1934 in radio

The year 1934 saw a number of significant happenings in radio broadcasting history.

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Events

• 1 January – In New Zealand, station 3YL Christchurch is opened.[1]
• 14 January – The Lucerne Frequency Plan, reallocating long and short wave frequencies in Europe, comes into force.
• February – The government of France suppresses radio reporting of the Stavisky Riots.[2]
• 26 March – In New Zealand, station 4YO Dunedin is opened.[1]
• 1 April – NIROM (Nederlandsch-Indische Radio-omroepmaatschappij), the Dutch East Indies Radio Broadcasting Corporation, begins broadcasting from studios in Batavia and Surabaya.[3]
• 6 May – "Day of the Saar": all Germany's radio stations broadcast propaganda material aiming to influence the result of the 1935 Saar status referendum.[4]
• 28 June – Fireside chat: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt broadcasts a Review of the Achievements of the Seventy-third Congress.
• 1 July – The Federal Communications Commission is created, replacing the Federal Radio Commission in the United States.
• August – At the first congress of the Union of Soviet Writers, several of the union's most prominent figures, such as Alexander Serafimovich and Marietta Shaginyan, comment on the merits of radio as a medium for writers.[5]
• 30 September – Fireside chat: On Moving Forward to Greater Freedom and Greater Security.
• 7 October – In the United Kingdom, the new high-power longwave transmitter at Droitwich takes over from Daventry 5XX as the main station radiating the BBC National Programme.
• 10 December – WJBO is relocated from New Orleans to Baton Rouge and relaunched as WJBO 1150AM.
• EKCO introduces its distinctive round bakelite radio cabinets in the United Kingdom.
• date unknown – Radio Misr is launched in Egypt, the first radio station in the Arabic-speaking world.[6]

Debuts

• 13 January – Al Pearce and His Gang debuts on NBC Blue.[7]
• 10 March – Beatrice Fairfax debuts on NBC.[8]
• 17 March – The Growth of a Poet (about John Masefield) is broadcast by the BBC in Belfast, Northern Ireland.[9]
• 26 March – The Adventures of Frank Merriwell debuts on NBC.[8]
• 16 April – Babe Ruth debuts on the Blue Network.[8]
• April – Major Bowes Amateur Hour debuts on the New York City station WHN.
• 15 September – The Gibson Family debuts on NBC.[8]
• 29 September – The Quality Network cooperative is reorganized and renamed the Mutual Broadcasting System. The stations participating in the co-op, all serving as part-owners, include WOR-New York (Bamberger Broadcasting Service/Macy's), WGN-Chicago (Chicago Tribune), WLW-Cincinnati (Crosley Broadcasting Corporation) and WXYZ-Detroit (Kunsky-Trendle Broadcasting).
• 5 October – Hollywood Hotel debuts on CBS.[8]
• 14 October – Lux Radio Theater debuts on NBC Blue for its first year, before moving to CBS for the remainder of its run.
• December – The first episode of Ovaltiney's Concert Party is broadcast, with Harry Hemsley and Gladys Young as presenters.[10]

Endings

• 2 January – Blackstone Plantation ends its run on network radio (NBC).[8]
• 25 February – The American Revue ends its run on network radio (CBS).[8]
• 3 March – Tarzan of the Apes ends its run on WOR.[11]
• 16 November – Bring 'Em Back Alive ends its run on network radio (Blue Network).[8]
• 17 December – The Atwater Kent Hour ends its run on network radio (CBS).[8]

Births

• 1 January – Alan Berg (died 1984), Denver-based liberal radio talk show host, previously an attorney.
• 30 January – Tammy Grimes (died 2016), American actress and singer, host of the final season of CBS Radio Mystery Theater.[7]
• 4 March – John Dunn (died 2004), British radio presenter.
• 25 April – George Bogle, minister and religious broadcaster in Detroit, Michigan.
• 10 May – Gary Owens (died 2015), American radio host and voice actor.
• 5 June – Bryon Butler (died 2001), British radio football correspondent.
• 5 August – Gay Byrne (died 2019), Irish broadcaster.
• 18 December – Michael Freedland (died 2018), British journalist, biographer and broadcaster in London (You Don't Have To Be Jewish).

Deaths

• 8 June – Dorothy Dell, 19, US actress[12]
• 28 July – Marie Dressler, 65, Canadian-born actress,[13] whose 1933 birthday party, hosted by MGM, was broadcast live
• 30 August – Don Lee, 54, pioneer California broadcasting mogul.
• 10 September – George Henschel, 84, singer and pianist (a few months after his first radio performance as a singer)[14]

References

1. "An Encyclopedia of New Zealand". 1966.
2. Anthony Adamthwaite (4 March 2014). Grandeur And Misery: France's Bid for Power in Europe, 1914-1940. A&C Black. p. 179. ISBN 978-1-4725-7802-0.
3. Sonic Modernities in the Malay World: A History of Popular Music, Social Distinction and Novel Lifestyles (1930s – 2000s). BRILL. 9 January 2014. p. 57. ISBN 978-90-04-26177-8.
4. K. Somerville (31 August 2012). Radio Propaganda and the Broadcasting of Hatred: Historical Development and Definitions. Springer. p. 170. ISBN 978-1-137-28415-0.
5. Stephen Lovell (2015). Russia in the Microphone Age: A History of Soviet Radio, 1919-1970. Oxford University Press. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-19-872526-8.
6. Oxford Business Group (13 November 2013). The Report: Egypt 2013. Oxford Business Group. p. 268. ISBN 978-1-907065-91-0.
7. Cox, Jim (2008). This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-3848-8.
8. Dunning, John. (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3.
9. Matthew Feldman; Henry Mead; Erik Tonning (22 May 2014). Broadcasting in the Modernist Era. A&C Black. p. 24. ISBN 978-1-4725-1359-5.
10. https://www.lambiek.net/artists/h/hemsley_harry.htm
11. Cox, Jim (2002). Radio Crime Fighters: More Than 300 Programs from the Golden Age. McFarland. pp. 248–250. ISBN 9781476612270.
12. "What Never Was Told About the Tragic Crash of Lovely Dorothy Dell", The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 August 1934, p. 7
13. "Marie Dressler Loses Long Battle For Life". The Portsmouth Times. 29 July 1934. p. 1.
14. George S. Bozarth; Johannes Brahms (2008). Johannes Brahms and George Henschel. Harmonie Park Press. ISBN 978-0-89990-140-4.