[Hallicrafters] No, Historic Halligan Radio Project Is Not Gone!

[W8DBF D.B. Fischer]

I have received several e-mails this week asking if the HHRP, (Historic 
Halligan Radio Project), had been discontinued. No it has not. So what 
happened? Where is the information?

The link on the home page of the HCI web site is gone. Some changes are 
taking place involving the web site and we hope to have several broken links 
and several other minor issues corrected shortly.

W5JT, Jim Thayer is currently setting up a web site location on the QSL.NET 
servers for the HHRP data. If you want information now, write to me direct 
and i will send it to you. When Jim is finished, and sends me the new link, 
I will post it here.

There are three new releases scheduled for 2006. The first one being in 
early May, then July and finally October. Write to me for details, please.

Very briefly:

1. Additional rare Halligan photos, story of the USS Hope medical ship and 
the Hallicrafters connection, a one man African DXpedition with text and 
photos, a series of ads from the 'now' rare 1934 Silver Marshall Co. 
catalog, (before Bill Halligan had a production facility, the Silver 
Marshall Co. produced the receivers!), more original text transcripts, 
personal letters from Bill Halligan and replies + more. Another 2.5 hours of 
rare audio recorded live: including the 1983 Chuck Dachis slide show 
presentation at the Dayton Hamvention, more Bill Halligan interview 
material, on air discussion with a former Hallicrafters engineer I recorded 
several years ago, portions of a live phone interview I did with Robert Leo, 
W7LR of the 1948 Hallicrafters-Gatti DXpedition to Mount Kilimanjaro and 
more.

2. A special three CD set devoted exclusively to former Chief Engineer Fritz 
Franke. This is rare never before publically seen material provided to me by 
his family and a close Ham friend in Illinois. (I agreed to keep identities 
totally confidential!) This is unbelievable material gentlemen! Actual 
Hallicrafters financial earnings statements, prototype design drawings, 
speeches and much much more!

3. "possibly" a DVD and CD with more rare and unique video of Bill Halligan, 
plus some other Hallicrafters footage from now/then, more on air recorded 
live conversations with former Hallicrafters employees from quality control 
to engineering to administrative, (I might even sneak in one by the founder 
of Central Electronics, what do ya think?), transcripts of the Halligan 
interview/discussion during dinner in Cleveland, OH in September 1981, (from 
the 54 minute audio on the CD Audio Set released) and much much more.

All items will be sold on an advance order basis just as before. Thanks to 
the incredible assistance of a Ham friend who is a senior Computer Engineer 
for the NBC Universal Studios in CA, I have been able to assemble the 
necessary technology on site to produce both the DVD and CD's with near 
commercial grade quality. Which will greatly reduce the overall cost for 
present and future projects. With your support, hopefully I will recover my 
investment! A guy can only eat 'so many' bologna on day old bread 
sandwiches! (chuckle!)

Several of our Hallicrafters, as well as our extended vintage radio family 
members, have provided me with tremendous assistance and guidance to make 
all of this possible. Without their help, it would not have taken place! I 
deeply appreciate their help and also thank each of you who have purchased 
copies of the 'one of a kind' rare Halligan DVD video with accompanying CD 
containing 119 scarce to rare images and the Two CD Audio Set with 2.5 hours 
of rare live audio recorded by Dr. Max De Henseler, HB9RS. The goal of HHRP 
is to preserve, protect and make available to all non-commercial interests 
this incredible collection of monumental moments in radio history that 
elevated our culture from mail traveling by a Pony Express rider on 
horseback to Neil Armstrong stepping from the Apollo 11 LLM vehicle named 
the Eagle onto the Moon on July 20, 1969. (Where were you when this 
happened?). Thanks to each of 'you' for making it possible for me to play a 
role in this most worthy project that will benefit not only Amateur Radio, 
but also those who archive the history of America.

For those who know already and have asked: Yes the HHRP will continue on 
after my retirement on June 25, 2006.

Duane Fischer, W8DBF
dfischer at usol.com