Our Three Most Popular Shows

Don't miss our three most popular OUT OF THE PAST SHOWS with Hollywood's Barry Levinson, CBS's Roger Mudd and ABC's Sam Donaldson

Our Latest Show Features Don Richards

One of the best and longest lasting TV spokesman in local Washington Television history was Don Richards.

Chuck Langdon and Lee Shephard sat down with Don recently and talked about his amazing career.

Watch it HERE!

Don Richards - Out of the Past - 2011 from Chuck Langdon on Vimeo.

WTOP Thurmont Luncheon

Behind The Scenes - Out of the Past - 2011 from Chuck Langdon on Vimeo.

Each fall the folks who worked at the legendary WTOP-TV come together for a luncheon reunion in Thurmont, Maryland, home of "Camp David," where the engineers spent a lot of time covering US Presidents, from Eisenhour through Bill Clinton.

This show features video footage of the 25th of these reunions held last November.

Also the show includes an interview with long time director Woody Robertson, who was Ranger Hal's director throughout the 1960's. Woody has been based for the last 40 years in Detroit and was in town for the reunion as well as working on a "made for TV Movie" with Tammy Gagnon, author of "No Longer Silent," the true story of her abuse as a child.

Coming Soon

Ranger Hall was an icon of Washington TV's kid shows in the early days of television. He and Oswald the rabbit  and a number of other puppets created by channel 9 performer Hal Shaw.



Anyone growing up from 1957 to 1969 in the Washington area is familiar with the friendly forest ranger and his pals.

But beware.  If you were a young viewer back in those days, this show might be a graphic reminder of just how old you are.

Ranger Hal passed away in 1999 but his memory remains vivid in the minds of thousands of  today's adults who were kids during that era.Our special guest is Ranger Hal Shaw's son, Mark, who has saved  many artifacts and memorability from his father's days as a premiere Washington TV performer.

And joining us is TV historian Tom Buckley of Channel 9, who works with the Library of American Broadcasting in College Park, MD, the Library of Congress Audio Visual Center in Culpepper, VA and was recently appointed Chapter Archivist for the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in Washington.

Marie Shaw  Katie Shaw and Kelly Dodson with son Dayton

In addition to seeing Oswald and Mr. Beaver again, you'll meet Mark's wife Marie and their two daughters (Ranger Hal's granddaughters) as well as Hal's two month old GREAT GRANDSON, Dayton!

Dayton Andrew Dodson

(Click on pictures to enlarge)

 Feeling old yet?



Stay tuned!

Amelia Earhart Mystery Solved?

Dr. Tom King on OUT OF THE PAST

If not, I believe it soon will be.

Amelia

And the people who are going to solve that 75 year old mystery are members of a group known as TIGHAR (The International Group For Historic Aircraft Recovery)  the world’s leading aviation archaeological foundation.



A full-time professional staff guides an international membership of researchers and supporters in the non-profit organization’s efforts to find, save, and preserve rare and historic aircraft. This group of no-nonsense professionals led by Ric Gillespie and Pat Thrasher are convinced that Amelia and her navigator, Fred Noonan landed on an uninhabited island in the Pacific (the Phoenix Island group) which was named Gardner at the time. It's name was later changed to Nikumaroro

Dr. Tom King, a well known archaeologist and author, made 6 expeditions with the group doing searches which turned up a number of items which seem to point to the conclusion that Amelia and Noonan did indeed land....and die...there.

Tom King on Nikumaroro

 Dr. King was kind enough to tape two half hour shows with us.

You don't want to miss these shows!

Watch  PART ONE HERE

Watch PART TWO HERE

Also, I suggest that you pick up two of  Tom's books,  AMELIA EARHART'S SHOES and his latest (described as a "novel") THIRTEEN BONES as well as Ric Gillespie's book.....FINDING AMELIA.

But beware:  the TIGHAR search for Amelia is addictive!

NOW SHOWING: Producer/Director Stephen King

Stephen King. MVP of Bethesda

 Mobile Video Production's founder and CEO Stephen King joins Chuck Langdon and Lee Shephard on OUT OF THE PAST reminiscing about his early days in TV at Channel 9


Steve's humorous description of some of the events and people at Washington's number one TV station at the time will keep you glued to your TV set.


Following in the footsteps of a number of top TV producers and executives in the Movie and Television.Industry, Steve built upon his experience at WTOP-TV and in 1977 founded MVP, his very successful production company in Bethesda, MD.

Steve's performance left our OUT OF THE PAST crew wondering why he didn't spend more time in front of the camera!

Watch the show right HERE

Coming Soon

Correcting History


Everyone knows that on Christmas Eve, 1906, Reginald Fessenden broadcast "voice" over radio for the first time.

Or did he?

Our guest on this edition of OUT OF THE PAST is James O'Neal, the highly respected Technology  Editor of the national TV TECHNOLOGY MAGAZINE.
Writing in the sister magazine, RADIO WORLD, O'Neal's detective work led him to the conclusion that Fessenden was indeed the first person to broadcast voice over the airwaves, but it certainly wasn't on Christmas Eve, 1906!

Don't miss this fascinating discussion with James O'Neal on our latest OUT OF THE PAST SHOW!

Watch the show HERE

Sue Stolov, Washington Independent Productions

There are few things associated with Video Production that Sue Stolov has not done.
She's been a reporter, TV host, writer, researcher, speaker and political advisor....to name only a few of her many talents.

Stolov is the founder and President of one of the oldest and busiest video production companies in Washington; Washington Independent Productions

(WIP was founded in 1982)

Don't miss this opportunity to look inside the workings of one of the premier video news release organizations in the nation and a close up look at its award winning founder.

Watch the interview HERE

Theatre of the Mind

Theatre of the Mind is the title of our next OUT OF THE PAST SHOW.

Radio Drama is NOT dead, It's alive and well only its home is no longer exclusively on radio......but can be found on the internet, CDs, Ipods, etc.....



And no longer is the content only the tried and true "old time radio shows," but new "audio theatre" is popping up all over the country.

Spearheading the movement in the Washington DC area is RadioVisions, led by our own Chuck Langdon and members of the Metropolitan Washington Old Time Radio Club.

Mac Mitchel

 Don't miss this fascinating discussion featuring writers, actors, and producers of this new wave of audio theatre.  Plus the surprising reactions of two modern young students.....Katie and Mac Mitchell to this brand new version of a very old art form.

To listen to some of the RadioVisions productions you're invited to log on to radiovisions.net

To WATCH this show CLICK HERE

Johnny Dollar

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama that aired on CBS from 1949 til 1962 featuring a hard boiled insurance investigator (I think all detectives in old time radio were “hard boiled,” although some now seemed “scrambled.”)


Author John Abbott was a few years too young to have been a Johnny Dollar fan during the Golden Age of Radio, but he has more than made up for that since hearing the show for the first time on Ed Walker’s BIG BROADCAST show one Sunday night .


Some have described it as a “hobby,” some describe it as an obsession. Whatever it is, Abbott turned his interest into three extremely well researched and documented books about the “transcribed adventures of a freelance insurance investigator,” who flipped silver dollar tips to cabdrivers and bellhops.

Johnny Dollar's files were always referred to as "Matters," hence the titles of  John Abbott's books.

Don't miss this exciting adventure of OUT OF THE PAST as we investigate "The John Abbott Matter."

Watch the show HERE

Paul Anthony

Paul Anthony has spent over 45 years performing in all manner of broadcast and non-broadcast media..having worked for every major network including 20 years as weatherman on the NBC and CBS affiliates in Washington.

He's also one of the top "voice over" performers in the nation.

You'll enjoy seeing the relaxed and humor filled side of Paul.

 

Watch part One   Here

Watch part Two  Here

Fred Fisk

He's been a Washington Broadcasting Icon for longer than any personality in history. He's been the announcer for Presidents beginning with Harry Truman in 1948...for years he was the most popular disc jockey in the Washington market....later he hosted the only talk show in town for 7 years. At 90 years old he's still going strong as the Senior Commentator for WAMU's Metro Connection program.

 Fred Fiske talks about his 63 years in the radio spotlight, as well as the years he served in the Army Air Corps in WW2....flying 30 missions over Germany and France. Receiving 4 medals including a Distinguished Flying Cross.


Watch HERE

Watch Part 2 HERE

Mac and Ed

Two of Washington's most entertaining and enduring personalities appeared together at the Radio and TV History Museum in Bowie Md and the OUT OF THE PAST remote unit was there!

Watch this informal and entertaining feature as Mac McGarry and Ed Walker discuss their long and colorful careers!

Mac and Ed on Stage

Rusty Gibson

NOT YOUR FATHER'S RADIO
 

 Internet Radio is here to stay! Experts predict that sooner than we think, the radio we now listen to will become as outdated as the old "crystal sets" of the 1920's.

 Fairfax Cable Access Corporation's WEBR provides a snapshot of the future of radio. One of their popular personalities,eight year internet radio veteran Rusty Gibson, is our special guest as we explore the exciting possibilities in radio's future.

Watch the show HERE

Dave Hughes Show NOW online!

Here is the link to watch the show we did with Dave Hughes, the founder of the outstanding website DCRTV.COM!

Watch it HERE

SPECIAL EVENT FRIDAY April 23

"Return with us...to those exciting days of yesteryear...."

Ah yes, the Golden Age of radio RETURNS!

Thanks to long time professional broadcaster DON RICHARDS......on  Friday night, April 23 at the Holiday Inn in Front Royal, there will be another evening of great live re-creations of two of old time radio's most "spine tingling" dramas from the great "Suspense" series. Dead Ernest and Three O'clock. It promises to be a memorable evening of entertainment for both those who remember what radio used to be like....as well as those too young to have experienced the thrill of the theatre of the mind.


AND......there's MORE:

A full dinner will be served by the adjoining Houlihan's Restauant. There will be an open bar. And Oh yes, there will also be a "Bickersons" skit, using an original script.

Tickets are fairly priced at $50. with all proceeds going to the Humane Society of Warren County
 in Front Royal, Virginia. Where else can you get a complete dinner and an evening's entertainment for $50.

Don and his crew are donating their talents to the cause for free!

For reservations call 540-635-3571.

Bill Gormly

The show we did with the legendary kid show host, Bill Gormly is now available.
To see the show, CLICK HERE.

Bill was kind enough to record a second show with us....featuring his work on Channel 5's "Countdown Carnival."  Kaptain Kidshow, webmaster extrodinaire, joined our discussion in what was truly an entertaining and comprehensive insight into the history of a local Television Kid Show of the 60's and 70's era.
WATCH SHOW #2 HERE

Dave Hughes Tom Buckley

We just finished taping two shows that you'll not want to miss!  Dave Hughes founded a website 12 years ago that has become the "New York Times" for broadcasters in the Washington/Baltimore area.
DCRTV.COM is must reading for thousands of viewers who want to get the latest news (and gossip as well) about this area's dynamic broadcasting industry.

The formidable Washington Post is regularly one or two days behind the broadcast industry bulletins reported by  DCRTV.COM.

If you've never seen DCRTV.COM take a look.........and then,

Watch the show HERE





Tom Buckley is a man of many hats. He's been a TV technician with Channel 9 since 1975, a regular columnist for Examiner.com, and probably the most knowledgable broadcast historian in the Washington area.

The discussion ranged from broadcasting's dynamic past....to it's uncertain future. One of Buckley's passions is working with fellow broadcast historian James Snyder to save old TV broadcasts for the Library of Congress in Culpepper, VA.

You won't want to miss either of these two new OUT OF THE PAST shows..........see the show HERE

Still Rocking!

Paul Bicknell, aka Davy Jones is our guest on this edition of Out of the Past.

Paul was one of the leading pioneers in the FM  takeover of music on the radio spectrum from AM stations.

See The Show HERE

Roger Mudd #2

Finally, the second half of the interview we did with Roger Mudd is now available. It's the personal side of Roger that you never saw on his many broadcasts on CBS-TV. You won't want to miss it!

Watch the interview with Roger HERE

NOW SHOWING: A Reporter's Story

Many in the broadcasting industry considered it the best radio station in the country during the days of music and news on AM radio.

WNEW New York no longer exists, but in its day, its listeners and many leading broadcasters and famous musicians all over the nation swore that it had no equal.






Mike Eisgrau began as a reporter and worked his way up to News Director of that legendary station...his home for almost 25 years.

You won't want to miss this discussion with Mike Eisgrau, who was a major player at the station known nationwide as "the BEST of the BEST."

Watch the show HERE

Channel 9's own historian, Tom Buckley, has a column in the DC EXAMINER.COM about America's first TV station.

And it was right here in Washington. It's a fascinating story and Tom is just full of stories and facts about broadcasting's history that makes his column a must read. Sign up to be notified whenever Tom writes a new story. 

And watch for Tom on an OUT OF THE PAST Show very soon!

Take a look;

Congratulate Ed Walker

Be our guest:

Congratulate one of the most outstanding talents in the history of Washington radio, Ed Walker.

Click on his name below for details.

Ed Walker

Coming Attractions

We just taped a show with long time Emmy Award winning kid show host Bill Gormly. Gormly presided over "Countdown Carnival," one of Washington's most popular shows for kids in the '60s on Metro Media's WTTG. He was also widely known as the Mutual newscaster on the Larry King radio show.

Chuck Langdon and I were also  joined by webmaster "Kaptain Kidshow" whose vast knowledge of all the local kidshows ever broadcast in Washington and Baltimore is unequaled.

Watch part One of the two part series.
HERE

Watch part TWO  HERE

We kept our tape machines busy as broadcast historian Tom Buckley sat in for a brief discussion about preserving tapes of shows long off the air.  The interview with Buckley was much too brief so we made him promise to return for a full half hour of memorabilia.