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The Museum of Television & Radio's Ninth Annual Radio Festival

Thursday, September 11, 2003

New York, NY—The Museum of Television & Radio will present its Ninth Annual Radio Festival from Thursday, October 16 to Sunday, October 26, 2003.  The ten day festival is a unique opportunity for the Museum to join with members of radio's creative community to celebrate the powerful presence of radio through seminars, live broadcasts, live radio drama, and more.  Funding for this Festival is generously provided by Clear Channel Worldwide, Interep, and The Mel Karmazin Foundation, with additional support provided by Sirius.  Special thanks to the Festival’s Media Partners for their in-kind support:  Broadcasting & Cable; Radio Ink; Radio & Records; and Radio World.
 
This year's Festival will feature three seminars including legendary oldies radio station WCBS-FM, celebrating their 30th anniversary, discussing the station’s place in the New York radio landscape; a panel of talk radio hosts will discuss the state of the format in 2003 with an emphasis on the role that talk radio plays in the public square; and Felix Hernandez will discuss his seventeen years on New York City’s airwaves and his program of classic soul, R&B music, and Rhythm Revue.  

In addition to the seminars, the Festival will feature live radio broadcasts of local and nationally syndicated programs, including Hal Jackson, John Gambling, Morning Becomes Eclectic with Nic Harcourt, All Mixed Up with Peter Bochan, Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen, and Radio Thrift Shop, as well as broadcasts from WWRL, WLIB, WAWZ, and KEXP.  The Festival will also include a radio drama with Stage Shadows. 

SEMINARS

These seminars will bring together radio personalities and behind-the-scenes talent to discuss a variety of topics. Panelists will also take questions from the audience.  Seminars currently scheduled include:

Radio’s Dance Party: Felix Hernandez and Rhythm Revue
Monday, October 20
; 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
For seventeen years New York weekends have belonged to Felix Hernandez and his program of classic soul and R&B music, Rhythm Revue. Heard each Saturday on non-commercial WBGO-FM and Sundays on commercial Kiss FM (WRKS), the program boasts the largest audience of any weekend program on New York radio. A testament to the popularity of the program are Hernandez’s monthly sold-out dance parties at the Roseland Ballroom. In addition to his weekly show, Hernandez has also produced such popular syndicated programs as Harlem Hit Parade, BluesStage, and the Latin music program Club del Sol. Hernandez will discuss his career in radio and the elements that have made his programs so popular.  

Talk Radio in the 21st Century
Tuesday, October 21; 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
During the 1990s much was made of the perceived power of talk radio, particularly in relation to what was known as the “Republican revolution.” Nearly a decade later talk radio remains an important and popular format with over 1,300 stations that collectively reach a larger audience than any other radio format. Panelists will discuss the state of the format in 2003 with an emphasis on the role that talk radio plays in the public square. Does talk radio have an impact on the political process, or does it merely mirror the thinking of Americans? Also to be examined will be the issue of diversity among the many voices of talk radio.

In Person: Amy Goodman, WBAI-FM, Host, Democracy Now!; Brian Lehrer, WNYC-FM, Host, The Brian Lehrer Show; Bev Smith, WWRL-AM, Host, The Bev Smith Show and Straight Up With Bev Smith; Ed Walsh, WOR-AM, Host, The WOR Morning Show; Curtis Sliwa, WABC-AM, Host, Curtis and Kuby in the Morning; Phil Boyce, WABC-AM, Program Director.

WCBS-FM “Motown, Soul, and Great Rock n’ Roll”
Thursday, October 23; 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
For over three decades WCBS-FM has been spinning the oldies for New York-area listeners. Starting in 1972 the station became one of the first in the nation to adopt the format, and it is now the longest running and most listened to oldies station in the country. Throughout, the station has kept alive the spirit of the Top Forty AM stations of the 1950s and 1960s. On-air personalities and programmers will discuss the history of the station and its place in the New York radio landscape.

In Person:  Bill Brown, Joe McCoy, Program Director, Cousin Brucie” Morrow, Don K. Reed, Norm N. Nite and Bob Shannon
 

LIVE RADIO BROADCASTS

The Radio Festival will include live broadcasts of local and nationally syndicated programs from the Museum's Ralph Guild Radio Studio and theaters.  These broadcasts, which are open to the public, allow visitors not only to listen to a radio broadcast, but also to experience the behind-the-scenes components of the broadcast as it is happening. Scheduled broadcasts to date include: 

The Family Friendly Afternoon Show with Keith Stevens
WAWZ-FM, New Jersey, 99.1 FM
Thursday, October 16; 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. 

Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen
WNYC-AM/FM & Nationally Syndicated, New York, 820 AM/93.9 FM

Thursday, October 16; 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. 

Morning Show, WWRL-AM, New York, 1600 AM
Friday, October 17; 6:00 to 10:00 a.m. 

John Gambling, WABC-AM, New York, 770 AM
Friday, October 17; 10:00 a.m. to Noon 

The Treatment with Elvis Mitchell
KCRW-FM & Nationally Syndicated, Santa Monica, 89.9 FM

Friday, October 17; 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. 

All Mixed Up with Peter Bochan, WBAI-FM, New York, 99.5 FM
Saturday, October 18; 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.

John in the Morning, KEXP-FM, Seattle, KEXP.org
Monday, October 20 and Tuesday, October 21; 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
These broadcasts are held in conjunction with the CMJ Music Marathon 

Jonesville Station, WFMU-FM, Jersey City, 91.1 FM
Monday, October 20; 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Global Village, WLIB-AM, New York, 1190 AM
Tuesday, October 21; 6:00 to 10:00 a.m. 

KEXP in the Afternoon, KEXP-FM, Seattle, KEXP.org
Wednesday, October 22 through Friday, October 24; 5:00 to 9:00 p.m.
These broadcasts are held in conjunction with the CMJ Music Marathon 

Morning Becomes Eclectic with Nic Harcourt, KCRW-FM, Santa Monica, 89.9 FM
Thursday, October 23 and Friday, October 24; 12:00 to 3:00 p.m.
These broadcasts are held in conjunction with the CMJ Music Marathon 

The Whole Wide World with Rita Houston, WFUV-FM, New York, 90.7 FM
Friday, October 24; 8:00 to 11:00 p.m. 

Radio Thrift Shop, WFMU-FM, Jersey City, 91.1 FM
Saturday, October 25; 12:00 to 3:00 p.m.
This broadcast is held in conjunction with the CMJ Music Marathon 

Hal Jackson’s Sunday Classics/20th Anniversary, WBLS-FM, New York, 107.5 FM
Sunday, October 26; 12:00 to 4:00 p.m.


LIVE RADIO DRAMA

Festivalgoers will have the opportunity to experience the excitement of listening to—and watching—a live drama.   

Stage Shadows Mystery Theatre
Radio Like You've Never Seen It!" ™

Internet Broadcast
Monday, October 20; 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Be part of the audience as Stage Shadows presents a mystery double feature, Murder in the Mirror and Landslide.  This hour of original audio theater, Stage Shadows’s seventh Radio Festival broadcast, is performed by a New York company of actors, musicians, and sound artists, nominated for a 2003 Edgar Award.  The show is recorded and aired over the Internet. 

LISTENING SERIES

The following curated radio listening series will run continuously in the Ralph Guild Radio Listening Room: 

Worlds Without End “Soap Operas on Radio” 

The Man in Black:  Johnny Cash on Radio 

A Corwin Kaleidoscope: Norman Corwin's Radio Work 

Bob & Ray on Radio 

Creaking Doors & Rattling Chains: Horror on Radio
 

TICKET INFORMATION 

  • Seminar tickets are $15 ($12 for Museum Members). Series price (all three) is $39 ($30 for individual Museum Members).  Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Museum's front desk or by calling (212) 621-6600 Mondays to Fridays, 12:00 to 5:00 p.m.   
  • Seats are available for most live radio broadcasts on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the broadcast and are free with Museum admission. Admission is free to broadcasts that begin prior to the Museum's opening. Members may call the Membership Department at (212) 621-6780 to reserve seats.   
  • Admission to the Stage Shadows Mystery Theatre performance is free with Museum admission.  Seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis and may be reserved in advance at the Museum's front desk.  Members may make reservations by calling the Membership Department, or by calling the Stage Shadows hotline at (212) 604-4612.

For information on becoming a Member of The Museum of Television & Radio, please call our Membership Department at (212) 621-6780 or visit www.mtr.org. 

For more information on the Museum's Annual Radio Festival in New York, please call the Museum's press office at (212) 621-6735. 

The Museum of Television & Radio, with locations in New York and Los Angeles, is a nonprofit organization founded by William S. Paley to collect and preserve television and radio programs and advertisements, and to make them available to the public. From its inception in 1975, the Museum has organized exhibitions, screening and listening series, seminars, and education classes to showcase its collection of more than 110,000 television and radio programs and advertisements. Programs in the Museum’s permanent collection are selected for their artistic, cultural, and historic significance. The Museum has initiated a process to acquire Internet programming for the collection.


The Museum of Television & Radio in New York, located at 25 West 52 Street in Manhattan, is open Tuesdays through Sundays from noon to 6:00 p.m. and until 8:00 p.m. on Thursdays. The Museum of Television & Radio in California, located at 465 North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills, is open Wednesdays through Sundays from noon to 5:00 p.m. Both Museums are closed on New Year's Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Suggested contribution: Members free; $10.00 for adults; $8.00 for senior citizens and students; and $5.00 for children under fourteen. Admission is free in Los Angeles.  The public areas in both Museums are accessible to wheelchairs, and assisted listening devices are available. Programs are subject to change. You may call the Museum in New York at (212) 621-6800, or in Los Angeles at (310) 786-1000.  Visit the Museum's website at www.mtr.org.