Old Time Radio Convention

For the past ten years or better I've been a member of REPs, the Radio Entusiasts of Puget Sound. This past weekend we held our tenth convention. The programs are made up of panels with people from the era when radio dramas were the main entertainment in people's homes. There are recreations of broadcasts and often a panel or two to keep members abreast of where technology is taking the hobby. It's amazing what some folks do with old radio transcriptions to clean up the pops and scratchiness. And the advent of MP3 has brought a whole new dimension to the hobby of collecting old time radio (OTR) shows.

This year the program revolved around the Mutual Broadcasting Network. Several of the guests had been part of The Lone Ranger, Challenge of the Yukon (Sgt. Preston of the Yukon) and The Green Hornet. Their stories of director, radio actors, and happenings was very entertaining.

There were seven blind people at the convention. It was amusing to find them lined up, hand on the shoulder of the person before them, finding their way into a meeting room and down to the front row. The blind leading the blind. At a break I wandered out into a courtyard and found them sitting together and telling blind jokes. We have two people in our club that are blind. They are amazing people.