oldtime.radio

Old Time Radio is a free, 24/7 streaming station that plays vintage radio shows such as Superman, X-Minus One, Tarzan, Philip Marlowe, Gunsmoke, and Jack Benny. To listen, open the site in a browser with JavaScript enabled, then use the on-page player controls. The audio itself is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive, so the site works as a front end for that archive rather than as a download library.

Before you start

• JavaScript must be on. The site displays "Please Adjust Your Receiver" and a notice that JavaScript is disabled if your browser blocks scripts. Enable JavaScript for the site, then reload the page.
• No account is mentioned. The page describes the station as free and 24/7, and does not describe a login or sign-up step.
• Audio source. All audio you hear is hosted by the Internet Archive, which the site links to and asks regular listeners to consider supporting financially.

Listening to the station

1. Open oldtime.radio in your browser.
2. If you see the "Please Adjust Your Receiver" message, enable JavaScript and reload.
3. Use the player controls on the page to start playback.
4. Adjust Volume as needed using the volume control.
5. Choose a Visualiser if you want a visual display alongside the audio.

The station plays continuously, so there is no episode list to pick from in the default view — you tune in to whatever is currently broadcasting.

Using the Schedule

The Schedule section lets you see what is coming up.

1. Go to the Schedule.
2. Select a channel.
3. View the shows scheduled for that channel.

This is the main way to find out what will play next rather than only hearing what is on right now.

Setting your Preferences

The Preferences section controls how the player behaves while you listen:

Setting the Sleep Timer

Use the Sleep Timer option to stop playing shows after a chosen amount of time — useful if you listen while falling asleep.

Building your own station

The Station Builder lets you create your own radio station instead of only listening to the default stream.

1. Open Station Builder.
2. Create channels by selecting shows from the list provided.
3. Adjust Channel Settings for each channel.
4. Optionally enable Play Commercials Between Programmes.
5. Use Listen Now to start your station.
6. Use Add Another Channel to add more channels, or Delete Station to remove it.

Common snags

• Nothing plays and you see a receiver message. JavaScript is disabled — enable it and reload.
• You joined mid-episode. Turn on "Show episode summary when tuning in partway through" in Preferences to see what you missed.
• You want to know what's next. Check the Schedule and select a channel rather than waiting for the current show to end.
• You want a specific mix of shows. Use Station Builder to create channels from the show list instead of relying on the default broadcast.

Contact and source

The station can be contacted by email at the address listed on the site. The website is open source software released under the MIT Licence, with source code available on GitHub.

Station Builder on oldtime.radio lets you create your own custom channels by picking shows from a list, then listen to them as a continuous station. You need JavaScript enabled in your browser, since the site states it is required to listen. The builder is free to use, and the underlying audio is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive.

What Station Builder Does

The main station plays Old Time Radio shows 24/7, but Station Builder gives you control over what plays on your own channels. Instead of relying on the default schedule, you select the specific shows you want and arrange them into channels.

This is useful if you want a channel focused on one genre or performer — for example, a channel of detective shows like Philip Marlowe, or a comedy channel built around Jack Benny.

Step-by-Step: Building a Station

1. Open Station Builder. On the site, the builder is presented as a section where you "Build your own radio station."
2. Create a channel. The instructions say to "create some channels by selecting shows from the list below." Pick the shows you want on that channel from the available list.
3. Adjust Channel Settings. Each channel has its own settings. One documented option is Play Commercials Between Programmes — you can toggle whether commercials play between shows.
4. Add more channels if you want. Use Add Another Channel to create additional channels, each with its own show selection and settings.
5. Remove what you don't need. Use Delete Station to remove a station you've built.
6. Start listening. Use Listen Now to begin playing your custom channel.

The expected result: your selected shows play as a continuous channel, with commercials either included or skipped depending on your Channel Settings choice.

Other Controls You'll See

The site also exposes several playback and display preferences alongside the builder:

• Schedule — select a channel to see what shows are coming up.
• Visualiser — choose a visualiser for playback.
• Volume — adjust playback volume.
• Preferences — toggle options including showing an episode summary when tuning in partway through, information messages, "Now Playing" messages, and a Sleep Timer.
• Sleep Timer — set shows to stop playing after a chosen duration.

Common Snags

• Nothing plays or the builder doesn't respond: The site explicitly notes that JavaScript must be enabled to listen. Check your browser settings first.
• Commercials appearing unexpectedly: This is controlled by the Play Commercials Between Programmes setting in Channel Settings — adjust it per channel.
• Want to start over: Use Delete Station rather than trying to edit a channel down to nothing.

Supporting the Source

The site notes that all audio is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive, and asks regular listeners to consider supporting them financially. The website itself is open source under the MIT Licence, with source code on GitHub, and can be contacted by email.

The Sleep Timer on oldtime.radio stops playback automatically after a duration you choose, and the Preferences panel controls three notification behaviors: episode summaries when you tune in partway through a show, information messages, and "Now Playing" messages. Both are reached from the station's main interface, and both require JavaScript to be enabled in your browser — the site displays "Please Adjust Your Receiver" and cannot play audio without it.

Setting the Sleep Timer

The Sleep Timer is listed as its own section in the interface, alongside Schedule, Visualiser, Volume, and Preferences.

1. Open the Sleep Timer control from the main interface.
2. Choose how long you want shows to keep playing before they stop — the site labels this as "Set the Sleep Timer to stop playing shows after:" followed by a duration.
3. Leave the station playing. When the chosen time elapses, playback stops on its own.

The practical use case is listening in bed or while falling asleep: you pick a duration long enough to cover the part of a show you want to hear, and the station shuts off without you having to come back to the browser. Note that the timer stops playback — it does not pause and resume later, so if you want to continue a show afterward you would tune back in and rely on the episode summary preference (below) to orient yourself.

What Each Preference Does

Preferences on oldtime.radio are toggles rather than sliders or text fields. The page lists three:

The first is the most useful for regular listening. Because the station broadcasts 24/7, you will often land in the middle of an episode rather than at the start. With this preference on, you get a summary to tell you what you've joined; with it off, you get a cleaner interface with no summary text.

The other two preferences let you reduce on-screen messaging. If you find the information or now-playing notices distracting while listening, turning them off keeps the display quieter without affecting the audio.

Things to Know Before You Rely on These Settings

• JavaScript is required. The station explicitly states that if JavaScript is disabled you will need to enable it to listen. The Sleep Timer and Preferences are part of the same interface, so they are unavailable without it.
• Audio is hosted by the Internet Archive. The station notes that all audio you hear is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive, and asks regular listeners to consider supporting them financially. This matters if you plan to listen heavily — the station itself is a front end, not the host of the recordings.
• The station is built for continuous listening. Because it broadcasts shows 24/7 rather than offering on-demand episode selection, the Sleep Timer and the "tune in partway through" summary preference are the two settings that most directly shape a normal listening session. The Station Builder is the separate feature for creating your own channels from a show list if you want more control over what plays.

If you only change one thing, set the Sleep Timer before a long listening session and leave the episode summary preference on — together they cover the two situations the station's always-on format creates: falling asleep mid-show, and joining a show already underway.

Old Time Radio is a free, 24/7 streaming station that plays classic American radio shows from the 1930s through the 1950s. You can listen in a web browser at oldtime.radio, and the site also lets you build your own custom channels from a list of available programs. The audio is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive, and the site itself is open-source software released under the MIT Licence.

What you can listen to

The station's catalog draws on the Internet Archive's collection of vintage radio drama, comedy, and adventure serials. Shows named on the site include:

• Superman — the radio adventures of the Man of Steel
• X-Minus One — science fiction anthology series
• Tarzan — jungle adventure serial
• Philip Marlowe — detective drama
• Gunsmoke — Western drama
• Jack Benny — comedy

These are examples rather than a complete list; the full set of shows is what you browse when building a custom station.

How the site works

Listening

The station broadcasts continuously, so there is no episode queue to manage — you tune in and hear whatever is currently playing. JavaScript must be enabled in your browser, since the player depends on it. If JavaScript is disabled, the page shows a "Please Adjust Your Receiver" notice instead of audio.

Schedule

A Schedule panel lets you select a channel and see which shows are coming up next, so you can plan around a specific program rather than catching it by chance.

Visualiser

A Visualiser panel offers a choice of visual displays that react to the audio while you listen.

Volume and preferences

Volume is controlled directly in the player. Under Preferences you can toggle:

• Show episode summary when tuning in partway through
• Information messages
• "Now Playing" messages
• Sleep Timer, which stops playback after a set interval

Station Builder

Station Builder is the feature that distinguishes oldtime.radio from a plain stream. You create your own radio station by selecting shows from a list and arranging them into channels. Within a channel you can:

• Adjust channel settings
• Choose whether to play commercials between programmes
• Add another channel
• Delete a station

This means you can, for example, build a channel that plays only detective dramas, or one that mixes comedy and science fiction, instead of relying on the default rotation.

Cost and hosting

The site states that it broadcasts Old Time Radio shows 24/7 for free. All audio is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive, and the site asks regular listeners to consider supporting the Internet Archive financially. The website's own source code is available on GitHub under the MIT Licence, and the station can be contacted by email.

Who it is for

Old Time Radio suits listeners who want background or focused listening to vintage serials without downloading files or managing a library, and who are willing to keep a browser tab open with JavaScript enabled. If you want to curate what you hear rather than take the default stream, Station Builder is the reason to use this site over a generic archive search.

Old Time Radio (oldtime.radio) streams vintage radio programs 24/7, and the lineup includes Superman, X-Minus One, Tarzan, Philip Marlowe, Gunsmoke, Jack Benny, and many more. The site organizes this content into channels you can browse through the Schedule, and it also lets you build your own station by picking individual shows. You need JavaScript enabled in your browser to listen, since the player depends on it.

How the Channels Work

The station runs continuously rather than offering an on-demand library you click through episode by episode. Instead, content is grouped into channels, and the Schedule section lets you select a channel to see what shows are coming up. That's the main way to find out what's playing and plan around a specific program.

Because it's a broadcast-style stream, you tune in to whatever is currently airing on a channel rather than choosing a specific episode to start from the beginning. The Preferences panel includes an option to show episode summary when tuning in partway through, which helps if you join a show already in progress.

Shows You Can Expect

The station's own description names a representative sample of its programming:

• Superman – the classic superhero serial
• X-Minus One – science fiction anthology
• Tarzan – adventure serial
• Philip Marlowe – detective drama
• Gunsmoke – Western
• Jack Benny – comedy

The description frames these as examples ("and many more"), so treat this as a starting point rather than a complete catalog. The most reliable way to see the full range is to open the Schedule and browse the channels.

Building Your Own Station

If the preset channels don't match what you want, Station Builder lets you create custom channels by selecting shows from a list. The flow works like this:

1. Open Station Builder.
2. Create a channel by selecting shows from the provided list.
3. Adjust Channel Settings for that channel.
4. Use Add Another Channel to build additional channels, or Delete Station to remove one.

One setting worth noting is Play Commercials Between Programmes, which you can toggle per channel. If you'd rather not hear commercial breaks between shows, this is where you control it.

Listening Controls and Preferences

Beyond channel selection, the interface includes a few controls that affect the listening experience:

The Sleep Timer is set to stop playing shows after a chosen duration, and Preferences also lets you control whether information messages and "Now Playing" messages appear.

Where the Audio Comes From

All audio on the station is hosted by the non-profit Internet Archive. The site notes that regular listeners may want to consider supporting the Internet Archive financially, since it provides the underlying audio hosting. The website itself is open source, released under the MIT Licence, with source code available on GitHub.

Practical Notes

• JavaScript is required. If it's disabled, you'll see a "Please Adjust Your Receiver" message instead of the player.
• It's free to listen, per the station's description, and broadcasts 24/7.
• For questions or contact, the site lists an email address on its About section.

If you want to know what's on right now, start with the Schedule and pick a channel. If you want something specific, Station Builder is the path to a lineup built around the shows you actually want to hear.