Back in 1934, the United States established the Federal Communications Commission, laying the groundwork for regulation of wired and wireless services in the country.
Among the concerns facing the commission was interference from pirate broadcasters advertising illicit gambling and liquor sales.
That year Modern Mechanix magazine printed a look at stations operating from international waters and Mexico. The most interesting part of the article, however, is the “radio floating seadrome,” a pulp novel-style bandit’s lair that places a full radio studio (complete with piano), living quarters and generators.
Scans of the original article are on the Modern Mechanix blog, along with other magazine scans from the 1920s and 1930s.
