http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt5k4036nc No online items Guide to The Richard Hess Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection ARS.0035 Finding aid prepared by Franz Kunst Archive of Recorded Sound Braun Music Center 541 Lasuen Mall Stanford University Stanford, California, 94305-3076 650-723-9312 [email protected] © 2009 The Board of Trustees of Stanford University. All rights reserved. Guide to The Richard Hess ARS.0035 1 Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection ARS.... Descriptive Summary Title: Richard Hess Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection Dates: 1934-2008 Dates: Bulk, 1946-1950 Collection number: ARS.0035 Creator: Hess, Richard L. Collection Size: 6 linear feet: 110 digital files ; 54 open reel tapes Physical Description: Six boxes of audiotape are held by the Archive of Recorded Sound. The remainder of the collection is digital. Repository: Archive of Recorded Sound Abstract: Tapes and digitally transferred files from the early years of American tape recording. Transfers were done by engineer and researcher Richard L. Hess. Digital files are only available at Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound. Language of Material: English Access Open for research; material must be requested at least two business days in advance of intended use. Contact the Archive for assistance. Publication Rights Property rights reside with repository. Literary rights reside with creators of the documents or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, contact the Head Librarian of the Archive of Recorded Sound. Preferred Citation Richard Hess Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection, ARS0035. Courtesy of the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif. Sponsor A portion of this project was funded by a grant from the GRAMMY Foundation. Historical Background The Richard Hess Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection chronicles the widespread dissemination of one of the most important advances in sound recording technology: magnetic recording on tape. In 1945, a U.S. Army Signal Corp soldier named John T. "Jack" Mullin was assigned to recover examples of the latest German technology from the field. In a radio station, Mullin confirmed that the Germans had developed a system of sound recording and reproduction using paper and plastic tape. He returned to the United States with several reels of audio tape and two AEG Magnetophon brand reel-to-reel machines on which to play them. This was not the first time that this country was introduced to the technology (in fact, research was published widely in the 30s), but Mullin's initiative, along with the enterprise of filmmaker Bill Palmer, was essentially the avenue by which tape manufacturing began in the United States. The story of Bing Crosby's involvement is familiar. In the late 1940s, Crosby hosted one of the most popular programs on radio: Philco Radio Time. Mullin and Palmer approached Crosby with their idea, and a company named Ampex, with backing from Crosby, developed its first model of tape recorder, the 200, in 1947 (other companies, among them Brush, Rangertone, Orradio, and Presto, were also experimenting with magnetic recording with some success). Tape provided an ease of editing that appealed to Crosby and his producers, and allowed for more creativity in assembling programs. It was also thought to offer improved fidelity. Because of the risk of tape failing during a live broadcast, shows were still aired from transcription discs; it was the recording and editing that was done with tape. The first program recorded on tape was broadcast October 1st, 1947, the start of the 1947-1948 season. The recordings in this collection consist largely of material used for the Philco program, including performances, outtakes, and advertisements. Among the other stars to be heard on the programs are Dinah Shore, Peggy Lee, Burl Ives, and Claudette Colbert. The Richard Hess Collection is named for recording historian and audio engineer Richard L. Hess who assembled these tapes, transferred them, and provided detailed notes on both the content and its capture. Between 2001 and 2008, Hess drew from both public and private collections to construct a digital representation of the early days of magnetic recording in the United States. Scope and Contents A significant portion of this collection (Reels 1-51) are reels of audio tape which are physically held at the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound. However, the bulk of the collection consists of digital files, including transfers from those reels, as well as from tapes in several other collections not at Stanford. Prior to accession, each item (whether a physical reel or the digital file that was recorded from the tape) was assigned a reel number. There is also a series for all related Guide to The Richard Hess ARS.0035 2 Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection ARS.... documentation, including obituaries and tape transfer logs. Arrangement This collection is divided into five series. The first four are grouped according to their original donor, and Series 5 assembles most of the textual information concerning the collection. Related Collections Stanford also holds the Ampex Corporation Collection . Some material presented here is also available through the Pavek Museum of Broadcasting. Indexing Terms Allgemeine Elektricitats-Gesellschaft (Germany). Ampex Corporation. Collier, Eve Mullin Crosby, Bing, 1903-1977 Mullin, John T. (Jack), 1913-1999 Ososke, Don Palmer, William A., 1911-1996 Pavek Museum of Broadcasting. Audiotapes Magnetic tape industry Radio programs Series 1. Jack Mullin-Bill Palmer Physical Description: 6 boxes: 4 boxes of 54 open reel tapes, 2 boxes of tape parts, approx. 50 sound files Physical Description: This is the only series in which the content's physical carriers and containers (tape, reels and packaging) are held in addition to the content's digital transfers. Source of Acquisition Jack Mullin and Bill Palmer Agfa 1943 tapes temporarily owned by former Ampex employee Jim Wheeler. Wheeler arranged for their donation to the Archive of Recorded Sound. Content was transferred in 2003. Reels 1-51 Box 4, Reel 1 Reel 1, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_01.wav) Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents Bing Crosby (possibly from ET) ; John Scott Trotter "You Tell Me Your Dream" ; "Haunted Heart" from Inside USA ; "Haunted Heart" from Inside USA ; "Love is so Terrific" ; "Love is So Terrific" (with noticeable splice in the middle) ; "Blue Shadows on the Trail" from Disney movie Melody Time (Crosby makes a wisecrack during a false start) ; "Jeepers Creepers" ; "I Only have Eyes for You" (take 1, incomplete) ; "I Only have Eyes for You" (take 2, incomplete) Format Audio tape, Digital .wav audio file Guide to The Richard Hess ARS.0035 3 Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection ARS.... Series 1. Jack Mullin-Bill Palmer Reels 1-51 Box 4, Reel 2 Reel 2, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_02.wav) Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents Bing Crosby "La Vie en Rose" (take 1) ; "La Vie en Rose" (take 1) ; "La Vie en Rose" (take 2) ; "I May Be Wrong" ; "I Think You're Marvelous" (take 1) ; "I May Be Wrong" (take 2) ; "I May Be Wrong" (take 3) ; Modernaires? "Thousand Islands" ; Modernaires? "Thousand Islands" (take 2) ; "Thousand Islands" (take 3) ; yodeling ; "Let the Song Begin" from the movie Emperor Waltz Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Box 4, Reel 3 Reel 3, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_03.wav) Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents band, classical ; Bing Crosby excerpts ; female singer "Trouble is a Man" Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Box 1, Reel 4 Reel 4, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_04.wav) 1948-12 Physical Description: 1 10.5" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents Burl Ives "Twelve days of Christmas" ; spliced up Corinna Mura outtakes (first and last backward) ; Philco 1948 commercial ; next week: Marais and Miranda ; Christmas Seals Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Box 4, Reel 5 Reel 5, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_05.wav) Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents orchestra (distorted, disc recording?) mostly blank. "PARIS" written on the IEC hub Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Box 4, Reel 6 Reel 6, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_06.wav) Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents probably a talk given at the Bohemian Club (Palmer was active member). Note attached to tape: "#2 Al Gordon-China" Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Box 4, Reel 7 Reel 7, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_07.wav) 1948 Physical Description: 1 12" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents Philco Radio Show 1948 ; Burl Ives - "Mr. Froggy" (take 1) ; "On Top of Old Smokey" ; Dinah Shore ; Burl Ives, Dinah Shore "Cockle Shells" (end of take 1, start of take 2) ; "Mr. Froggy" Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file Guide to The Richard Hess ARS.0035 4 Mullin-Palmer Tape Restoration Project Collection ARS.... Series 1. Jack Mullin-Bill Palmer Reels 1-51 Box 2, Reel 8 Reel 8, digitized 2003 (ARS0035_08.wav) Physical Description: 1 10.5" open reel tape, 1 sound file Scope and Contents Bing Crosby "Story of Sorrento" (start) ; reversed section ; outtakes reel; cowboy song outtake ; "Pop goes the weasel" ; Foley practice ; Bill Palmer voice "Recording, but not doing well" ; last half silence with hundreds of splices Format Audiotape, Digital .wav audio file