Eighty-five years ago, Britain was at war, but that didn’t mean that the British housewife couldn’t enjoy a little music while she worked. If your radio was in the living room, she was spending time working in the kitchen. The perfect solution was the addition of an extension speaker. She could then pass the otherwise dreary hours listening to her favorite programs. This ad for Stentorian speakers appeared in Practical Wireless, May 1941.
Shown here, one hundred years ago, is Brainard Foote, showing off the one-tube portable receiver, the details of which are contained in the construction article he authored in the May 1926 issue of Radio In The Home. He calls the set a Magic Music Box, and notes that it’s useful for picnics and outings. But it’s also useful for the traveling man, for information and entertainment in some distant city.
The set is small enough to be tucked away in a handbag, convenient to use, and ready for work at a second’s notice. In particular, he points out numerous available antennas. In the photo, he is using the wires of a fence as antenna and counterpoise, “even though the farmer didn’t dream of such a thing when he put them there.” For the hotel, he suggests the electric wires, the telephone, or even the button for calling the bellboy. He notes that the two capacitors on the antenna and ground leads mean that it won’t affect the phone. And (unless something goes wrong), they also make it possible to hook directly to the power wiring. (When inserting the copper strips in the outlet, he notes that the light should be turned off.)
He warns to be careful with the regeneration, and not let the set oscillate any longer than necessary. Not only will it distort the signal, but it will also disturb other nearby listeners.
May 22, 2026, was a sad day in radio broadcasting history, as the CBS Radio Network went dark after 99 years. The final top-of-the hour newscast was at 11:00 PM Eastern. For most of the day, it was business as usual at the network, as it carried national and world news. The last broadcast was a farewell message. You can listen to the 11:00 newscast at this link, The one-minute bulletin at the bottom of the hour was the very final broadcast, and is at this link.
The network produced this retrospective, which aired during the network’s final week:
One of the network’s oldest affiliates was WCCO in Minneapolis-St. Paul. For a time, it was owned by the network. The owned and operated stations were spun off as Audacy Inc., and those stations switched to the ABC network. (ABC is a relative newcomer, dating back to 1945 when it was spun off from the NBC Blue Network.)
Coincidentally, one of the long-term WCCO staff members, Denny Long, who had served as announcer (and originally, music director) of WCCO, is retiring at the end of the month after 55 years at the station. As far as I know, he is the last employee of the station from the years when I grew up, when the station was a constant soundtrack for most homes in Minnesota. He did a remote broadcast today, and it was only fitting that this website, devoted as it is to radio history, paid him a visit and wished him the best. He is the handsome gentleman at the left, and you can hear some of his soundchecks covering over half a century at this link.
If you want to make the CBS sounder your phone’s ring tone, here it is:
This handsome set of telephones was constructed 75 years ago according to plans contained in the May 1951 issue of the British Practical Mechanics.
As with many electronic projects of the era, it was constructed from available surplus components, namely handsets with a low-impedance ear piece, carbon microphone, and push-to-talk button. The button was pressed into service as a call button for the other station. This example was constructed for use in a cinema, hence the signal light. But the author pointed out that a bell could just as easily be used.
For larger setups, a switchboard could be constructed to connect the various stations.
If you were a radio dealer 75 years ago, you were gearing up for the summer sales season. And for the radio dealer, that meant portables. As this ad points out, vacationers and week-enders would need entertainment during their outdoor activities, and this Arvin model 446P portable radio would fit the bill. It weighed in at only 4 pounds, and the superheterodyne circuit and improved PM speaker would pull in the stations and provide excellent tone.
But while listening to the radio outdoors, your customers would need someplace to sit, and for that, the Arvin model PR-200 folding chair would serve their needs well. Interestingly, Arvin did indeed make chairs, in addition to radios. You could sell the radio and chair as a package deal for only $22.50, and still make a good profit.
The ad appeared in the May 1951 issue of Radio-TV Retailing.
Shown here a hundred years ago is a service man from Dreher Radio Company, New York, or possibly the proprietor himself, Fred Dreher, shown in the May 1926 issue of Radio Retailing. Dreher had originally considered the service side of the business to be a necessity, but not necessarily a profit center. But after crunching the numbers, he came to the realization that, if done right, service could be a big profit center for the company. It wasn’t just the service itself. But when the customer was in the home, it was the perfect opportunity to sell accessories, such as batteries and tubes.
The key takeaway was that the service man, in order to make the endeavor profitable, had to see himself as a salesman of accessories, and not just a service man.
Eighty-five years ago this month, the May 1941 issue of Practical Wireless showed this efficient shortwave listening post of a listener in Sussex, England.
The SWL is identified only as Member number 5490 of the magazine’s listener’s club, perhaps since he was awaiting call-up at a telegraphist in the Royal Navy. The member notes that his normal receiving speed was 32 WPM, but he had managed to copy a few pages of French text at 42 WPM. He notes that he was able to copy 53 WPM, but only for one minute.
The main receiver was an Eddystone All World Two. The backup rig was homemade, and there was also a portable, which could be fed into a 2-1/2 watt amplifier. The gramophone pickup could be fed to the same amplifier. When reception was not good, he could feed the microphone or gramophone into the amplifier for some home broadcasting.
Seventy years ago this month, the May 1956 issue of QST featured what it dubbed the first all-transistor amateur-band receiver, handsomely housed in this 10 x 5-1/2 x 3 inch cabinet. Designed by Carl Heinen, W0MCN, the 7-transistor set covered the 15 through 80 meter ham bands. The editors of the magazine noted that it was not a toy, but instead a set that compared favorably to the lower-priced communications receivers on the market.
It was powered by four flashlight cells, which would keep it running “indefinitely.” The author scored some transistors from his employer (Honeywell, we learn in the above-linked obituary) and set to work. He initially tried to get it to work on 10 meters, but found that mixer performance fell off sharply between 24 and 27 MHz.
Since the bandswitch had an extra contact available, he decided to include the 31-meter broadcast band, to provide a source of Latin American music for which he always had a weakness. The set had an I.F. of 455 kHz and, of course, included a BFO. The author noted that the BFO should be shielded, as it put out harmonics as high as 7 MHz.
Audio output was sufficient for loud volume through headphones, but not quite enough for a speaker.
Seventy-five years ago this month, the May 1951 issue of the British Practical Mechanics carried this important warning about using compressed gasses. Always check and make sure you have the right one!
Eighty years ago, this young man was exploring the short waves with his National NC-46 receiver. As the ad points out, he might be listening to ships or planes, to hams, or perhaps to a distant baseball game. While it looks like he’s an SWL right now, it would be a great start to his ham shack after he gets a license.
The receiver was ten tubes, and retailed for $107, so it would have meant cutting a lot of lawns. The ad appeared in the May 1946 issue of Boys’ Life magazine.