In the days before television, radio was the constant voice in American life. When radio spoke, America listened--especially to the men and women who spoke directly to their unseen audience. Sometimes formal, sometimes as familiar as the friend next door, their presence filled the airwaves: announcers, newscasters, sportscasters, showbiz reporters, advice consultants, emcees and breakfast chatterboxes. These radio personalities became as popular and familiar as the most public faces of the time.

Here among profiles of more than 1100 "radio speakers" are famous names like George Ansbro, Red Barber, H.V. Kaltenborn, Dorothy Kilgallen, Edward R. Murrow, Louella Parsons, Walter Winchell and more. Also amply represented are hundreds of lesser known individuals who left indelible auditory impressions. Whether their fame was forever or fleeting, all were a part of the American voice during the grand epoch of network radio.