Weekend List: Old Time Radio

One of the Masked Downloader's favorite things about the Internet is that it has single-handedly brought about a revival of old-time radio. Thousands and thousands of shows from the 1930s through the 1950s have been encoded in MP3 and distributed for everyone to enjoy. Radio was TV, the Internet and Playstation all wrapped into one -- it's hard for us modern folks to realize just how dominant a medium it was in the 1930s and 1940s, especially. Shows like "The Great Gildersleeve" and Jack Benny's program were the Seinfelds and Friends of their day -- even more so, really.

In any event, if you don't know a lot about OTR, or just want some good stuff to load onto your iPod before heading out the door, check out these sites, which offer a variety of OTR shows for free download (most OTR shows are believed to be in the public domain and are distributed freely):

Archive.org has a huuuuge selection of more than 1,000 old time radio broadcasts available for free download: sports, news, comedy, drama, mystery, etc. A vast treasure trove and highly recommended.

Boxcars711 is one of the best OTR podcasts out there, updated on a very regular basis and offering a huge variety of shows. A nice "sampler site" for those new to the genre, so you can figure out what you like.

The Radio Nostalgia Network also offers several OTR-themed podcasts, along with music-oriented shows.

Botar's Old Time Radio is a great 'cast to check out if you're interested in adventure-oriented shows like The Shadow and The Green Hornet, although you'll find a smattering of other genres too.

The British Old Time Radio Podcast lives up to its name, providing vintage replays of British shows from the early days of radio.

The Classic Radio and Movies Network is a hoot and a half. Not only does it offer up a great selection of vintage OTR, you can also download B-movies and serials from the early days of cinema. Prepare to spend some time browsing here.

ComicWeb Old Time Radio Programs is supposed to focus on OTR shows based on comic book characters, but there's a wide variety of shows here, really more of a general selection; worth checking out.