This is a list of programs in the KWD library that were originally recorded and broadcast in the 1930s, '40s, and '50s. As I get the time, I will add and expand descriptions. In most cases, my recordings are in mp3 format. When I have an original transcription disc, I will notate it. The division into decades is somewhat arbitrary as many programs overlapped these easy dividing lines. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar for example, was first broadcast in February 1949 and had its final show on September 30, 1962, the final broadcast of the golden age of radio drama. In most cases, I have listed programs in the decade in which they first went on the air. In some cases though ( Johnny Dollar, for examle), I have listed them under the decade in which the vast majority of their programs were aired. Also, If a program began in 1938 but the only surviving episodes are from the '40s, I list them under the latter decade.

My collection is nowhere near complete. I don't have every series that's out there and I don't always have every episode in the series I have. As I get new series, I will list them. I am constantly trying to upgrade the quality of my programs. In many cases, the quality of recordings are not really good enough to broadcast, usually because of low sampling rates used to convert them to the mp3 format. As I acquire better versions, I will put them in the rotation. The number of programs in my listings are the number in my collection, not necessarily the number produced or the number of surviving programs currently available. Where I have all currently available episodes, I have annotated the program as "complete."

In some cases, a player appears with a program listing (Thank you to the Internet Archive). You can listen to these programs using this player. You can also download them by following the link above. I will also list my other favorite download sites on the "links" page for programs that don't appear on the IA. (Many of these sites charge a reasonable fee to cover their costs.) Unfortunately, I just don't have the server space to make programs available for download on my own site.


1930s:

Afloat with Henry Morgan
1932 - 52 episodes (complete), 15 minutes - An adventure series from the BBC starring Australian actor George Edwards. Lots of swashbuckling pirate stories from the Spanish Main.

The Air Adventures of Jimmy Allen
1933-1937 - 126 episodes, 15 minutes - A juvenile adventure series about a 16 year old pilot. The series was created and written by a pair of WWI flying aces, Bill Moore and Bob Burt. An independent production sponsored by Skelly Oil, the program became so popular that the fanclub newsletter reached a circulation of 600,000 at one point. Note: Several of the shows on the player below (including the first two) are not great recordings. You can skip over them by clicking on the double right arrow button.

Amos & Andy
1926-1960 - This was likely the most famous radio show of all time. Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll created two of the most enduring characters ever. The program has attracted a lot of criticism over the years for what some have perceived as racist themes. But in fact, a large portion of their listeners was black. At one point, their audience was estimated to include a third of all the residents of the United States. The player links to shows from 1943.

Anne of the Airlines
1930s - 24 episodes, 15 minutes - Juvenile adventure. Although Anne was not a pilot, this series clearly owed much to the fame of Amelia Earhardt.

The Black Flame of the Amazon
1938 - 15 minutes, 17 programs - Juvenile adventure. The adventures of Harold Noyce, World Famous Explorer and children Jean and Jimmy Brady, who are searching for their father who is being held captive by Indians. The story revolves around a search for lost treasure in Brazil.

Blondie
1939-1950 - 30 minutes, 42 episodes - Situation comedy. Based on the popular comic strip by Chic Young. The roles of Blondie and Dagwood Bumstead are played by Penny Singleton (until 1949) and Arthur Lake, who also starred in a series of Blondie movies during the same period.

The Blue Beetle
1940 - 30 minutes, 26 episodes - Superhero crime drama. The Blue Beetle was Dan Garrett, an ordinary young police officer who donned a mysterious costume that was "strong as steel but supple as silk" and assumed the identity of the Blue Beetle to fight crime and punish evildoers.

Bob Hope

Calling All Cars

Cavalcade of America

Chandu, The Magician

Cinnamon Bear

Columbia Workshop

The Cruise of the Poll Parrot

Down Our Way

Dr. Christian

Easy Aces

The Ed Wynn Show

Family Doctor

Frank Watanabe

Front Page Drama

Frontier Fighters 1930s - 39 Episodes (complete) - 15 minutes - Historical Drama. This is not Cowboys and Indians as the title might suggest. Each episode takes a historical person or event in the exploration of North America and presents the story in dramatic form. The stories include Lewis and Clark, The Donner Party, Brigham Young, Nevada and the Comstock Lode, Yellowstone Park, and many others.

The Green Valley Line

The Adventures of Howie Wing

In the Name of the Law

Information, Please

Jack Armstrong, The All-American Boy

Jack Benny

Jerry of the Circus

Jerry at Fair Oaks

The Adventures of Jungle Jim

Lights Out

Lux Radio Theater

The Magic Island

Mama Bloom's Brood

Mercury Theater on the Air

Nick Harris, Detective

Police Headquarters

Ports of Call

Secret Agent K-7

Si and Elmer

Speed Gibson

The Adventures of Tarzan

The Witch's Tale

The World Adventurers Club


1940s:

Academy Award Theater

Adventures by Morse

The Aldritch Family

The All-Star Western Theater

Behind the Mike

Bing Crosby

Boston Blackie

Box 13

Broadway is My Beat

Burns and Allen

Captain Midnight

Casey, Crime Photographer

Challenge of the Yukon

Damon Runyon Theater

The Falcon

Family Theater

The Fat Man

Gang Busters

Let George Do It

The Life of Riley

Mayor of the Town

Mr. President

My Favorite Husband

The Mysterious Traveller

NBC University Theater

Our Miss Brooks

The Pacific Story

Philip Marlowe

Quiet, Please

Quiz Kids

The Adventures of Rocky Jordan

The Adventures of Sam Spade

The Sea Hound

The Adventures of Superman

Suspense

Terry and the Pirates

Vic and Sade

The Whistler

Words At War

The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen


1950s:

The American Trail

Bold Venture

Dangerous Assignment

Gunsmoke

The Halls of Ivy

Nero Wolfe

The Six Shooter

X Minus One

You Bet Your Life

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar


News:

  CBS
    CBS Morning News

    Elmer Davis and the News

    World News Today

    World New Tonight

    Miscellaneous CBS News Programs


  Mutual
    Fulton Lewis

    Mutual News


  NBC
    Blue News

    Skelly News of the World

    Other NBC News Programs

  Foreign News Broadcasts
    BBC News

    Deutsche Welle

    Voice of America

    Other Foreign News Programs


Miscellaneous Programs:

Band Remotes

Father Coughlin

Movie Trailers for Radio

Radio Commercials

WJSV Complete Broadcast Day


© 2009 Bill Deming