The Golden Age of Radio

KDKA, November 2, 1920 - East Pittsburgh, PA

Are you sick and tired of all the political ads that are being shown almost non-stop on television? Are you tired of phone calls for one of the many candidates up for election on November 6th? For most of us, it's hard to imagine a time when we weren't inundated with all of this political advertising. But there was a day when the American people weren't connected with the world 24/7. There was a time when people got all of their information from their local newspaper. There was no television, no radio, and definitely no cell phones! Most people didn't even have a regular landline phone in their home.

On November 2, 1920, right here in Southwestern Pennsylvania, the age of information (kind of) started. On that night, from a room on top of one of the Westinghouse buildings in East Pittsburgh, four hours of election results were broadcast. Communication would never be the same. At the most, a thousand people heard that first broadcast. Those people found out before the rest of the country that Warren G. Harding was to be the next President of the United States. Everyone else would have to wait for the next edition of their local newspaper.

By the next Presidential election, all of that would change. In 1922, WEAF in New York City (which later became WNBC) became the first commercial radio station. Its advertising wasn't as we know it today, but it established the precedent that commercial broadcasting was viable.

The 1920s saw the growth in the number of stations throughout the country and the number of radios in American homes. By the 1930s, about 90 percent of Americans owned at least one radio. This was the beginning of the Golden Age of radio.

The basic format was music, news, and other programming. Much of the programming would be theatrical productions, such as dramas, comedies, soap operas, westerns, and such. Many of these radio shows would go on to be television shows as well (Perry Mason, The Lone Ranger, The Guiding Light).

Listen to that historic broadcast here.

So to celebrate the beginnings of radio broadcasting, here are some of the most well-known moments in radio history.

The Hindenburg Disaster

Hindenburg disaster, New Jersey - May 6, 1937

Dirigibles, or Zeppelins as they came to be known, had been around since the late 19th century. They had been invented by a French man, but it wasn't until German Graf Ferdinand von Zeppelin that the crafts were remodeled into viable flying machines. By 1937, Zeppelins had been used by the Germans during World War I and had flown across the Atlantic many times. Still, it was always a big event when an airship was going to land in America. So, Herb Morrison, of WLS in Chicago, was in Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937 to cover the landing of the Hindenburg. Little did he know of the horror he was about to witness. His emotional and personal reaction to the disaster would outlive him.

Listen to the original radio broadcast here.

"War of the Worlds" 

Orson Welles, 1938

On the night of October 30, 1938, the world was invaded by Martians! Or, at least, that was what many people thought, when Orson Welles and his Mercury Theater broadcast a radio play version of H.G. Wells's War of the Worlds. It was done as a Halloween prank and as a way to boost the show's ratings. (It was on the air against the most popular radio show of the time.) Despite the fact that it was announced that this was just a dramatization of the book several times during the broadcast, most people somehow seemed to miss that. Panic ensued because so many people believed this broadcast to be real and that Martians were invading Earth. The belief was so strong that people were fleeing their homes to escape the invasion. Once people realized that there was no invasion, there was anger and frustration. Police were even thinking about arresting Welles. This did not happen, and this "prank" would put Orson Welles on the map and help him establish his acting and directing career. Four years later, Citizen Kane (considered to be the greatest American film) would premiere -- a movie that most likely would never have been made without this moment in radio.

Listen to the original broadcast here. Or you can check out the broadcast on CD from the library. And for another take on the radio play, listen to L.A. Theatre works production (which includes several Star Trek actors!).

The London Blitz

Edward R. Murrow

In 1940, the United States was not yet involved in World War II, but there was still great interest in what was going on in Europe. Edward R. Murrow was just beginning his broadcast career when he began reporting from London for CBS. His live, first-hand accounts during the London Blitz captivated the American public.  These broadcasts would establish him as one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the US. After the War, he would return to the States and establish himself as a television journalist who took on many controversial subjects, including Sen. Joseph McCarthy's search for Communists in politics and entertainment.

To listen:
September 20, 1940 - London rooftop during the blitz

From Trafalgar Square during an air raid



Further reading on the history of radio:

Hello Everybody: The Dawn of American Radio by Anthony Rudel

Don't Touch That Dial: The History of Broadcasting by J. Fred MacDonald

Sold on Radio : Advertisers in the Golden Age of Broadcasting by Jim Cox


-- Post by Tracy

Vote!

With the Republican National Convention wrapping up, and the Democratic National Convention starting up next week, politics -- for better or worse -- are in the air. 

We live in a time of an undeniably heated political atmosphere, true. But this is hardly the first century when campaigns and elections have taken some weird turns:

-- The election of 1800, between John Adams of the Federalists and Thomas Jefferson of the Republicans, did not only prove to be a milestone in American history. It also changed forever the deep friendship that had once existed between these two Founding Fathers. From threats of civil war to a secretive deal that gave Jefferson the presidency, this election was a truly historical -- and epic -- moment. (Read more about it in Adams Vs. Jefferson: The Tumultuous Election of 1800.)

-- The very first presidential convention was held in 1831, by the Anti-Masonic Party. (That particular political party can be best remembered for trying to enlist Henry Clay to their cause -- even though Clay was actually a Freemason.)

-- Chicago bar proprietor William Sianis placed a sign in his Billy Goat Tavern reading, "No Republications Allowed" -- just in time for the 1944 Republican National Convention. Republicans came to the bar in droves ... and Sianis turned a tidy profit.

-- The last time a political convention actually seemed to have something at stake?  1976, when Ronald Reagan battled Gerald Ford for the Republican nomination in the country's last political floor fight to date. 

Read some more fun facts about past (and present) Presidential Conventions here. Then check out some important links below -- and please, remember to vote this fall!

Voting in Pennsylvania

- Pennsylvania Voter Registration Application -- Not registered to vote?  Print out the form and mail it in today!  (Deadline to register to vote in the upcoming general election is October 9th.)

- Votes PA -- A state website devoted to meeting the voting needs of Pennsylvania residents. Find your local poling place, check what you need to bring on Election Day, and even find out how to register to vote. Check it out!

- Pennsylvania Voter ID Law -- What you need to know.

- Be Prepared for November 6th -- PA's voting laws have changed. Follow this easy checklist to find out exactly what you need to bring. (Don't have a photo ID?  This link will tell you how to get a FREE photo ID through PennDOT!)

- MPL Hot Topic: Voter ID Laws -- Should voters be required to show photo ID before marking their ballots?  Check out the facts and opinions in our Hot Topic.

- Maps of the 2008 US Presidential Election Results -- Traditional maps can result in skewed perceptions of real statistics. So check out these "cartograms," maps rescaled to reflect population over land area. 

-- Post by Ms. B