1 10 504 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/9c1c023868fa775be51ec10135a2d28c.jpg f658ed7788485ceadbe18e29175312dc https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/c676279c6886171c3ec843a1ab6f647f.mp3 3941003ed6b88d234b731e3e794401ec https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/d5c46973eddd91b706fc9562081b2247.pdf e9c18512ea9217e5a1df9fe769de5341 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/7191b135980508733ff7da92bc845c7d.mp3 984d32587afa1c1868a4f49bf0949a67 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource September 2, 2001 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Al Isaac Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of Audio Snippet: Al Isaac: Some other people along with myself, we created the Junior Civic League because there were a Senior Civic League – just a bunch of neighborhood people that came up the Civic League I guess to help out with things in the neighborhood or neighborhood structure or what have you. Alright and then us kids we’re trying to be grown and we come up with a Junior Civic League, which gave us access to this building while the ball games were being playing there. Which was next door to a vacant lot where they had a Rock-Ola tied to a tree with a chain. And the Reeves boys, they would – they’re from Wenonah. There were two of them. Walter Reeves and Tommy Lee. Walter Reeves and Tommy Lee Reeves. They would dance out there by the tree and people would throw quarters, and fifty-cent pieces, and dimes, and nickels. There was money at the end, you know? Bob Friedman: Yeah. AI: And they were doing the twist. I can hear Chubby Checker in the background. (Sings) “Come on baby, do the twist” And everybody’s standing around them, alright. And then I would be inside the building there and I would be playing my Tommy Tucker. (Sings) “Put on your red dress baby, ‘cause we’re goin’ out tonight” and I was just so fascinated by that. Did not have a microphone. BF: Just by yourself with your unit. You were playing to the crowd in the football field. AI: Right. They would come in. They would come in because I would also play "Shot Gun" – the girls is what made the audience, created the audience, because I was playing honky-tonk. I would play the record honky-tonk and the girls would come in and do their slide dance that they were doing at that time. It was a slide, but they didn’t call it the slide. BF: It wasn’t the stroll? AI: It may have been the stroll. I don’t recall what they called it, but the girls would get together – guys wouldn’t do it. Only the group of girls and they’d just be making these steps in a line and we would stand by and just watch the women do this. It was fascinating to me. And I guess that’s where I started picking up my starmanship, because stuff like that fascinated me. It’s sorta like the ones who were out in front of things were the ones getting all the attention. And I wanted to be popular. Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Audio Snippet: 2 minutes Full interview: 02:05:58 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Al Isaac, Oral History Description An account of the resource A flashback to the 1950's New York City days of Jocko Henderson, Birmingham born and raised Al Isaac had a special connection with his RnB and Blues listening audience at WATV 900 AM in Birmingham. His laugh, his character voices they were clearly a hit with his call-in listeners. Unlike others on the air, Al took listener calls while the music played on. A popular platter party man with local clubs and community groups, Al Isaac made a point of not identifying his music or his artists, and his listeners still loved his show as you can hear from the September 2, 2001 clip we've provided. (Oral History audio is second file, second from left. At far right is a clip of Al Isaac's WATV intro, recorded September 2, 2001.) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Al Isaac Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 11, 2018 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Emily L. Reynolds Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG PDF MP3 Language A language of the resource English 1970s 1980s A. G. Gaston Al Isaac Alabama Power Bessemer Cumberland Capital Building Dinah Washington Erskine Faush Hayes Aircraft Joe Dentici Joe Lackey Junior Civic League Paul "Tall Paul" White Platter Parties Shelley "The Playboy" Stewart Thomas Jefferson Hotel WATV WBUL Weldon Clark WENN WENN walkout Wenonah https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/ca9afa61df741546ffaf47ea530aa749.jpg 45d3cf74bbc103ea2030c343250448e3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource W. A. Clark, Taft Epstein, and Deacon Richmond Davis https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/ec77ff3a1ebd0129c2f116e947e18cdb.mp3 efe437e3607de7ffdc6781db13e4419e https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/99fb9de552cc59f8843a88af0ea2ad07.pdf 0f9b9bcc2a37b10a1aa909cafcf37429 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Alex Epstein Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of audio snippet: Bob: Do you remember any about the jewelry store’s relationship to programming on WJLD? Alex: No, Taft did a lot of advertising. He was eh, he did a lot of charity work. He was always on, I don’t know what station he was on, but he did a lot of advertising. Bob: Right, well, from our, from people who remember, one of the things he did was sponsor W.A. Clark from the St. Peter’s Primitive Church in Bessemer on WJLD around 1944-1945. Alex: And every Easter, he had a big Easter Egg Hunt out there in Fair Park, that’s my remembrance. Bob: Eh ha, is there. They wouldn’t be. I guess what I’m looking for as well is any memorabilia that would connect Epps Jewelers to anything that happened on WJLD? Alex: No, I that I don’t know. It’s been about 12 years since Taft has passed away and I don’t know of anything that is left from Epps Jewelry and before that he had a clothing store in town before he opened up Epps Jewelry, in the old Hammond Hotel. Are you from Birmingham? Bob: No, I’m from New York actually. Alex: Oh, so, I don’t know of any place that you can get any…He was also a sponsor of the wrestling matches at the City Auditorium. He and a fella, Danaberg, sponsored those wrestling matches. Bob: Hmmmm Alex: He was very friendly with…like you say, I forget which church it was… out there in Bessemer, he contributed to them quite a bit. Bob: Do you remember a name Deacon Richmond Davis? Alex: That sounds about right. That’s him. I think he’s passed away. Bob: uh huh Alex: Deacon Richmond David, that’s exactly right. Deacon Davis sponsored every year at Fair Park an Easter Egg Hunt and things of that nature. Bob: Ah eh, I see. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data MP3 Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full interview: 3 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Reflections on Taft Epstein from his brother, Alex Epstein Subject The topic of the resource Taft Epstein Description An account of the resource Taft Epstein (b. June 1, 1912, d. Nov 17, 1979), remembered by his brother, Alex Epstein (b. Jan 22, 2015, Apr 23, 2012). Taft was a clothing store owner and sponsor for Black gospel radio programming and other events. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Alex Epstein Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource November 10, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Emily Bibb Jeff Hirschy Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MP3 JPG PDF Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context EpsteinOH 1940s Bessemer Deacon Richmond Davis Epps Jewelry Company Taft Epstein W. A. Clark WJLD https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/d5512c20de438657bc7a1bd4754d7545.jpg f2d4b26415b30cc1987475b1aeff3c51 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/e0802317e192a0270c215fb509376e57.mp3 c56bc08e5c5c0df698e8d20b4b6b6d21 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/17abe06c1555b177732d346b7b29a4d8.pdf d711f3414ddfc2acceca3e09eca028f2 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Andrew "Sugar Daddy" Dawkins Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of audio snippet: Andrew Dawkins: In ’50 and I was there…I went there in ’50, I believe. The station started a little bit before that because I came there in ’50 from a station in Tuscaloosa. Bob Friedman: Which one? A: WTBC. B: TBC. A: Mmhmm. B: Was it black formatted? A: No, what happened, I was in college there and I went there one year and I asked them to run a show there. They turned me down and they chose one of my classmates and he went home for the summer and I ran the show for the summer and as I was running the show for the summer, Mr. Woods from WBCO came, who had heard me, and invited me to Birmingham, which is my home. B: Uh huh. A: And so naturally I transferred schools and went to Miles and started working for BCO. B: Well, now, who is Mr. Woods? A: Mr. Woods was the manager. He was the manager. B: Do you remember his first name? A: Try to remember his first name now…Woods, Woods, Woods. I can’t remember his first name right now. B: Ok. A: Slim, tall fellow. Well, not tall but he was a slim fellow about 5’9” but he was a very fine fellow. And Lanier owned it then. B: Right. Was it true…do you remember if J.L. Doss had a piece of it? A: J.L. Goss? B: Doss. You know, the fellas…the family that owned WJLD. A: No, I don’t think they…Big Jess owned that station alone. B: Uh huh. Ok. A: As far as I know only Big Jess owned that station. Big Jess Lenier. B: Right. Became the mayor. A: Yes, became the mayor. He was the mayor before he became the mayor. B: Is that right? A: Yep. Big Jess was the word in Bessemer, Alabama. B: Uh huh. A: Mmhmm. B: And you were on the site on 17th Street and 3rd Avenue? A: Yeah, I was there. B: What was it like? What was the studio like? A: It was a small studio. We only had the ground floor there. We had a reception area. We had a large studio and then the control room on one side, I guess it would have had to be on the north side of the station. And on the south side was the suite of offices. Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full Interview: 57 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Andrew Dawkins, 1994 Oral History Description An account of the resource Rev. Andrew “Sugar Daddy” Dawkins (b. Feb 24, 1930, d. Dec 9, 2014), radio announcer with two seminal radio stations, the first at WBCO AM 1450 in Bessemer in 1950 and the second at WEUP AM 1600, Huntsville, the latter Alabama’s first Black owner radio station. Andrew retired from radio to the Ministry in Montgomery, Alabama. (Please see second Dawkins interview from 2012 and interview of Don Solomon on Leroy Garrett) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Andrew Dawkins Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 15, 1994 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Tom Kulowitz Mark Usry Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG PDF MP3 Language A language of the resource English 1950s Andrew "Sugardaddy" Dawkins Bessemer Jess Lanier Leroy Garrett Music Sponsors WBCO WEDR WEUP WEZB WJLD WTBC https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/0c5a1f9747aaa068ebe66b840cef5b9c.jpg 9944d368b1780eee743242de405272e6 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/b94059574c6d9f4726caafdb4006e6f8.mp3 4504f2ba3ac29d706846c04b237de068 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/6d7309356e685ba12774b35948fb0f94.pdf 19d5e306480f06192484e76f300b930b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Andrew "Sugar Daddy" Dawkins Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of audio snippet: How long did it take him to actually go on the air? AD: He had everything set up in a trailer before we went to Huntsville and we worked maybe six weeks in Huntsville putting that trailer up, digging it in and putting up net wiring and all that, one of Mr. Ben’s nephews or somebody, Cyril Brenner, was good in engineering. Cyril came down and helped Leroy do the final work on the transmitter…most of it Leroy did himself. BF: Wow. And that engineer’s name was Cyril Brenner? AD: Brennen, Brennen, Cyril Brennen. BF: Cyril Brennen, and he was related to the owner of VOK or what was his connection? AD: He was related to the owner of VOK, WV…WVOK and also the guy who owned a country and western (could be Country Wrestling also) in Montgomery, Alabama. BF: Ok. AD: Very good engineer. BF: Yeah. AD: And Cyril got word that he was supposed to go on the air… and they had to do a test run so one night in the early… in late February we got the order we could run test run until 12 midnight. And we did that and we heard as far as Chicago, Illinois. Shelley and I were the only two on the air. That’s where we got our, people first started listening to us. BF: What were you playing? AD: Playing rhythm blues playing gospel just whatever we wanted to play at the time and… no commercials at all. BF: Wow. AD: Test just a test running. BF: What frequency was it? AD: 1600 Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full interview: 54 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Andrew Dawkins, 2012 Oral History Description An account of the resource Rev. Andrew Dawkins (b. Feb 24, 1930, d. Dec 9, 2014), RnB announcer beginning his career early in 1950 at WBCO 1450 AM in Bessemer. BCO stood for Bessemer Cut-off. The station went all black staff in late 1951 and it was remarked locally that BCO actually meant “became colored overnight.” Andrew speaks about his early history, including moving to Huntsville in 1958 to help Leroy Garrett start WEUP AM. Leroy Garrett was the first African American to own a radio station in Alabama. Andrew left radio in 1970 and started a newspaper, “The Huntsvillian,” and later became a minister in Montgomery. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Andrew Dawkins Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 10, 2012 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Joe Wright Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG MP3 PDF Language A language of the resource English 1950s Andrew "Sugardaddy" Dawkins Cyril Brennen Gospel Huntsville Leroy Garrett Music Rhythm and Blues WAAA WBCO WEUP https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/b0d9ad4f7390b17ee57e10cb43c039c6.jpg 632d886b5088ab2913d02ca456a4601e https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/cebcd627fc009b0a205628f085225705.mp3 be0b229f367c6831f09407bd229b0bdc https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/47fe12710dbe23a614dd3af2e76fe2ec.pdf e2fdccf568de7d122e978fc65f5d1a2f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Andrew Fields Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of audio snippet: Bob Friedman- Did you have a…um…a special name on the air? Andrew Fields- Well, at first, I just told them I want to be known as Andrew Fields, cuz I was Andrew Fields the third, but I didn’t use the third. And so, later on, Jimmy made my name be as a thang that we had to do for…he had me out there…called the Money Man BF- The Money Man? AF- Money Man. We had to go all over town, every day, five days a week from 6 o’clock til 9 o’clock. BF- In the evening? AF- Morning. BF- In the morning? AF- Morning. Yeah. Jimmy was on the Drive Show. BF- Okay. AF- And. Uh. He started out at 5. But I didn’t start til 6. BF- Um hum. AF- And we’d go from town part…from neighborhood to neighborhood, and we didn’t have the freeway at that time. BF- Didn’t have what? AF- The freeway. BF- Okay. AF- We had to go the old way. And man, I was…fifteen minutes, I was in one part of town; ten minutes, I was somewhere else. I was right there… BF- What were you doing? AF- We was giving out money. Five dollars a whop, as they called it. If I was sitting in front of your house, and tell Jimmy where I am, and call your address, you came out, I would give you a certificate for five dollars. BF- A certificate for five dollars. AF- Um hum. BF- Now how old were you when you started working for WJLD? AF- Forty, I mean twenty-one… thirty-one years old. BF- Thirty-one years old? AF- Um hum. BF- And. Um. What do you remember about Jimmy? AF- Jimmy was a hard-hitting man, when it come to radio. BF- Um hum. AF- He… Uh… knew his radio. Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full Interview: 29 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Andrew Fields, Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Birmingham Radio Description An account of the resource Andrew Fields (b.Jan 2, 1936, d. Nov 10, 2004), overnight broadcaster and part timer at WJLD and WBUL, discusses his career spanning 1969-1982; reflecting on his development and experience in Birmingham radio and his contemporaries. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Andrew Fields Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource August 28, 2001 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource MP3 JPG PDF Language A language of the resource English Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kimberly McDade Emily Bibb Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context FieldsOH 1960s 1970s 1980s Andrew Fields Erskine Faush Jimmy Lawson WBUL Willie McKinstry WJLD https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/1908de3ce9165c60960f7e9b8229834b.jpg c3b8eb8b993a8f2b9205d4196c3ac275 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/01f0f16e1f5d39767b27e3d94b1a5226.mp3 fa3c72843e593e1a0d7afb04e453384b https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/67ad74f10d080ab02a697f8543bda316.pdf 46963665a467ff83e1d804afd09462e3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Gary Richardson Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Arnold Dwight “Gatemouth” Moore Roy Wood Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript from audio snippet: Gatemouth Moore: ...and there’s a part of Stardust where you’re singing that was long ago and now my inspiration, there’s a break where you search out and holler, or say something, and then the girls scream but I didn’t get to scream that day I got ready to got to that break to get ready to sing “stars” and stretched out and laid back to kill ‘em and the girl beat me saying “Oh sing it you Gatemouth sob” (laughing) Gary Richardson: What? Gatemouth: The drum fell off, the drum it broke up the show and I didn’t whether to cry quit or what ,and I was going to quit the show I was embarrassed, It was the most em... so the gentleman that owned the theater I’ll never forget his name, he said to me, Mr Moore Mr. Moore think about that now in the ‘30s, what do you make a week I said I make $9 dollars a week. I quit... and I got room and board what do you make nine... he said I’ll tell you what I’ll do How’d you like to have to $25. $25 dollars for what He said let me use that name that lady, not the back part of what she said, the first part and I’ll give you $25 just to let me advertise Gatemouth is in town. The next day I’m in my hotel down on Auburn street and here comes a cowbell and a mule with a hat on and a great big sign with a mouth so you know, an old wagon, Gatemouth at the 81. Gatemouth...And folks was laughing but the story about it, that night at midnight you couldn’t through the streets to see Gatemouth and I’d been there all week as Arnold Dwight Moore so from now on, Mr moore if you want to make some money be Gatemouth Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full interview: 51 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Arnold Dwight “Gatemouth” Moore, Oral History Description An account of the resource Arnold Dwight “Gatemouth” Moore - (b. Nov 8, 1913, d. May 19, 2004) one of the most daring of the radio announcers of the 1950’s, Moore was a blues singer in the 1930’s and 40’s and a gospel singer, minister and radio announcer in the 50’s, in Birmingham. His accomplishments can best be appreciated by listening to both interviews in the BBRM archive. In this interview, he is joined later on by another giant of Birmingham broadcasting, Roy Wood. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Arnold Dwight "Gatemouth" Moore Gary Richardson Roy Wood Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource April 1, 1992 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Joe Wright Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG MP3 PDF Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GatemouthMooreOH 1930s 1950s Beale Street Bob Umbach Bruce Payne Gary Richardson Gatemouth Moore Gospel Huntsville Jim Connolly Memphis Mutual Broadcasting System Roy Wood Trumon Puckett Walter Anglin WBCO WDIA WEDR WENN Wiley Daniels William Faush Willie McKinstry WJLD Zack Allen https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/9769ab22c8234d0355949b84e990fa09.jpg d5fd0fde6fe3557f1d45c0c05f8f7a14 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/915944809d96fde8e0c8613b6c0ad747.mp3 be91b166d22e779d24fba40e2991043a https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/bd6cc3e8b21f2f565287a7f390a86952.pdf b1b7a4e1391099ed5b855eb1ba09bc1c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Arnold Dwight "Gatemouth" Moore Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript of Audio Snippet: Bob Friedman: We got a picture from Ben Franklin, who was the engineer at JLD for a long time. Gatemouth Moore: Oh yeah! BF: Ben. You know Ben. GM: Yeah. BF: Very nice guy. Very nice guy. And Ben told us that Bob Umbach used to play— GM: All my blues! BF: Christmas Blues records by you. GM: My blues.That’s right! BF: Ben Franklin had a great memory. GM: When I was a blues singer! BF: Great memory. GM: Yeah, yeah. BF: And Roberta Rolland. GM: Yeah, she was on the weekends. BF: Mhmm. We— GM: For Mister Epps. BF: Mister Epps for the funeral GM: Yeah. Epps Jewelry. Him and Deacon Davis. Her and Deacon Davis. BF: Deacon Richmond Davis for Epps Jewelry... GM: Yeah. And their favorite preacher was that preacher from Bessemer. Reverend Clark. BF: W.A. Clark? GM: Yeah, he was famous. BF: From Saint Peter’s Primitive? GM: Yeah, baptist church. BF: Yeah, yeah. GM: Yeah and I’m tryin’, I’m almost— Walter! Walter Anglin! BF: Walter Anglin was back in the 50s?! GM: Yes sir! BF: No kidding… GM: Walter Anglin! He was with me when I was at WEDR. With me. Walter Anglin. BF: Now you see, he’s such an old. He’s eighty-two years old. GM: Who? BF: Walter is. GM: Well, I’m eighty. BF: Well, I know that but we only had information about Walter from the 1960s. We got pictures of him from the 60s— GM: No sir, Walter Anglin was with me at WEDR. BF: No kidding… GM: When I started. BF: Well, see now— GM: In 1950! BF: Now, we gotta get a picture of Walter from that period. GM: Walter Anglin. He went up to JLD. BF: Right, he came— GM: Yeah. That’s who I was tryin’ to tell you about. Walter Anglin! BF: We got, we got pictures of Walter, you know. The 60s… GM: Listen, I started…Listen, I put Shelly (Stewart) on the air for the first time. BF: Where? On EDR? GM: Yes! BF: Uh-huh. GM: Doing my show for me. BF: Ok. GM: I’m the fella who put Shelley in radio. He told you that? BF: He didn’t mention that. GM: Well, you better tell him, tell him Gatemouth said that. BF: Ok. GM: Yeah. BF: And Walter was a newsman? GM: Yeah, news and, one of the best there... BF: Oh that’s great. GM: In the 50's. Walter Anglin. BF: I gotta call him. Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full Interview: 197 minutes Audio Snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Arnold Dwight "Gatemouth" Moore, Oral History Description An account of the resource Arnold Dwight “Gatemouth” Moore - (b. Nov 8, 1913, d. May 19, 2004). Starting his career on the air at WIBW in Topeka, Kansas, his home town, in the 1930's, Moore was a major blues singer in the 1930’s and 40's and a prolific recording artist and gospel singer, minister and radio announcer in the 40's and 50’s... moving from AM 730 WDIA* Memphis in 1949 to AM 1220 WEDR and AM 1400 WJLD in Birmingham, from 1950 through 1957. His accomplishments can best be appreciated by listening to both interviews in the BBRM archive. This interview was done by phone while Gatemouth was at home in Yazoo, Mississippi. This early interview was the second done with Gatemouth Moore. One of Bob Friedman's earliest interviews, he was mainly working to have Moore share as much as he could of the lay of the land, regarding WEDR and WJLD announcers in the early 50's. Friedman's zeal is best expressed by his sharing with Gatemouth how the collection was growing and by his hope Moore would follow through sending Friedman his music. The BBRM was a year old and much information was still needed. Gatemouth refers to individuals that Friedman has not yet learned about. When Gatemouth does not eventually recall those names, we have placed a note to name the individual. * WDIA's power was rated at 250 watts from 1947 until 1954 when they changed frequencies to 1070 AM and were allowed to increase power to 50,000 watts. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Arnold Dwight "Gatemouth" Moore Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource November 3, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Tabor Chapman Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF MP3 JPG Language A language of the resource English 1950s A. G. Gaston Bob Umbach Eddie Castleberry Gatemouth Moore Gospel Jim Connolly Leland Chiles Music N. H. Smith Shelley "The Playboy" Stewart Trumon Puckett W. A. Clark Walter Anglin WEDR William Faush Willie McKinstry WJLD https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/f193fcfa0faf788c6ca12d9a89e8441a.jpg 8d9f57c2e68d9b387ea63984935d02c3 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/9c3147c82b2ec637720be591284e0608.wav 529fc82fa94a0a18675432f23c9405c6 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/c2813c541bc71cc674f237081dbdf0c4.pdf 8c4be15e1626a00cf0bf6cd959efbf42 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript from audio snippet: Bob Friedman- We had a woman who came in with a copy of the Birmingham Weekly Review, which was a large size, it was like a Birmingham News, Atlanta Constitution Sized Newspaper. Ben Alexander- Oh yes. BF- Black Republican looking Newspaper and had, it had whole spread on WBCO she didn’t even know that her mother, she she was at BCO in 1952 her name was Lora Gary. BA- Oh. BF- Became Lora.. actually she was Lora walker and then joined our staff in ‘54 or ’55 and changed her name, got married. But any way, her mother had saved this thing and had laminated it. It was all yellow but she.. BA- Oh. BF- But she had laminated it so it lived through the years. BA- Yeah. BF- And it’s just extraordinary to read, you know, the Dominoes came down to visit and all. It’s like.. BA- Yeah. Yeah. BF- Great , great stuff. Great stuff. BA- Yeah, we, we we interviewed uh you know Jackie Robinson, uh uh what’s… I was just thinking about him the other day because there’s uh this other guy that who’s name I’m trying to think about now, but because there’s a play starting here in Virginia about him. Um Louis Jordan. BF- Unhuh. BA- And uh, we interviewed him, there were uh you know, Count Basie, Lucky Millinder was a band leader that came there, uh Duke Ellington. They all came and paid a visit to WEDR, whenever they were in town. All, all of the performers came in. BF- Do you remember anything distinctive about that year besides the bombing of the, well they blew up tower or the transmitter? BA- It was the transmitter. BF- Unhuh. BA- Not the transmitter.. no sorry the tower. Tower. BF- tower came down. Yeah. Yeah. BA- But after that I think things sort of cooled down and.. BF- well supposedly in 1958 or so uh somebody had scrawled KKK on the walls of WEDR. And there was a picture of another jock named Shelley Stewart, I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of him. BA- Yeah that was after my time. Yeah. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Ben Alexander Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full interview: 30 minutes Audio snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ben Alexander, Oral History Subject The topic of the resource Broadcast History Description An account of the resource Ben Alexander (b. Sept, 1927), an early arrival at WEDR 1220 AM, Birmingham, Ben spent from the end of 1949 to October of 1950 at the station and recalls personnel and personalities of the time. He became a Lt. Colonel in the army and retired to Richmond, Virginia where he did both print and audio commercial work. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Ben Alexander Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource April 01, 1997 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Hannah Moore Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource WAV PDF JPG Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context AlexanderOH 1950s Bombing Celebrities Lora (Walker) Gary Music WEDR https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/76b1223f17c96f590f49f22536f1d22a.jpg 91a6fbe7089ad2118e2da52b6c478eb6 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/42a62f763431bbf66f65df9b63b21680.mp3 5e6562d2d7da057fb16e4409916bf48b https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/b2f312460384e14e5c00981096a47271.pdf 15c9a5102d285c24c0ff4532b5f18c6d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Ben Franklin Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript from audio snippet: Bob: That’s one thing that I don’t really understand because when I grew up, when I remember FM coming in in the early ‘60s… but it was around in the late 40s! Ben: It was late 40s yeah. Bob: But nobody ever talked about FM. I can’t imagine what it was like… I mean somebody should write a book about the first 10 years of FM… Ben: that would be fascinating but, sorry to say, there was a lot of stations that went on the air went off. Bob: I bet. Ben: Johnston was hot to get on the air that’s one thing that Umbach pointed out to Johnston, he told him FM never going to arrive, FM never going to arrive, he used to say and they were putting up a mailbox up there for that place on the mountain and they were trying to decide what to put on the mailbox and Umbach says, “put Johnston’s Folly on it.” Bob: Johnston’s Folly. That’s funny, but JLN, what was it, I have no idea what it playing back in the 40s 1948 it went on the air right? What did it… simulcast AM or what? Ben: Some of the time Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full Interview: 5 minutes Audio Snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ben Franklin, Oral History (part 01) Description An account of the resource Ben Franklin (b. March 12, 1919, Lees Vernon Parish, LA; d. May 10, 1998, Calera, AL) was a radio electronics engineer and eventually a station owner (WBYE in Calera) with a 60 year history in the field. He turned the transmitter of WJLD AM 1400 on for the first time in the spring of 1942 and shared a treasure trove of memories in over 5 hours of interviews. He passed in 1998 and Gary Richardson and Bob Friedman were pall bearers at his funeral. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ben Franklin Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource November 03, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Joe Wright Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG MP3 PDF Language A language of the resource English 1940s Ben Franklin Bob Umbach Walter Anglin WAQY WJLN https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/131ea17dfa7e5c10a0067c6267045d5b.jpg 9fb031ec9d487b89d8e3a2a47ee51373 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Description An account of the resource Ben Franklin with Walden Patrick McKim, engineers at the original WJLD transmitter building for the Gary Hotel and Bessemer City Hall sites of WJLD. This building located at Blue Lake, which was an old quarry. Picture circa 1942-44. https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/23d39222ba88f31b2f61be5a303f500a.mp3 606920833b33484c6595d35640dc17b5 https://www.thebbrm.org/files/original/0728dfac01c019b16f07f8d6577c47f5.pdf 72f848f97a761c186124592cc116335a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource <p>A collection of sound files, transcribed oral interviews, and images documenting Black radio in Birmingham, Alabama. Please click the link below.<b></b></p> Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Bob Friedman Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights held by The Birmingham Black Radio Museum unless otherwise specified. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .jpg .mp3 .wav .pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral History Ephemera Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Bob Friedman Emily Bibb and numerous student volunteers Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context OralHistory Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Bob Friedman Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Ben Franklin Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound Transcript from audio snippet: Ben: (referring to WJLD AM 1400) Ah, station still in Bessemer then. It was in city hall then. And ah Connolly and Umbach got together and Connolly says, I mean Umbach says “I’ll play that stuff. Yeah, I’ll play it. Yeah, yeah”. Bob: Eh hmmm Ben: And ah he figured he could and he….. Bob: So did Connolly try to talk him into it? Ben: No, No, No…. Bob: And Umbach agreed or what. Ben: It’s worse than that. Bob: Ok. Ben: They got together and went to Johnston, see, Johnston the second, and ah oh hell no he said, Ku Klux cut the tower down…….. They knew what would swing Johnston…. Bob: Eh hmmmm Ben: And they went out and sold an hour. Back then they sold strips, didn’t sell spots. They sold strips….. Bob: Eh hmm, they sold fifteen minute strips or something. Ben: Yeah, eh, 25 dollars a week for five fifteen minute strips. They went and sold an hour of them, four of them. One sold four in Bessemer on 1st Avenue up there. The theater bought one, and ah I forgot who all else there were up there. Sale of four strips. They come back and laid 100 dollars on Johnston’s…. Bob: Johnston had second thoughts by that point. Ben: Yeah, and he give in… money talks. Ah, ah, and that’s one of the things that started it but he told them “This is just a trial now. We’ll do it for a month.” Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) Full Interview: 31 minutes Audio Snippet: 2 minutes Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ben Franklin, Oral History (part 02) Description An account of the resource Engineer Ben Franklin (Ben) continues in this 1993 interview recounting his stories of early Birmingham radio. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ben Franklin Bob Friedman Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Birmingham Black Radio Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource November 04, 1993 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Jeff Hirshy Emily Bibb Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG MP3 PDF Language A language of the resource English 1940s 1950s Ben Franklin Bessemer Bessemer City Hall Blue Lake Bob Umbach Eddie Castleberry Gary Hotel Jones Auto Parts Sam "00" Moore Shelley "The Playboy" Stewart Trumon Puckett Walden Patrick McKim WEDR WJLD