So true, a canny n' smart observation! Radio was about LISTENING an' it's part of bein' human beans to LOVE, nay ta NEED ta listen to story-tellers (an' crooners too!).
I grew up livin' with my mah dear grandparents who LOVED radio deeply (they talked a lot about missin' The Goldbergs an' Big Band broadcasts as grampy wuz a pro-fessional moo-sician an' used ta play along WITH the radio!). Aggreein' with ya--I think MUCH wuz lost when radio got co-opted. It used ta be, tho, that even "woids from our sponsors" were creative mini-shows in themselves--well-crafted, funny, performed with enthusiasm (or iron in the case've Jack Benny!), an' some'a them jingles were brilliant!
The co-optin' ya mention wasn't instant even with the onslaught(er) 've adverts, it was a slow death I think (though by late 20th C there were more adverts than content!). Even in my own corn cobby salad daze I gotta lotta mem'ries of singin' along with friends to a blastin' radio (off key on purpose sometimes too!), something kids've today do NOT do with the inner'net. Got 2've 'em an this is (sadly) not a "thing." Some (not mine thankfully) seem to do these robotic tiktok dances together but that's got more've St Vitus in it than gen-u-ine vitality. So capturin' the RIGHT spirit an' (I think) the group experience is not a given--but yup, there IS that potential!
I DO feel "podcastin' " has, in some ways, tried ta meet cute with ol' radio an' SOMETIMES it succeeds (content likely as uneven as it wuz in the daze've early radio).
So, YES, the the "innanet" has potential ta be very much like old radio (at it's best) an' THIS I do celebrate but it too has been co-opted to GREAT degree (some've us r' waitin' fer the other boot ta drop on Substack even...). Innernet viddeys are subject ta the same fact-turds in place that killed radio (mebbe worse?)--not just advertisin' n' monetizin' but censorship, de-platformin', banning, an' the whole INSANE groomin' of folks to "like" or "follow"... YUK.
I also DO wonder about folks' attention spans in terms of the intertubes--all the little twits n' bytes an' quick clips (2 min viddeyos or shorter!)... all that super-short "content" (eww..) gave the nay-shun ADHD! (half jokin' half dead serious here!) Old radio plays n' such were normally an hour long (often enjoyed together with fambly, friends, etc). I have some've 'em on mp3 an' I DO wish I had more time in the day ta just kick back n' listen to 'em cuz they're THAT good many've 'em! They require the time an' space to relax, to settle inta a good yarn (or moo-sical concert, etc). I'd say half an' hour at least. Folks no longer find "radio time" (even online)--things 'r too rushed / stuffed with stuff!
But anywayz, I DO think yer onta something thar! GREAT post! And thanks fer sharin' 'bout Victor Packer--whatta gem! Nu ta me! Wish my Yiddish were better (sigh, some day mebbe?) as he sounds like a real pisser! Mebbe like the late great Ernie Kovacs? (Another "los" fer sure!)
Thanks for the kind words, Daisy! My parents (wisely) did not let me watch TV growing up, but I did have a big stack of cassettes of old radio shows. The Shadow was my favorite (Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?), but I really enjoyed the comedy shows like Jack Benny, Burns and Allen, WC Fields, et al.
I will say that the whole short-form trend is somewhat overblown. Advertising has gotten shorter and shorter (because people can now skip it, or click away, as opposed to being part of the captive audience commanded by TV and radio), but long-form work does very well online. Many podcasts are routinely an hour or longer, and popular YouTube videos are often 10 - 20 minutes long, with some being upwards of an hour as well.
If you're intrigued by Victor Packer, check out the Yiddish Radio Project. It was produced by Scott Simon for NPR about a decade ago as a two-hour audio documentary, and it's outstanding. Lots of those old ads you mentioned, and really an all-around fascinating window into the past, even if your Yiddish isn't as good as Jimmy Cagney's (and really, whose is?).
Ah, wise parents indeedy! Yup, my grandparents were huge fans've Benny, Burns n' Allen, WC Fields, Mae West... an' grampy loved Joe E. Brown whom "near-nobuddy" 'members much any more. I feel lucky that in spite've havin' a lotta pop "kulchur" in my midst, it wuz at least quality stuff. Most've the teevee I sawr wuz reruns (B&W natch) so at least it was better fare with tee-riffic ensemble castin' (Honeymooners, I Love Lucy... even the schticky camp've the Munsters had a vaudeville flair--Al Lewis son've a tin pan alley composer too!).
Thx, I DID try ta check out the Yiddish Radio Project but (ding it) most've the links are in "real player" which is no'mo an' nobuddy seems to be updatin' the site (sadly). The mahvelous Christopher Lloyd (an "oy-rich min' " not unlike Cagney!) did Victor Packer proud in that NPR clip seems ta be one'a the only ones intact... hope they restore 'em! There wuz SO MUCH talent out there (I gotta post on this in the woiks..)!
But yes, there IS potential (long-format wise) in the "new" radio--just keep that durned Aye-Eye n' Shart-GPT away from it as it'll be the death of originality an' I fear it's already attractin' flies like a sugar trap
Thx! I could only play just the one piece (16min), where'd the rest go?--Sapoznik's the real deal--hope he can update his website--the show harkens back ta when NPR wuz GOOD!
Ugh, that is obnoxious. Sapoznik has a new site, and claims that he'll be posting the material. Hopefully sooner rather than later. https://www.henrysapoznik.com
I love the Barry sisters! I was tickled to see (er, hear) that they were featured prominently in the program. At the time they recorded it, one of the sisters was still living, and they got her to do a bunch of narration. She was sharp as a tack, and still sounded great!
Except, that the platforms needed to air their work will shut them down the moment they are naughty, like saying that masks will not stop an airborne virus.
Though not that old, I have always preferred radio to TV. One of the local stations attempted to bring back the golden era of radio you write of either in house or syndicated. This would have been in the 80s. I loved it. One aired reruns of “Chicken Man” which left me in stitches as a child. Later, in the year 2000 I was working in the South and heard several radio story shows. My favorite being, “Married Man”. Whenever I have heard a recording of any of the old radio story programs, I have always been captivated by the quality of the stories, voices and sound effects.
So true, a canny n' smart observation! Radio was about LISTENING an' it's part of bein' human beans to LOVE, nay ta NEED ta listen to story-tellers (an' crooners too!).
I grew up livin' with my mah dear grandparents who LOVED radio deeply (they talked a lot about missin' The Goldbergs an' Big Band broadcasts as grampy wuz a pro-fessional moo-sician an' used ta play along WITH the radio!). Aggreein' with ya--I think MUCH wuz lost when radio got co-opted. It used ta be, tho, that even "woids from our sponsors" were creative mini-shows in themselves--well-crafted, funny, performed with enthusiasm (or iron in the case've Jack Benny!), an' some'a them jingles were brilliant!
The co-optin' ya mention wasn't instant even with the onslaught(er) 've adverts, it was a slow death I think (though by late 20th C there were more adverts than content!). Even in my own corn cobby salad daze I gotta lotta mem'ries of singin' along with friends to a blastin' radio (off key on purpose sometimes too!), something kids've today do NOT do with the inner'net. Got 2've 'em an this is (sadly) not a "thing." Some (not mine thankfully) seem to do these robotic tiktok dances together but that's got more've St Vitus in it than gen-u-ine vitality. So capturin' the RIGHT spirit an' (I think) the group experience is not a given--but yup, there IS that potential!
I DO feel "podcastin' " has, in some ways, tried ta meet cute with ol' radio an' SOMETIMES it succeeds (content likely as uneven as it wuz in the daze've early radio).
So, YES, the the "innanet" has potential ta be very much like old radio (at it's best) an' THIS I do celebrate but it too has been co-opted to GREAT degree (some've us r' waitin' fer the other boot ta drop on Substack even...). Innernet viddeys are subject ta the same fact-turds in place that killed radio (mebbe worse?)--not just advertisin' n' monetizin' but censorship, de-platformin', banning, an' the whole INSANE groomin' of folks to "like" or "follow"... YUK.
I also DO wonder about folks' attention spans in terms of the intertubes--all the little twits n' bytes an' quick clips (2 min viddeyos or shorter!)... all that super-short "content" (eww..) gave the nay-shun ADHD! (half jokin' half dead serious here!) Old radio plays n' such were normally an hour long (often enjoyed together with fambly, friends, etc). I have some've 'em on mp3 an' I DO wish I had more time in the day ta just kick back n' listen to 'em cuz they're THAT good many've 'em! They require the time an' space to relax, to settle inta a good yarn (or moo-sical concert, etc). I'd say half an' hour at least. Folks no longer find "radio time" (even online)--things 'r too rushed / stuffed with stuff!
But anywayz, I DO think yer onta something thar! GREAT post! And thanks fer sharin' 'bout Victor Packer--whatta gem! Nu ta me! Wish my Yiddish were better (sigh, some day mebbe?) as he sounds like a real pisser! Mebbe like the late great Ernie Kovacs? (Another "los" fer sure!)
Thanks for the kind words, Daisy! My parents (wisely) did not let me watch TV growing up, but I did have a big stack of cassettes of old radio shows. The Shadow was my favorite (Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?), but I really enjoyed the comedy shows like Jack Benny, Burns and Allen, WC Fields, et al.
I will say that the whole short-form trend is somewhat overblown. Advertising has gotten shorter and shorter (because people can now skip it, or click away, as opposed to being part of the captive audience commanded by TV and radio), but long-form work does very well online. Many podcasts are routinely an hour or longer, and popular YouTube videos are often 10 - 20 minutes long, with some being upwards of an hour as well.
If you're intrigued by Victor Packer, check out the Yiddish Radio Project. It was produced by Scott Simon for NPR about a decade ago as a two-hour audio documentary, and it's outstanding. Lots of those old ads you mentioned, and really an all-around fascinating window into the past, even if your Yiddish isn't as good as Jimmy Cagney's (and really, whose is?).
Ah, wise parents indeedy! Yup, my grandparents were huge fans've Benny, Burns n' Allen, WC Fields, Mae West... an' grampy loved Joe E. Brown whom "near-nobuddy" 'members much any more. I feel lucky that in spite've havin' a lotta pop "kulchur" in my midst, it wuz at least quality stuff. Most've the teevee I sawr wuz reruns (B&W natch) so at least it was better fare with tee-riffic ensemble castin' (Honeymooners, I Love Lucy... even the schticky camp've the Munsters had a vaudeville flair--Al Lewis son've a tin pan alley composer too!).
Thx, I DID try ta check out the Yiddish Radio Project but (ding it) most've the links are in "real player" which is no'mo an' nobuddy seems to be updatin' the site (sadly). The mahvelous Christopher Lloyd (an "oy-rich min' " not unlike Cagney!) did Victor Packer proud in that NPR clip seems ta be one'a the only ones intact... hope they restore 'em! There wuz SO MUCH talent out there (I gotta post on this in the woiks..)!
But yes, there IS potential (long-format wise) in the "new" radio--just keep that durned Aye-Eye n' Shart-GPT away from it as it'll be the death of originality an' I fear it's already attractin' flies like a sugar trap
Hmm, yeah, my dad had bought the CDs back when they came out, so that's how I hae it. It does look like NPR has at least some of it available for listening here: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1140180
Thx! I could only play just the one piece (16min), where'd the rest go?--Sapoznik's the real deal--hope he can update his website--the show harkens back ta when NPR wuz GOOD!
Ugh, that is obnoxious. Sapoznik has a new site, and claims that he'll be posting the material. Hopefully sooner rather than later. https://www.henrysapoznik.com
let's hope an' thanks fer the link! Woo hoo, I see he's got The Barry Sisters (arguably the most groovy yiddish tzingerz evah!!!)
I love the Barry sisters! I was tickled to see (er, hear) that they were featured prominently in the program. At the time they recorded it, one of the sisters was still living, and they got her to do a bunch of narration. She was sharp as a tack, and still sounded great!
Except, that the platforms needed to air their work will shut them down the moment they are naughty, like saying that masks will not stop an airborne virus.
Centralization of publishing is the death knell for free speech, regardless of medium.
True. We have certainly seen that with newsprint.
Though not that old, I have always preferred radio to TV. One of the local stations attempted to bring back the golden era of radio you write of either in house or syndicated. This would have been in the 80s. I loved it. One aired reruns of “Chicken Man” which left me in stitches as a child. Later, in the year 2000 I was working in the South and heard several radio story shows. My favorite being, “Married Man”. Whenever I have heard a recording of any of the old radio story programs, I have always been captivated by the quality of the stories, voices and sound effects.