Old Time Radio: X-MINUS ONE

 

            The show that I chose was X-Minus One, aired on NBC 24 April 1955 to 9 January 1958. The broadcast ran 124 episodes, with a 30 minute runtime for each episode. It was a science fiction show which was an extension of another show, Dimension-X (1950 to 1951). The stories for were taken from popular science fiction magazines Astounding and Galaxy. Ernest Kinoy and George Lefferts performed and voiced the characters in each episode.

It seems the show was geared towards young adult males, but anyone could tune in and listen if they had an interest in science fiction programming. The content of the show is very family friendly and could be made intentionally to appeal to a broader audience. The content is old-fashioned and very simplistic. A lot of quasi-science mumbo jumbo thrown in to make the show appear complex. This is due to the evolution of storytelling and science fiction content in modern media. Maybe if the audio went along with a book, it may have been more entertaining. With books the reader could use their imagination to paint a picture of what was presented to them. But the lack of audio or video really dampers the experience.

The content was tailored for radio broadcast and is performed perfectly by the actors. The show plays off the success of War of The Worlds and tries to bring that mystique to the audience. Radio programming relies heavily on audio and sound. The actor(s) performing only focus on reading the script. This required them to perform their roles convincingly due to the lack of visual effects that enhance the experience. Being able to grab the listeners attention and keep it is vital, because its harder to keep their attention with just audio. There is no real advantage for radio as an entertainment medium today due to the internet's ability to stream media across the globe almost instantly and just as cheap as radio. Radio has become a dying technology due to the rise of high speed internet and WiFi. 

REFERENCES:

X Minus One - Single Episodes. (2011, May 14). Retrieved from https://archive.org/details/OTRR_X_Minus_One_Singles

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