Oklahoma Musicians and
The Broadcast Frontier
Chapter Three:Oklahoma Radio In the Twenties, Thirties and Forties
Radio became the primary source
of entertainment and information for Oklahomans during the 1930s and 1940s. Radio
ownership increased from 21.6 percent of all households in 1929 to 73 percent
by 1940. By the beginning of World War II, radio service extended to every part
of Oklahoma, with station ownership no longer limited to urban areas. Network
affiliation was not limited to the stations located in larger cities--62.6 percent
of all Oklahoma stations had an affiliation with one of the four national radio
networks, and most fother Oklahoma stations were affiliated with one of the smaller
regional networks.[1]
KVOO: Tulsa's Premier Radio Station
In the 1930s and 1940s, two stations dominated and set the trends for Oklahoma
radio: WKY and KVOO. Although there were several other large stations, WKY and
KVOO were consistently the leaders in Oklahoma broadcasting. The early history
of KVOO parallels that of WKY in many aspects; like WKY, KVOO was started for
the purpose of selling radios and became profitable under the financial support
of a prominent local businessman.
KVOO began in 1924 as station KFRU in Bristow, Oklahoma, founded by the E.H Rollestone,
owner of the Southwest Sales Corporation, a radio wholesaler. By late 1925, the
Southwest Sales Corporation, and KFRU with it, was purchased by Tulsa oilman W.G.
Skelly, who had been dabbling in broadcasting for several years using his oil
company's field radio system occasionally to transmit entertainment. At the time
of KFRU's purchase by Skelly, the station's call letters were changed to KVOO.
In the licensing free-for-all created by the 1927 Dill-White Radio Act, KVOO acquired
a clear channel license and in 1928 moved its new 25,000-watt station to Tulsa.[2]
Unlike WKY, which seemed more to emulate Eastern stations, KVOO's programming
focused more on rural music and listeners. From its inception, many of the station's
most popular acts had a distinctly rural image. Two such acts that debuted on
KFRU in 1924 were "Jimmie Wilson and His Catfish String Band" and "Otto
Gray and His Oklahoma Cowboy Band." Both reached a certain amount of fame
nationally and each was a precursor of extremely popular trends.[3]
"Jimmie Wilson and His Catfish String Band" opened each broadcast with,
"This is Jimmie Wilson broadcasting from Andrew Jackson Johnson's farm down
on the banks of old Polecat Creek."[4] Wilson's act began as a Bristow Rotary
Club hobby and was known for including a liberal dose of humor with the music.
Wilson is remembered for the first use of sound effects in a radio program and
as the forerunner to other comic music acts such as the Spike Jones Orchestra.[5]
Although beginning in Oklahoma on KFRU, Otto Gray and His Oklahoma Cowboy Band
enjoyed most of their popularity in the East. After honing his style on KFRU,
Gray took his act to the vaudeville circuits in the Northeast. As the popularity
of vaudeville faded, Gray performed on a variety of radio stations, promoting
his highly popular public performances in the process. Although clearly ahead
of his time, Gray was one of the first singers to integrate the imagery and music
of the West in his show. Although Gray is a little known performer today, his
show set the stage for the enormous popularity of the Singing Cowboy, as epitomized
by another Oklahoman who began his career on KVOO, Gene Autry.[6]
Gene Autry
From radio's earliest days, established performers had been using radio to promote
their careers. However, by the late 1920s, radio had developed an audience of
sufficient size launch an unknown performer to national notoriety almost overnight.
Gene Autry began his career on radio and continued to use radio effectively as
he rose through the ranks of show business.
Born Orvon Gene Autry in 1907, Autry was one of the biggest stars to have originated
on the Oklahoma airwaves. Autry's family moved from Texas to Ravia, Oklahoma,
in the early 1920s. Autry's first show business job was with the "Fields
Brothers Marvelous Medicine Show" where he performed for one summer as a
teen. Autry sang, acted, and performed black-face comedy for the Fields Brothers
for the sum of fifteen dollars per week. Because Fields often used a young boy
to sing ballads in order to soften up the crowd before giving them the big pitch
for his variety of patent medicines, singing was Autry's primary job.[7]
His experience with the medicine show made Autry long for a career as a singer.
During his next job as a telegraph operator for the St. Louis and Frisco Railroad,
two events inspired him to seek a career in show business. The first was hearing
Jimmie Rodgers, whose style he learned to imitate during the long stretches of
time between telegraph messages. The second was a chance meeting with Will Rogers.
According to the Autry mythos, Rogers had stopped at the Chelsea, Oklahoma, railroad
office, where Autry worked, to send a telegram. Rogers heard Autry singing and
playing his guitar in the telegraph office and encouraged him to go to New York
to seek a professional career. In 1927, Autry took Rogers' advice to heart and
used his railroad pass to travel to New York.[8]
In New York, Autry managed to locate another Oklahoman, Johnny Marvin, who was
enjoying some success as a radio performer under the name "The Lonesome Singer
of the Air." Marvin arranged for Autry to audition for an producer at Victor
Records who was not impressed and encouraged him to go back home and practice.
Undaunted, Autry returned to Oklahoma and obtained a job singing on KVOO in Tulsa
as "The Oklahoma Yodeling Cowboy." While at KVOO, Autry became very
popular and made many personal appearances at parties, schools, and night clubs.
Autry traveled back to New York in 1929 and convinced Victor Records to record
him. The depression prevented Autry's records from receiving wide promotion or
distribution.[9]
A few months later, Autry's KVOO performances came to the attention of Arthur
Satherley who produced records for the Sears and Roebuck Conqueror label. Satherley
agreed to record Autry for Conqueror Records, and these recordings led to Autry's
big break--a regular spot on Sears' Chicago radio station WLS. Autry was an instant
success on the WLS "National Barn Dance," and Sears exploited his popularity
to market a variety of products from song books and records to the "Gene
Autry Round-Up Guitars." Autry's appearances on "National Barn Dance"
brought him to the attention of Hollywood in 1934, and after appearing in a string
of serials and feature films, he was named the "Nation's Number One Singing
Cowboy." Autry continued to appear in films and on the CBS radio program
"Melody Ranch" up through the 1950s.[10]
Autry's beginning on Oklahoma radio had afforded him the opportunity to hone his
singing skills and develop the radio personality he would take to great heights
elsewhere. His performances on KVOO had taken him to Chicago's WLS, and WLS led
him to Hollywood. The money he earned there gave him the financial power to branch
out into a variety of successful businesses. Eventually, Autry's investments included
ownership of radio and television stations, oil wells, and the California Angels
baseball team.[11]
Locally Produced Programs
in the '30s and '40s
After the controversy surrounding the direct advertising of products was resolved,
radio became a very profitable industry during the 1930s and 1940s. The influx
of cash from advertising allowed radio to experiment with different types of programs
and attract the talents of major stars. As vaudeville's popularity waned, many
of its most famous personalities began to appear on network radio. By the mid-1930s,
comedy, drama, serials, and variety shows dominated both network and locally-produced
radio. Nationally, entertainers like Amos 'n' Andy, Eddie Cantor, and Jack Benny;
quiz shows like "Pot o' Gold"; and serials like "The Shadow"
and "Inner Sanctum" were among the most popular radio programs during
this period.[12]
Smaller, non-network stations also had access to the type of programing that was
offered by bigger network stations. Transcription services, non-network radio
production companies, produced and sold programs to sponsors that were then distributed
free (or at a nominal charge) to local stations. Upon broadcast, local stations
received a share of the advertising profits paid to the transcription service
and were allowed to sell spot ads to their local advertisers. Although the transcription-
services also sold their programs to network stations, they were most popular
with the non-network stations that received cheap, profitable, high-quality programs.[13]
Despite all Oklahoma radio stations having access to and utilizing programming
produced by networks and transcription services, all stations continued to produce
programming that emulated national trends. Stations like WKY, KOMA, and KVOO operated
much like other regional stations, keeping a sizable stable of talent under contract
at all times. The larger stations usually had at least one orchestra in addition
to numerous individuals and groups under contract. These acts, individually, had
daily radio shows sponsored by local and regional advertisers. The station's entire
stable of talent gathered together on Friday or Saturday nights for a big variety
show, usually broadcast from a local ballroom or auditorium before a live audience.
[14]
One such show, KOMA's "Bluff Creek Round Up," ran for many years during
the 1940s. "Bluff Creek Round Up" was a typical variety show for a large
Southern or Western station--most popular in the 1930s and 1940s and similar in
format to Chicago's WLS "National Barn Dance," Nashville's WSM "Grand
'Ole Opry," and numerous other live country music radio shows. Such programs
generally lasted between two and three hours, with the program divided into 15-or
30-minute segments, each featuring a leading performer supported by other musical
or vocal acts and interspersed with live commercials for the show's various sponsors.
KOMA's "Bluff Creek Round Up" was broadcast live every Saturday night
at 8:30 from the Shrine Auditorium in Oklahoma City, except during the summer
when the show went on the road, broadcasting from other central Oklahoma towns.[15]
"Bluff Creek Round Up's" emcee was Hiram Higsby, who had hosted a similar
program, "Brush Creek Follies," from Kansas City's KMBC during the 1930s.
"Bluff Creek Round Up" usually featured a combination of singers and
comedians ranging from traditional folk singers, such as Harpo and Tiny, Mary
Conrady, and Ann Bond, to cowboy singers like Dick Rinehart, Cowboy Jess, the
Rhythm Rangers, and Rusty Marion. The comedy in these programs covered a variety
of traditional styles ranging from "rube" or "country bumpkin"
types such as Windy Lem Hawking, the Three Shuksters, and Boresome 4-Some, to
the Will Rogers types such as Dixie Boy Jordan and Cousin Jack Beasley who wove
"homespun wit and philosophy" into their jokes. Every show also featured
assorted amateur acts that often became a regular part of the show if they met
with sufficient audience approval.[16]
Smaller stations also produced a significant amount of original programming. Tulsa
station KTUL produced a quiz show, "Easy Does it," and the variety show,
"KTUL Talent Parade." Oklahoma City station KTOK produced a dramatized
news program called "News Highlights," and a serial called "Phantomania,"
which seemed to be emulating popular network serials like "The Shadow"
and "Inner Sanctum." Although both KTUL and KTOK were smaller stations
with network affiliations, each likely produced such programs in order to compete
with larger stations like KVOO and WKY for advertisers.[17]
Advertisers were, of course, the key to a station's success. Having popular programs
attracted listeners, which gave the advertisers the opportunity to sell their
products. Performers who were talented entertainers and credible spokespersons
had a tremendous impact of the sales of their sponsor's products. Radio seemed
to be the natural domain of music, and music programs were very popular among
sponsors and listeners. As a result, the 1930s and 1940s were a time of great
prosperity for Oklahoma radio musicians. Almost every radio station required the
services of many types of musicians--from classical to popular. Although musicians
could make a good living from their radio performances alone, radio performers
had the opportunity to double or triple their radio income making personal appearances.
Often, the combination of radio performances and personal appearances allowed
many musicians to amass huge audiences far beyond Oklahoma's borders. Bob Wills
was one such performer.
Bob Wills
Wills was born James Robert Wills in Hall County, Texas, in 1905 and grew up in
a family of musicians. Wills began playing music professionally at a very young
age, accompanying his father and uncles who performed in string bands at dances.
In the early 1930s, Wills teamed with guitar player Herman Arnspiger to form the
"Wills Fiddle Band." Shortly after, Wills got a regular job on WBAP
in Ft. Worth as the leader of the "Light Crust Doughboys" for sponsor
Burrus Mills. President of Burrus Mills and future Texas Governor Wilbur Lee "Pappy"
O'Daniel realized early the power of radio as an advertising medium and the power
of the sponsor over radio programming.[18]
Under Wills' leadership, the Light Crust Doughboys' daily radio program was instantly
popular. Although the Doughboys received very little pay for their radio work,
the dances and other personal appearances that a popular radio show provided,
more than compensated for the low wages O'Daniel paid. However, O'Daniel didn't
like the musicians on his payroll playing outside jobs, particularly dances. In
addition to his belief that dancing and drinking were immoral, O'Daniel resented
anyone besides himself profiting from his radio time. As a result, O'Daniel told
the Doughboys they had to stop playing dances but gave them the opportunity to
make up the difference in pay by working in his mill. Most of the band, disgruntled
over the idea of having to perform manual labor, left the Doughboys and formed
another band. Wills stayed with the Doughboys, working a day job at the mill as
a truck driver until he had a clash with O'Daniel over adding his brother, Johnnie
Lee Wills, to the band. O'Daniel's refusal to add another musician to the payroll
led Wills to quit the Light Crust Doughboys and take his band elsewhere.[19]
The Burrus Mills radio program experienced an instant drop in popularity after
Wills left. O'Daniel tried various means of coercion to regain Wills' services
or to force him out of the music business in the process. Wills decided that Oklahoma
looked like a safe haven from the vindictive O'Daniel, who had unsuccessfully
sued Wills for billing himself as "formerly of the Light Crust Doughboys."
In January of 1936, Wills came to Oklahoma City and approached WKY program director
Darryl McAllister about performing a program at the station. McAllister agreed,
and Wills began broadcasting on WKY, billed for the first time as "Bob Wills
and The Texas Playboys."[20]
Wills broadcast only a few days on WKY before O'Daniel approached McAllister with
a deal designed to take revenge on Wills. O'Daniel, using Oklahoma City station
KOMA to broadcast the Light Crust Doughboys in that region, offered McAllister
the Burrus Mills advertising account for Oklahoma City if McAllister would fire
Wills. The Burrus Mills business was worth a great deal of money to WKY, so McAllister
readily accepted without concern for the welfare of Wills and his band.[21]
Wills again was forced to move his band to get away from O'Daniel, this time to
Tulsa, where he approached KVOO station manager W.B. "Bill" Web about
a program on his station. Web immediately hired Wills for a daily program. Not
surprisingly, O'Daniel attempted once more to get Wills fired, but this time he
did not succeed. Web informed O'Daniel that he stood by his performers and that
the integrity of the station could not be purchased. Because of Web's defense
of Wills, the Texas Playboys performed their daily noon program at KVOO for the
next eight years, until Wills joined the Army and had to break up the band.[22]
During his tenure at KVOO, Wills developed the style of music known as Western
Swing. Wills was a fearless innovator, first adding drums to the traditional hot
string style band, then adding electric steel guitar, brasses, and reeds. The
unique instrumentation of the Playboys made them one of the most versatile bands
of the period, allowing them to play all of the popular dance styles, hillbilly,
dixieland, and big band music.
After Wills was discharged the Army, he decided to reunite his band and relocate
in Los Angeles. Because Wills' KVOO program reached the west coast, Wills had
no problem securing a radio station in Los Angeles to hire his band. In 1943,
Wills continued his noontime program tradition on Los Angeles station KMTR. While
in Los Angeles, Wills also performed in a string of mostly B-grade films and recorded
a very lucrative transcription radio series for Tiffany Music, Inc. Wills continued
with radio and film appearances until the late 1950s when rock and roll replaced
swing as the most popular dance style. However, Wills and the Playboys remained
popular performers throughout the Southwest until he retired in 1969.[23]
Radio During WW II
World War II was both an exciting and an uncertain time for radio stations in
the United States. Radio coverage of Hitler's rise to power in Germany and the
bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese proved radio as legitimate a news source
as print media. However, with the United States' entrance into the war, radio's
place was hardly secure.[24]
According to the Radio Act of 1934, the federal government had the right to suspend
all commercial broadcasts or take over all radio stations in the event of national
emergency. Station owners assumed that the government had a plan ready to be implemented
and were prepared to turn over their stations to the war effort. However, despite
the provisions in the law, the FCC was ill-prepared for the war. The federal government,
preoccupied with mobilizing for war, had little time to direct the FCC. As a result,
the FCC did not shut down or take over any radio stations, but merely formed the
Office of Censorship to impose a series of new regulations on broadcast conduct.
The Office of Censorship regulated all information about weather, troop movements,
manufacturing, and other information that might be deemed useful to the enemy.[25]
Despite the government's fear that radio stations accidentally would leak valuable
information to the enemy, radio was used effectively to support the war effort.
In addition to providing valuable news coverage of the war, station owners actively
supported war bond drives. In 1941, WKY sponsored a statewide bond drive that
featured speeches by Oklahoma Governor Leon Phillips, cowboy singer and movie
star Gene Autry, and local entertainers "The Serenaders." The War Bonds
tour drew thousands at each stop, eventually performing shows in Lawton, Tulsa,
Enid, Ponca City, and Oklahoma City.[26]
With the exception of some of the talent being drafted into the Armed Services,
new censorship rules, and the rise of importance in news programming, radio was
largely unaffected by World War II. The largest effect the war had on radio was
to create a dramatic increase in profits. Newsprint paper was one of many goods
rationed during the war, and this left radio the least restricted advertising
medium available to industry. Another significant effect World War II had on broadcasting
was that the development of television technology was completely halted until
the war's end.[27]
While many popular radio performers put their careers on hold to serve in the
military during World War I, the War did not end the American people's demand
for entertainment. Oklahoma radio stations continued to produce nationally prominent
performers despite the restrictions caused by the War. Patty Page was the most
prominent Oklahoma performer to rise to popularity during World War II.
Patty Page
Patty Page began life as Clara Ann Fowler in Claremore, Oklahoma. While still
in high school, Fowler appeared on the Tulsa radio station's KTUL Talent Parade
as an amateur. Her timing was perfect because Page Dairy, KTUL's biggest sponsor,
was looking for someone to take the place of its regular singer. Fowler was hired
and took the stage name of the previous singer, Patty Page. Unlike Wills, Autry,
and many other Oklahoma performers, Patty Page did not make her mark in the world
of country and western music. Although her start on Oklahoma radio was as a traditional
hillbilly singer, Page enjoyed most of her success as a mainstream pop artist.[28]
In 1946, Jack Rael, manager for the Jimmy Joy Band, was playing in Tulsa for the
band's engagement at the Bliss Hotel. In his hotel room, Rael heard Page on her
radio show and went to hear her sing the next day. Rael was looking for a new
girl singer for the Jimmy Joy Band, but the hillbilly songs Page was singing that
day did not fit his act's style. However, Rael was impressed enough to ask Page
to send him some recordings in Dallas, where the Jimmy Joy Band was performing
next. Page sang some big band tunes for the recordings she sent to Rael, and he
was satisfied enough with them that he signed her to an exclusive management contract.[29]
Within a year, Rael decided that the Jimmy Joy band had limited appeal and decided
to concentrate all his efforts promoting Patty Page. Rael secured a recording
contract for Page with Mercury Records and they moved to Chicago to begin recording.
Page's first recordings for Mercury featured the then novel technique of overdubbing,
which allowed her to sing harmony with herself. The novelty aspect of these records
made them minor hits, but it was Page's 1950 recording of "Tennessee Waltz"
that establish her as a recording star. Tennessee Waltz became one the of the
biggest selling records in history, eventually selling over eight million copies.
During the 1950s, Page was the top female recording artist in the United States.
Over the years, Page recorded 70 "Top 40" hits and stared in television
variety shows on all three major networks.[30]
Black Musicians and Oklahoma
Radio
Not all musicians experienced prosperity similar to Page's as a result of Oklahoma's
broadcast industry. Typical of the race relations of the time, black performers
were largely excluded from Oklahoma radio for most of its first five decades.
While this period represented a time of unparalleled opportunity for white musicians,
blacks were generally kept out of broadcasting in Oklahoma. It is ironic that
during the 1930s and 1940s--a time when the Oklahoma City "Deep Deuce"
jazz scene was producing such notable black talents as Jimmy Rushing, Charlie
Christian, Thad Jones, and others--these performers were almost completely unable
to get jobs with any of the local radio stations' orchestras and bands.[31]
Although black performers were not completely excluded from broadcasting, there
seems to have been a conscious effort in station management to deny these performers
the same opportunities that were given whites. One example of the racial bias
typical in Oklahoma radio during the early days was WKY's advertising of its black
performers. In contrast to white performers who almost always were mentioned by
name in the newspaper advertisements and radio schedules, black acts usually were
listed under generic titles such as Colored String Quartet, Negro Basso, and Famous
Negro Quartet-Vocal.[32]
The radio station management's responsibility for discrimination against black
performers can be mitigated by the actions of the Oklahoma's powerful Musicians'
Union. In the 1930s and 1940s, most of radio's regularly featured performers and
orchestra musicians were members of the American Federation of Musicians, Local
375. The Union was a powerful force during this period and kept a tight reign
on all activities related to professional musicians. Union leadership at the time
denied membership to black musicians and actively sought to exclude them from
all Union jobs. As a result, black musicians were denied many of the same opportunities
available to white musicians.[33]
In order to fight the discriminatory practices of Local 375 and gain more opportunities
for black musicians in Oklahoma, Eugene Jones organized a group of black musicians
in 1946 to form a separate union. In order to establish a new local, the American
Federation of Musicians required 10 persons to sign the charter and pay two dollars
in union dues. Jones had difficulty finding 10 black musicians to pay the money
and take a stand against the white union. Despite such difficulties, Jones eventually
succeeded in finding the requisite number of hhhh
musicians and, in 1947, the American Federation of Musicians granted a charter
to Local 703, a chapter exclusively for black musicians.[34]
Having the Union affiliation scarcely affected black musicians' ability to find
employment. Black musicians still were denied access to broadcasting jobs (which
were becoming scarcer by 1947) and struggled for employment in any of the traditionally
white venues. Throughout its history, Local 703's members faced great hostility
by white union leaders who spared no dirty tricks in keeping the black musicians
out of white venues. Often, black musicians would arrive at an engagement to find
a white group already set up on the band stand. Later, the black musicians would
learn that the venue owner had received threats of violence if he allowed the
black group to perform. Other times, accusations by white union leaders of sexual
perversity or drug use by the black musicians would derail performances.[35]
Despite this opposition, Local 703's leadership realized that to create better
opportunities for its musicians, demand for their services would have to be created
such that the white Union would be unable to stand in the way. Throughout its
10 years of active operation, Local 703 attempted to demonstrate to white Oklahoma
that black musicians were viable sources of entertainment. To this end, Local
703 sought opportunities for showcasing black musicians at state fairs and other
events. After 11 years of struggle, the two locals were forced by the national
union leaders to merge in 1959, and the American Federation of Musicians Local
375-703 was created.[36]
Back
Next
Copyright (c) Kelly Raines1995
Retu
Notes:Chapter 3
[1] f By 1940, Oklahoma
had radio stations in Ada, Ardmore, Elk City, Enid, Muskogee, Norman, Okmulgee,
Oklahoma City, Ponca City, Shawnee, and Tulsa. Ten years later, Altus, Bartlesville,
Chickasha, Clinton, Duncan, Durant, El Reno, Frederick, Guymon, Hobart, Hugo,
Lawton, McAlester, Miami, Pauls Valley, Ponca City, Seminole, Stillwater, and
Woodward were added to the list of cities having radio stations, and 92.7 percent
of all Oklahoma households had radios. Broadcasting Advertising Yearbook 1936
(Washington: Broadcast Publications Inc., 1936),14; Broadcasting Advertising
Yearbook 1940 (Washington: Broadcast Publications Inc., 1940) 50; 146. Broadcasting
Telecasting Yearbook 1950, (Washington: Broadcast Publications, Inc., 1950),
242-246.
[2] A clear channel was designated as a Class I station by the FRC and was intended
to broadcast over an extended regional area. The phrase clear channel signifies
that the station is the only one allowed to broadcast on its given frequency.
FRC rules about newspaper ownership made WKY ineligible for a clear channel
license. Radio Service Bulletin, September 1, 1925; Tulsa Sunday World, 15 August
1971, Your World section, 4-5; Logsdon; "Hit The Road, Jack!," 11;
Allen, Voices On The Wind: Early Radio In Oklahoma, 20-21, 31, 52-54.
[3] This is not to imply that WKY turned its back on its rural listeners; it
certainly had its share of rural-focused programs. However, clear channel stations
like KVOO generally were designated by the FRC to serve rural populations more
than urban. Because of the manner in which KVOO was required to send its signal,
listeners in Tulsa and Los Angeles could receive the station, but those in Oklahoma
City most often could not. A regional station like WKY broadcast at significantly
lower power, but because of the way its signal was focused, covered more of
Oklahoma than KVOO. Allen, Voices On The Wind: Early Radio In Oklahoma, 20-21,
31, 52-54; Logsdon, "Hit The Road, Jack!" 11-12.
[4] Ibid, 11.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Guy Logsdon, "Hit the Road, Jack!" Oklahoma Monthly, 11-12; William
W. Savage,Jr., Singing Cowboys and All That Jazz: A Short History of Popular
Music in Oklahoma (Norman, University of Oklahoma Press, 1983), 34-36; Chet
Hagan, Country Music Legends (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers/Country Music
Foundation Press, 1982), 115.
[7] Paul Kingsbury and Alan Axlerod, eds., Pickers, Slickers, Cheatin' Hearts
& Superstars: Country, The Music and The Musicians, (New York: Cross River
Press, Ltd. 1988), 129-131.
[8] Ibid, 131.
[9] Bill C. Malone, Country Music U.S.A., (Austin: University of Texas Press,
1985), 142.
[10] Kingsbury and Axlerod, eds, Pickers, Slickers, Cheatin' Hearts & Superstars:
Country, The Music and The Musicians, 133.
[11] Los Angeles Times, 27 February, 1989, sec. 4, 5.
[12] Lichty and Topping, eds., American Broadcasting: A Source Book on the History
of Radio and Television, 299-307, 453.
[13] Herman S. Hetingger, "Some Fundamental Aspects of Radio Broadcasting
Economics," Harvard Business Review, Vol. XIV, No. 1, Autumn 1935,14-18,
in American Broadcasting: A Source Book on the History of Radio and Television,
265-267.
[14] Joe Webster, interview by Rodger Harris, January 19, 1994, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, tape recording, Living Legends Series, Oral History Collection, Oklahoma
Historical Society; Mike Elder, interview by author, September 16, 1992, Oklahoma
City, Oklahoma; Louise Daniels interview; KOMA Scrapbook, KOMA Archives, Moore,
Oklahoma.
[15] "Oklahoma City Radio 1948 As Presented by KOMA," KOMA Scrapbook,
KOMA Archives; Malone, Country Music U.S.A., 206.
[16] Singers performing traditional folk music were termed "hillbilly singers."
This style evolved into "country and western" during the 1950s and
1960s. Ibid, Broadcasting Advertising Yearbook 1940, 46.
[17] Broadcasting-Telecasting Yearbook 1950, 247, "Phantomania: 12:00 Midnight"
Radio Script, KTOK Archive, "News Highlights: 1938" Radio Script,
KTOK Archive, Mike Elder interview.
[18] Ibid, 117-122; Charles R. Townsend, San Antonio Rose: The Life and Music
of Bob Wills (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1976), 69.
[19] Paul Kingsbury and Alan Axlerod Pickers, eds, Slickers, Cheatin' Hearts
& Superstars: Country, The Music and The Musicians, 121; Townsend, San Antonio
Rose, 88.
[20] Townsend, San Antonio Rose, 88-91.
[21] Ibid.
[22] Townsend, San Antonio Rose, 88-91; Savage, Singing Cowboys, 38-39; Logsdon,
"Hit the Road, Jack!" 12-14.
[23] Despite retiring from live performance in 1969, Wills continued to record
until he died in 1975. United Press International 1989, 2 January 1989, Thursday,
BC cycle; Paul Kingsbury and Alan Axlerod Pickers, eds, Slickers, Cheatin' Hearts
& Superstars: Country, The Music and The Musicians, 121-128, Malone, Country
Music, U.S.A., 170.
[24] Lichty and Topping, eds., American Broadcasting: A Source Book on the History
of Radio and Television, 303-304.
[25] Allen, Voices On The Wind: Early Radio In Oklahoma, 77-78.
[26] Ibid, Louise Daniels interview.
[27] Allen, Voices On The Wind: Early Radio In Oklahoma, 77-83.
[28] Mary A. Bufwack and Robert K. Oermann, Finding Her Voice: The Saga of Women
in Country Music, (New York: Crown Publishers, Inc, 1993), 156-157.
[29] Tulsa World, 19 September 19 1986, Sec. b,1-2.
[30] Bufwack and Oermann, Finding Her Voice, 157.
[31] Eugene Depriest Jones, interview by Author, June 24, 1992, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma Tape recording; William W. Savage, Jr., Singing Cowboys and All That
Jazz, 18-33; Ralph Ellison, Shadow and Act, (New York: Vintage Books, 1953),
189, 211, 241-46.
[32] Credit is everything in show business. To deny performers the right to
appear under their own name is to deny them their very humanity. Eugene Jones
interview; Daily Oklahoman, December 16, 1928; Daily Oklahoman, December 30,
1928.
[33] The experience of black musicians was typical of race relations in Jim
Crow era Oklahoma. Eugene Depriest Jones interview.
[34] Ibid.
[35] Ibid.
[36] Ibid; Letter from William Campbell to Buddy Anderson, June 21, 1957, Author's
collection.
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