Time Travel in Old Time Radio

Listening to old time radio is in a way its own way to time travel. Hearing live news events unfold take you back to 60+ years ago. Additionally, the following old time radio episodes are time-travel themed you may enjoy:

Buck Rogers

Some old time radio listeners would debate Buck Rogers radio show is not time travel story. The origin of Buck Rogers, the premiere broadcast, wouldn't be considered a time travel since he himself never "traveled." Buck was put into suspended animation which is considered by die-hard sci-fi buffs as a medical procedure to slow down the heart rate and other physical functions to: One, perform medical procedures such as heart surgery and Two, for long-term interplanetary travel (i.e. Planet of the Apes). Some fish are capable of being frozen and re-animated after appearing lifeless for a few days in a block of ice. There have been debates regarding whether suspended animation would be considered time travel, but since they cannot go backward in time and are in constant presence in what sci-fi buffs call time perception.

The Time Machine

THE TIME MACHINE, H.G. Wells' novel, was adapted for ESCAPE (May 9, 1948). Time travel stories were done on anthologies, most notably DIMENSION X and X MINUS ONE.

A Christmas Carol

FAVORITE STORY, MAYOR OF THE TOWN, CAMPBELL PLAYHOUSE and others did an adaptation of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, which is considered a time travel story.

Escape

Old Time Radio's ESCAPE also featured "Present Tense" (Jan. 31, 1950) and SUSPENSE also performed the same script. ESCAPE also featured "The Man Who Could Work Miracles," another H.G. Wells story and while the premise doesn't have anything to do with time travel, time travel is certainly the option used to solve the chaos.

Suspense
SUSPENSE offered "The Thirty-Second of December" (Dec. 28, 1958) about a man with a watch that allows him to travel back and forth through time. "Time on My Hands" (Sept. 25, 1960) concerned a couple who travel back in time to try to assassinate Adolph Hitler, which was also dramatized previous on THE MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER. "The Man Who Went Back to Save Lincoln" also done on both series, again someone tries to prevent a major historical calamity.

CBS Radio Mystery Theater offered plenty of time travel stories, too many to mention.

X Minus One and Dimension X
Ray Bradbury's "To The Future" was done on DIMENSION X (May 27, 1950) and "Time and Time Again" (July 12, 1951) was an interesting time travel story. X MINUS ONE featured "A Gun For Dinosaur" (March 7, 1956), "Project Mastodon" (June 5, 1956), H.L. Gold's "The Old Die Rich" (July 17, 1956), "Target One" (Dec. 26, 1957), and my personal favorite is "The Discovery of Morneal Hathaway" (4/17/57) and that one comes recommended.

"It's A Wonderful Life" a time travel story but that might be debated!

For more time traveler listening, see Time Travelers in Old Time Radio collection.

"Was Jack Benny Gay?": The Amount of Weight In Jack Benny's Loafers

While doing research for an article I came across an unexpected search result: "Was Jack Benny Gay?" There was no more than the question as previously stated from the original poster, but the replies made for interesting reading, ranging from: Jack Benny Celebrating his 39th Birthday "Of course not, he was a well known skirt-chaser in his youth, and he was married to Mary Livingston for many years" "Sure he was, everyone in Hollywood with the possible exception of John Wayne was and is homosexual!" "Part of Benny's "schtick" was his limp-wristed hand-to-face gestures. He was not gay, but emphasized what his fans observed as "acting like a girl" for humor. While heterosexual Benny tried to gay it up, many really gay actors or comedians in those days tried to act as "straight" as they could muster." "... the idea behind his character was to have him a little on the ambiguous side. His charact...

OLD TIME RADIO ACTORS AND THEIR ROLES, AND OLD TIME RADIO PROGRAM

Old Time Radio Actor's Name, Character Played, Program Aaker, Lee Rusty Rin-Tin-Tin Aames, Marlene McWilliams, Lauralee Story of Holly Sloan, The Abbott, Judith Lawson, Agnes Aldrich Family, The Abbott, Minabelle Sothern, Mary Life of Mary Sothern, The Ace, Goodman Ace, Goodman Easy Aces Ace, Goodman Ace, Goodman Mister Ace and Jane Ace, Jane Ace, Jane Easy Aces Ace, Jane Ace, Jane Mister Ace and Jane Adams, Bill Cotter, Jim Rosemary Adams, Bill Hagen, Mike Valiant Lady Adams, Bill Roosevelt, Franklin Delano March of Time, The Adams, Bill Salesman Travelin' Man Adams, Bill Stark, Daniel Roses and Drums Adams, Bill Whelan, Father Abie's Irish Rose Adams, Bill Wilbur, Matthew Your Family and Mine Adams, Bill Young, Sam Pepper Young's Family Adams, Edith Gilman, Ethel Those Happy Gilmans Adams, Franklin Mayor of a model city Secret City Adams, Franklin Jr. Skinner, Skippy Skippy Adams, Franklin Pierce Emcee Word Game, The Adams, Guila Mattie Step M...

Old Time Radio Shows "Transcribed" Explained

What does it mean on old time radio shows when you hear the show is "Transcribed"? During the Golden Age of Radio , "transcribed" programs were recorded and sent to stations or networks on a disc running at 16 rps. The discs are larger than 33 1/3s. "Transcribed" means it was recorded on a disc. "Recorded" was a term that was known, of course, but not used very much in Radio's Golden Age. During the era, it was also considered very important to distinguish which shows went out live and which were recorded (transcribed), so if a show was transcribed it was announced as such. "Transcribed" was a colloquialism of the era. One reason they came up with it was because there was still enough skittishness about recording that "pre-recorded" sounded a little obscene inside the industry. CBS and NBC were live through the '30s and '40s. Yet line transcriptions were made for either the sponsor or its ad agency. ...

Golden Age of Radio

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