 |
 |
Check out RadioArchive.cc Its free. Chris B. --- On Wed, 7/12/11, Martin Fisher <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > From: Martin Fisher <[log in to unmask]> > Subject: [ARSCLIST] Old Time Radio--Fwd: Old-time radio convention meets in Newark for last time - NorthJersey.com > To: [log in to unmask] > Date: Wednesday, 7 December, 2011, 16:06 > Another OTR source, which I had a > membership to until the bank changed my account > @$%^&*(), is "R U Sitting Comfortably". Ned Norris > has posted thousands of categorized shows and features which > are available for downloading at a membership rate of $7.50 > per month. Slightly better deals for quarterly and > annual memberships. Sound quality varies if I remember > correctly. > > http://www.rusc.com/ > > I also used to take advantage of the lending library > offered by First Generation Radio Archives back when they > had one. One could order shows on audio CD on a > lending basis, much like Net Flicks by mail, and even view > the labels and runouts of most of the transcriptions! > Even then the sound quality varied but mostly because of the > various people doing their "restorations". Some of the > programs were chock full of digital NR anomalies and what I > sometimes call micro black holes. Sounded a lot like > heavy handed use of "blanking" which was offered on the > Packburn units. FGRA is still possibly the best > organization out there for fidelity vs. dollar but their > vast library is nowhere as accessible as it used to be since > now they only offer box sets for outright purchase. > > Martin > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List > [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > On Behalf Of Tom Fine > Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 8:58 AM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Fwd: Old-time radio convention > meets in Newark for last time - NorthJersey.com > > I think the point you are making is that Radio Yesteryear > and then Radio Spirits charge too much for sometimes poor > audio quality and overly-large box sets. But what about > outlets like OTRCat, which offer dirt-cheap, > terrible-sounding CDR full of programs? I would say both are > equally bad. OTR is SO prime for an iTunes model -- it's a > niche market that's pretty commoditized (and, come on, how > much did any of the people releasing OTR programs pay per > program source?). So why not sell individual programs as > decent-quality downloads (192kbps MP3 is just fine for > almost all OTR content), for say a quarter (25 cents) per > hour? My bet is, it's a very "long tail" model and there > would be enough sales volume to make it viable if not wildly > profitable (is Radio Spritis wildly profitable? I doubt it. > What about OTRCat? It seems like it costs him as much to > produce and mail a CDR as he's charging, if his time is > worth anything). A friendly, accessible, super-easy-to-order > and instant-download/instant-gratification website is what's > needed to attract new listeners. No kid in his 20's is going > to wait for a Radio Spirits catalog, order a 50-CD set for > $100 when he only wants 1 or 2 programs, and then wait days > for it to arrive, then rip it to his iPod. Talk about > totally outmoded and last century! And then look at the CDR > sellers' website, who can navigate those? Someone needs to > team up with Amazon or iTunes, make the descriptions and > listening samples standardized and easy like music is on > those websites, and sell the content cheap enough that > people will take a chance on something older than their > grandparents. > > And here's another issue. For someone of my generation, and > certainly for younger people, OTR is very remote like old > black and white movies. Sure, some acting and some > story-telling is so good and so compelling that it still > resonates today, but most of it comes off as stilted, > antique and irrelevant, because the culture has moved on. > And yet, the OTR sellers concentrate most of their marketing > on ancient radio dramas or radio re-enactments of movies > that even Grandpa would admit were stilted and boring. What > about old news events? Old ground-breaking news shows like > came out of "Murrow's Boys" consistently in the 40's and > 50's? Yes, Norman Corwin celebratory victory-casts get more > than fair marketing, but I know of only one seller who's > collected most of the ground-breaking "Hear It Now" weekly > news magazine shows, and I've asked numerous times on this > list (which includes some heavy-duty OTR collectors and > accumulators) about various CBS news specials and year-end > summaries, and no one seems to own a copy or know where one > can buy one. I think there may be longer-term interest in > actual real-world history than "The Shadow" or "Fibber McGee > and Molly," or a Bing Crosby show, but maybe that's just > me. > > I'm sure this will get some dander up in the OTR world! ;) > > -- Tom Fine > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "David Lewis" <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 9:22 AM > Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Fwd: Old-time radio convention > meets in Newark for last time - NorthJersey.com > > > > In response to DDR's set up, which I know was intended > tended at least > > half-humorously, I did wish to say something. The > decline of interest > > in OTR -- and Dr. B may dismiss these proposed reasons > and offer > > others, as is his wont, and right -- derives from > numerous factors > > that worked against > > it: the concentration of the legacy into too few hands > with > > botiuqey/gifty business models, the drying up of > conventional radio > > outlets still delivering the goods, the aging/dying > off of the > > original audience that remembered it from when there > was no TV, the > > enthusiasts' interest in too few of the genres > represented by OTR, > > etc. It came to a point where the OTR universe was > contracting, rather > > than expanding, and once that plateau is reached it > becomes like a > > white dwarf, a tiny former star with all of the > material packed inside it, growing ever denser and dimmer. > > > > By virtue of its mandate, ARSC is busier and more > badly needed than > > ever before. The manifold DRM issues, the recent and > unprecedented > > truly serious and scholarly investigation into > pre-1917 recordings > > outside of opera, the controversy of what constitutes > jazz and what > > that has stirred up, activating interest in a whole > range of little > > appreciated dance band recordings, the rapidly > decaying formats of > > recent times and the neglect from scholars of > relatively recent eras. The failure of "new musicology" > > and the lassitude of musicologists more concerned with > accruing tenure > > -- which is getting away from them anyway -- than with > developing a > > true understanding of developments in music of recent > eras. And so > > forth, and so forth .... Jeez. > > > > We can't cure all of these issues, but they all > prevent some kind of > > challenge, and we find ourselves of finding ourselves > having somewhat > > whiter hats than the white hats who ought to have the > job of > > evaluating or taking care of these things. And I admit > I expanded our > > definition beyond what we do, but all of this affects > us in some way. > > The universe is clearly expanding, not contracting, > for ARSC. It is > > all our little organization can do to keep up with new > developments, > > and much of the relevant news I hear either comes > through this list or > > its members. I'm not happy to see the OTR people > disband, and another > > thing we might have to consider is how to deal with > OTR related issues > > now that there is no more OTR organization to > centralize thinking > > about it, access and to respond to what level of > enthusiasm there is about it. It never ends. > > > > Uncle Dave Lewis > > Lebanon, OH > > > > > > > > On Sun, Nov 20, 2011 at 11:09 AM, Dennis Rooney <[log in to unmask]>wrote: > > > >> All who fear ARSC as we know it self-extinguishing > must read this. > >> > >> DDR > >> > >> > > >