
Introduction
All the information on this page pertains specifically to the work done under the auspices of the NEA4 Grant #07-3400-7003. The following menu will help you navigate the projects that have benefited from the NEA's assistance:
Pacifica Radio Archives, repository for programs broadcast by the Pacifica Radio Network (1949-present) identified, preserved, digitized, corrected descriptions and catalog entries, made available, and publicized 30 historic radio art programs from the Pacifica Radio Archives; and digitized and made available via publicly searchable web access, 5 editions of the Folio (illustrated station program guides). The online program catalog was migrated, corrected and improved. Tape preservation and digitization by Safe Sound Archives, Philadelphia. In addition to the 30 historic radio art programs identified, preserved and made available by this grant, this grant project allowed us to identify an additional 150 programs (as an ancillary result of the research funded by this NEA award) which were added to the preservation shipment to SafeSoundArchive. These included key African American History tapes including Lorraine Hansberry and Duke Ellington, and "1968 Revolution Rewind Project" tapes including reports from the Chicago DNC and film, literature, music and theater-related recordings. For Programs Preserved --See: " List of 30 historic programs preserved": Restored AudioThese programs have been transferred to compact disc thanks to the NEA4 Grant #07-3400-7003. Clicking on the archive number after each heading will take you to a more detailed record of the program. Some of the programs have samples available, clicking "Download" or "Stream" provides access to these. 1958. The Salton Sea Disaster, 1958, 1958. The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire / written by James B. Stetson ; read by Charles Levy, 1958, 1962. Poetry of Charles Bukowski, 1962, 1962. Experiment: Two Ideas / produced by Bill Butler and Bob Fass, 1962, 1962. A Personal Statement / Christopher Isherwood, 1962, 1963. Chicken soup with Barley / by Arnold Wesker ; directed by Nina Serrano Landau, 1963, 1963. The Bride of ESP / written and directed by Jim Armstrong, 1963, 1965. Hollywood Be Thy Name / written by Jack Hirschman ; produced by David Ossman and Michael Dayton, 1965, 1965. Istanbul Express, 1965, 1967. Dream of a Ridiculous Man / Fyodor Dostoevsky ; adapted by Erik Bauersfeld, 1967, 1967. The Bald Saprano / written by Eugene Ionesco, 1967, 1968. My Father, Robert Frost / Lesley Frost and Will Geer ; introduced by William Gahagan, 1968, 1968. Bike-boy: Two Superstars / Bruce Haines and George McKittrich ; interviewed by Claire Clouzot and Lee Meyerzove, 1968, 1968. Interview with Leroi Jones / interview by Earl Anthony, 1968, 1968. Ronny Watkins talks with Jerzy Kozinski, 1968, 1968. An Interview with Taylor Mead and Tom Hompertz interviewed by Claire Clouzot, 1968, 1969. Don Juan : The Sorcerer / Carlos Castaneda ; interviewed by Theodore Roszak, 1969, 1969. A Day in the Park / Narrated by William Malloch, 1969, 1970. Theatre of the Balustrade of Prague / Cast: Lew Merkelson and Peggy Holter, 1970, 1971. Men Thought to be the Enemy / Alta ; interviewed by Eleanor Sully, 1971, 1971. Alta Performing at the League of Academic Women's Benefit, 1971, 1971. Susan Griffin Reading Her Poetry, 1971, 1971. The Changing Culture: From the Panhandle, 1971, 1971. The Last Poets: Live at the Harding Theater / produces by Larry Scott, 1971, 1971. Catonsville Nine / William Shallert / interviewed by Fred Hyatt, 1971, 1972. The Caucasian Chalk Circle / written by Bertolt Brecht ; produced by Bruce Gossard and Everett Frost, 1972, 1973. Are You Now, Or Have You Ever Been?, 1973, 1974. Panic in Salem: The Radio / produced by Tim Jerome and Charles Potter, 1974, 1975. Battles, Feasts and Solitudes / Collette ; produced by Maureen McIlroy, 1975, 1975. Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Ginsburg, Sontag, Bookchin, Atkinson), 1975, 1976. The Book of Hags / by Deena Metzger ; adapted and directed by Everett Frost, 1976, 1976. Changes / written and read by Denise Oliver, 1976, Historic Folios
Access to these five historic folios is made possible by the NEA4 Grant #07-3400-7003 January 1968January 1968 started what was to become the most significant and tumultuous year in modern history. Here the Pacifica program guide documents what was planned in advance for the month's programs. We surmise changes were made to the program schedule as world events unfolded such as the January 31 Tet offensive in Vietnam. Included are photographs by William J. Warren, poetry by William J. Margolis, and Art by Avati. Notable programs include: The Room, by Harold Pinter, Zen poems read by eastern philosopher Alan Watts, Ogden Nash reading his poetry; a radio documentary on Black Power origins and a speech by John Kenneth Galbraith.
April 1968Who knows what was really on the air during the week of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination? The April 1968 folio, entitled "Open your ears and say aaah!" began with a plug of that very week supposed to feature Carl Reiner, Peter Sellers, Carol Channing, James Baldwin, and Dick Van Dyke among other notables. Starting April 8th and running till the 30th, there are general programs of interest like operatic productions of Wagner's Tannhauser, Hadyn's L' Infedelta Delusa, and Rossini's Moses, Ravi Shankar interviewed by William Malloch, a rebroadcast of a 1964 BBC program "The Beatles Speak," a lecture by Dr. Lewish Yablonksy on "The Hippies in America," and an interview with Jeannette Rankin. The folio itself has an essay in memory of "Cuisine Bourgeoisie" host Sasha Shor by Sophie Stein and "KPFK SOUND '68 a prospectus for growth" which is an explanation of the different departments of KPFK along with the '68 KPFK budget ($16,200 for folio production).
January 1960This is WBAI's inaugural folio. The cover boasts a short essay by then-Pacifica president Harold Winkler. Featured programs are (of course) a Dedicatory Program celebrating listener-subscription radio in New York with a speech by then-Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller, "Hail, Blithe Spirit" an article by Dalton Trumbo read by the author, actor Theodore Bikel at Home, an interview with Alfred Hitchcock by Colin D. Edwards, Alan Watts talks about "The Great Books of Asia," and a BBC Production of "Twelfth Night."
March 1972This folio has the essays "If God Had Wanted Us to Listen, He Would Have Given Us Ears" by Dan Kavanaugh, "Reflections on Leaving WBAI" by Julius Lester and "Feedback" by Bruce Soloway and The Network Project (which is featured on the cover). There is also a cartoon to accompany a program called Survival about "Building Shelves," and a small excerpt from a program called "Women's Day in Studio C." Other programs this month are a Langston Hughes Memorial featuring excerpts of the poet reading work shortly before his death, the "Bangla Desh Poetry Reading" with readings by Allen Ginsberg, Andre Voznesensky, Kenneth Koch, and others, a dramatic presentation of "The Plough and the Stars" by Sean O'Casey directed and cast by John Lithgow, and "We are Attica," interviews with prisoners regarding the September 1971 prison rebellion.
May 1972The May 1972 covers WBAI's Court Case with articles by Ed Goodman ("On 44 Hours in Civil Jail"), an interview with Neil Sheehan, Jeremiah S. Gutman, Rhonda Copelon Schoenbrod, Peter Weiss ("Of Tapes and Subpeonas: A Guide for the Layman") and more. This folio also has an insert titled "Marathon '72" which shows a programming schedule and explanation of the marathon. A few interesting programs include, "The Life of the Mind: The Two Worlds of Dr. Spock" (a lecture by the Doctor in 2 parts), a documentary about the Lawrence textile-worker Strike in 1912, live "Short Plays by Sir Noel Coward" produced and directed by John Lithgow, and "Sound Poetry" produced by Ruth Rotko.
The Pacifica Radio Archives Preservation & Access Project is funded (in part) by awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, grants from The Ford Foundation, The Pacifica Foundation, supporters of the Pacifica Radio Archives, members of the Adopt-a-Tape program, and listeners to Pacifica Radio Stations, KPFA, KPFK, KPFT, WBAI, WPFW. |