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  • Story Behind the Song: Blest be the Tie that Binds

    Story Behind the Song: Blest be the Tie that Binds
    2025/12/15
    Aired: May 21, 1931

    This episode of The Story Behind the Song tells the moving history of the beloved hymn “Blessed Be the Tie That Binds.” First broadcast in 1931 and syndicated by Transco, the program dramatizes the life of Reverend John Fawcett, the English pastor who wrote the hymn after facing a defining choice — whether to leave his small Yorkshire congregation for a prominent London pulpit.

    The production, recorded more than a century and a half after the hymn’s creation, captures the spirit of devotion and fellowship that inspired its words. Blending dramatization with gentle narration, it shows how one act of faith and love became a lasting expression of community for generations of churchgoers.

    Originally part of a series that explored the origins of America’s most cherished sacred and popular songs, this broadcast reminds listeners that behind every hymn lies a human story of conviction, compassion, and calling.

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    20 分
  • Army Hour Radioactivity Test

    Army Hour Radioactivity Test
    2025/12/08
    Aired: Late 1950s–Early 1960s

    This segment of The Army Hour takes listeners inside the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, where scientists and technicians demonstrate one of only three “whole-body counters” in existence — a machine designed to measure the natural radioactivity within the human body.

    In this rare field recording, Army reporter Lieutenant Paul Weinman undergoes the test himself while Sergeant Arnold Mansky explains how the instrument detects gamma radiation from both natural and man-made sources.

    Their conversation captures a moment when America was still learning to live with the atomic age — balancing optimism in scientific discovery with unease about what radiation meant for human health. The result is a fascinating slice of mid-century radio journalism: part science education, part quiet reflection on humanity’s first steps into the nuclear era.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

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    11 分
  • Bill Goodwin Sells Stuff|Classic Radio Advertising

    Bill Goodwin Sells Stuff|Classic Radio Advertising
    2025/12/01
    This episode of Old Time Radio Snack Wagon spotlights one of radio’s most entertaining announcers — Bill Goodwin, whose witty, in-character commercials for The Burns and Allen Show turned advertising into comedy.

    From the early Swan Soap broadcasts to the later Maxwell House Coffee Time and Amadent Toothpaste sponsorships, Goodwin’s playful delivery and clever integration of product pitches blurred the line between story and salesmanship. His exchanges with George and Gracie were not interruptions, but seamless parts of the show — moments where humor, charm, and promotion worked hand in hand.

    These clips reveal how Goodwin’s voice and timing made even an ad read feel like a punchline — a reminder that in the right hands, the commercial could become an art form.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

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    13 分
  • The Illini Radio Guild: Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen|Thanksgiving Audio Drama

    The Illini Radio Guild: Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen|Thanksgiving Audio Drama
    2025/11/25
    Aired: November 26, 1946

    This week’s Old Time Radio Snack Wagon brings a Thanksgiving classic by O. Henry, adapted for radio by the Illini Radio Guild. The story follows Stuffy Pete — a down-on-his-luck New Yorker whose Thanksgiving tradition involves more than just a good meal — and an elderly gentleman determined to uphold a charitable custom.

    Set in the heart of turn of the 20th Century New York, this campus radio production captures both the warmth and the irony that made O. Henry famous. It’s a story about generosity, ritual, and the peculiar ways people show kindness — all with the twist you’d expect from one of America’s great short-story writers.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

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    20 分
  • Captains of Industry: The Story of John Wannamaker|Inspirational Biography

    Captains of Industry: The Story of John Wannamaker|Inspirational Biography
    2025/11/17
    This January 2, 1938 episode of Captains of Industry tells the story of John Wanamaker, the Philadelphia merchant who transformed American retail. Beginning as an ambitious young salesman, Wanamaker dreamed of a store built not just on commerce, but on fair dealing, trust, and hospitality.

    His innovations — fixed prices, money-back guarantees, employee education, and designing stores as places of experience rather than mere counters — reshaped how Americans shop. From a rented storefront to a grand emporium filled with marble galleries, tea rooms, and music, Wanamaker’s vision turned buying and selling into something more human — a relationship between merchant and community.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

    Related:
    John Wanamaker: A Retailing Innovator

    http://www.maykuth.com/Archives/wana95.htm

    A Short History of the Life of John Wanamaker:

    https://web.archive.org/web/20181014181113/http://wanamakerorgan.com/john.php

    Stories of Great Christians: John Wanamaker:

    https://moodyaudio.com/products/john-wanamaker



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    14 分
  • Adventures in Research: Heart in the Skies

    Adventures in Research: Heart in the Skies
    2025/11/09
    This May 19, 1953 episode of Adventures in Research tells the story of John James Audubon — the artist and naturalist whose devotion to studying and painting birds resulted in one of the most celebrated works in American scientific and artistic history: Birds of America.

    From his early fascination with woodland songbirds to the years he spent traveling, sketching, and refining his craft, this broadcast traces Audubon’s lifelong effort to capture birds as they truly appear in nature — vivid, life-sized, and full of motion. His determination would carry him across continents and through hardship, driven by a belief that the beauty of the wild should be preserved and understood.

    This short dramatization blends biography with atmosphere, presenting Audubon not only as a painter but as a man who saw the natural world with both precision and awe.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

    Related links:
    The National Audubon Society
    https://www.audubon.org

    Birds of America Digital Collection
    https://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america

    John James Audubon Biography:
    https://www.nps.gov/people/john-james-audubon.htm

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    18 分
  • Jimmy Stewart Sings the Joys of Bachelorhood

    Jimmy Stewart Sings the Joys of Bachelorhood
    2025/11/03
    The Old Time Radio Snack Wagon celebrates its 100th episode by returning to one of its very first subjects — the incomparable Jimmy Stewart. This time, we catch the beloved actor in a rare comedic turn from a March 10, 1948 episode of Philco Radio Time with Bing Crosby. In this lighthearted broadcast, Bing and Jimmy spar over Stewart’s bachelor status, trading sharp quips about marriage, women, and independence.

    The exchange soon gives way to Stewart’s own tongue-in-cheek musical number, “The Wolf of Wolf Creek Pass,” offering listeners a playful look at the legendary actor’s sense of humor and self-deprecation.

    Though Stewart was considered one of Hollywood’s most eligible bachelors at the time, life had other plans — he would marry Gloria Hatrick McLean the following year, remaining devoted to her for 45 years.

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/old-time-radio-snack-wagon-rare-historic-radio-programs--5919985/support.
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    8 分
  • Guest Star: Fear|Suspenseful Audio Drama

    Guest Star: Fear|Suspenseful Audio Drama
    2025/10/27
    This week’s Old Time Radio Snack Wagon features a chilling episode of Guest Star, a U.S. Treasury Department program promoting savings bonds. In this 15-minute broadcast, acclaimed actress Ida Lupino stars in Fear, a taut psychological drama about a woman convinced that someone is following her—though no one believes her story. As her terror mounts, listeners are drawn into a suspenseful world where reality and delusion blur until the truth is revealed in one unforgettable moment.

    Produced as part of the Defense Bonds campaign, Guest Star often spotlighted top film and radio talent in short dramas or light comedies. This episode stands out for its dark tone and Lupino’s commanding performance, demonstrating why she became one of the era’s most respected and versatile actresses.

    Original Air Date: August 2, 1953

    Subscribe to the Old Time Radio Snack Wagon at https://www.snackwagon.net



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    18 分