Customer Reviews

Texas Signs On: The Early Days of Radio and Television (Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students, Texas A&M University)

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What an interesting surprise I had when a friend recommended this book. As a long time Texan and a long time radio listener I found this book fascinating. Any long time radio listener will find this interesting, even if they do not recognize the Texans involved ... the technological history is the best part ... showing how we got to where we are today.

It covers the history of radio in Texas from the beginnings, including personalities that were involved, with some technical detail (not too much) about the innovations that Texas radio introduced. Plus there are some amazing black and white photographs including inside studio shots of gargantuan pieces of equipment. The book tapers out with a discussion of TV's beginnings in Texas, again with some supper photographs.

A mostly-successful survey of the early years of radio and television in Texas, the book is filled with interesting anecdotes, particularly with respect to the construction of WBAP-TV in Fort Worth, the first television station in the Lone Star State. Among the book's imperfections: it is rather sloppily edited, and the author's bias against the University of Texas is evident. But I would expect no better from a publication emanating from Texas A & M.