Friday Check In

It's Saturday eve once more, just like it was last week at this time. Except this time, there is incredible progress on the Theater Five log. This link to the draft expires on 2021-11-12 https://we.tl/t-QUz8ODgXlU
Now, much of the work hinges on finding more complete recordings -- which may not be possible -- for many episodes that had their credits cut by the home recordists because tape was so expensive for many. This way they could fit more episodes on a reel -- and -- after all -- it wasn't OTR anyway. Here we are, 55+ years later and obviously the perspective is different, especially when CBSRMT, which did not happen until about 7 years after T5 went off the air, is the main series that brings people now in their 40s to OTRdom. Amazing how time changes perspectives. There is still more work to be done, and I am not sure where to base it yet since Cobaltia has clear definitions about what is and is not within its scope. I may do it on Blogger and just link to it. We'll see... there are many weeks before any audio evaluation can be done. But just look at the log... and how Ed Byron, Lee Bowman, and Warren Somerville gathered so many radio pros and attracted so many 1950s TV scripters and actors and theatrical performers before the microphones...

I finally figured out where I left off in the Casey draft, all 220ish pages of it and will be digging into the edits to the hard copy this weekend. By the time I clear out the images and things that are no longer needed, it should be about 180 or so before I downsize the pages to the traditional 6x9" and finalize the layouts. I keep hoping more episodes appear from somewhere, but that is not likely to happen.

Some more reel collections are on the way and one of them caused particular difficulties this week -- sticky shred syndrome -- where the coatings flake off the tape and the only way to deal with them is to bake them -- these were so very bad -- Ampex 291 -- that even after 12+ hours of baking the tapes would get stuck on the deck and just stop. When I looked at the portions of the tape around the stop the polyester was CLEAR!! So we need another source of the recordings on a different brand of tape, hopefully... This restoration stuff is fascinating work but it sure has its challenges...

Mrs GB's fluctuating vision in the "good eye" is still there but the anxiety about it is definitely down a few notches since it should settle all out in another 6 weeks -- oh, please, let's hope 2022 is far better than 2020 and 2021. I've come to dislike all this time at home. It's time to explore the great unknown outside of where we are. We have no clue where to go... which reminds me of the line from the original Little Rascals "we don't know where we're going, but we're on our way!"

BritBox started playing the series The Cleaner about a crime scene cleaner -- and it is hilarious in a marvelous understated way. And it two weeks Shetland's new season starts to play here. Still working our way through Silent Witness, now into season 17.

GB great update. The OTR resto info. Always enjoyable.

Great news that Mrs.GB's eyes will settle down.

And I too hope 22 is better than the last 2 years and I don't think I have had a block of time roll together like the last 24 months and be so lost to me. It's like I lost my memory of this time.

I have been very busy at work which is a blessing and a curse. Curse in it's cut down on my reading time and blessing in its kept my mind busy.

So stay safe my friends

Is it still Friday? Did I make it in time? HOWDY!!! As usual, not much to report this week. But then again...

Since I retired and we moved here to the the country in Northern Alabamy, we keep getting reports of family planning to move to the area. A cousin and his wife moved in a while back just a few miles away. A nephew and his family are considering properties about an hour north of us and have determined to settle in that area. A niece, her husband and kids will be moving within a few months to that same general area. A cousin is retiring this year and planning to move to a point about 20 miles south of us. And three other families have tentative similar plans over the next two years. All of them moving from Central Florida. Yes, it's getting pretty bad in that area. I describe it as turning into L.A. East but with none of the benefits. Oh well, the world just keeps changing.

GB, I wish we could approve the posting of more recent shows here. Sadly, copyright laws are just too slippery and still open to interpretation. I actually spent about four hours today, after I saw your post, researching copyright laws as they pertain to OTR. What I discovered is a convoluted mess but some strong indications of risk for us here. We would probably survive a cease and desist order. But a threat of civil suit would be the end of The Cobalt Club. I'm very protective of this board and our members. So, for now we'll continue with current standards. But I promise to continue to research and consider in the future.

Be well, be happy and be safe,
Space

Copyright laws are not a convoluted mess -- they're only slippery, slimy, haphazard, befuddling, quagmirish (didn't know that could be a word, huh?), muddy, with arbitrary harassment as the bigger danger than arbitrary enforcement. That's all.

Yeah, I definitely get it.

I remind a lot of the younger collectors (you know, people in their 40s), that even if the copyright is clearly expired, that only opens the door in the case of commercial or broadcast use to any claims from the music side of things. Ownership, if any, is never really clear.

The topic is not one where you can find a line and put your toe up against it. You find a line that looks like it's been moved and you take a giant step back just in case that line unexpectedly gets moved again in your direction.

Yup, it sounds like we're on the same page. Or at least in the same chapter. I don't mind putting my butt on the line in some cases. But if I received a single threat of legal action, I'm pretty sure my wife, "She who must not be angered" wouldn't plant me in a shallow grave in the woods out back. But do I actually want to test that theory? It's probably best to err on the side of caution on this one.

CompleteDayMan has been in the hospital. Last I heard doctors were still trying to figure out what's up. He's one of the kindest and most pleasantly detail-oriented folks in the hobby. What a job he did on the Whistler back in 2011 -- the collections are still based on the organization and analysis he did back then. Hope he gets on the comeback trail soon. Will pass along what I learn.

Thanksgiving is creeping up and as we shop, people are so spooked (thought that was Halloween) by supply chain issues they are buying their Christmas turkeys at the very same time. Most disruptive to me has been the Gatorade Zero shortages (first world problem).

Just for the Friday crew
Theater Five log -- keep under wraps as we're still working on it -- https://we.tl/t-yBwmIDEuFZ -- link expires 7 days from this posting.

Catching up on stuff -- did lots of hard copy editing to the Casey draft this week -- soon to be input into the word processing. I'm so old I remember when "word processing" was a department in a company. Raised the stature of the "secretarial pool" by a lot. Then it disappeared into the PC revolution.

Grappling with my memory. No, not the head kind, the computer kind. I think it's time for something more sophisticated rather than the usual external drives. Amazing how it's all changed. Time for NAS? A wifi based situation? So confusing at times. What are your experiences?

GB our thoughts are with CompleteDayMan. Hope he gets better. And yes what a great guy he is. All the way from England to Texas. And landed in here with us.

Love the Log.

GB I will go with a 2TB solid state drive. No moving parts super fast plus it in and roll. Do you have USB3 ports or Thunder ports on your machine.

Thanksgiving we don't have that in Ireland I just give thanks every day.

Stay safe my friends....

2TB solid state are cheaper now and no network issues. Plug in keep it simple and go. That's my 2cents.

GB, by all means, please keep us updated on CompleteDayMan. I hate it when a friend has to deal with health issues. But my best wishes are on the way.

We're already set for the holidays. No we're not preppers, just cautious. There's always at least three months worth of long storage food in the house, along with a month's worth of short term food. Additionally, I like to smoke or deep fry a turkey about once per month. And whole turkeys can be hard to find outside of the holiday season. So we always have four or five in the chest freezer. Along with three city hams in the freezer and two country hams hanging in the basement. One of the pleasant surprises we experienced when we moved here, was the drastically lower food prices in the area. A good example of that is that fresh eggs here are between 69 and 89 cents per dozen. That's less than half the price we were used to paying. Fresh fruits and veggies are comparably priced. One of my winter projects is learning canning. My wife's convinced I'm gonna blow up the kitchen. Oddly enough, it wouldn't be the first time.

My solution to backups and bulk storage is a hard drive docking bay and multiple internal hard drives I use in it. I use a BlacX two drive bay by Thermaltake, connected to the PC by USB cable. Both bays will accommodate either 2.5 or 3.5 hard disks. And I back everything up on at least two different drives. The enormous hard drives we can get for cheap are convenient. But they scare the Hell outta me. The more they store, the more you lose when they die. I once had a PC motherboard fry on me. I set up the old backup I keep in the closet, removed the hard drives from the fried computer and put them into my docking bay attached to the other computer. I was able to save everything on the old computer and the two drives from the old fried PC were added to my backup rotation.

All seems well here on The Funny Farm right now. We're still getting ready for the winter weather and are thoroughly enjoying the seasonal change. The colors are amazing and shouldn't peak for another week or so. Every evening, you'll find me sitting on the front porch sipping coffee and watching the stars come out. That's also when the first deer tend to show up graze and play in the front yard. While we know that life is continually changing, right this minute life is good. We're enjoying it and we're truly grateful.

Be well, be safe and be happy,
Space

Best news: reports are that Completedayman is home and faring very very well. A confluence of contradictions needed to be unraveled and it got done! I hope to call him today.

If you haven't seen the Theater Five or is it Theatre Five or is it Theater 5 or is it Theatre 5 log, even more great strides have been made! All of those names were used, even by ABC! Still working on a proper venue, but many collections are here for sorting, and more on the way.
https://we.tl/t-HMWdwGNsgh
The story I heard this week, with no reason to doubt it, is that the late Ken Piletic, one of the key members of the ORCATS, a group of ham radio fans that I believe still meets every Sunday morning that way, recorded most all of the T5s. The four that are missing are because the timer didn't work that day. This puts Ken in the earliest of OTR collectors, of course. Ken lived in Streamwood, IL and the show was on in Chicago through early 1969! Ken used to get so many reels mailed to him that even boxes addressed "Ken, Streamwood, IL" would be delivered without delay.

As for me, still doing some editing of Casey and would dearly love starting to pound the keyboard with them shortly. About 20 more pages to go before I can do that.

Counting the days to the turkey...

Great news on CDM I was worried about him so rushed here for Friday update. That is most pleasing to hear.

Also good news on more OTR coming our way.

Another super busy week here so very happy for the weekend. Loads of books came so happy about that.

Stay safe my friends and prep for the thanksgiving bounty.

That's great news about CompleteDayMan. Hoping for a speedy and complete recovery.

Yup, more OTR to enjoy is always a good thing. I'm thinking about digging up a working cathedral style radio to play them through in front of the fireplace at night. Glowing dial is a must.

All of our winter season preps are completed. Now, if it looks like we might get snowed in for a few days this winter, we don't have to do any last minute panic buying. This area doesn't usually get much snow and last season was atypical. That means that the state doesn't really have the resources to quickly clear all of the roads when it does decide to "go for the record". But we're well covered this year, just in case.

For some reason, I've been on a Toho monster movie binge this week. OK, the reason is because I'm an old nerd who loves cheesy old movies. And there is currently an amazing number of those movies on the Tubi free streaming app. Ah, the joy of an extended Stomp Fest. Kong, Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, Ghiddrah and all their cheesy rubber suited buddies. There are plenty of copy monster movies on there as well. I particularly enjoy the British stompers.

Be well, be safe and be happy,
Space

It's strange Friday.
Wednesday felt like Friday.
Thanksgiving felt like Sunday.
Friday feels like Saturday but with Thanksgiving dinner... again kind of...
Saturday will feel like Saturday, but like you went the wrong way across the International Date Line.
Sunday will feel like Sunday... I think.

So very confusing!!

But OTR feels the same, just a day later. The first Theater Five set is done through its first pass. It now will get some episode-by-episode tweaks. We learn more each day about the series. I THINK I will set up a Google Site for it all. More fascinating than I ever thought!

Go over to the Whistler thread and see a marvelous 1952 article about a rehearsal leading to broadcast
https://cobaltclubannex.forumotion.com/t186p175-whistler-upgrades#19830

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Hope you are recovering from Turkey coma's.

GB enjoyed article.

Its a windy old day here a little cool. About 55F so blah.

Stay safe my friends...

The news in the OTR community is exciting these days. So much continues to be discovered and technology is allowing dedicated people to rescue incredibly damaged recordings. It gives me hope for what will be available in the future.

I survived the Celebration of Excessive Consumption. OK, realistically I slept it off. Today I told my wife that I was having a vegetarian lunch to help balance out everything consumed yesterday. Then I had a slice each of three different kinds of pie. In my defense, pumpkins, apples and cherries are fruits and veggies.

Now, back to my nap.

Be safe, be well and be happy,
Space

Friday again? What a blur when you're under the weather. Somehow I got something that escaped the predictions of the flu strain predictors for the year. Feeling better and getting OTR done. It's the hobby designed for lockdowns and flu passage.

Go to https://cobaltclubannex.forumotion.com/t456p225-suspense-upgrades#19877 for details about my "appearance" on tomorrow's YesterdayUSA Blue interview program... and details of the first OTR convention 50 years ago from an issue of Hello Again that was in Joe Hehn's documents.

I've been transferring reels from another collection and ran into some Ampex 291. When I was trading reels decades ago, it seemed that west coast collectors were using this stuff. Ampex may not have been able to make enough of it to annoy all of the country. It squeals and sticks a lot, but I didn't give up. I was able to get them transferred after baking in a food dehydrator... a couple of reels for 48 HOURS!!!! I was encouraged by another collector to just let it keep baking and it worked. Usually 6 hours is fine and 12 was unthinkable...

December is here and really anxious to slam the books on 2021. The latest problem is our Maytag washer, purchased in May, has been inoperable for 8 weeks. I'm starting to think if someone came in and said it was the Johnson Rod or the disgronificator, I would let them work on the machine since the geniuses who designed it can't make it work with all their inside knowledge. When the repair guy finally walks in with a sledgehammer, I'll know that progress is about to be made and I will be sure to watch.

We can dry anything we want, however, since the dryer works fine. Hmmmm.... maybe the Ampex 291 would go faster in there... the clunking noises may be annoying... good time for a walk, probably, and the noise would be done by the time I got back.

Still doing Silent Witness in small measures, enjoyed much of the BritBox The Cleaner, think Chef White's is hilarious, and enjoyed AcornTV's Dalgleish. Tonight we're mini-binging on the 3 episodes of BritBox' The Tower.

Earlier in the week I felt like a couple of days of pajamas and cartoons and Frosted Flakes for dinner would make me feel a lot better. I got better without that. Rats. Adulthood is so boring.

Happy Friday! Hope you feel better GB. Your post got me started thinking. I wonder if it would be possible to hang a wire rack from the return vents on the inside back wall of a dryer, for "baking" reels? Such thoughts are one of the reasons I should probably leave that part of OTR collecting to others.

My project for today, is mulching the leaves from the "yard" part of the property. The leaves have pretty much all fallen and this will be our final pre-winter prep project. After much excuse making and procrastinating, I've finally picked up the guitar again. My short term goals are creating muscle memory and reducing the amount of profanity spewed while generating muscle memory. My wife bought me an AC30 headphone amp for practicing. Because she cares and wants me to enjoy my hobby... or because she doesn't want herself and the neighbors to suffer needlessly?

Be well, be safe and be happy,
Space

GB get better. Space getting the guitars out is the best. And remember there is shipping scam you need to tell the wife about when you order jewelry for your wife guitars and amps are arriving instead so be careful. It happened to me. Wife did not understand and there are no returns.

Busy week here but enjoying the work.

Stay safe my friends.

Hi everyone, I'm checking in too. For some reason, I've really been getting back into listening to "The Shadow." The first ever radio show I got was Radio Spirit's Shadow episode, "Death From the Deep," still one of my favorites. I've also, been listening to "Tales of the Texas Rangers," in between Shadow episodes.

COVID ran through my workplace. About half our staff was out just prior to Thanksgiving. Luckily I tested negative even though I had worked closely with several of them just before they tested positive.
Everyone had a relatively mild case, but I was working about three jobs during that time...I'm still exhausted.

I too play guitar and I got the Fender headphone amp. I came up with this nice little setup too. I plug the amp's headphone output into a little mixer (Maker Hart Just Mixer S), strange name, but a good little mixer. Anyway, I can plug my Ipad or phone and headphones into it and play along with backing tracks or lessons or whatever. I can practice on the sofa, while my wife watches TV.

Anyway, I'm a guitar fanatic, so I'm always up to talking about guitars and gear. Have a good week everyone.

Guitar fans! A new interview with Tommy Emmanuel
https://youtu.be/PLIZZ9lIlwg

I played guitar starting when I was 6 and had no interest or passion for it. As I got older I realized that learning an instrument and playing it badly while trying your best helps you appreciate the best of the best. I have always enjoyed classical guitar more, and especially Christopher Parkening.

When I took it up again in my late 30s, (as part of therapy for left shoulder surgery) all I wanted to so was play two songs: Classical Gas (not so hard once you get the hang of it) and Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring. So I got the Parkening arrangement. That's when I realized it wasn't just talent, you needed to be quite strong to even attempt that arrangement. And using brute strength to produce soft and sensitive sound is an incredible paradox. Then I found easier arrangements more suited to my lack of skill and my shoulder issues.

I said to my teacher: "All I know is how to play notes. You play music."

While the Mason Williams Classical Gas is the original (hard to believe he was only playing guitar for 2-3 years when he composed it), I really enjoy the full orchestra version that Emmanuel has. I still get goosebumps when Parkening plays Bach pieces.

I am a seemingly perpetual novice on guitar. Fine detail work with my hands comes easily to me. But with the guitar, the thing between my ears seems to get in the way. I love the guitar. Everything from classical to Eric Johnson. Blues, Jazz and Metal... GIMMEE!

My goal for the winter is to finally work beyond the clumsy and repetitive muscle memory development, which has always frustrated me to giving up in the past. Now, I have so much time that it should be possible to push through to at least an acceptable level of proficiency. And hopefully grow from this foundation, to the point where I can justify to myself getting my dream guitar, an ES-335. Right now my learning axe, is a Korean made G&L Tribute Legacy with Fender Noiseless pickups.

Well, it's been an eventful week in Lake Wobegon. . . I am now home after the fine alchemy of robotics successfully removed my gall bladder yesterday. I love anesthesia--have zero memory of anything after entering the New Amsterdam OR. WHAMMO! I was out.

Air bubbles are circulating into my upper chest and shoulders, seeking new escape routes, so the pain, while manageable, is also noticeably persistent. But at least my stitches are internal and therefore bypassing a trip to pluck them out. Hooray.

Luckily, She Who Must Be Obeyed is sympathetic to my aches and has relented on allowing me to do three small loads of laundry rather than carrying all three down to the washer in one trip. Jokes aside, she is a great comfort.

So just checking in to say thumbs up to CDM and Greybelt's Mrs. since I've been out of commission for a time. Amazing how resilient the human body is.
Be blessed, all. It's good to be with second family even in distance.
Jeff

@Ghemrats  My wife had gall bladder surgery; her main complaint was the gas they fill you with for the surgery.  Once that all “passed” she recovered very quickly.  Hopefully you will too, it sounds like you're on the road to recovery.  

@Greybelt and @Space Cadet  I (try) to  play anything from Van Halen, to Hendrix, to Eric Satie, but the blues is the style that comes most naturally to me.  My Strat is homemade from an old dining table.

Welcome Home Jeff. I was gettin' a bit worried. I'm guessing you're not gonna take me up on the skydiving offer in the next week or two, so we'll put that on the back burner. But try to look on the bright side. With the price of gas these days, you must have made out like a bandit. Hopes for a speedy recovery.

Chad, I can relate. But given my current level of proficiency and my age, Jazz guitar looks like a pipe dream. You know the old gag. A rock concert is three chords in front of 72,000 people. A jazz concert is 72 chords in front of 3 people.

... and country music is "3 chords and the truth."

People marvel at the number of albums jazz musicians recorded... they had to! And the jazz audience was small compared to other markets but so very loyal, they hung on every note and every nuance and every recording they could get. It seemed the smaller the venue the freer they could play...

Jeff, great to see you back. I removed my own gall bladder in the kitchen to join your Minus Gall Bladder gang. I will admit I underestimated the complexity of this procedure. I am okay now.

Guitar talk addition is making me happy. This is my office daily players. Jeff Beck signature Strat and my Trusty Artist series Ibanez Hollowbody that I rewired and added 57 humbuckers and a new bridge and upgraded grover tuners. I love that guitar to pieces rivals any ES335. And yeah thats about 1/10th of the collection this is just the office. And I love pedals.