR A SECOND AND THE NEW RESOLUTION WILL COME BACK WITH THE NEW AND LARGER SCREEN RESOLUTION.
800 X 600 IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN THE SMALLER 1024 X 768. IT IS A SIMPLE MATTER TO REVERT BACK TO 1024 X 768 BY REVERSING THE ABOVE PROCESS.

FYI

2008-01-11T06:42:00.001-08:00

THIS IS MY FOURTH WEBSITE DEDICATED TO LOCAL HISTORICAL , NOSTALGIC, AND WHIMSICAL SUBJECTS. YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN MY OTHER SITES. COPY AND PASTE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING SITES:

WWW.GLOVER320.BLOGSPOT.COM

WWW.HHS51.BLOGSPOT.COM

WWW.KUSER-SCHOOL.BLOGSPOT.COM

A TIP FROM TOM

2008-01-11T06:38:00.000-08:00

ATTENTION NEWCOMERS:

1) CLICK THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT.

2) IF YOU WANT TO SAVE A SPECIFIC POST, RIGHT CLICK YOUR MOUSE, CHOOSE "SAVE IMAGE AS" AND SAVE IT TO A FOLDER ON YOUR COMPUTER.

3) AS THE SITE GROWS, SO GROWS THE NUMBER OF POSTS AND THE "SEARCH" FUNCTION WILL BE MORE CONVENIENT. IN THE UPPER LEFT OF THE SCREEN, GO TO THE WHITE "SEARCH BLOG" SPACE AND FILL IN A KEY WORD.
(THE SEARCH FUNCTION IS NOT NECESSARY AT THE PRESENT TIME, DUE TO THE FACT THAT THERE HAVE BEEN FEW "HITS." MY OTHER SITE IS FAST APPROACHING 40,000 "HITS" AND IT IS EASIER TO FIND A SPECIFIC SUBJECT.)

I SUGGEST VIEWING MY SITES IN "FULL SCREEN"MODE.
(GO TO "VIEW" CLICK "FULL SCREEN"

ENJOY!

1944: DVRA ANNUAL OPEN HOUSE

2008-01-10T18:57:00.001-08:00

HERE IS AN INTERESTING PHOTO OF THE PIONEERS OF THE FABLED DVRA. ED RASER, LES ALLEN, BILL BURROUGHS, AND OTHER OLD TIMERS LEFT AN IDELIBLE IMPRINT ON THE HISTORY OF THE ASSOCIATION.

1956-1958: THE R-390: AN INTERCEPT OPERATOR'S DREAM MACHINE

2008-01-10T12:12:00.001-08:00

I LITERALLY LIVED WITH THIS GEM OF A RECEIVER WHEN I WAS AN "O58" IN GERMANY AND LATER IN ITALY. I HAPPENED TO BE IN EUROPE DURING THE SUN SPOT BONANZA OF 1956, AND HAVE VIVID MEMORIES OF THE THRILL OF RECEIVING AM "GROUND WAVE" BROADCAST TRANSMISSION FROM THE U.S.! MANY TIMES ON THE MIDNIGHT TO 8 SHIFT, I TUNED IN TO WNEW AND EXPERIENCED A TASTE OF HOME. THIS RADIO WAS A HIGH TECH MARVEL BACK IN THE MID 50'S.

1955: THE SUPER PRO 600: A FORT DEVENS STANDARD

2008-01-10T12:09:00.001-08:00

I LEARNED THE INS AND OUTS OF THIS RECEIVER WHEN I WAS A MORSE INTERCEPT STUDENT BACK IN 1955 AT THE FORT DEVENS SIGNAL SCHOOL. WHEN I SHIPPED OUT TO GERMANY IN 1956, THE 600 HAD A SPOT ON MY MONITORING RACK, JUST ABOVE MY FAVORITE RADIO, THE COLLINS R390.

1940: HAMS AGAIN ON THE LEADING EDGE

2008-01-10T12:02:00.001-08:00

WE KNOW OF IT AS "THE LEADING EDGE OF TECHNOLOGY." AMATEUR RADIO AND ITS MANY VERY TALENTED FOLLOWERS HAVE A HISTORY OF BLAZING THE TRAIL FOR NEW TECHNOLOGY. THIS ARTICLE FROM A 1940 ISSUE OF THE DELAWARE VALLEY RADIO ASSOCIATION'S NEWSLETTER TELLS OF RECEIVING AND TESTING EXPERIMENTS HELD BY DVRA MEMBER BILL BURROUGHS, AND WHAT WOULD ULTIMATELY BECOME WCBS-TV. A TRULY FASCINATING AND LITTLE KNOWN AMATEUR RADIO FACTOID!

1943: SEPTEMBER DVRA NEWSLETTER COVER AND PAGE 1

2008-01-10T11:11:00.001-08:00

1943: SEPTEMBER DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 AND 3

2008-01-10T11:10:00.001-08:00

1943: SEPTEMBER DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 AND 5

2008-01-10T11:09:00.001-08:00

1943: SEPTEMBER DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGE 6

2008-01-10T11:07:00.001-08:00

W2RSP

2008-01-09T19:17:00.001-08:00

THIS IS A PHOTO FROM THE ESTATE OF STEVE CSORGO VIA MY FRIEND KATHY CSORGO ANNACCARATO. FRANK BIJASICK (?) WAS AN OLD TIMER WHO WAS A REGULAR ON THE DAILY 4 PM NET ON THE 2 METER W2ZQ REPEATER ALONG WITH JIM SINCLAIR, EARL VAN HORN, RAY WHITLEY, AND OTHERS WHOSE NAMES AND CALLS I CAN'T SEEM TO REMEMBER.

2008-01-09T14:45:00.000-08:00

THAT OLD COLLINS ON THE LEFT WAS IN THE CONSOLE ON MY MONITORING STATION WHEN I WAS A "1717" WITH THE ASA (ARMY SECURITY AGENCY) WAY BACK IN THE 1950'S. IT ULTIMATELY HAD A BRAND NEW R390 PLACED IN THE RACK JUST ABOVE IT AT JUST ABOUT THE SAME TIME THAT MY 1717 MOS WAS REPLACED WITH 058. (MORSE INTERCEPT OPERATOR.)

A REMINDER FROM TOM

2008-01-09T14:28:00.000-08:00

ATTENTION NEWCOMERS:

1) CLICK THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT FOR LEGIBILITY.

2) IF YOU WANT TO SAVE A SPECIFIC POST, RIGHT CLICK YOUR MOUSE, CHOOSE "SAVE IMAGE AS" AND SAVE IT TO A FOLDER ON YOUR COMPUTER.

3) AS THE SITE GROWS, SO GROWS THE NUMBER OF POSTS AND THE "SEARCH" FUNCTION WILL BE MORE CONVENIENT. IN THE UPPER LEFT OF THE SCREEN, GO TO THE WHITE "SEARCH BLOG" SPACE AND FILL IN A KEY WORD.
(THE SEARCH FUNCTION IS NOT NECESSARY NOW DUE TO THE FACT THAT THERE HAVE BEEN FEW "HITS." MY OTHER SITE IS FAST APPROACHING 40,000 "HITS" AND IT IS EASIER TO FIND A SPECIFIC SUBJECT.)

I SUGGEST VIEWING MY SITES IN "FULL SCREEN"MODE.
(GO TO "VIEW" CLICK "FULL SCREEN"
ALSO: YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN MY OTHER WEBSITES:

WWW.GLOVER320.BLOGSPOT.COM,
WWW.HHS51.BLOGSPOT.COM
WWW.KUSER-SCHOOL.BLOGSPOT.COM

ENJOY!

1943: DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 OF 5

2008-01-08T12:25:00.001-08:00

THE ABOVE SCAN IS THE COVER AND FIRST PAGE OF A COMPLETE DVRA NEWSLETTER FROM AUGUST, 1943. PAGES 2 AND 3 ARE IN THE NEXT POST, AND 4 AND 5 IN THE NEXT PAGE. I ORIGINALLY POSTED THIS NEWSLETTER AS ONE LARGE GRAPHIC, BUT THE SIZE OF THE GRAPHIC MADE THE TEXT TOO SMALL TO READ.

OVER THE YEARS, I HAVE MANAGED TO ACQUIRE A NUMBER OF THESE DELAWARE VALLEY RADIO ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTERS. THE DVRA HAS A MAGNIFICENT HISTORICAL HERITAGE DATING BACK TO ITS FOUNDING IN 1931. DURING THE YEARS WHEN I WAS A MEMBER, IT WAS MY PRIVILEGE TO MEET MANY OF THE WONDERFUL MEN AND WOMEN WHO WERE MEMBERS OF THAT AUGUST BODY. I HOLD SPECIAL FOND MEMORIES OF THE "COMMUTER NET" THAT WAS A DAILY MORNING AND EVENING HAPPENING BACK THERE IN THE 1970'S AND EARLY 80'S. ROBBY, K3MNX, CHUCK WB2EIZ, MY SPECIAL "HEAT MERCHANT," PAUL W2AEI, SANDY W3GWZ, DICK "TIMEOUT" AMRICH, K2AAR, JACK BROWN, W3SHY, BOB SCHROEDER, WA2JZF NOW N2HX, JOE SUNDRA, W3ZLP, BOB CHERRY, WB2F, FAST EDDIE VICKNER, K2SNK, AND OTHERS WHOSE CALL SIGNS HAVE DIMMED IN MY RAPIDLY AGING MEMORY BANK. THANKS, GUYS, I MISS YOU ALL AND THINK OF YOU QUITE OFTEN. I'M SURE YOU WILL AGREE THAT WE DID HAVE VERY VIABLE AND FASCINATING QSO'S. MANY OF THEM WERE QUITE THOUGHT PROVOKING.

1943: DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGES 2 AND 3

2008-01-08T12:24:00.001-08:00

1943: DVRA NEWSLETTER PAGES 4 AND 5

2008-01-08T12:22:00.001-08:00

1925: HASTINGS, NEBRASKA: THE IDEAL CONTACT

2008-01-07T19:36:00.001-08:00

HASTINGS, NEBRASKA???
ONLY BECAUSE OF ITS CENTRAL LOCATION.

1940: N.J. TRAFFIC NETS

2008-01-07T19:28:00.001-08:00

THIS WAS BEFORE MY ENTRY INTO THE AMATEUR FRATERNITY BY 35 YEARS OR SO. I WOULD BET THERE ARE MANY "OLD TIMERS" WHO RECOGNIZE SOME OF THOSE CALLS.

THANKS,TO SID DEITZ, W2FDE FOR THIS "HAM" GEM!

2008-01-07T18:06:00.000-08:00

REWARD OFFERED

A REWARD OF 500 MICROFARADS IS OFFERED FOR INFORMATION LEADING TO THE ARREST OF THIS DESPERATE CRIMINAL, HOP-A-LONG CAPACITY.

THIS UNRECTIFIED CRIMINAL ESCAPED FROM A WESTERN PRIMARY CELL WHERE HE HAD BEEN CLAMPED IN IONS AWAITING THE GAUSS CHAMBER. HE WAS CHARGED WITH THE INDUCTION OF AN 18 TURN COIL NAMED MILLI-HENRY WHO WAS FOUND CHOKED AND ROBBED OF VALUABLE JOULES. HE IS ARMED WITH A CARBON ROD AND IS A POTENTIAL KILLER.

CAPACITY IS ALSO CHARGED WITH DRIVING A DC MOTOR OVER A WHEATSTONE BRIDGE AND REFUSING TO LET THE BAND-PASS. IF ENCOUNTERED, HE MAY OFFER SERIES OF RESISTANCE. THE ELECTROMOTIVE FORCE SPENT THE NIGHT SEARCHING FOR HIM IN A MAGNETIC FIELD, WHERE HE HAD GONE TO EARTH. THEY HAD NO SUCCESS AND BELIEVED HE HAD RETURNED OHM VIA A SHORT CIRCUIT.

HE WAS LAST SEEN RIDING A KILOCYCLE WITH HIS FRIEND EDDY CURRENT WHO WAS PLAYING A HARMONIC.

--
For Those Who Understand, No Explanation Is Necessary.
For Those Who Do Not Understand, No Explanation Is Possible.

1947: I'LL BET THOSE CABINETS ARE "BAKELITE!"

2008-01-07T15:50:00.001-08:00

I REMEMBER HOW I WONDERED HOW LONG IT WOULD BE BEFORE TECHNOLOGY DUPLICATED DICK TRACY'S "WRIST RADIO." REMEMBER THAT TECHNOLOGICAL DREAM. WELL FOLKS, WE TRUMPED IT IN SPADES! MY MP3 PLAYER IS A TINY WORK OF ART WITH UNBELIEVABLE FIDELITY, EVEN THOUGH MY PROGRAMS ARE FROM OLD RADIO TRANSCRIPTIONS FOROM THE 40'S.

1925: ONCE AGAIN, HAMS ARE THE INNOVATORS

2008-01-07T15:42:00.001-08:00

TODAY OUR AMATEUR FRATERNITY IS BLAZING NEW TRAILS IN COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY. ONE INNOVATOR IS JIM MILLNER, WB2REM, WHOSE TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE HAS CONTRIBUTED GREATLY TO THE SUCCESS OF AN AMATEUR RADIO TECHNICAL ADVANCE KNOWN AS "ECHO LINK." AS CAN BE SEEN BY THE ARTICLE ABOVE, HAM RADIO ENTHUSIASTS WERE ALSO ALIVE AND WELL IN THE EARLY YEARS OF RADIO.

1925: BEFORE THERE WERE HAMFESTS

2008-01-07T15:39:00.001-08:00

THIS CLASSIFIED SECTION OF THE TIMES "RADIO" SUPPLEMENT HAS MANY, MANY FANTASTIC BUYS! HOW THE COLLECTORS OF ANTIQUE RADIOS AND PARTS WOULD LOVE TO LATCH ON TO SOME OF THOSE EARLY RADIO RECEIVERS!

1927: JUST LIKE THE RADIO OF MY YOUTH!

2008-01-07T15:28:00.000-08:00

PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE "CROSSBARS" HOLDING THE LEGS OF THAT OLD CONSOLE RADIO. IT WAS A VERY SIMILAR "CROSSBAR" THAT SERVED AS A SUPPORT FOR A PILLOW AS I RESTED MY HEAD UNDER THAT OLD "MAJESTIC" RADIO IN MY "SECRET SPOT," LISTENING TO JACK ARMSTRONG, TERRY AND THE PIRATES, HOP HARRIGAN, CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT, LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE, AND OTHER RADIO HEROES OF MY CHILDHOOD YEARS. WHAT MAGIC CAME FROM THAT "LOUNDSPEAKER!" WE USED OUR IMAGINATION TO VIEW THE ORIENT WITH TERRY LEE AND "FLIP CORKIN" OF TERRY AND THE PIRATES, WE FLEW ALONG WITH HOP HARRIGAN AND HIS SIDEKICK TANK TINKER AS THEY FOUGHT THE WORLD WAR II SKIES OF GERMANY AND JAPAN, AND WE LISTENED IN AWE AS THE LUX RADIO THEATER TOOK US TO NEW HAMPSHIRE TO VISIT "OUR TOWN."

1925: WMCA BEGINS BROADCASTING

2008-01-07T11:53:00.001-08:00

ALONG WITH WEAF, WFIL, WCAU AND WMGM, THIS IS ONE OF THE RADIO STATIONS OF MY YOUTH. "THEY AIN'T THERE NO MORE." I REMEMBER PHIL SHERIDAN ON WFIL IN THE MORNING, AND I BELIEVE BARRY GRAY WAS ON WMCA....NOT SURE. WEAF WAS FAMOUS IN OUR CENTRAL JERSEY AREA FOR HAVING A VERY WEAK SIGNAL WITH WONDERFUL PROGRAMMING.

1983: EARLY TV IN CENTRAL JERSEY

2008-01-06T13:51:00.000-08:00

RIGHT AFTER WORLD WAR II, THERE WERE 3 BASIC CHANNELS IN CENTRAL NEW JERSEY: CHANNEL 3, WPTZ, CHANNEL 6, WFIL, AND CHANNEL 10, WCAU. AS I RECALL, THERE WAS A COAXIAL LINK FROM UPPER NEW YORK STATE DOWN THE EAST COAST TO THE WASHINGTON, D.C. AREA. THE GRAPHIC IS FROM A COLUMN I WROTE BACK IN THE EARLY 1980'S, WHEN HAMILTON CABLEVISION BROUGHT CABLE TO THE LOCAL AREA.