The collection consists of materials related to radio stations and television stations in the United States and Mexico, 1930-2005. Materials include program guides, radio playlists, station newsletters, promotional materials, newspaper and magazine articles, station-produced publications, correspondence, press releases, and about 56 press release photographs from KBBQ in Burbank, Calif. Some KBBQ photographs depict country music recording artists, including Lynn Anderson, Eddy Arnold, Glen Campbell, Jimmy Dean, Merle Haggard, Lee Hazlewood, Ferlin Husky, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Lee Lewis, George Lindsey, Roger Miller, Buck Owens, Ray Price, Jeannie C. Riley, Tex Ritter, Nancy Sinatra, Hank Thompson, Sheb Wooley, and Tammy Wynette; Hollywood tailor Nudie Cohn; and actor Andy Griffith. Station publications include about 150 issues of Stand By! from WLS in Chicago, Ill., from the 1930s and 1940s. There is also material relating to the Southern Baptists Radio-Television Commission.
Content types:
Sounds and Other
Formats:
Cylinder, Disc (Commercial, Homemade, Transcription), Reel-to-reel, 8-Track, Audiocassette, Film, Videotape, and Digital tape (DAT, DCC)
Extent:
There are 1900 items in the Radio and Television collection, but not all are recordings. There are also recordings housed outside the radio and television collection.
The 3608 Toscanini recordings include test pressings of Toscanini conducting the NBC Symphony Orchestra in concerts, as well as NBC broadcasts of operas, festival performances, sacred music and more, including rehearsals; for many of these, the location and date of the recording is given and in some cases additional information such as names of performers. Broadcasts took place in the 1930s and 40s.
Content types:
Sounds and Other
Formats:
Disc (Commercial, Homemade, Transcription) and Reel-to-reel
Extent:
3608 recordings (747 tapes, unknown number of lacquer discs)
These tapes of WAER broadcasts primarily hold topical broadcasts and live concert recordings. Few of the tapes are dated, but those that are cover a span from 1965 to 1979. Announcers or presenters are rarely identified. The news items include a mix of national and local productions, but there are relatively few in the collection compared to the concert recordings. Many concerts were given by popular artists such as Pink Floyd, Bonnie Raitt, Canned Heat, Niels Lofgren, and Commander Cody, taken from national broadcasts, mostly originating from New York City or Boston. The collection contains recordings of only a handful of concerts broadcast by Syracuse University student ensembles. 25 tapes are identified as having been recorded on-campus at the Jabberwocky Café; surviving performances from this intimate venue include those given by John Fahey, Taj Mahal, and David Bromberg.
Consisting of recordings dubbed from WSYR radio broadcasts between 1939 and 1957, the collection largely consists of news broadcasts and speeches. Many important events and public figures of the era are recorded on these broadcasts.
Content types:
Sounds
Formats:
Disc (Commercial, Homemade, Transcription) and Reel-to-reel
Extent:
10 linear feet of material, primarily 78 and 33 RPM instantaneous disc recordings, along with 176 reel to reel tapes.
Wide-ranging collection spanning 1928-70s and beyond. Holdings include local programming from stations throughout the country, including WBAI, WCBS, WNEW, WRCA, WMCA, WRVA, WNWK, WABC, WWL, WNEW, WOR, WHN, WQXR, WNYC, WBRC, WBRD, WBYN, WCAU, WCKY, WOL, WCOI, WEA, WFUN, WGAR, WIIN, WIFE, WINS, WJZ, WJVA, WKIX, WKLO, WLEA, WLOD, WLS, WXRK, WOKO, WONE, WPLI, WQAM, WQUA, WSAF, WTAN, WTYC, WTRY, KFOX, KMET, KABC, KPFK, KPHO, KRLA, KLSX, KROC, Pacifica. Content includes news coverage, interviews, classical and popular music, drama, sports, non-English language programming, etc. Personalities include later-nationally famous hosts and DJs and hosts such as Bob Fass, Dr. Demento, Casey Kasem, Alan Freed, Bob Crane, Arthur Godfrey, among others.
Content types:
Sounds
Formats:
Disc (Commercial, Homemade, Transcription), Reel-to-reel, Audiocassette, Videotape, Digital tape (DAT, DCC), and CD