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If you were born around 1940, you may remember gathering around your radio with your family. What is referred to as The Golden Age of Radio, started out as a curiosity and blossomed into a mass media phenomenon for the entertainment industry.

There were a plethora of shows that appealed to a broad audience of all ages. People had a variety of genres from which to choose ranging from comedy, to soap operas and including  drama, mystery, sci-fi, western, and detective shows.  The Bell Telephone Hour hosted classical and Broadway musical performances as well.  Quiz Shows were the first “trivia” shows and were extremely popular.  So let’s tune out of our TVs and tune in to some great radio!

Old Time Favorites

For teenagers, one of the favorites was The Aldrich Family with the famous rallying cry: “Hen-reeeeeeeeeeeee! Hen-ree Al-drich!”, with the adolescent voice answering, “Com-ing, Mother!  Here’s an episode to enjoy:  Aldrich radio

For lovers of comedy, it was tough to beat Fibber McGee and Molly whose catch phrases included Molly’s “Heavenly days!” and “‘Tain’t funny, McGee”  and Fibber’s “How’s every little thing, Myrt?”  Abbott and Costello, Bob Hope, and Jack Benny and Red Skelton entertained thousands with their hilarious radio hours.  Here is one of Bob Hope’s classic broadcasts:  Bob Hope

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Family shows were in no short demand and had a loyal following.  Phones were unplugged and radio volumes turned up while listening to Ozzie and Harriet, Father Knows Best, and Our Miss Brooks.  Superheroes were in no short supply with Flash Gordon, The Avenger and Superman.  Catch a laugh with an episode from Ozzie and Harriet:  https://www.oldradioworld.com/media/The%20Adventures%20Of%20Ozzie%20And%20Harriet%201949-03-20%20Rover%20Boys.mp3

Westerns were a big draw for audiences and included Death Valley Days, Gunsmoke, Roy Rogers and Gene Autry.  Click here for a Gunsmoke classic:  Gunsmoke Episode

Be sure to explore more vintage radio programs that you can listen to with friends!  Special thanks goes to https://www.oldradioworld.com/ a goldmine for OTR (Old Time Radio).

Here is a great website with all kinds of trivia about Old Time Radio

https://www.funtrivia.com/quizzes/entertainment/us_radio/us_old_time_radio.html

You’ll love listening to these vintage commercials:

https://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/Vintage_Commercials.php

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