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Please, make yourself comfortable and enjoy your visit… WHAT'S NEW?
THOSE WERE THE DAYS GOES TO THE BIG CITY! If this website had a "Frequently Asked Questions" page, one of the top queries would be "What's going on with the Museum of Broadcast Communications?" Well, we're pleased to report that construction is almost complete for the Museum's new home at 360 N. State Street in Chicago. Some of you might recall that Those Were the Days was broadcast from the MBC for a number of years in the 1980s and '90s--and you're invited to join Steve Darnall and Ken Alexander on Saturday, February 4, for a special live remote broadcast of Those Were the Days, as we celebrate the Museum's new home and the start of TWTD's 34th annual "Jack Benny Month"!
Tickets for this special remote broadcast are $20.00 apiece and all proceeds go to benefit the Museum of Broadcast Communications. There'll be some classic comedy courtesy of Jack Benny and his radio friends; plus, we'll be joined by MBC president Bruce Dumont, who will lead our listeners on a guided tour of the Museum's new space. It's a one-of-a-kind broadcast and we hope to see you there.
For more information about this live broadcast, call Marc Glick at 312-245-8200 or click here.
THE NOSTALGIA DIGEST PODCAST IS HERE!
In response to many requests, we're pleased to start the new year with a new addition to this site: The Nostalgia Digest Podcast! Devoted to people and/or shows that have been featured in the pages of Nostalgia Digest magazine, the Nostalgia Digest podcast lets you take the fun of the Digest anywhere!
Appropriately, we start our Podcast series by talking to the man who began Nostalgia Digest and Those Were the Days, Radio Hall of Famer Chuck Schaden, who talks about his experiences in speaking to the stars from the Golden Age of Radio.
For more information or to download the January 2012 Podcast, click here.
A NEW YEAR, A NEW MAGAZINE...
The new Winter 2012 issue of Nostalgia Digest is back from the printer and chock-full of good indoor reading--and of course, every issue includes a complete schedule for our radio shows, Those Were the Days and Radio's Golden Age! You can learn more about the variety of articles in each issue of Nostalgia Digest by clicking here.
NORMAN CORWIN, 1910-2011
Norman Corwin, the legendary writer, director and producer of original radio plays for CBS during the golden age of radio in the 1930s and '40s when he was revered as the "poet of the airwaves," has died. He was 101.
In 2002, future Nostalgia Digest publisher and Those Were the Days host Steve Darnall wrote the following Corwin biography for the Radio Hall of Fame:
Born in Boston in 1910, Corwin began his radio career as a local commentator. He moved to New York City in 1938 and produced Norman Corwin’s Words Without Music for CBS. Two of Corwin’s masterworks, “The Plot to Overthrow Christmas” and “They Fly Through the Air with the Greatest of Ease,” debuted on this series.
In 1941, CBS’ Columbia Workshop gave Corwin a 26-week series; he responded with stories ranging from the whimsical to the darkly serious to the inspirational. A similar approach was taken on 1944’s Columbia Presents Corwin.
In December of 1941, Corwin wrote and produced We Hold These Truths, an all-star celebration of the Bill of Rights’ 150th anniversary. This landmark program aired over all four networks simultaneously.
Corwin created the special V-E Day broadcast On a Note of Triumph, which Carl Sandburg called “one of the all-time great American poems.” Three months later, he wrote 14 August, a V-J Day documentary narrated by Orson Welles.
Corwin left CBS in 1948 and produced a series of programs for United Nations Radio. In 2001, National Public Radio aired six new Corwin plays under the title More By Corwin.
Two four-hour salutes to the work of Norman Corwin will air on Those Were the Days on January 14 and 21. Norman was a good friend to Nostalgia Digest and, in fact, contributed to the very first issue from Funny Valentine Press in 2005. You can read that article here. In addition, the Winter 2012 issue features a tribute to Mr. Corwin. You can get a copy--or a subscription to the Digest-- by clicking here.
LIBRARY BOOK-INGS Over the last year, thousands of old-time radio fans turned out to hear Nostalgia Digest publisher and Those Were the Days host Steve Darnall talk about the Golden Age of Radio, sharing some stories and sound clips from some of the era's most memorable stars and shows! We have more such events planned for 2012 and we'll be listing them here and talking about them on our radio show, and hopefully we'll be in your neck of the woods before too long. Here's a brief rundown of our upcoming public appearances:
Wednesday, January 11, 7:00 pm: West Chicago Public Library, 118 W Washington Street, West Chicago
Thursday, January 26, 7:00 pm: Downers Grove Public Library, 1050 Curtiss Street, Downers Grove Stay tuned--there will be more to come! (And if you'd like to book Steve Darnall to give a presentation to your group, click here).
A "FACE" FOR RADIO
If you're a member of the Facebook community, we invite you to join our Nostalgia Digest Facebook group. It's a chance to meet some like-minded listeners and get news, information, and pictures pertaining to Nostalgia Digest and our various radio shows Those Were the Days and Radio's Golden Age. We're at 550-plus members and counting, so you'll be in good company!
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