Category Archives: Christmas

Christmas Eve Radio, 1925

One hundred years ago, radio was definitely becoming a part of Christmas for many American families. Shown here is the program schedule for what Americans would be listening to on Christmas Eve. The network programming is most notable. Both WEAF and WJZ in New York were the flagships of growing networks. WEAF, which had the advantage of using AT&T lines, was the largest, extending as far west as St. Louis and Minneapolis. WJZ did not have that advantage, and managed with leased telegraph lines. This resulted in inferior sound quality, and a network extending only as far as Washington.

This schedule, compiled by the United Press, appeared in the December 24, 1925, issue of the Daily Kennebec Journal of Augusta, Maine.

One Tube Radio Kit Under the Tree, 1955

Seventy years ago, Santa Claus brought this young man an electronic kit, which looks like it could quite possibly be a one tube radio. Christmas morning, Dad encouraged him to do only logical thing–start putting it together right there under the tree. With Dad’s helpful guidance, we have no doubt that they were pulling in stations before Christmas dinner.

The illustration is by Ed Valigursky, whose work we’ve previously seen here and here. It appeared on the cover of Popular Electronics, December 1955.

Radio Dancer, 1925

A hundred years ago, this youngster was overjoyed and enthralled by the “radio dancer”, a small toy which was placed on a radio speaker and would dance to the vibrations. The image is the cover of Radio News, December 1925, and the issue contains complete plans for making the toy.

The author of the article is none other than Hugo Gernsback himself. He was the publisher of the magazine and often offered his editorial views. He penned the construction article, and noted that one of his favorite toys as a child was a similar one that danced when placed on top of the piano. Here’s a description of such a toy from an 1881 book:

For Gernsback’s modern 20th century incarnation of the toy, he cautions that for sufficient vibrations, the radio set must have at least three tubes, and there needs to be a strong local station, in order to generate sufficient volume. He notes that, of course, the dancer won’t work with a crystal set.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from OneTubeRadio.com!

One hundred years ago, it was a radio Christmas. This gentleman was on the way home with the latest and best in Christmas presents, a radio! The picture appeared on the cover of the December 1924 issue of Radio in the Home magazine.

Santa Claus Trapped in Power Lines, 1949

Seventy-five years ago, Santa Claus decided to visit Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but apparently decided to leave his reindeer at the North Pole. Instead, he decided to parachute into the area, but hit these power lines. While awaiting rescue, he waved at waiting children. This picture appeared in Life Magazine, December 19, 1949, which reported that he should stick to old-fashioned reindeer.

Mimi Benzell’s Hi Fi, 1953

Seventy years ago, it was a Hi Fi Christmas for soprano Mimi Benzell and her husband Walter Gould. They are shown here with what Santa delivered, namely, a Graarard turntable, a Pilot tuner, a Bogen amplifier, a University speaker enclosure, and a Wilcox Gay tape recorder.

They are probably shown at their home, which, according to Wikipedia, was at 45 Cardinal Road, Manhasset, New York. The picture appeared on the cover of the December 1953 issue of Radio News.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from OneTubeRadio.com!

We present a hundred year old silent film, the 1923 version of A Christmas Carol starring Russell Thorndike as Scrooge. It’s a short feature, so the story is quite condensed into less than a half hour. This rendition is accompanied by recordings from that era. Thorndike is best known as an author, and you can find his author page at Amazon.

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Pyruma Putty Cement, 1943

Eighty years ago in the U.K., there was a war going on, which meant that many Christmas presents might have been unavailable. But Britons were known for keeping a stiff upper lip, and if there were no gifts in the shops, then they could make their own.

This ad for Pyruma putty cement appeared in the December 1943 issue of Practical Mechanics. After making the model, you baked it in the oven and it became stone hard. The compound was also used by the military in making models.

1948 RCA Radios

If you were browsing the pages of Life Magazine75 years ago today, December 13, 1948, and you didn’t have your Christmas presents picked out, you couldn’t go wrong with one of these RCA radios.

If you wanted the “luxury look” in an inexpensive set, then the Model 75X16 was just the thing. The model 8B43 portable was just 6-1/4 inches high and came on the instant you opened it, thanks to the miniature but sturdy tubes and long lasting RCA battery.

The model 8X521 tabletop set was only six inches tall, and the model 8BX6 Globetrotter was a portable that could run on either batteries or AC.

1973 Homemade Christmas Gifts

Times might be tough, and during tough times, even Santa Claus requires a little bit of help. Fifty years ago, America was going through some tough times, thanks to the Arab Oil Embargo.
Help, in the form of the WIN Button, wouldn’t be available until the following year.

For some Americans, if there were to be Christmas presents under the tree, then they would have to make them themselves. Fortunately, the November 1973 issue of Popular Mechanics showed how to make some great gifts for the entire family, using simple materials, with modest skills.

The earrings shown at right, for example, are carved from either wood or plexiglass. In fact, most of the designs shown in the magazine were two-dimensional, meaning they could simply be cut with a jigsaw, and then sanded.

The youngsters would enjoy either the pull-toys or the wooden trucks shown below.

What girl wouldn’t love the toy kitchen set shown below, all crafted with love by Dad in his wood shop. And to help Junior brush up on his numbers from 1 through 5, this entertaining device shown at the bottom of the page could be built, and Junior could plug it in to any 120 volt household outlet. When a button (switches from refrigerator doors were recommended), a Christmas-tree light would illuminate the corresponding number. Junior would have hours of fun, would have a solid understanding of the numbers 1 through 5, and Mom and Dad could laugh at OPEC for trying to steal Junior’s happy Christmas.