The History of Now

FAIN: TR-235124-16

Radio Diaries, Inc. (Brooklyn, NY 11201-8319)
Joe Kirk Richman (Project Director: August 2015 to present)

Production of a series of 17 radio documentaries to be distributed as public radio broadcasts and online podcasts examining significant events in 20th-century United States history.

The History of Now is a public radio and podcast series that will explore 20th-century American history in order to cast fresh light onto contemporary life. Our stories will originate in the past but illuminate—in unexpected, original, and often profound ways—some of the defining issues facing Americans today: race, gender and sexuality, religion, science and technology, and work. Our goal is to produce stories that bring surprising, resonant moments of history to listeners in ways that feel as immediate and relevant as the daily news. With funding from NEH, Radio Diaries will produce a series of 20 historical documentaries for The History of Now. Ten will be broadcast on NPR’s All Things Considered or on This American Life, and ten more stories will be produced specifically for the Radio Diaries Podcast.

Associated Products

The Working Tapes - Part 1 (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Working Tapes - Part 1 (Podcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: An auto union worker, a switchboard telephone operator, a press agent… In the early 1970’s, author Studs Terkel went around the country with a reel-to-reel tape recorder interviewing people about their jobs for his book, “Working.” It was a surprise bestseller. But until now, few of these interviews have ever been heard before. For decades, the reel-to-reel tapes were packed away in Terkel’s home office. Over the past year, Radio Diaries, along with Project&, combed through them to produce a new NPR series. This is the first of a four-part podcast series on The Working Tapes.
Date: 09/29/17
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!863b9
Primary URL Description: Link to the story on our podcast.
Access Model: open access
Format: Digital File
Format: Web
Format: Other

The Working Tapes - Part 2 (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Working Tapes - Part 2 (Podcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: A Chicago police officer, a female advertising executive, a gravedigger……voices from The Working Tapes. In the early 1970’s, author Studs Terkel went around the country with a reel-to-reel tape recorder interviewing people about their jobs for his book, “Working.” It was a surprise bestseller. But until now, few of these interviews have ever been heard before. For decades, the reel-to-reel tapes were packed away in Terkel’s home office. Over the past year, Radio Diaries, along with Project&, combed through them to produce a new NPR series. This is the second episode of a four-part podcast series on The Working Tapes.
Date: 10/11/16
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!f3e73
Primary URL Description: Link to the episode on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web
Format: Other

The Working Tapes - Part 3 (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Working Tapes - Part 3 (Podcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: A private eye, a jockey, a hotel piano player….voices from The Working Tapes. In the early 1970’s, author Studs Terkel went around the country with a reel-to-reel tape recorder interviewing people about their jobs for his book, “Working.” It was a surprise bestseller. But until now, few of these interviews have ever been heard before. For decades, the reel-to-reel tapes were packed away in Terkel’s home office. Over the past year, Radio Diaries, along with Project&, combed through them to produce this series.
Date: 10/24/16
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!4ff15
Primary URL Description: Link to the episode on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web
Format: Other

The Working Tapes - Part 4 (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Working Tapes - Part 4 (Podcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: A new story from our series The Working Tapes. In the early 1970’s, author Studs Terkel interviewed the owners of Duke & Lee’s Auto Repair in Geneva, Illinois for his book Working. He went to talk to them about fixing cars. What he found was a story about fathers and sons working together… and the tensions within a family business. We at Radio Diaries, went back to Duke & Lee’s four decades later and found the family business still intact — tensions at all. Studs recorded more than 130 interviews for Working, but most of them have never been heard. A few years ago, Radio Diaries and Project& were given access to all the raw field recordings and combed through the archive to produce, The Working Tapes. Find Parts 1 – 3 of that series on past episodes of the Radio Diaries Podcast.
Date: 12/05/16
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!1ecee
Primary URL Description: Link to the episode on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web
Format: Other

Mexico ’68 and the Tlatelolco Massacre (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Mexico ’68 and the Tlatelolco Massacre (Podcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: In 1968, Mexico City was preparing to host the Olympics. It was the first time that a Latin American country would host the Games, and the government was hoping to show off the new, modern, Mexico. At the same time, student protests were regularly sweeping through the streets of Mexico City. And just 10 days before the Olympics were to begin, on October 2, the Mexican army fired on a peaceful student demonstration in the Tlatelolco neighborhood. The official announcement was that four students were dead, but eyewitnesses said they saw hundred of dead bodies being trucked away. The Tlatelolco Massacre is one of the darkest episodes in Mexican history. Over the years, the death toll isn’t the only thing the government has covered up.
Date: 06/26/17
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!d0637
Primary URL Description: Link to the episode on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

The Oddest Town in America (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Oddest Town in America (Podcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: After 146 years, Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey are closing the ‘Greatest Show on Earth.’ The elephants have already retired to a farm in central florida. Where will the 400 human cast and crew members go next? Perhaps they’ll go just an hour west of that elephant farm…to Gibsonton, Florida. It was once known as the Oddest Town in America. Gibsonton – aka Gibtown – is where the Sideshow went to retire.
Date: 05/18/17
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!45e58
Primary URL Description: Link to the episode on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

The Dropped Wrench (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Dropped Wrench (Podcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: On September 18, 1980, two Air Force mechanics entered the Titan II missile silo in Damascus, Arkansas. While conduct routine maintenance, they dropped a wrench. The wrench set off an explosion which killed one airman, destroyed the entire base, and sent the warhead flying 700 yards where it landed in a ditch. It was an accident that – had the warhead gone off – could have taken out half the state of Arkansas. This is a story of an accident, but it’s also a story about the dangers we still live with today, and how hard it is to really comprehend risk and probability when the consequences are almost unimaginable.
Date: 12/22/17
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!55a3e
Primary URL Description: Link to the story on the podcast.
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

The Story of Jane (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Story of Jane (Podcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: In 1965, an underground network formed in Chicago to help pregnant women get abortions. At first, they connected women with doctors willing to break the law to perform the procedure. Eventually, they were trained and began performing abortions themselves. The group called itself “Jane.” Over the years, Jane performed more than 11,000 first and second trimester abortions.
Date: 01/18/18
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!176e6
Primary URL Description: Link to the story on our podcast.
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

A Voicemail Valentine - Extended Version (Podcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: A Voicemail Valentine - Extended Version (Podcast)
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: This episode of the podcast is a special, extended version of our broadcast story featuring rare, audio love letters from the 1930s and 40s. We include an interview with Princeton Professor Tom Levin, director of the Phone-Post Archive which houses more than 4,000 of these unique records. Levin shares the historical significance of this ephemeral technology and makes a case for preserving it. We explore more of what the archive has to offer and feature recordings that did not fit into the original broadcast.
Date: 02/13/18
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!15c0d
Primary URL Description: Link to the story on our podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

Contenders: Say it Like You Mean it (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Contenders: Say it Like You Mean it
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: Throughout American history, one of the most important job qualifications for the office of President has been knowing how to talk. You have to be able to deliver a speech that will rally the people. For Lincoln it was: “Four score and seven years ago,” FDR had: “A date which will live in infamy.” JFK asked, “Ask not what your country can do for you…” You get the idea. But one of the most influential speeches in American political history is one most people have never even heard of: William Jennings Bryan’s “Cross of Gold” speech. In this episode, we bring you the story of Bryan’s epic speech, plus the story of the presidential campaign of 1952 when a fondness for oratory doomed the candidacy of Adlai Stevenson.
Date: 07/06/16
Primary URL: https://radiopublic.com/RadioDiaries/ep/s1!43cf1
Primary URL Description: Link to the story on the podcast
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

The Union Rep (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Union Rep (Broadcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: Gary Bryner tells Studs Terkel about being a union member and working in an auto factory for General Motors. About 40 years later, he reflects on how factory work and the role of unions have changed. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his 1974 book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now.
Date: 09/29/2016
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/29/495916035/working-then-and-now-i-didnt-plan-to-be-a-union-guy
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Telephone Operator (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Telephone Operator (Broadcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: Sharon Griggins was 17 years old and working for Illinois Bell as a telephone operator when she was interviewed by Studs Terkel. For a job that required talking to people all day long, Griggins told Terkel that it was a remarkably lonely profession. This is part of the series, Working Then and Now from Radio Diaries and Project&.
Date: 09/27/16
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/27/495671371/teenage-telephone-operator-reveals-loneliness-in-terkels-working
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page.
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Auto Mechanics (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Auto Mechanics (Broadcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: In the 1970's, Studs Terkel interviewed Duke and Lee Singer at their auto repair shop in Geneva, Illinois. He was looking for a story about fixing cars. Instead, he found a story about fathers and sons working together... and the tensions within a family business. Four decades later, Radio Diaries went back and found the family business still intact -- tensions at all. This story aired as a Labor Day special in 2017, part of the Working: Then & Now series.
Date: 09/03/17
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2017/09/03/548342166/working-together-three-generations-of-family-mechanics
Primary URL Description: Link to story page on npr.org
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Police Officer (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Police Officer (Broadcast)
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: In 1971, Studs Terkel interviewed Renault Robinson, one of the city's few black officers. Robinson spoke bluntly about the role of race in urban policing. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now.
Date: 09/29/16
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/29/495882696/working-then-now-police-officer
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Ad Executive (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Ad Executive (Broadcast)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: In the '70s, Studs Terkel talked to an ad executive, who explained how as a "token woman" she had to navigate the male-dominated industry. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his 1974 book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now.
Date: 09/28/16
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/28/495736384/working-then-and-now-terkel-interviews-token-female-ad-ex
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Jockey (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Jockey (Broadcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: When he was first interviewed by Studs Terkel in 1971, jockey Eddie Arroyo had been racing for 6 years. He said it was the hardest and most dangerous job he'd ever had. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his 1974 book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now.
Date: 10/01/17
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/10/01/496057303/working-then-and-now-a-lucky-jockey-walks-away-from-racing
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page.
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Piano Player (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Piano Player (Broadcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: Author Studs Terkel interviewed piano player Hots Michels while entertaining guests at the Hotel Sherman, where he worked for decades. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his 1974 book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now.
Date: 09/30/16
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/30/496052036/working-then-and-now-a-hotel-piano-player-frustrated-by-his-future
Primary URL Description: Link to NPR.org story page.
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Gravedigger (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Gravedigger (Broadcast)
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: Homer Martinez, a gravedigger and caretaker, tells author Studs Terkel about the unexpected joys of his job at Shalom Memorial Cemetery in Illinois. This interview and others that Terkel recorded for his 1974 book, Working, were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now. In the book, Martinez appeared under the pseudonym, Elmer Ruiz.
Date: 10/1/2016
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/10/01/496053981/working-then-and-now-a-gravediggers-unexpected-joys
Primary URL Description: Link to NPR.org story page.
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Private Eye (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Private Eye (Broadcast)
Writer: Joe Richman
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Joe Richman
Abstract: Thomas Fischetti worked as a porter, a baker, a newspaper man and a drunk. As a private investigator in Brooklyn, Ruggiero was hired by companies to root out criminal activity. He tells author Studs Terkel about his job for the book, Working. In the book, Fischetti appeared under the pseudonym, Anthony Ruggiero. This interview and others that Terkel conducted for the 1974 book were boxed away in his house until recently, when Radio Diaries and Project& combed through them and produced a series of audio stories, Working Then And Now
Date: 10/02/2016
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/10/02/496058932/working-then-now-a-private-eye-roots-out-criminal-activity
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page.
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

The Press Agent (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Press Agent
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: Eddie Jaffe was a press agent "legendary for his lost causes, chutzpah and angst," according to his obituary in the New York Times. He represented Broadway and Hollywood stars. In his interview with Terkel, Jaffe looked back on his career and wondered if somehow he had made the wrong choice.
Date: 09/30/16
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/09/30/494742224/meet-some-of-the-voices-from-working-then-and-now
Primary URL Description: The homepage for the Working Series featuring the story of Eddie Jaffe
Secondary URL: http://www.radiodiaries.org/the-working-tapes/
Secondary URL Description: The entire series is available on our website.
Format: Radio

A Voicemail Valentine (Broadcast) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: A Voicemail Valentine (Broadcast)
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: Nowadays we’re very accustomed to recording and hearing the sound of our own voices. But in the 1930s many people were doing it for the first time. And a surprising trend began. People started sending their voices to each other, through the postal service. It was literally: Voice-Mail. This story explores an archive of this ephemeral technology.
Date: 02/14/18
Primary URL: https://www.npr.org/2018/02/14/585776715/voice-in-the-mail-audio-love-letters-were-hot-in-the-1930s-and-40s
Primary URL Description: NPR.org story page.
Format: Radio

Black Swan Records (Sample) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Black Swan Records (Sample)
Writer: Nellie Gilles
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Nellie Gilles
Abstract: In 1921, music publisher Harry H. Pace started the first major black-owned record label in the United States. In just two years, Black Swan Records released more than 180 records and helped launch the careers of Fletcher Henderson and Ethel Waters. But when Black Swan folded, Pace’s life took a turn and he began passing for white. This story goes back to a pivotal moment in music history and the effect it had on one family’s identity. Black Swan Records will air on NPR in Spring 2019. We are including a sample of the story here.
Date: 01/31/19
Primary URL: https://soundcloud.com/radio-diaries/black-swan-records_neh-sample
Primary URL Description: Link to a private soundcloud page with an audio sample from the story.
Access Model: Private Soundcloud Link
Format: Radio
Format: Web

Soul Sister (Sample) (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Soul Sister (Sample)
Writer: Sarah Kramer
Director: Joe Richman
Producer: Sarah Kramer
Abstract: In 1968, a white journalist named Grace Halsell took a medication called psoralen to darken her skin. She spent 6 months in Harlem and Mississippi passing as a black woman, and documented her experience in a controversial book entitled Soul Sister. This story delves into Halsell’s work and her complicated legacy. Soul Sister will air on NPR in Spring 2019, we are including a sample of the documentary here.
Date: 01/31/19
Primary URL: https://soundcloud.com/radio-diaries/soul-sister-neh-final-report-sample
Primary URL Description: Private link to Sound Cloud with an audio sample of the story.
Access Model: Private soundcloud link
Format: Radio
Format: Web

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