VOLUME 16             MAY 1999                NUMBER   5

Radio XXX
Westford, Massachusetts February 21, 1999

Web Edition

REPORTED BY DAVE CROCKER

Another year, another fantastic show for the Greater Boston Antique Radio Collectors (GBARC). If you weren't there, you missed a Class A event. Every dealer I talked with did well, and they were all smiles -- as were all the attendees.

Radio XXX was held at the Westford Regency Hotel in the 6,500-foot Regency Room, on Sunday, February 21, 1999. Even when the doors opened at 8:00 a.m., it looked as if the show would break all records. And it did. The count was 866 attendees, including exhibitors. Seventy-two exhibitors reserved 92 tables, making this a sell-out event. Radio enthusiasts came from all six New England states, plus New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and even California and Canada!

Unlike many shows where activity dwindles after a few hours, activities continued even beyond the official closing time of 1:00 p.m. And people continued to arrive throughout the entire time. There seemed to be a festive air about the whole event -- maybe the tone was set by A.R.C. staff members who wore vintage hats.

For those arriving the night before or living close by, there was a Dutch-treat buffet at a nearby Chinese restaurant. Approximately 16 collectors and friends attended this informal get-together for good food, good radio talk, and maybe a good deal or two.

Figures 1 (see print version), 2, and 3 confirm the opinions of exhibitors and collectors who now say that this meet is the biggest and best radio show on the entire Eastern seaboard. In fact, it's hard to believe just how big this event has grown over the years. It is a far cry from its humble beginnings in June of 1977 when "Radio East" took place at the local airport in Plymouth, Mass., as shown in Figure 4 (see print version). The dozen avid radio collectors who had gathered there agreed to meet again. Twenty-two years and 29 shows later, the result was evident at Radio XXX -- a truly successful antique radio show story.

(Dave Crocker, 4B Beechwood Point Dr., Mashpee, MA 02649)

Figure 2. On exhibit were such items as a green Atwater Kent Model 10, an Atwater Kent crystal set, and the Clapp-Eastham HR and Hz radios.

Figure 3. John and Judy DeLoria exhibit their 1930s AC sets.