VOLUME 15               OCTOBER 1998                NUMBER  10

EDITOR'S COMMENTS

From Antique Radio Classified for October 1998
(Copyright 1996-8 by John V. Terrey - For personal use only.)

Every once in a while, an article is submitted to A.R.C. that cries out for publication in a particular month. Jack Clark's article on the uncommon subject of electronic communication with the dead is a clear example. In fact, on first reading, it prompted the following response from one of our staff: "I recommend this article for the October issue -- it's creepy!"

True enough. But, of course, before considering it for publication, we had to follow up on its content. The first step was to acquire both the Raudive and Bander books. They helped to modify the general skepticism, but we didn't decide to publish until our technical guru, Ray Bintliff, became captivated by this mystery of the airwaves. Ray was so intrigued that he has added comments to Jack's article.

Do the Raudive experiments of the early 1960s prove the possibility of electronic communication with the dead? We leave the conclusion to you.

Often, one topic seems to lead to another. In this case -- crystal detectors. Raudive used a crystal detector to capture the "voices from the past," while Jim Wilson writes about a more traditional but still unusual crystal receiver -- the Acme Tri-flex. This complex breadboard set uses a crystal detector and 4 vacuum tubes in a reflex circuit.

And then the crystal set story "crosses the pond" to Vienna, Austria, and Erwin Macho's collection of more than 400 sets from all over the world. A.R.C. readers have read Erwin's ads continuously over the years and will enjoy seeing him at last with some of his sets.

Bill Horn's article echoes the sentiments of all serious collectors -- educate the public on the importance of keeping those old radios intact. His aim is to prevent the conversion of beautiful radio cabinets to other uses.

Of note in Photo Review is the Gilbert 1-tube Audion detector, similar to one made by Adams Morgan. Another set of interest is the Kennedy highboy console, dated 1931, one of the last years Kennedy produced radios.

Dave Crocker's goal always is to restore equipment to original condition. However, he found that his Orchestrion horn speaker had a missing throat grille, and he shares with us a step-by-step process of replacing the grille. Dave also points out how valuable collaboration with other collectors is in restoration projects.

Follow-ups on articles keep radio collecting alive and well. Philip Taylor writes more on Pilot radios from the British point of view. And we expect that Cortlandt St. will continue to trigger memories like those of Walter Bieber. His "secret passage" story must be only one of many humorous aspects of life on "Radio Row."

The auction season is in full swing, and we report on two U.S. big ones -- the Michigan Antique Radio Club's Extravaganza and the Vintage Radio and Phonograph Society's spring auction. Extravaganza reporters Larry Babcock and Jim Clark give us not only the numbers, but also a walk through the flea market. This meet also has a free social hour, which nearly everyone attends, making conviviality more widespread. Deserving of special comment is the sale of a rare Marconi 106 receiver for $15,200. This set was advertised internationally, accounting for part of the success of the over $52,000 auction. The Marconi was only one of over 200 items, so there was something for everyone.

George Potter and Blake Dietz report on the success of the Vintage Radio and Phonograph Society spring auction, which totaled over $30,000. The top sale was a 32-tube Scott unit selling at $2,000.

Our man in Vienna, Erwin Macho, reports on the Dorotheum Antique Radio Auction, which totaled over $33,000. A top item was a Victor Gramophone selling at $2,000. The next Dorotheum Auction is December 23.

For years, Paul Bourbin has been in charge of the California Historical Radio Society meets, one of which your editor enjoyed this past summer. His article shows Paul to be a staunch advocate of the enforced time meet, which allows collectors to come at the announced start time and not find that the flea market had already been open unofficially for hours. Michigan's Extravaganza is another example of the success of such a plan.

To celebrate our fifteenth year, we include, from October 1984, the first appearance of a series of value guides for radios by Jim and Felicia Kreuzer. In comparing the '84 prices with today's, it is interesting to note that they have generally doubled. However, rare items like the Atwater Kent Model 5 have tripled, while other, even more rare, items are off the charts.

Radio Miscellanea contains welcome feedback on articles about the Crosley 181, the Diamond Cut Productions Vaughn DeLeath lateral disk, and the Zenith history debate. Happily, we also continue to receive kudos for our labors here at A.R.C.

The Internet. And, of course, the internet discussion goes on. As we said last month, the question is when, not if, ads will go online. At present, we are working toward a date only a few months away. We hope that A.R.C. can be a bridge between our subscribers who prefer to buy and sell through the magazine and those who prefer to use the net. In both cases, collectors will have their markets enlarged -- the best of both worlds.

Coming Radio Events. Almost 50 radio events are listed for October. Of note are the Oct. 2-3 meet in Atlanta, Georgia; the Collins Collectors meet in Dallas, Texas, Oct. 15-18; and the VRPS meet at a new location in Plano, Texas, Oct. 30-Nov. 1 -- your editor plans to attend this one. Hope you can attend one meet this fall.

Happy collecting!

John V. Terrey, Editor

ON THE COVER

A.R.C. staff artist Dave Crocker created this month's distinctly Halloween cover. Dave was inspired by our lead article, "Electronic Ghosts," which describes the mysterious results of experiments by Dr. Konstantin Raudive. Raudive used a crystal set to gather sounds that, to many unbiased listeners, were identifiable voices of the dead, some of them very famous. Note Dave's sketches of Churchill, Mussolini, and Hitler. The subject is made to order for this month of ghosts and goblins.