What you get.
A subscription opens the whole library: every series, every episode, every recording we hold. One place. No hunting.
American old-time radio survives in pieces across the internet. A folder here, a torrent there, a thousand files in a folder that just says Show 7. What this archive offers is the difference between a pile and a library: every episode indexed by series, performer, network, and original broadcast date, browsable or searchable in seconds, and ready to play.
And the files don’t evaporate when the subscription ends. Members can download and grow their own collection: a personal shelf of episodes, in plain MP3, kept in a folder on your computer or your phone. Burn them to a disc, copy them to a thumb drive, hand them to a grandchild. The files are yours.
- The full archive, unlocked
- Unlimited streaming & downloads
- iPhone & iPad app included
- Your downloads, yours to keep
- Indexed by performer & network
- Dated to original broadcast
- No ads, no upsells inside
- Cancel any time, on the page
How much it costs.
Two plans, same library. Start with a ninety-nine-cent first-month trial, or take the annual at over fifteen percent off the monthly rate.
The annual saves more than fifteen percent against the recurring monthly price, and renews once a year instead of twelve. If you already know you’ll listen for a year, take it. If you’d rather start small, the monthly is right next to it, no different in what you get.
Monthly
- The full archive, unlocked
- iPhone & iPad app included
- Unlimited downloads
- Cancel any time
- Money back if it isn’t right
Annual
- Every series, every episode
- iPhone & iPad app, on the house
- No usage limits
- Best per-month value
- Money-back pledge, within 45 days
What we won’t pretend.
We are not going to tell you every recording sounds like the day it aired. Old-time radio was broadcast live, recorded onto sixteen-inch lacquer transcription discs, copied off the air onto reel-to-reel tape by hobbyists, traded by mail, dubbed onto cassette, and finally digitized. Some of it survived in beautiful condition. Some of it didn’t. We won’t claim every episode is restored; some are, many are simply the best surviving copy of a broadcast that almost wasn’t kept at all.
The catalog runs roughly from the early twenties through the late sixties, the lifetime of network radio drama. After that, television swallowed the broadcast clock. We don’t carry music programs, sports broadcasts, or contemporary radio. That’s not what this archive is for.
If a series has gaps, we say so on the series page. If an episode is in rough shape, we note it. The point isn’t to flatter the material; the point is to preserve it honestly and let you decide what’s worth your time.
Our pledge.
We want you to be glad about this membership, not merely satisfied. If it isn’t right, whether the catalog isn’t what you hoped, the app isn’t your taste, or the recordings aren’t your era, write to us. Monthly members can ask for a full refund of the current month at any time. Annual members can ask for the year’s membership fee in full within 45 days of purchase. Either way, we part on cordial terms.
We don’t keep unhappy members. There’s no script to argue past, no retention queue, no cancellation gauntlet. The cancel button is on the member dashboard; the email goes to a person who reads it. We’ve run this archive since 2004, and we’d rather refund a member than disappoint them.
Vintage values to go along with our vintage radio.
A few questions.
- Can I cancel at any time?
- Yes. The cancel button lives in your member dashboard. One click, no hold music, no “are you sure” rounds. Your access continues through the end of the period you’ve already paid for.
- How does the money-back work?
- Monthly members can request a full refund of the current month at any time. Annual members can request a full refund of the year’s membership fee within 45 days of purchase; after that, cancellation stops the renewal but the remainder of the term stays active. We don’t try to talk you out of it. We’d appreciate your feedback on why you’re not satisfied.
- What happens to my downloads if I cancel?
- They’re yours. Once a file is on your device it stays there. Cancelling stops new downloads, not what you’ve already saved.
- Where can I listen?
- On the website, and on iPhone and iPad through Vintage Radio, included with your subscription and on the App Store since 2009. You can also download episodes for offline listening on any device that plays an MP3.
- Does the catalog grow?
- Yes. We add new series and previously uncirculated episodes most weeks. Members hear about additions in a short monthly note, not a campaign.