VOLUME 16            FEBRUARY 1999                NUMBER   2

RADIO MISCELLANEA -- February 1999

From Antique Radio Classified for February 1999
(Copyright 1996-9 by John V. Terrey - For personal use only.)

"Antique Radio Classified" invites its readers to contribute letters and information for inclusion in "Radio Miscellanea" and elsewhere in the magazine. "In The Marketplace" is based on information submitted by the businesses themselves. All topics should be of general interest and sent to A.R.C., P.O. Box 2, Carlisle, MA 01741. All material submitted should be verified for accuracy and may be edited for publication, which is not guaranteed. See the masthead for more details.

Kudos To A.R.C. But Con Net
Dear Editor:

I look forward to receiving A.R.C. each month. I like the pictures and the articles, as well as the ads. The series on the tube testers is the kind of article I like best. Congrats to Alan Douglas.

About the internet. Please don't put the ads on the net, although it might be useful to submit ads to you via the net.

--Charles Lauter, Miami, FL

We already receive many ads via e-mail. The net is already in use by our readership. (Editor)

Resubscribed to Go Online
Dear Editor:

After reading online about your interesting plans, I have resubscribed again after a 2-year stint of not receiving your great magazine. And I have missed it. E-bay has captured my radio-collecting interests, and my name on there is "radiocollector." But, now that you plan to have your great magazine on the Internet, I have resubscribed -- in fact, online -- through your subscription service. I am glad to be back and count me in again to keep the radio collecting hobby going.

--Gary Arnold, Marion, NC

A.R.C. Web Site Sold Me
Dear Editor:

Please send me a 6-month trial subscription. Your Web site sold me!

--Henry Loos, New Hyde Park, NY

Tournament of Roses Parade Radios
Dear Editor:

Antique radios were well represented in the Tournament of Roses parade this year. Float #33 of the Lutheran Laymen's League had a large cathedral radio on it. The 1999 Rose magazine reported that in 1930, this League began beaming a weekly Lutheran radio message, and that, starting in 1950, the League entered the Rose Parade. The two milestones were united in this year's float which featured actual recordings of those early days.

The theme of ARCO's float #87 was "War of the Worlds" -- reminding us of the hysteria engendered by Orson Welles' famous Mercury Theatre broadcast. This float featured green invaders, misty fog, flashing strobe lights surrounding the flying saucers, and many old radios made of flowers.

Unfortunately, I did not have a camera with me. Perhaps another A.R.C. subscriber took some photos and will share them with us all.

--Chris Frederickson, Pasadena, CA

We're in luck! Our relocated Club News Editor keeps us in mind whenever radios cross her West Coast path. (Editor)

More on Swap Meets
Dear Editor:

Regarding the timing of radio meets, I think many are too long and should be cut to one day. One reason items don't sell at shows is there is too much stuff. At Rochester, there are probably ten times the number of items as were at Canandaigua in 1978, while the number of buyers has perhaps only doubled.

--Rick Weibezahl, Washington, NJ

Dear Editor:

To add to Mark Oppat's ideas for promoting swap meets and flea markets in the November issue, I suggest having at least one event each year at a location other than the usual ones. This would enable those of us who don't happen to live in a metropolitan area usually chosen as a site a chance to attend. Interests among collectors vary widely, and what may not sell in one part of a state may be very popular in another. Sponsoring events at other locations might increase membership and interest in our hobby.

--Zach Taylor, Lincoln, IL

"Magnatron" or "Magnetron"
Dear Editor:

In Radio Miscellanea, January 1999, there is a glaring error in the statement, "Many think the word 'magnatron' came with the introduction of radar" and then the letter proceeds to indicate that it did not. Wrong. The correct spelling of the tube used in radar sets, which require a strong magnetic field, is "magnetron" with an "e."

--Stan Lopes, Concord , CA

Right. We missed the spelling difference. The tube used in a radar transmitter was a "magnetron," while the tube manufactured by Conneway in the early 1920s was a "magnatron." (Editor)

Re: Douglas/Cones and Bryant
Dear Editor:

For all the articulacy of their book, Cones and Bryant's November letter reminded me of the religious zealots who cut off dialogue with sentences that begin with "The Bible says." In light of the lack of an index in their book, I would have liked at least an Alan Douglas index to help me piece together a nuanced response to Douglas' August article (Aug. '98). A nuanced response certainly is not to be found in Cones and Bryant's endnotes.

--Ted Hutson, Beverly, MA

A.R.C. Ads Work!
Dear Editor:

I enjoyed the auction reports in the November issue, plus, of course, the classifieds. They work! The past few years of my 45-year radio collecting hobby have been made much more pleasurable and exciting due to A.R.C. Keep up the good work!

--Art Eberhardt, Florissant, CO