… there are a few little wreckless children running around the subways with knives and hatchets and stuff like that …
Cousin Mike was a fellow Navy radioman of contributor John Hamlett. He offers an editorial comment about New York Subways as he hosts NightBeat on FEN, an affiliate of the Far East Network, operating in the U.S. Territory of Guam. The station was originally established in 1944.
On this technically challenged aircheck, it sounds as if Mike is saying “FEN Again”, suggesting that the station had been revived in the sixties. A lot of compression was required to overcome the severe dropouts in this recording, so it sounds as though Mike was IN the same room as the transmitter. Listen to the room noise whenever his mic is open.
Cousin Mike says he was from New York, and his editorial and music selection confirm that . He offers a shoutout and dedication to Tony, a crewman aboard the USS Orleck (a Destroyer the U.S. sold to Turkey in 1982!) Also, we learn that Mike has a pen pal relationship with Sheila Smith, but of course, we don’t know if they ever hooked up for real.
This exhibit is being presented for Veteran’s Day, 2012. Years before the cellphone and Internet, this FEN station offered a taste of home.