The Fraser Radio Gospel Hour (Part 2)

Courtesy of Bill Johnson

I got some new information on a post [LINK] from way back in March of 2012 and I am now able to post a Part 2 segment. My original research indicated that the program started "around" 1925 and ran until possibly as late as 1973 and was hosted by Rev. Robert Fraser, a Blind Radio Evangelist in Philadelphia. It even operated a gift shop at 36 North 8th Street, an area that's now prime center city real estate. a calendar I saw at the time listed the stations carrying the program in 1947, those were on Sunday from 4:00 - 5:00 PM: 1310 WCAM-AM, 1240 WSNJ-AM, 1110 WNAR-AM and 1360 WWBZ-AM. Then Sundays 9:00 - 9:30 PM: 990 WIBG-AM, WNAR-AM, 1360 WWBZ-AM and 1360 WPPA-AM. 

WCAM is particularly interesting as Camden New Jersey's oldest radio station. It dates back to September 1925, predating the program under the callsign WFBI-AM then on 1270. WPPA-AM was a share time with WCAM so it's all the more odd that both stations were listed. [More here] WSNJ-AM was in Bridgeton, NJ and had been since 1937. WNAR-AM only signed on in 1947 in Norristown so it would have been a brand new affiliate that year. WWBZ-AM was in Vineland, NJ, and WIBG was in Philly of course.

I had assumed originally that the program ended when host Rev. Robert Fraser died but that date was unknown, and  conjecture anyway. It took 8 years, but all of those questions have been answered.

Courtesy of Bill Johnson

Edward W. Fraser Jr. himself tell us that the program actually began in 1927 just after Robert Fraser and Ella Stark were married. Robert Fraser's prior radio experience was limited. He appeared with Christopher Graham "Uncle WIP" who read children's stories on WIP-AM. [More here] Later he was booked as the "Sunshine boy" at WCAU. He sang with Dumont and Emmett Welsch's  Minstrels on WFI-AM and WDAR-AM.

The Gospel Hour program ran until 1995. This end date is much later than I expected, as Bill Johnson confirmed that Rev. Fraser died April 11th 1957.  Mrs. Fraser (née Stark) continued to host the program. The speaker for the last 10 years of the show was the late Rev. Nelson H. Hill, Jr., of Aldan, PA. The equipment was run by James J. "Joe" Tolbert. His wife, Dianne, played the organ. Dianne's sister, Darlene, and mother Adele Marsh were on the program years before Mr. Hill was the speaker.  When the Gospel Hour program was finally discontinued, it was being produced at WVCH, Chester.

Courtesy of Bill Johnson

Prior to the studios of WVCH, The Fraser Radio Gospel Hour was produced at the Fraser Home for Elderly Ladies. Though at least some the equipment was still on site in 1972. He also operated a home for girls on 529 Tabor Rd in Olney, PA.  Chaplain Steve Phillips passed this information to us directly from Mr. Hill's wife, Lucille Mosher Hill. (Lucille, and Joe and Dianne are residents at Quarryville, Pennsylvania Presbyterian Retirement Community.)

Also interesting is that the program was also carried on channel 12.  While that is WHYY-TV today, that was WVUE-TV on the VHF band out of Wilmington back in 1957, as in the calendar below:

Courtesy of Bill Johnson

All of the above images came from Bill Johnson. He purchased a Bible at an Estate Sale in Southern California. Inside were several artifacts from the Fraser Radio Hour, including a card announcing the passing of Rev. Robert J. Fraser on April 11, 1957.

Allen Revival Hour

Evangelists like Pat Roberson, Jimmy Stewart, and Billy graham have all produced a lot of radio programming. But on the bench behind them have always been a slew of lesser known radio men preaching away in relative obscurity on the AM dial. We usually learn their names only because of disgrace and scandal rather than their accomplishments. He's a tale that's as sad as it is true.

Asa Alonzo Allan was a Pentecostal who did healings and tent revivals. But he was also a severe alcoholic suffering from depression. He was sometimes ticketed for drunk driving on the way to his own revival meetings. He'd been drinking since he was a child and he never shook it. He ran away from home when he was 14.  He spent the next 7 years carousing and drinking but found the faith in 1932 at a Methodist church. He later attended a attended a Pentecostal camp meeting and that set his path for life. He officially became a preacher in Holly, Colorado in the late 1930s. He became increasingly popular and was doing tent tours by 1951. More here and here.

In 1952  the "Allen Revival Hour" began broadcasting, by November of 1953 it was being carried on 9 stations. It was a very strong and promising beginning.  By1955 was broadcasting on seventeen Latin American radio stations as well as eighteen American ones. I have a list from one of his own publications, The Voice of Healing, August 1955 issue, but it unfortunately contains some clearly wrong information, like Mexican callsigns attributed to metros well inside the U.S. The call signs are as follows:  XEG-AM, XELO-AM, KGER-AM, WASL-AM, WJJL-AM, WVCH-AM, WPIT-AM, WPIK-AM, KCVR-AM, WNJR-AM, KBYE-AM, KGA-AM, KMAC-AM, WKXV-AM, and WMSN-AM. 

The Allen Revival Hour program  was so popular that it was being aired on the British pirate radio ship "Radio City" in the mid 1960s to generate ad income. I even have come apocryphal claims that it was briefly aired as a TV show. He had books, he had LPs, he had a magazine, and a radio show. He was at the peak of his career.

In 1967, Allen was sued by the IRS for $300,000 in unpaid taxes. It was a crushing blow. His health began to deteriorate, years of drinking caught up with him. The faith healer had arthritis so bad he had to delegate his crusading to his staff. He had knee surgery in 1969. But in 1970 it came to an end. He had a "distressing" phone call with a friend and was subsequently found dead at the Jack Tar Hotel in San Francisco seated in front of his  TV.  He died of  what we now call FLD (fatty liver disease) which is commonly caused by alcohol abuse. At the time his radio program was carried on 186 stations.He was only 59.

Mystery Acetate Label: Air-Tone

On the label it says Air-Tone Sound & Recording Co. The 78 rpm box is checked and typed on the label are the three words "Junior League Follies." The disc itself is missing. I found the label at the bottom of a bin of junk vinyl. So I have no matching disc to give it any context. 

I found a listing for a similar label on a 78 rpm, aluminum-based 12 inch acetate. This type of disc was mostly phased out in the 1950s. I suspect it was a radio program because of the name, and the numbering. A "1" is probably one in a series, as opposed to the standard Side A/ Side B terminology. The 1527 Chestnut St, Philadelphia address on the label is now a burger joint. Old documents indicate it has been home to both private residences and business: Trademan's Trust Co., Bonschur & Holmes, Chas H. Elliott Coal, Newton Coal, and A. Pomeranz & Co. Anybody know anything else?

UPDATE!!!

I posted the above way back in 2007. Just this last January Richie Piggott posted a disc to match. [LINK] His is dated 1949, and is attached to a 16" disc. As far as I recall there were no 16" discs in the bin where I found my label. Richie seems to have confirmed my suspicion that it was a radio program as his disc can be connected to Philadelphia DJ Wilfred Michael (‘Will’) Regan. He also posted the audio!  I'll quote Mr. Piggot's post:

"After WW2, he joined the station WDAS in Philadelphia as a radio announcer. It was at WDAS that Regan hosted the Irish Dances at the Crystal Ballroom, in Upper Darby, which were often broadcast live with Regan as the emcee. He was with WDAS announcing Will Regan’s Irish Hours program until 1967, when he joined WVCH in Philadelphia. He retired in the early 1990s. "

Will died in 1995 and his long running Irish Hours radio program was taken over by Michael Concannon. That station is WJFP-AM today and airs mostly ultra-conservative talk radio. He was still there in 2009. [SOURCE] He's still posting the program on his website today. [LINK]

With the expansion of the internet in the last decade I did find more information on Air-tone. In an issue of House and Garden I found ad for Carol Grey costume jewelry in 1946 puts a bracket on the start date.  The earliest print reference to Air-Tone is in 1948 in Radio Electronics Magazine. It's a list of retailers selling "Fen-Tone Audiophile components."  

In multiple 1950 - 1952 issues of Audio Engineering Air-Tone ran advertisements selling Magnecord Recorder & Amplifier, Electrovoice Speakers and Newcomb Amplifiers. A 1952 issue of Audio Magazine lists Air-Tone making their own branded Applause Meter. In 1955 in CQ magazine they ran ads for Motekl tape decks.  One of the latest dated entries was an ad for Air-tone dated to 1954 in Bucks County Traveler Magazine. A single issue of Audio Magazine, (Nov 1950)  names just one person at Air-Tone: Gene Hessel. 

 

Gene Hessel also appears in a 1952 issue of Broadcasting described as the President of Air-Tone. In 1954 Gene wrote an article on PA systems for the Radio-Television Service Dealer magazine. [SOURCE] But this is all I can find about Gene, so a bit of Mystery remains.