Sorry for the late post.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Things aren’t like they used to be in the old days. Families would gather around the wireless to hear the latest news, comedies, and dramas. The power of storytelling still brought people together. The Golden Age of Radio was a transition period. The audience experienced the story together. By the time of the iPhone, we are all experiencing media separately, most of the time.
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apres le jump
What Local Radio Means To Me
I grew up on NPR. It was my first real window into another world. I started listening to Garrison Keillor at a young age and loved his news from that fabulous prarie town Lake Woebegon. Mountain Stage introduced my to country music the way it was meant to be played. American Roots taught me about a whole other kind of American music.
But I truly learned to appreciate local radio across six years living on Maui. I spent a lot of time in my car listening to the radio, this being before satellite radio was an option in the islands. Hawaii is six hours behind New York, radio programs are always off topic in Hawaii.
Hawaiians sleep through Boston drive time and drive to work during the afternoon shows. This was especially apparent on the local AM ESPN radio station. I followed radio hosts that I knew from the Mainland but I discovered The Sports Phone and was hooked on the spot.
Bill Schindler was the Mainlander straight man from Baltimore. (no, I never forgave his Raven fandom. yes, even when they were Super Bowl champs) Fred Guzman was the coolest cat on the radio. Guzman spent a lot of time in the Bay Area and had lived in the islands for many years. His particular passion was baseball but his artistry was glimpsed when he waxed poetic or political.
Imagine Mike and Mike except that one of the Mikes is the lovechild of Che Guevara and Jim Brown. This show, which aired from noon to three PM every weekday, was my radio nirvana. I loved the days I had to drive across the island during Sports Phone. I got to listen to Fred teach Bill, and by extension the rest of the haoles, the history of sports in Hawaii.
Guzman loved June Jones and his wild flair for offensive football. He loved San Jose State and carried a few John Carlos and Tommie Smith anecdotes in his pocket. He could tell you who played shooting guard for the Warriors (UH or Golden State) going back to the 70s if not before. And Guzman was tight with “Nelly”, Don Nelson who had a home on the island.
Fred Guzman taught me more about sports than any coach and more about philosophy than any instructor. I learned about the consciousness of the 70s as athletes began to realize they faced the dilemma of fame versus responsibility to the community. From Jackie Robinson to Muhammed Ali and Kareem Abdul-Jabar to the aforementioned Carlos and Smith to OJ Simspon. He lived that change, and came out on the less popular, yet morally superior, side.
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Yet Radio Remains A Subject Of Song
I think that radio probably still has some special place in our society. It harkens back to the days of storytellers and shadows of the firelight opening up our minds to new worlds of possibility. I am thankful for the radio and love that podcasts are bringing some of the medium’s storytelling possibilities back to life.
And Tonight’s Recommended Viewing Listening
Marc Maron is the king of the podcast.
TOP COMMENTS
from Edrie:
Josef361 says it best! in After Trump tweets embarrassingly inaccurate info, former NATO ambassador publicly educates Trump.
from Missys Brother:
My diary today was titled Saturday Morning Garden Blog V13.11: don't fix what ain't broken (warning - male nudity) http://www.dailykos.com/.... I had included a photograph of the nude statue Manneken Pis in Brussels and stated that the male nudity warning in my diary's title was used for click bait. This provided jayden http://www.dailykos.com/... a new and funny take on an extremely tired cliche here at DK. http://www.dailykos.com/...
TOP MOJO
Top Mojo for yesterday, March 17, 2017, first comments and tip jars excluded. Thank you mik for the mojo magic! For those of you interested in How Top Mojo Works, please see his diary on FAQing Top Mojo.
Top Pictures for yesterday, March 17, 2017. Click any picture to be taken to the full comment or picture. Thank you jotter!
The great Patton Oswald on the Radio
My list of favorite radio movies ever