What was border radio

Some thugs want his head. He wants another beer. Add content advisory. Did you know Edit. Trivia The title of the movie is identical to that of a track on the self-titled album by The Blasters.

Guitarist Dave Alvin of The Blasters is a lead in the movie. Crazy credits Many Curses on: Those who tried to thwart us. User reviews 9 Review. Top review. Highly existential. Border Radio is an atypical road movie that has its light moments but, for me, just isn't compelling enough to sustain interest, even over its relatively short running time of 87 minutes. In it, some missing royalties monies has gone missing, as has the lead singer of a rock band.

Soon the record company, the other band members, and the singer's wife are all looking for him, with varying degrees of intensity. Which all makes this more of a slice of life than anything else, although at least the story is told linearly. It has the feel of a movie that was shot on a meager budget, depending mostly on atmosphere and tone and the formidable acting of some relatively new faces to the thespian scene. Among these is Luanna Anders, the wife in question, bringing a heck of a lot more depth and sincerity to her role than one might expect.

Lending fine support are John Doe and Chris Shearer as the missing man's bandmates. Alison Anders' directorial debut is intriguing, just not too remarkable. For more understated, no-frills drama, check out Jim Jarmusch's Down by Law. Details Edit. Release date November 14, United States. United States. It was the first border radio station, positioned just over the Rio Grande and aimed northward at the American audience.

In Mexico, where wildcat station owners were unfettered by the Federal Communication Commission's regulations on wattage output, stations like XERA could transmit in excess of , watts.

In the Great Plains, where the level topography of the land means that radio waves are usually obstructed only by the curvature of the earth, signals particularly AM frequencies can travel hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles before fading out. The result was a string of stations just across the Mexican border that garnered massive audiences.

Border radio stations were huge moneymakers for station owners who sold programming time, fundamental evangelists, and a stunning array of entrepreneurs who used the airwaves to run mail-order businesses. On the artistic side, music ranged from country and gospel to conjunto and rhythm and blues, and musicians like Bob Wills used border radio to widen their audiences.

From to the Carter family actually lived in Mexico and broadcast live on border radio stations. The stations' massive radius of air coverage also allowed them to serve as a platform for numerous self-made celebrities. Performers broadcast live and via transcription disc, sometimes syndicating a show on several of the maverick stations.

Border radio pitchman and ad executive Don Baxter, known as "Major Kord," recorded many artists with this technology in San Antonio. From his border lair the Wolfman tantalized American listeners with rock-and-roll , rhythm-and-blues, and blues. Some border musicians played several roles, such as singing cowboy, evangelist, and pitchman. The stations also became known for incessant advertisements for Hillbilly Flour, Crazy Water Crystals, the cold remedy Peruna, the hair-dye Kolorbak, Hadacol, vinyl tablecloths depicting the Last Supper, razor blades, genuine simulated diamonds, ballpoint pens, horoscopes, rosebushes, baby chicks, records, and many other products.

Some listeners even claim to have heard commercials for "autographed photos of Jesus Christ. In the Mexican government seized XERF, and all border stations were dealt a crippling blow by an international broadcasting agreement between the United States and Mexico that allowed both Mexican and American broadcasters to use the other country's clear-channel frequencies for low-powered stations in the evening.

That meant that the signals of the border stations would be drowned out in many communities by local broadcasts.

The agreement effectively ended the era of high-powered, far-ranging radio. San Francisco Chronicle , November 29, The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style , 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this entry.