Old Time Radio

There are many old time radio shows that are fun to listen to, but nothing beats a good mystery with the ever impressive Sherlock Holmes and his faithful side kick Dr. Watson.

Two of the most popular actors to ever play these roles were Sir  Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson. They played these characters in 14 Hollywood films before they took up the roles on radio.

"The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" radio show started in 1939 and Rathbone continued in the part until 1946. There were a total of 219 episodes with Rathbone playing the part of Holmes. In 1946 Tom Conway took over the role.

Nigel Bruce played the Dr. Watson role as a somewhat foolish, or bumbling sort of character. This helps to give the partnership somewhat of a balance with Holmes being the genius and mystery solver. But clever as he was, Holmes needed the ever faithful Watson to help him out of more than one troubling situation.

Some of the most popular episodes of the Holmes radio series were:

"Sweeny Todd, Demon Barber"
"The Notorious Canary Strangler"
"Murder at the Opera"
"The Limping Ghost"
"April Fool's Adventure"
"Murder Under the Big Top"
"The Hound of the Baskervilles"

These tales were loosely based on the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle stories.

Though there have been many actors to portray the Holmes and Watson duo, none have been more popular than the pairing of Rathbone and Bruce.

For years it was nearly impossible to track down episodes of these beloved radio shows. But thanks to the power of the internet, and a few dedicated websites, you can now listen to a wide variety of old time radio shows.

When you've had a long day of staring at the computer screen it's nice to have another option besides going home and staring at the television screen. You can lean back in your recliner, shut your eyes, relax, and listen to the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. See if you can figure out "whodunit" before he does.

These are also great to listen to on your commute home from work. If you're tired of listening to more bad news on the radio, or trying to skim through multiple Hip Hop stations to find some real music, maybe a radio show mystery is just what you need for a pleasant change of pace.

There's nothing more effective at making the troubles of the day fade away than stepping back in time and listening to an old time radio show.
 

To hear Sherlock Holmes and more, visit our old time radio site today.

Long before Father knew best on television, the "Father Knows Best" old time radio show was airing across the country. The show was created by writer, Ed James. On August 25, 1949, NBC aired the first episode. The show was about an average middle class family in the Midwest. It aired on Thursday evenings and was sponsored by General Foods.


Robert Young played the father, Jim Anderson, an insurance salesman. He's portrayed as a wise man that his wife and children turn to for advice.
 
Margaret, his wife, was played by June Whitely and then Jean Vander Pyl. She was the voice of patience and common-sense within the family.


The Andersons had three children. Betty was played by Rhoda Williams, Bud by Ted Donaldson, and Kathy by Norma Jean Nillson.
 
Betty, the oldest daughter, was a bit of a drama queen in the show. She often declared minor events as, "the worst thing that could ever happen!" Her interest was mostly in teenage boys.


Bud is depicted as the all-American boy. Though he gets $1.25 a week allowance he often felt he needed a little more.


Kathy, the precocious baby of the family, often complained and whined. She felt her status in the family was not considered as important because she was the youngest. Her brother and sister often seek her help when they need extra money.
 
Some favorite episodes include, "Enterprising Kids", "Jim Inherits a Ranch in Arizona", and "The Phantom Prowler". Approximately 200 episode were made.


As it's title implies, the show portrayed a paternalistic view of life in the 1950s. Father was in charge and he always knew what was best for his wife and children. But occasionally, his wife and kids got the best of him. When the show was originally created the title had a question mark at the end - "Father Knows Best?" The question mark was eventually dropped from the title.


Moral lessons were often an important part of the plot of each show.


The final radio episode was aired on November 19, 1953. It went on to become a popular television series. Robert Young was the only cast member to continue his radio show role on the CBS television series.


Thanks to the internet, episodes of "Father Knows Best" can be heard once more. Step back in time and enjoy the antics of the Anderson family. This and many other old time radio shows are available for download at various sites.


Listen to and download over two thousand shows totally free at our classic radio shows website. We offer a  friendly OTR discussion forum too.

One of the most beloved characters of old time radio was the Chinese-American, Charlie Chan. Chan was a detective on the Honolulu police force though his adventures often took him around the world.


The character of Charlie Chan was created in 1923 by Earl Derr Biggers. As well as a detective, Chan was an avid stamp collector. He was also a devoted family man with fourteen children. His Number One Son often assisted him in capturing evil criminals. Number Two Son and Number One Daughter also helped their father in various story adaptations.


The Charlie Chan radio shows started on December 2, 1932 as part of Esso’s Five Star Theater. Walter Connolly played the part of Chan.


During 1944 - 1945 Ed Begley, Sr. continued the role in the NBC produced version called, “The Adventures of Charlie Chan”. In 1947 - 48 the role was played by Santos Ortega. Number One Son was played by Leon Janney and Rodney Jacobs.


Some of the most popular episodes of the radio shows were: “The Escaped Musician”, “The Curious Ride of the Sea Witch”, “Fiery Santa Claus”, and “Charlie Chan’s Daughter is Kidnapped.”  In the latter, Chan’s number one daughter, Rose is kidnapped by bank robbers. But thanks to her cleverness in leaving clues behind (beads from her necklace) Chan was able to track her down. They then used Number One Son’s firecrackers to fool the criminals into thinking they had guns. Number One Daughter returns home safely.


Critics have debated the character of Charlie Chan for years. Originally the character was developed to provide an alternative to the negative Chinese portrayals such as Fu Manchu. Others felt Chan was too stereotypical  and subservient. But despite what critics think, the public loved Charlie Chan.


His oft quoted sayings are often called Chanisms. The Confucius like sayings are what set Chan apart from other American detectives in the mystery genre. These include: “Suspicion often father of truth”, and “One grain of luck sometimes worth more than whole rice field of wisdom”.


Charlie Chan was so popular he was portrayed in approximately fifty movies, numerous books, comic books, a television series, as well as two board games. Several movies were made in Spanish and Chinese versions as well as English. In the Chinese versions, Chan was assisted by his daughter, Manna, instead of a son like the American versions.


Chan’s radio programs are very rare. But thanks to the internet, you can now listen to this honorable sage as he not only solves the case, but imparts the wisdom of the ancient ancestors at the same time. Old time radio shows live again.




To listen to and download over 2,400 free old time radio shows in mp3 format Great OTR discussion forum and old time radio blog too.

If you thought old time radio was long gone and dead think again. Older entertainment like old time radio shows are making a huge come back and they’re mainly making their debut online. Read on to learn more.

For anyone who grew up listening to old time radio shows today’s entertainment can seem a world away from the good, clean fun of the radio. The good news is that this variety of entertainment is definitely making a strong comeback, and it’s ironically taking place right online. The information super highway is leading the way for the comeback of an age old entertainment channel—radio.

Listening to the radio in the 40’s and 50’s people had a brand new way to hear news and stories in their home. One of the most popular forms of old time radio were mystery shows that would sometimes be broadcasted over several days in some cases. These mystery shows would involve either a murder or crime taking place and the mystery would be solved by the person narrating the “case.”

These shows were largely popular at the height of old time radio and they are now making a comeback right on the internet where users can stream or download real old time broadcasts of these shows. While there are some variations of these broadcasts on services like iTunes it’s really a better idea to use a site online that is dedicated to old-style radio broadcasts to make sure you get the highest quality audio recordings.

Today’s entertainment in contrast to the old style radio shows is significantly different. Broadcasts used to be clean, universal fun for everyone who listened in and the good news is that you can now bring back that same good quality entertainment for the entire family with nothing more than an internet connection, a home computer and some speakers to play the audio on.

If you’re worried you don’t have the knowledge to make one of these online sites work for you, rest assured it’s quite easy. Most of the online sites that offer downloadable or streaming broadcasts will let you use a media player that is most likely already installed on your computer. If not you can download a free media player like VLC or Winamp to play the audio from the site.

If you’re interested in getting access to entertainment that’s still wholesome without sacrificing entertainment value then checking out some dedicated old-time radio sites is a great way to get started. There is a growing demand for old time radio shows that reflect the values and entertainment of their day and there’s no better way to satisfy this need then by going right online

Do you want to access real old radio shows for free right online? Go to this website right now to get started and gain access to a large variety of shows you can download or stream straight to your home computer.

One of the most often repeated lines didn’t come from a political speech, a movie, or even a rock song, but from an old time radio show.  “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!” was from a show that started in the 1930s.
 
The line was originally voiced by the narrator of a radio show called “Detective Story”. But the eerie character became so popular the show was the renamed “The Shadow”.

It was narrated by Frank Readick, Jr., and was accompanied by the  musical theme, Camille Saint-Saëns' Le Rouet d'Omphale ("Omphale's Spinning Wheel", composed in 1872). A sinister laugh was also heard from the ominous voice.

The sinister narrator was created to add interest in The Detective Hour radio show and boost sales of the Detective Story Magazine. However, people found the eerie character so compelling that they started asking for the “The Shadow” magazine, even though it didn’t exist.

The Shadow was a vigilante who fought crime using his psychic powers. On the radio show he had the power to seem invisible by influencing the minds of his enemies. Some his more popular nemeses were Kings of Crime and The Red Menace.

The mysteriously cloaked figure with the sinister voice was always clad in black and worked mostly at night. He had the power to defy gravity, unravel codes, speak any language, and had super-human strength.
 
Some of the most popular of The Shadow radio shows where the ones voiced by Orson Welles.

The character of The Shadow was so well loved that he was eventually featured in motion pictures, comic books, television shows, and even video games. The magician Walter B. Gibson wrote much of the material that turned The Shadow into a pulp icon. He wrote under the pen name Maxwell Grant and other writers eventually wrote the stories under the name, also.

At the end of each show The Shadow reminded listeners, "The weed of crime bears bitter fruit. Crime does not pay.... The Shadow knows!"

Though the lines of The Shadow have remained famous, at one time it was heard to track down episodes of the radio show. But that is no longer true. Thanks to the internet you can now find copies of this and many other radio shows.

The Shadow ran until 1954 and is still a favorite show to many.

Listen to and download over 2,000 totally free old time radio shows, just visit our old time radio show website and our old time radio information blog today.