We've moved

Lit Between the Ears has moved. Click through to our new home. We're still covering radio drama, its power and people, but at a different location.

William Spear
Publisher and Editor
Lit Between the Ears - Celebrating the Power and People of Radio Drama
# 30 #

Dramatic Radio - "Oh, the humanity"

On Thursday, May 6, 1937, Herbert Morrison, a correspondent with Chicago's WLS, was in Lakehurst, New Jersey to cover a routine transatlantic crossing of Germany's airship, Hindenburg.

What Morrison saw was one of the first examples of radio's power to deliver dramatic events in realtime.

As he stood with a crowd of onlookers in Lakehurst watching the airship moor, Morrison reported as follows: "The ship is riding majestically toward us like some great feather, riding as though it was mighty good...mighty proud of the place it's playing in the world's aviation. ...

"The ship is no doubt bustling with activity as we can see; orders are shouted to the crew, the passengers probably lining the windows looking down at the field ahead of them, getting their glimpse of the mooring mast. And these giant flagships standing here, the American Airline flagships, waiting to direct them to all points in the United States when they get the ship moored. ...

"It's practically standing still now. They've dropped ropes out of the nose of the ship, and it's been taken a hold of down on the field by a number of men. It's starting to rain again; the rain had slacked up a little bit. The back motors of the ship are just holding it, just enough to keep it from --

"It burst into flames! Get out of the way! Get out of the way! It's fire and it's crashing! It's crashing terrible! Oh, my! Get out of the way, please! It's burning, bursting into flames and is falling on the mooring mast. ...

"This is the worst of the worst catastrophes in the world! Oh, it's crashing...oh, four or five hundred feet into the sky, and it's a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. There's smoke, and there's flames, now, and the frame is crashing to the ground, not quite to the mooring mast...Oh, the humanity, and all the passengers screaming around here!"

Harrowing or entertaining, radio moves its audience.

# 30 #

Three Questions: an interview with ...

The press release for "Lit Between the Ears, Volume One: Chekhov, O. Henry, Spear and Tarkington On the Air" started with a simple premise - radio drama in the United States is not dead. That statement was expanded in the book's Introduction to reference dramatists and performance companies across the country shaping radio to meet their creative visions.

Those dramatists and performance companies will be offered an opportunity to present themselves and offer insight on their work here in Lit Between the Ears. The format is modest: three questions, a line or two of biographical information and a glimpse into what they are currently working.

The questions are straightforward:
1) How is radio drama similar to, and different from, stage, film or television?
2) What should our industry do to reach new listeners?
3) What is your favorite piece of radio drama and why?

Look for columns titled "Three Questions: an interview with ...". Perhaps you'll find a writer or story that confirms the press release for Lit Between the Ears - "Radio drama in the United States is not dead."

Enjoy.

# 30 #

Public Service Announcement: Radio drama as a cure for cranky cel calls

Over the weekend was realized an usual phenomenon - the cel phone seems more of an anchor than a liberator. And an aggravating anchor at that.

The devil you say. So said.

Scenario: Friday, Saturday and Sunday were spent in the world of retail shopping. Not at all uncommon. Here in New Jersey, malls and shopping are celebrated more than Bruce Springsteen.

How amazing to note the lowly and dead common cel phone - the must-have accessory - more often than not put the calls' recipients into funks rather than a fantastic moods. For minutes on end, office topics were debated, family divisions were made public and marital discord was aired. From the outside listening in, none of the three were of significant interest.

What if those frustrated cel call recipients were receiving the next installments of their favorite radio dramas instead of audio migraines from colleagues and loved ones? What if they were listening to 10 minutes of comedy, mystery or suspence instead of profits and losses, cranky children or sour spouses.

Welcome to the Handheld Radio Drama Network (HRDN) - relief for the miserable cel call. HRDN could cel-cast programs to mobile phone and audio-enabled PDA owners on regular schedules or for delayed playback Tivo-style. All for a very reasonable monthly subscription fee.

If readers find that business sounding familiar, the Handheld Radio Drama Network was debuted right here. ("Radio drama and the passing of the PC"; Lit Between the Ears; Tuesday, August 01, 2006) We'll keep you posted on its progress.

Long live great drama. Long live the power of voices.

# 30 #