Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who writes:
Who can identify the classic Hallicrafters in the 1960s show Sky King?
Thanks, Dan! Readers: if you know the answer, please comment!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who writes:
From the 1965 classic In Harm’s Way about the U.S. Navy after the Pearl Harbor attack. In this scene, Patricia Neal is listening to a Tokyo Rose broadcast, and speaking to John Wayne. Neal asks Wayne “why can’t they jam that broadcast?” Can anyone identify the beautiful rig she’s listening to?
Other noteworthy actors in this great movie: Carroll O’Connor, Burgess Meredith, Kirk Douglas, Slim Pickens, Paula Prentiss, Henry Fonda, Larry Hagman, George Kennedy, Christopher George.
Here are two other receivers shown in same movie:
If you can identify the radios above, please comment!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Fred Waterer, who writes:
At Noon on August 15, 1945, Emporer Hirohito spoke to his nation by radio for the first time, ever. The intrigue surrounding the recording of his speech and the effort to get it on the air would be worthy of a Hollywood film. When word started getting out that the broadcast would be made, fanatics who wanted to keep fighting staged an attempted coup. An NHK (Japan Radio Corporation) engineer had a gun to his head as an officer attempted to hijack the station at 5am. His coolness under pressure saved his life. He also temporarily severed the line to the transmitter, just in case the officer changed his mind about killing him.
Meanwhile at the palace, the NHK recording engineers had recorded two versions of the speech. The recordings (and the engineers) were hidden overnight, as was the Emporer, in the labyrinth of the palace. Coup leaders searching for the disks to destroy them failed. Eventually troops loyal to the Emporer took control of the situation, with many of the coup plotters killing themselves. At noon, the recordings were in the NHK studios and were broadcast as scheduled.
The actual broadcast:
In 1967 a film about these events was made in Japan, called Japan’s Longest Day and starring the great Toshiro Mifune.
The recording scene:
Looks like quite a film!
Thank you for sharing this, Fred.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Luke Perry, who writes:
Hi Thomas, thought that you and your readers would enjoy my recent “find.” I came across an old copy of the “Messenger”, which was a magazine put out monthly by the Canadian International DX Club.
While looking for the current garbage bill I was shuffling through my file of bills and receipts, and lo and behold I came across one copy……how it ever got in there I have no idea. Anyway it sparked a lot of nostalgia and remember how excited I used to be when a new copy arrived in the mail.
I knew that I had more, but had no idea where as I tend to not throw things away, especially anything associated with electronics or cars. After a day or so of brainstorming I had an idea of where they might be, and lo and behold there they were.
They mostly date from the mid-90’s right before the internet basically killed off “zines” like this. Oh well.. progress marches on.
Anyway, I hope that people can enjoy the pictures and maybe have some insight or memories of the club and/or the guy who ran it. I believe that his name was Sheldon.
Take care,
Luke Perry
Wow–what a treasure trove you unearthed there, Luke! I could spend hours looking through those copies!
I have good news for you: The Canadian International DX Club (CIDX) is very much alive and well! Check out the cover of the the August ’23 issue of the Messenger above.
Here’s an article I posted about the CIDX in the past and how much I enjoy the Messenger. And yes, Sheldon Harvey is still at the helm along with some other amazing, devoted volunteers. I’m a member and I’d encourage everyone else to become one, too. It’s one of the best deals in the world of radio.
The Messenger is now in digital format only, but I actually prefer it this way since I’ve so little room to store printed material these days.
For more information about joining the CIDX–only $10 per year or $25 for three years–click here!
Thanks again, Luke, for sharing this!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following photos he snapped at the Berryville Hamfest this past weekend:
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bill Hemphill (WD9EQD) who writes:
Hi Thomas,
Last night, I was watching the movie “Hollow Man.” Being a ham, I’m always watching for ham gear being used in movies. Quite often they use various Kenwood or Icom handheld radios.
At about 1 and half hours in the movie, I caught a glimpse of what I thought was one
of the more usual (and unlikely) ham heldhelds:
Just from this screen clip, I was pretty sure that I was looking at the Alinco DJ-C5 credit card HT.
I was able to capture another clip that confirmed it:
In the late 90’s, Alinco made three credit card radios; DJ-C1 for two meters, DJ-C4 for 440 and finally the DJ-C5 dual band that could also receive the aircraft band.
The C1 and C4 were earpiece only radios while the C5 had a small speaker added which made it a lot more usable.
They are quite amazing little radios. It was great fun seeing them appear in a movie.
Here’s one of mine with a ink pen next to it to show size:
Thank you for sharing this, Bill! I remember when these credit card-sized HTs were on the market and I wanted one if for no other reason than to feel like a spy! Great catch, OM!
Caversham Park (Photo source: BBC)
Welcome to the SWLing Post’s Radio Waves, a collection of links to interesting stories making waves in the world of radio. Enjoy!
Many thanks to John Smith and Chris Greenway for the following tips.
The PIRATE Act Prohibits Landowners and Property Managers from Aiding Pirate
Radio Operations
—
WASHINGTON, July 21, 2023—The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau today issued nine warnings to landowners and property managers in the Miami area for apparently allowing illegal broadcasting from their properties. The FCC may issue a fine exceeding $2 million if it determines that a party continues to permit any individual or entity to engage in pirate radio broadcasting from any property that they own or manage.
“Providing a safe haven for pirate radio operations that can interfere with licensed broadcast signals and fail to provide emergency alert system notifications can have serious consequences for landowners and property managers that allow this conduct to occur on their properties,” said Loyaan A. Egal, Chief of the Enforcement Bureau. “I want to thank our field agents for their continued efforts to ensure compliance with federal law in this area.”
The Notices of Illegal Pirate Radio Broadcasting sent today target properties identified by
Enforcement Bureau field agents as sources of pirate radio transmissions. These notices formally notify landowners and property managers of the illegal broadcasting activity occurring on their property; inform landowners and property managers of their potential liability for permitting such activity to occur on their property; demand proof that the illegal broadcasting has ceased on the property; and request identification of the individual(s) engaged in the illegal broadcasting.
The PIRATE Act provides the FCC with additional enforcement authority, including higher
penalties against pirate radio broadcasters of up to inflation-adjusted amounts of $115,802 per day with a maximum of $2,316,034. In addition to tougher fines on violators, the law requires the FCC to conduct periodic enforcement sweeps and grants the Commission authority to take enforcement action against landlords and property owners that willfully and knowingly permit pirate radio broadcasting on their properties.
The Notices of Illegal Pirate Radio Broadcasting are available at:
https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-issues-warnings-allowing-illegal-radio-broadcasts.
Readers note that the number of comments on the Shortwave Modernization Petition have surpassed well over 600 at time of posting. No doubt, this particular petition is getting more visibility and notice than expected.
You may know someone who met the love of their life through writing letters, and these days you’d be hard pressed to NOT know people who’ve met online… but have you ever come across someone who’s met her husband in Morse code?
Ulla Knox-Little knew that getting to do an expedition to Antarctica as the radio room operator would be a life-changing experience, but she never expected it to lead to her meeting the love of her life.
Hosted and produced by Helen Shield.
Click here to listen to this short radio piece.
Last month, Readex welcomed librarians to a special breakfast presentation at this year’s ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, IL. Dr. Alban Webb, lecturer of Media and Cultural Studies at the University of Sussex, captivated the audience in attendance with his talk on “The Art of Listening: BBC Monitoring and the Historical Significance of the Transatlantic Open Source Intelligence Relationship”
Dr. Webb—a noted historian of BBC World Service—gave a fascinating and informative overview of the history of open-source intelligence (OSINT) and the role of BBC Monitoring, highlighting perspectives these newly digitized archives represent for the study of the 20th century history. Click here to read the full article.
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