Dials and Channels
The Journal of the Radio & Television Museum
2608 Mitchellville Road
Vol. 17, No. 3
Bowie, MD 20716-1392
www.radiohistory.org
(301) 390-1020
September 2011
Recalling FM Stereo’s Early Years
on its 50th Anniversary
By Lynn Christian
[Lynn Christian is a true radio pioneer in addition to being an RHS Board member. We’re grateful to
him for sharing his memories of a watershed moment in radio history.—Editor]
FM
stereo radio, though initiated in 1961, did
not fully impact audiences and advertisers
until the mid-1970s. It was my personal pleasure to
experience much of this turnover as it happened.
What follows is a personal journal recalling some of
the events and people who made a difference in first
bringing stereo FM radio into the nation’s homes and
automobiles.
stereo service. (AM stereo appeared years later, but
was botched by both the FCC and broadcasters and
mostly failed in the marketplace.)
From his third edition of A Broadcast Engineering
Tutorial for Non-Engineers, former NAB Director
of Communications Engineering, Graham Jones,
(writing in my kind of language), describes the
system:
In April 1961 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved a system of FM stereo broadcasting including modifications recommended by the
National Stereophonic Radio Committee (NSRC), an
engineering test group founded in 1959 by the
Electronics Industry Association (EIA) and the
National Association of Broadcasters (NAB).
Two-channel stereo sound, consisting of left and
right program channels is used almost universally at
analog FM radio and TV broadcast stations. No
matter what type of analog broadcast station is
involved, all stereo broadcast systems use a method
for coding the left and right audio channels that
Several of the seventeen systems under consideration
utilized both AM and FM signals, but ultimately the
FCC authorized stereo employing only FM when, in
October 1961, the Commission denied petitions for
AM stereo, stating that ―FM was the ideal medium‖
for providing the best possible radio broadcasting
As of January 1, 2012, the Radio History
Society and The Radio & Television
Museum will undergo an official name
change and become the National Capital
Radio & Television Museum!
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September 2011
Page 1
When FM began, elaborate AM-FM consoles were
widely advertised, but by the late 1950s, inexpensive
plastic table model FM sets like this Granco were
gaining in popularity.
ensures the stereo signal can be decoded and played
by both stereophonic and monophonic receivers.
To learn more about this process see the ―History of
FM Stereo‖ entry in the Encyclopedia of Radio,
Volume 3, edited by Museum Board Chair, Chris
Sterling.
Beginning as the general manager of America’s first
fulltime stereo FM radio station in Houston, Texas
(KODA-FM), it has been my pleasure to observe the
many benefits this quality aural service has consistently provided listeners over the past 20 years.
While recognizing the progress FM radio attained
following this FCC decision, I will focus mostly on
some memories and observations regarding the
economic, programming and audience changes that
In 1959 Houston station KODA-FM, Foley’s
Department Store, and Sound Equipment, Inc.
joined forces to sponsor an “FM-Stereo Spectacular”
to attract attention to stereo FM broadcasting.
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Consumers who wanted FM at the lowest possible
cost could purchase plastic table models like the
Granco pictured to the left, but retailers strived to
convince consumers to purchase more expensive
consoles like the dual-speaker Sylvania model
shown here, for which the profit margin was much
greater. (Of course the Sylvania would have
sounded much better than the $29.95 Granco.)
occurred as FM rose to become the country’s
dominant radio medium.
In Houston, we joined with six other FM station
managers in late 1959 to promote purchase of a lowcost FM table model radio as a Christmas gift, which
Granco sold for just $29.95, dispelling the theory
that only wealthy people could afford to access our
unique static-free sound and different programming.
The campaign was on the air, on billboard signs and
in newspaper ads supported by the local retailers.
After KODA-FM initiated stereo FM multiplex
radio, we produced a Houston FM-Stereo Spectacular, sponsored by Foley’s Department Store, then the
city’s largest retailer, and Sound Equipment, Inc.,
Houston’s largest hi–fi/stereo component dealer.
During the event, at a new downtown hotel, we
featured many new stereo FM components, large
home entertainment consoles and seminars for do-it-
The Radio & Television Museum:
A cooperative venture between the City of
Bowie and the Radio History Society.
September 2011
Page 2
As the demand for stereo hi-fi units mushroomed,
companies such as EICO and Heathkit rushed to
market kits for FM tuners, multiplex adapters,
preamps, and stereo amplifiers. At the Houston FMStereo Spectacular, kit building sessions were
offered to the public.
yourselfers, instructing how to assemble Heathkit
components. The expo was a big success.
Additionally, to promote the sale of FM stereo
radios, we assisted retailers by presenting daily
broadcast periods of stereo demonstration LP album
music, often referred to as ―ping-pong music,‖ seven
days a week. These recordings gave a strong left/
right channel presence which aided receiver demonstrations.
At the Consumer Electronics Industry (CEI)
convention in 1967, Audio Times urged CEI
members to ―sell radio,‖ and especially ―stereo,‖
because it was, in their words, ―a big dollar sale and
was often the biggest contributor to profits‖…even
more so than from the sale of color TV sets.
With a new Gates stereo studio console, stereo
turntables, stereo cassette players and Ampex stereo
tape decks at KODA-FM, we began to experiment
with producing stereo commercials. Broadcasting,
the industry’s leading trade magazine, on June 29,
1963, acknowledged that ―Advertisers Like Stereo‖
in a feature article adding impetus to commercial
stereo FM.
As I later stated in Michael Keith’s book, Talking
Radio:
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Before being able to offer FM stereo broadcasts,
stations had to make significant capital investments.
Here Doug Dodd of Tulsa station KMOD proudly
shows off new studio equipment from Gates, Ampex,
and Collins.
In the early days in Houston and New York all of the
independently programmed FM stations worked
together promoting FM stereo radios for homes and
cars…I consider this phase in its history as Radio‟s
renaissance…most of us were not in it for financial
reasons; those rewards took a long time to arrive.
We just loved the new sound of stereo FM…it was an
era, I believe, that had a major role in shaping the
values of FM stations today.
In this same book, former FCC Chairman Newton
Minow added:
Stereo FM really exploded in the sixties and
seventies. It helped put FM on the map.
During the 1960s, however, few commercial FM
stereo stations were profitable. Most listeners did not
yet own stereo radios, while barely half of the
stations utilized stereo transmission and studio
equipment. FM radio penetration of American
homes across the country in 1961 was around ten
percent. Because of this, few advertisers were
willing to support their efforts. Most independent
FM operators employed fewer than five people and
many relied solely on revenue they received from
separate background-music services or small retail
businesses. Finally, the majority of FM stations on
the air 50 years ago simply duplicated the programming of their ―big brother‖ AM station. The
September 2011
Page 3
Radio stations advertised heavily in magazines and newspapers when they launched FM stereo broadcasting.
This full-page ad from Atlanta’s WSB, which appeared in the July 29, 1963 issue of Broadcasting, is a good
example.
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September 2011
Page 4
I had the pleasure of managing station KODA-FM in
Houston when stereo FM was introduced. Here
KODA Program Director Ron Schmidt (right) records
an overnight classical music program while
announcer Bill Maritin is on the air with a mid-day
music program.
FM audiences were mostly regarded as ―free bonus
listeners‖ for radio advertisers.
On November 26, 1961, KODA-FM went on the air
in stereo eighteen hours a day. Our small company
(owned by a creative Paul Taft) fervently believed, as
did I, that FM stereo was a high-quality product that
our listeners wanted…or soon would. Our early
listeners (we first aired in November 1958 as
KHGM—‟The Home of Good Music‖) had said that
our high fidelity sound, limited commercials, quality
and presentation of music not being aired on AM
radio, would keep them with us on FM. Listeners
eagerly awaited FM stereo and FM car radios.
Helping to build momentum for FM stereo, the
recording industry in 1958 introduced stereo longplaying albums, developing America’s growing taste
for stereo entertainment. A year later, in order to
build momentum for FM broadcasting, to lobby the
FCC to end the duplication of AM programming on
sister FM stations, and to encourage the development
of FM stereo, the National Association of FM Broadcasters (NAFMB) was formed. There were just 26
independent FM broadcasters meeting in Chicago in
January 1959. Those of us who attended were later
blessed with some excellent leaders during the next
decade, including T. Mitchell Hastings of the
Concert Network in Boston, Jim Schulke from New
York City, and James Gabbert from San Francisco.
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Consumers who already owned a monaural FM
tuner could purchase a multiplex adapter to capture
the stereo sound. (Of course you would need
another channel and speaker, too.)
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the
leadership was admirably led by Abe Voron of
Philadelphia. The NAFMB grew to include over
1000 stations by the late 1960s and became the
National Radio Broadcasters Association (NRBA).
Eventually peaking at nearly 2000 members, it
merged with the NAB in the 1980s. NAFMB/
NRBA’s early efforts in Washington and elsewhere
promoting FM stereo built the foundation for its
success.
But that success did not come easily, as a front page
story related in the Wall Street Journal on November
27, 1964:
Stereophonic broadcasting has provided a lucrative
new service for FM stations. The two-signal system,
approved by the FCC in 1961, approximates the
„depth‟ quality of actual musical performance. The
stereo effect can be heard only by listeners who have
stereo receivers. Advertising from phonograph
record companies and other makers of high fidelity
equipment also shot up since stereo broadcasting
began…but more diverse sponsors may be attracted
to FM soon.
Indeed, this story in the Journal came just six
months after I had moved to New York City and put
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An ad from New York station WRFM—another example of the promotion of FM stereo. The emphasis is on quality—quality of the sound and of the operatic music that WRFM listeners could
tune in.
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September 2011
Page 6
the Daily News‟s WPIX-FM on the air. It reflected
perfectly the lack of advertising support for FM
radio in its early years. We soon discovered that to
build audiences we had to give them more than
simply long segments of classical music recordings
or wall-to-wall background music. Thanks to the
recording industry’s interest in promoting stereo,
many new recordings were released, which the
stations’ music directors could select and play.
The remastering of big band albums or singers, light
classics, and show tunes began to fill the FM stereo
airwaves all over New York. By late 1965, just four
years after the FCC stereo decision, WTFM,
WRFM, WNCN, WNEW-FM, WABC-FM, WPIXFM and FM’s first full-time stereo rock-and-roll
station, WOR-FM, caught New York City radio
listener’s ears. You started to hear FM stereo
stations everywhere. Listeners wanted to be ―tastemakers‖ and FM stereo became Manhattan’s new
―Happening Place!‖ (as it was promoted in the
1960s).
The first seven years of FM stereo, 1962 to 1969,
brought FM broadcasters together into local
organizations focused primarily on promoting the
advantages of FM stereo radio’s unique sound and
different formats. Stations worked with local highfidelity, appliance, music, and department stores to
cooperatively promote FM stereo receivers and their
own stations. This retail awareness of FM stereo was
highly important. Indeed, some AM/FM station
owners began to separate their own programming
before a final edict requiring such a program effort
was instituted in the late 1960s. Stations met the
requirement using automation. For example, here in
the Washington area, WMAL-FM moved from its
AM program format to a full-time automated stereo
music service conceived by their vice president and
general manager, Fred Houwink, as reported in
Broadcasting on June 2l, 1965. The entire $16,000
system (about $94,000 in 2010 dollars), was built by
station engineers and utilized reel-to-reel and tape
cartridge players and twelve turntables. The only
manual operation needed was the cueing of records.
Besides the FCC approval of the technical standard
itself, the biggest game-changing event for FM
stereo was, of course, the FCC requirement to
separate programs on co-owned AM and FM
stations, As Chris Sterling and Michael Keith put it
in their 2008 history of FM, Sounds of Change: ―…
as (FCC) rulemaking begun in 1961, formally
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KXLS in Oklahoma City was another station that
adopted FM stereo broadcasting when it was a new
technology.
proposed in 1963, and adopted in 1964, (to be
effective the next year) was finally in effect only at
the start of 1968….‖
This critical rule basically required that in all United
States markets with a population of 100,000 or
more (about 125 of them at that time) AM/FM
station operators would be required to provide
separate programming for each station, half of every
broadcast day. Sterling and Keith concluded:
“It is sufficient to note that the FCC‟s forced
creation of a separate FM program „voice‟ would
prove to be a vital factor in FM‟s eventual
dominance over AM.”
FM’s dominance became so pronounced after 1980
Washington, D.C. station WMAL-FM began
automated stereo broadcasting in May 1965. Its own
engineers built the equipment shown here that
enabled the station to do so.
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Page 7
that eventually much of AM radio abandoned
music programming for talk, news, or sports radio,
or in some cases, religious or ethnic formats. For
nearly twenty years, FM stations retained their
policies of limited talk and commercials, along
with quality music programming. Once FM stereo
radio became the listeners’ first choice, and FCC
ownership rules and regulations were radically
modified, many traditional aspects of early
commercial FM programming ended. This has been
primarily due to the addition of greater competition, changing music tastes of America’s younger
audiences, and the pressures of seeking high station
ratings. In 2011, the most successful radio station
in the country is WTOP, Washington, D.C.’s allnews station. No longer on AM, it is now heard on
three FM dial locations in the national capital area.
Today the radio industry is witnessing more moves
from AM and FM technology due to the advent of
FM’s new digital services on the same channels
(i.e., HD radio), digital streaming over the Internet,
cell phone radio chips (just beginning), digital
satellite radio, and other methods of worldwide
distribution. The instant widespread access to radio
on these new personal devices is especially relevant
given the importance of receiving instant news,
weather and traffic information. Emergency
messages, as recently witnessed during the Spring
2011 rash of horrific tornadoes and for ―Amber
Alerts‖ (conceived by a small market radio station
operator in California), are vitally needed by
today’s 21st-century listeners.
The evolution continues for FM stereo, as it begins
its second half century. For me, FM stereo radio’s
introduction in the 1960s was an exceptional
professional experience. While FM, our foremost
aural medium, is presently engaged in another
transition, this time to digital technology, just
remember to ―stay tuned… radio is here to stay!‖ ■
The Editor’s Introduction to FM Stereo
Lynn Christian’s article brought back memories for me. I recall well, how, when I began
college in southern California in 1959, several
of my dorm friends acquired hi-fi systems in
which one channel of the stereo was received
on AM and the other on FM. Prior to the
availability of multiplex FM stereo, companies
offered AM-FM tuners designed to provide
that kind of two-band stereo listening. It was
better than monaural radio, but not nearly as
good as what was to become available shortly
thereafter when stereo multiplexing began.
About 1964 I purchased and built my first hi-fi
stereo system. It included a Dynakit FM tuner,
preamp, and amplifier, an AR turntable, and
JBL speakers, all housed in an eight-foot long
walnut Barzilay cabinet kit. I recall vividly
how awed I was when I finished putting it
together, turned it on, and tuned in classical
music station KCBH from Beverly Hills. The
sound quality was so much better than our old
Zenith AM clock radio I was blown away. I
could not believe my ears. Announcer
Hamilton Williams and the orchestra sounded
as though they were right in our living room.
Today we take high-quality sound for granted,
but I continue to be thankful to those who
developed FM stereo half a century ago.
For more of the history of FM radio, check out
the book in our gift shop co-authored by
Museum Board President Christopher Sterling
and Michael Keith: Sounds of Change: A
History of FM Broadcasting in America. And,
for Chris Sterling’s recollections about early
FM stereo, see page 11.
- Brian Belanger
Dynakit’s FM-3 stereo FM tuner provided high quality
music delivered by FM stereo.
Dials and Channels
September 2011
Here I am
putting together
the cabinet for
my stereo hi-fi
system.
Page 8
We Interrupt this Newsletter to Bring You a Special Bulletin:
The Museum Has Hired Its First Employee!
By Brian Belanger
T
he Radio and Television Museum has hired its
first employee. Laurie Baty began work (part
time) at the end of May and has already proved to be
a terrific addition. Her resume is impressive. Just to
cite three jobs she has held:



Senior Director of Museum Programs at the
National Law Enforcement Officers Museum
Deputy Director, Division of Collections, U.S.
Holocaust Memorial Museum
Chief, Museum Services Branch, Department of
the Interior
What is more, Laurie is cheerful and fun to work
with. In her first few weeks on the job, she has dealt
with problems with the Museum’s databases for
objects, library materials, and membership. She has
renewed all outstanding loans, and she has begun a
complete inventory of the collections—something
that has never been done before, but definitely needs
doing. Not only that, but Laurie recruited an
intern—Joy Veenstra—to help speed up taking the
inventory.
Setting up the paperwork for a new employee kept
Treasurer David Green busy, but he has figured out
and implemented all that needs to be done to comply
with Federal and State employment regulations.
We are developing a strategy to approach foundations and corporations, but all of us members also
need to help. I plan to increase my level of support
for the museum and I urge all my fellow members
to consider moving up to the next level of support
the next time you renew your membership. ■
What does this mean to Museum members? It means
the museum is climbing to the next level of professsionalism. For long-term success, the Museum must
have paid professional staff. The Museum will
always rely on volunteers to a considerable extent,
but to ensure viability, it is not appropriate to rely
exclusively on volunteers as we have done up to
now.
The Board concluded that the Museum has sufficient
assets to take this important step at this time, but
there is risk associated with taking it. For the
Museum to continue to grow, cash flow must be
increased. Laurie Baty will help us with that effort.
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Joy Veenstra, the intern recruited by Laurie Baty.
Thanks to Joy’s help, the inventory is proceeding
much more rapidly.
September 2011
Page 9
Museum Volunteer Spotlight:
Tony Young
[This is part of a continuing series about Museum
volunteers—people who are essential to keeping the
Museum running.]
T
ony Young grew up in Massachusetts, working
part time at an ice cream stand, where he said
he dished up thousands of scoops of delicious
flavors, resisting the temptation to sample them too
often. He made all of the ice cream! Tony chose to
serve his country by joining the Navy. He was
stationed in a number of different far-flung
locations, including Guam, as an intercept radio
operator. To do this job, Tony had to train diligently
to acquire the special skill of accurately receiving
high-speed encrypted Morse code messages that
would later be decoded by the intelligence
community. He was a fast learner, and even today,
he can send and receive Morse code at lightning
speeds.
an RHS Board member as well as Museum member
-ship chair until recently, and he is also in charge of
the Museum’s tube program. Almost every
Wednesday Tony can be found (often with Oscar
Ramsey) at the tube warehouse in Davidsonville,
Maryland, sorting, testing, and cataloguing tubes.
Tube sales are an important element of the
Museum’s revenue stream. Tony also obtained the
use of three buildings for the use of the Museum
and the Mid-Atlantic Antique Radio Club at the
Davidsonville Family Recreation Center.
Invariably cheerful and good humored, Tony is the
sort of guy who is always willing to help when
something unexpected comes up at the Museum,
which happens more often than we might like.
Because he lives close by, he is willing to stop in on
short notice. Without loyal volunteers like Tony, the
Museum simply could not function. ■
When he was discharged from the Navy, Tony was
hired by IBM, and quickly became an electric
typewriter expert, making valuable suggestions to
the company for improving their designs and
servicing procedures. He served as an instructor to
teach new IBM employees about those famous
Selectric typewriters. When he retired from IBM he
was able to devote more time to his ham radio hobby
and the Anne Arundel Amateur Radio Club. (Tony’s
call is WA3YLO.) For a long time he managed his
―Widow’s Assistance Program,‖ helping spouses of
deceased hams dispose of equipment. Tony is
dedicated to community service, having served on
an advisory board dealing with issues of foster
children. He is also a regular volunteer at his church,
with the Bowie Senior Center, and with the Knights
of Columbus.
Tony joined our crew before the museum opened its
doors, and ever since he has been one of our hardest
working volunteers. For many years he has been the
person in charge of the museum virtually every
Saturday. In addition, he is usually at the museum
for part of the day most Fridays, and is often a
docent for special tours during the week. Tony was
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Tony Young, standing near the entrance to the
Museum, showing off an impressive Western Electric
transmitting tube from the Museum’s collection.
September 2011
Page 10
More Recollections of Early FM Stereo
By Christopher Sterling
Special Lecture at the Museum
Saturday, October 15, 2 p.m.
I started as a student announcer at the University
of Wisconsin-Madison's WHA in September 1961,
just after I'd entered as a freshman (my first
semester tuition bill was $110!). For a year or so,
the station had broadcast two-station stereo, with
the AM daytime only station providing one
channel, and WHA-FM providing the other.
Announcing when the transition from monaural to
stereo was to begin was a bit tricky. We had a
standard script to explain what we were doing and
why—and what the listener would gain by
continuing to listen. And, of course, we had to tell
listeners that they needed to use two radios (one
AM and one FM) in the same room, and roughly
how to set them up to get the right effect.
Armstrong:
The Man Behind FM Radio
Then, if I remember correctly (let's face it, this
was a half century ago!), we would "bring in" the
AM channel followed by the FM for a classical
music broadcast. Of course the two channels didn't
really balance well given the poor signal response
of an AM channel compared to FM. But the
sensation of two different signals was astounding
when you heard it for the first time. The
experiment was also weakened by the fact that so
few households owned an FM receiver in Madison
in 1961. Estimates hovered around 20 percent.
Perhaps the two-station broadcasts helped to sell a
few more.
After the FCC approved multiplex FM stereo, as
described well by Lynn Christian in this issue,
WHA fairly quickly gave up on the two-station
approach and switched over to FM stereo for its
heavily classical music programming. And slowly
the number of FM receivers grew as well, though
at first few were built to carry the stereo signal.
Many of the earliest models had separate channels,
but being all of six or so inches apart, you
practically had to sit on top of the radio to get any
stereo effect. While I never had the knowledge or
ability to build my own rig (such as Brian
Belanger describes elsewhere in this issue), I
finally did get a combo radio phonograph with
separate speakers that could be placed several feet
apart. That was the real beginning of FM stereo
enjoyment for me. ■
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Edwin Howard Armstrong (1890-1954) was one of
the most important figures in American radio, with
three radio innovations to his credit before he began
to focus on FM radio as a way to avoid the static that
plagues AM. To the surprise of many, he succeeded,
creating a new system of radio transmission in the
early 1930s—and then spending the remaining two
decades of his life fighting for its success. His is a
story of perseverance and, in the end, tragedy. Yet
nearly six decades after his death, we still enjoy the
fruits of his efforts.
Our distinguished speaker is Dr. Christopher
Sterling, who chairs the museum's board. He has
been at George Washington University for three
decades. Author or editor of nearly 25 books (one of
which, Sounds of Change, is a history of FM radio,
copies of which are available at the museum gift
shop), he was recently named an associate dean of
GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. Not
only is Chris the current board chair, he also
regularly serves as a docent at the museum and is a
key person in designing and implementing the
exhibits the museum has at the George Washington
University.
While you are at the museum to hear this lecture,
you can view a relatively new exhibit about FM
radio. On display are two pre-WWII radios with the
old FM band. Originally the FM band was in a
different location in the fre-quency spectrum—42 to
50 MHz. Today, of course, the FM band is assigned
to the 88 to 108 MHz range. When the band
reallocation occur-red in 1945, it meant that anyone
who had purchased an FM radio prior to the war
suddenly had an obsolete device. (It is some-what
analogous to our having to deal with the recent
transition from analog broadcast TV to digital TV.)
The FM exhibit at the museum summarizes how FM
came to be and explains the difference between AM
and FM broadcasting. ■
September 2011
Page 11
Donations: April to July 2011
Arcadia Publishing
Charleston, S.C.
Book – Chattanooga radio history
Elsie DeWall
Derwood, Md.
Zenith Model G672BT
Susie Bachtel
Arlington, Va.
Two boxes of radio service literature
Gene Duman
Reston, Va.
Book and magazines
Daniel Barbieri
Olney, Md.
National 183D communications
receiver, Heathkit CR-1 crystal set,
Vibroplex speed key
Paul Farmer
Washington, Va.
Regency TR-1 transistor radio
(This is the world’s first transistor
radio model offered to the public!)
Michael Beaghen
Alexandria, Va.
Book – Tube [history of television]
Alan Feinstein
Columbia, Md.
Five Heathkit items, other test
equipment
John Bruce
Frederick, Md.
Atwater Kent 60
Michael Canavan
Bowie, Md.
Panasonic VCR
Lynn Christian
Ashburn, Va.
Book: Broadcast Engineering Tutorial
Steven Edward Clark
Bowie, Md.
Sony color TV and antenna
Joe Colick
Clinton, Md.
Airline GEN 1937A clock radio,
Westinghouse H-871N6 radio,
both fully restored
Lee Craft
Alexandria, Va.
Radio parts, more than
100 radio & TV tubes
Sarah Crim
Bowie, Md.
Book: International Code of Signals
John Gillan
Parkville, Md.
Book: Radio Education Pioneering in
the Mid West
Albert Gimbalvo
Fairfax, Va.
Box of vacuum tubes
Sidney Greenspan
Chevy Chase, Md.
RCA 170T TV set, many
radio books, other items
Thomas Harryman
Baltimore, Md.
Silvertone Medalist transistor radio
Joe Haupt
Ellicott City, Md.
Truetone DC 1454, Sentinel table
model
Elizabeth Kipps
Rochelle, Va.
GE P-720-B, American Bosch 28,
parts cabinet
Robert LaFollette
Sykesville, Md.
Sony portable TV
David Lavender
Potomac, Md.
~25 used vacuum tubes
David League
Richmond, Va.
Emerson 605 radio, Emerson 606 TV,
Zenith Trans-Oceanic, Minerva
table model, many other radios
Barbara McBride
Bowie, Md.
Ham equipment, books, parts
Barbara Newbury
Gaithersburg, Md.
Radiola 80, old tubes
Janet Sanford
Linthicum, Md.
Penton wire recorder and wire spools,
GE transistor radio
Gilbert Saunders
Bowie, Md.
Grundig Satellit 800, Sony active
antenna
Gerald Schneider
Kensington, Md.
Emud model T-7
Mark Hilliard
Allentown, Pa.
RCA Model 303 Braille radio
Perry Sennewald
Charlottesville, Va.
Hotel Radio Corp. Model 6A
coin-operated chairside radio
Rowland Johnson
Reston, Va.
Reference books
Richard Short
Bowie, Md.
Philco 91X console
Cathryn Davis
Herndon, Va.
Harmon Kardon Citation amplifier,
test equipment, parts, tubes, books
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September 2011
Page 12
Michael Simons
National Electronics Museum
Linthicum, Md.
Three radio tubes
Robert Snow
Bowie, Md.
Channel 4/NBC items
Jack Thompson
Edgewater, Md.
1936 Monarch table model,
Conar tube tester, Wireless Cyclopedia
reprint
Debbie Wheeler
Derwood, Md.
Philco 42-390X console
David Sproul (WMAL)
Washington, D.C.
WMAL station material (rate card,
log, etc.)
Nancy Wilson
Petaluma, Ca.
1932 radio clipping - NY Times
Christopher Sterling
Annandale, Va.
28 radio and TV books
Robert Wilson
Hyattsville, Md.
Audio amp and FM tuner
Peter Wittenberg
Annapolis, Md.
~7,000 radio tubes
Lynn Wright
Silver Spring, Md.
Sony boombox & VCR,
Pioneer SX-1010 stereo
receiver, Atwater Kent Model 84,
Teac Dolby unit, other items
Tony Young
Bowie, Md.
Shure SW109 microphone ■
Our Generous Museum Members
W
e are truly grateful to
Museum members who
maintain their memberships at
levels above the basic level. Such
support is critical to the Museum’s
success. Whatever your current
level, when your membership
renewal comes up, please consider
renewing at a higher level. (And, if
your membership is at a level
higher than basic, and if you prefer
to remain anonymous, please make
that fact known to us and we will
not list your name here.)
Patron Level ($250/year and
above)
Anonymous
Brian Belanger
John Berresford
Jim Bohannon
Lynn Christian
Robert Coren
C. L. Gephart
Rowland Johnson
William McMahon
James O’Neal
Roy Shapiro
Ludwell Sibley
Dials and Channels
Benefactor ($100 to $249/year)
Supporters (continued)
Michael Beaghen
Barry Cheslock
Noel Elliott
Paul Farmer
Stan Fetter
John Foell
Donald Gibson
David Goodling
Bill Goodwin
Greg Hunolt
David & Joanne Kelleher
Joe Koester
Paul Lewis
Edward Lyon, III
Byron Roscoe
Charles Schenck
Gerald Schneider
David Simon
Christopher Sterling
Mary Ellen Stroupe
John G. Tyner II
Ed Walker
Davis Wilson
Adrian Dales
Sam Dedonatis
Robert Duckman
Michael Edelstein
Michael G. Freedman
Robert Gardner
Charles H. Grant
David Green
Kurt & June Heinz
Paul Klein
David League
Terry Lohman
Dick Maio
Steve Malley
John McKellar
Ken Mellgren
Maurice Moore
John Okolowicz
John Robinson
Don Ross
Robert Ross
Charles Sakran
David Schaefer
Neal Schiff
Merrick Shawe
Russ Shipley
Michael Simons
William J. Steele
Sara Stephens
Susan Stolov
Cal Trowbridge
Robert Wirsing ■
Supporters ($50 to $99/year)
John Beers
Camille Bohannon
Ray Brubacher
W. Michael Byrnes
David Churchill
September 2011
Page 13
Radio and Television Pioneers
Museum Website Progress
Sidney Harman died in April at age 92. He was a key
individual in the development of high fidelity. Harman
began working for David Bogen & Co. in the 1930s.
(Bogen made PA systems and amplifiers.) He and a
Bogen colleague, Bernard Kardon, left Bogen in 1953
to found Harman Kardon—a company that was a
leader in the early days of high fidelity systems, and
later expanded into Harman International, which today
provides a wide variety of modern electronic gadgets,
and includes brands such as JBL, Mark Levinson and
Infinity. Harman Industries has 11,000 employees and
$3.5 billion an annual sales.
Several members have asked about a membersonly page on the Museum website—and it's
coming! By late September, it should be up and
running with lots of special features available only
to paid-up members, including a complete back file
of Dials and Channels, and many other radio-TV
related documents. When the page is ready, an
email will go out to members telling you how to
gain access. (We had expected to have this feature
implemented much sooner.) Once it is in place, it
will constitute yet another important reason for
maintaining your Museum membership. ■
Harman served as Undersecretary of Commerce in the
Carter Administration. He purchased Newsweek
magazine shortly before he died. His wife, Jane
Harman, was a member of Congress. He contributed
large sums to Washington area non-profits, such as
The Washington Ballet and the Shakespeare Theater
Company.
Bob Banner is another pioneer who died this year.
RHS member Dick Jamison calls Banner ―one of the
true shapers of commercial television (for good or
ill).‖ Jamison was a page boy at NBC in Chicago in
the early 1950s and saw Banner’s work first hand on
shows such as Kukla Fran and Ollie and Garroway at
Large, adding that ―his name was spoken in terms of
awe by TV staffers even then.‖
Banner began working in television in 1948 and
became a storied executive producer. His show
Candid Camera was one of the most popular in its
day. Other shows of his featured stars such as Perry
Como and Gary Moore. For CBS he produced
Omnibus, with Alistair Cooke.
His company, Bob Banner Associates, became one of
the
longest-running
independent
production
companies in television and pioneered the idea of
selling syndicated shows to cable networks. In 1958
he won an Emmy for directing The Dinah Shore
Chevy Show. (Dinah Shore singing, ―See the U.S.A. in
your Chevrolet‖ is an iconic moment in early
television.) In one of those shows, Banner proposed to
have Dinah and Nat King Cole sing a duet. NBC
officials objected to the proposal, fearing that it would
antagonize southern viewers. Banner quit in protest
but was rehired in a week. ■
Dials and Channels
RHS Vision and Mission Statements
Vision: The Radio History Society seeks to foster
an understanding of the impact of radio-television
technology and the power of broadcasting to shape
the world, while encouraging the public to pursue an
understanding of this history to mold the future.
Mission: The Radio-Television Museum, governed
by the Radio History Society, seeks to educate the
public about the history and impact of radio and
television technology and broadcasting, though the
Society’s efforts to collect, preserve, and interpret
radio and television artifacts, programming, and
publications, starting with the dawn of radio. ■
NRI’s Fascinating History
In 1999 the Museum inherited the archives of the
National Radio Institute (NRI) when NRI closed its
doors. Washington, D.C.-based NRI was the
leading provider of home-study courses in radio
and television for most of the 20th century.
Recently the Museum videotaped an oral history
interview with Jack Thompson, who headed NRI
for many years. A DVD of the interview will be
available soon in the Museum library. Museum
Director Brian Belanger is working on a
comprehensive history of NRI. The ad on page 15
appeared in the July 1956 issue of RadioElectronics magazine, and is typical of the highly
effective marketing by NRI. ■
September 2011
Page 14
Dials and Channels
September 2011
Page 15
New Board Member:
Lindsey Baker
The Museum’s Board of Directors has been looking
for additional Board members who could bring
helpful skills to the job. The Board recently selected
Lindsey Baker to fill a vacant Board position.
Lindsey is a graduate of Goucher College, with a
B.A. in History, and an M.A. in History and
Museum Studies from the University of Delaware.
She is the Executive Director of the Laurel
Historical Society (since 2008), and in that role
handles a wide variety of tasks, including museum
operations, fundraising, supervising volunteers, etc.
In short—the same kinds of challenges our Museum
faces.
She is the Secretary of the Maryland Association of
History Museums and serves on the Conference
Committee of the Small Museum Association.
Her experience in running a very successful small
museum makes her particularly well qualified to
provide helpful advice to our Museum on multiple
topics. ■
Acknowledgement
The Museum thanks the Shiers Memorial Fund for its help in underwriting the cost of printing
and mailing this journal, as well as improving the Museum’s website.
RHS Officers and Directors
President
Chris Sterling (2014)
4507 Airlie Way
Annandale, VA 22003
(703) 256-9304
chsems@verizon.net
Vice President
Peter Eldridge (2012)
6641 Wakefield Dr. #205
Alexandria, VA 22307
(703) 765-1569
peter.eldridge@ed.gov
Treasurer
David Green (2012)
413 Twinbrook Parkway
Rockville, MD 20851
301-545-1127
djgmcg@hotmail.com
Executive Director and
Newsletter Editor
Brian Belanger (2013)
115 Grand Champion Drive
Rockville, MD 20850
(301) 258-0708
radiobelanger@comcast.net
Directors
Lindsey Baker (2013)
301-725-7975
Lynn Christian (2014)
(703) 723-7356
Paul Courson (2014)
(202) 898-7653
Michael Freedman (2014)
(703) 838-0013
William Goodwin (2013)
(410) 535-2952
Charles Grant (2012)
(301) 871-0540
Dials and Channels
September 2011
Directors (continued)
Michael Henry (2013)
(301) 474-5709
Caryn Mathes (2013)
(202) 885-1214
Bill McMahon (2013)
(304) 535-1610
Ken Mellgren (2012)
(301) 929-1062
Pamela O’Brien (2012)
(301) 486-1402
James O’Neal (2014)
(703) 852-4632
Michael Simons (2014)
(301) 698-8230
Ed Walker (2012)
(301) 229-7060
Page 16