Boston AM dial 50 years ago

[A Joseph Ross]

On 11/26/2013 1:26 AM, Donna Halper wrote:

> Actually, there's some evidence the 1951 date isn't accurate. I am 
> looking at program listings from their early days-- and in 1948-1949, 
> they were your basic Waltham-Newton AM station, with locally produced 
> educational programs, entertainment by local performers, announcers 
> who played popular music, a women's show, a jazz show, etc.  Famous 
> local entertainers like vocal duo "Hum and Strum" performed live on 
> WCRB too.  But there's evidence that this variety type of programming 
> was phased out very gradually-- in fact, a Boston Globe interview with 
> Ted Jones in early November 1953 said he had finally eliminated the 
> last of the jazz and pop music programming, because the listeners were 
> very vocal about wanting only "good music"-- concert music, 
> semi-classical, and opera. WCRB-AM had been phasing in classical 
> programming since 1951, but the total change-over did not occur till 
> November 8, 1953, according to Jones.

That would explain the WCRB mic sign at a Kennedy-Lodge meetup in 1952.

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A. Joseph Ross, J.D.| 92 State Street| Suite 700 | Boston, MA 02109-2004
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