Does local radio play "old-time radio" anymore?

[robimes]

I was wondering if any local Detroit-area radio stations still air OTR (old-time radio of the 1930s-1950s) shows anymore? Back in the 1990s, WWJ 950AM used to air "When Radio Was" (hosted initially by Art Fleming, then by Stan Freberg). I think the show moved over to CKWW 580 AM in the early 2000s during its "580 Memories" era.

Anyway, not that I need to hear OTR on the radio these days... I can listen to old radio shows online at the click of a button on YouTube and many other websites. But I am curious if it ever still gets played over the air on a regular basis anymore, for the sake of my nostalgia for hearing it on the radio back in the day.

[ZenithCKLW]

These options aren’t local, but you can most likely easily receive Zoomer Radio 740 from Toronto, and WBBM 780 from Chicago who both play OTR at various times of the evening.

[SolarMax]

"When Radio Was," still produced by Radio Spirits, airs weeknights at 1AM (ET)on WBBM.
WBBM sadly no longer brands itself "Newsradio 780," but now always as "Newsradio 105.9FM."
The AM signal is a bit more sketchy into Detroit than it used to be, now duplexed on the AM 670 WSCR tower. Plus, summer seasonal propagation and the upswing of solar activity diminish what once was a constant blowtorch signal on 780.
So, "When Radio Was" is usually listenable, but subject to deep, long fades. Signal usually comes back just in time to hear the "Green T" and "Penny Mustard" adverts.

[ChrisWL1980]

Good luck getting them OTA in Michigan, but WERT 1220 AM in Van Wert, Ohio still has When Radio Was weeknights at 9pm. Their music format is a lot like the way Zoomer Radio used to sound five or so years ago.

[radioandtventhusiast]

Good luck getting them OTA in Michigan, but WERT 1220 AM in Van Wert, Ohio still has When Radio Was weeknights at 9pm. Their music format is a lot like the way Zoomer Radio used to sound five or so years ago.

What's different about Zoomer's playlist compared to just 5 years ago?

[Trophyhead]

As to the Zoomer format alteration, I doubt you ever hear Rudy Vallee on their "All Night Jukebox" anymore, but you have a better chance of hearing "What About Love" by Heart, or Michael Buble, these days. Most of the 30s and 40s music is gone from their rotations, unless it's something saucy in "Stardust" (11 p.m. hour) or "Midnight Blue," which follows on weeknights.

10 p.m. weeknights is the time for "Theatre of the Mind," AM 740's theme for the old radio serials and dramas of the 30s to early 50s.

[ChrisWL1980]

What Trophy said pretty much sums it up. The regular playlist is pretty much AC Gold from the '60s through the '90s, maybe one or two standards an hour. It sounds not unlike Westwood One's America's Best Music format now although a touch more uptempo. Pre-rock (indeed, pre-Beatles) music more or less gets limited to a few weekend shows. Last I checked they still did Big Band Sunday Night, although the original host passed away some time ago.

[SolarMax]

Still not "local" but, find OTR show episodes 11p-3a Saturday nights on KDKA 1020, within the "Hollywood 360" program, hosted by Carl Amari. It appears he uses this paid programming show to promote nostalgia media like he had done with Radio Spirits and "When Radio Was," which he founded and originated.
The WGN Radio Theatre, also hosted by Amari, airs Sunday nights 8p-10p ET on WGN 720.
Don't know if the online streams of those stations carry these paid syndication programs or if they're only on broadcast.

[Vee TeeVee]

WMXD-FM 92.3 plays Old School R&B every Saturday night from 7:00pm-12Midnight.

[robimes]

Belated thanks for the recommendations of Zoomer 740 AM and WBBM 780 AM above. I wasn't able to pick up either station on my radio (I think due to WJR 760's strong signal) but I was able to listen to both stations on their websites. I hadn't listened to "When Radio Was" in nearly 20 years (!) so it was a little odd to hear how it sounds now. I wasn't crazy about the speaking style of the current host, who talked too fast and had an unimpressive voice.

But Zoomer 740's "Theatre of the Mind" (which airs at 10pm) was a lot more fun. Listening to the live-stream of the station on my smartphone is very similar to the experience of listening to the actual radio (and with better reception!). The host of "Theatre of the Mind" has a proper radio-sounding voice that reminds me of Vic Ives when he hosted the "Golden Age of Radio Theatre" show in the early 1980s. (That show was the first time I heard OTR on the radio, when I was around 13 years old, when the program aired on CKJY 93.9 FM circa 1984.) So, this is exactly the kind of nostalgic radio experience I was looking for when I made my post above, and I'm grateful to have found out about it. Thanks!

By the way, I also recently learned that WHFR 89.3 FM (the Henry Ford Community College radio station) airs a program called "Radio Vault" on Tuesdays from 10am to 1pm, which apparently plays OTR, but I've not had a chance to listen to that program yet.