The GE FM/AM Electronic Digital Clock Radio 7-4612B recently made its way around the internet as a meme. The joke was that everyone had the same one—but I didn’t realize how popular it really was until I saw it. I instantly recognized it. Most people were talking about the 90s, the annoying beep, and the fake wood grain. And yeah, I remember all that… but it also unlocked a different memory for me.
To me this clock wasn’t about waking up. It was about staying awake, late at night, exploring the world of AM talk radio.
I don’t remember exactly what made me flip over to the AM band at 14. But if there was a button, a switch, or a dial, I was going to mess with it. That’s just how I was. I’d push it, scan it, maybe even take the thing apart to see how it worked. Until it no longer did.
Let’s just say in 1992, not a lot of kids were hanging out on the AM talk radio band. Maybe that’s what drew me to it. What I found between the static was the Larry King show. He became the voice that kept me up. The format was simple. A guest would be interviewed, and then the phone calls would start coming in. I think that’s what hooked me. It felt interactive. Real people calling in with questions, or sometimes just to be heard. It was like late-night cable access, but on the radio. The audience? Night shift workers, truckers, and other nonconformists listening in the dark. I knew I wasn’t the intended audience. And that made it all the better.
I stayed up many nights listening to Larry King and Art Bell. But in Houston, Sunday nights were something else. They played old-time radio shows. Stuff from the 1940s, before television. Dragnet, Sherlock Holmes, The Whistler. Even back then, it felt like time travel. These were the same broadcasts sent to soldiers on Armed Forces Radio Service, complete with the original commercials. That’s what made it feel real.
These days, everyone’s into podcasts and audiobooks. I guess what I’m saying is, I was into this kind of stuff before it was cool. The world just finally caught up.
I wasn’t just going to share the meme, I went and bought the radio. Found one on eBay for 30 bucks and put it on my shelf. Felt like claiming it as mine. When it arrived, I hit the AM band for another nostalgic scan. But all I found was political talk radio. And who needs another device for more of that today? I guess it’s just another reminder that everything changes. The world has moved on.
Today it sits on a table in my bedroom, just like the old days. I still ask Alexa or play podcasts from my phone like everyone else, but I love seeing those bright nostalgic LEDs glowing. Every time I see it, I think about Larry King, or wonder what might be playing if I turned it on late at night. But the truth is, it’s just easier to hit play on my phone. It’s still there, though. A reminder of where all this started.
I found this 1990 episode of Larry King’s radio show where he interviews Joan Benny, Jack Benny’s daughter. You get the full experience. Live callers. Larry reading the ads himself. All of it.
https://archive.org/details/jbi-joan-benny-1990-12-05-larry-king-show
I also found this Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce Sherlock Holmes old time radio show on youtube, one of the original Armed Forces Radio Service, including the original commercials: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_g8TCSOPag
