Preservation and Conservation

“Conservation is not about freezing objects in time,
but about ensuring their continued life and relevance for generations yet to come.”
International Institute for Conservation (IIC)

Classic radio program recordings from the 1930’s through the early 1960’s are at risk. Thousands of old-time radio programs once enjoyed by millions of listeners are entombed in fragile, deteriorating physical media such as reels, glass and lacquer discs. Many more – no one can say just how many – are held in private collections or other inaccessible archives in unknown condition.  

It is unthinkable that the remains of the medium that dominated culture, news, entertainment, sports and music for decades should be allowed to disintegrate.  

SPERDVAC is the only national non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and sharing of these programs.  We strive to save these audio treasures and make them as widely available as possible so that current and future generations may enjoy them. 

The preservation process is complex. Depending upon the media and its condition, SPERDVAC technicians use a variety of physical and technology tools to remove “pops,” “static,” “crackles” and other defects.  The goal is to make the audio quality as near to that of the original as possible.   It is a painstaking process that relies upon the skill and experience of the technicians – all of whom are volunteers.   Once complete, the restored programs are posted to the SPERDVAC website for access by members and the general public.

Throughout its history, many generous collectors, including legendary Hollywood producer Cecil B. DeMille, Alice Faye, and screen star Dorothy Lamour have gifted their private collections to SPERDVAC.  Thanks to financial donations, SPERDVAC has purchased programs through auctions and direct sales. The current SPERDVAC holdings feature over 100,000 programs from the “Golden Age of Radio” and beyond, many of which have been digitized and restored and made available on its website.