Radio Books

This is a lovely set of 35 non-fiction stories, for the young adult set, about Nova Scotia, Canada, and various interesting characters who hail from that province.

I was especially taken with the 12-page chapter entitled "Klondike Kings," about the most unlikely-sounding Klondiker of them all--geologist, author, teacher, civil servant, anthropologist, palaeontologist, poet, artist and Pictou, Nova Scotia-native, George Dawson--for whom Dawson City is named, at the foot of the Klondike trail.

Dawson was a childhood victim of Pott's Disease (spinal tuberculosis), which stunted and malformed his stature, but not his intellectual ability.

There's also "Hickory Dickory Dock," on Dennis Gil, the man who lived in the Halifax Town Clock in the 1960s.

This is a delightful collection, sure to interest even the most reluctant of young middle school readers.

These BBC Radio Plays are great. I first heard them about 20 years ago on our local public radio station. If you enjoy British humor at all, these HHG discs are a must

Douglas Adams was brilliant.

I came into the Hitchhiker world fairly late in the game, having read the books only shortly before Douglas died. Still, though they'd been written twenty years ago, they remained fresh and original, opening my eyes to a style of writing I'd never seen before. Since then, Douglas Adams has been a major obsession of mine. In addition to his Dirk Gently books, Last Chance to See, and the posthumous Salmon of Doubt, I've overjoyed at the DVD release of the Hitchhiker TV series and the long-delayed film version. But, sadly, I never got to hear the original radio series. At least until I finally bought an import of this CD set through Amazon Marketplace. In addition to both seasons of the radio series, this set also includes a documentary and Douglas Adams interview.

Truth be told, both the film and television versions - though they still contain Douglas's brilliant writing - suffer from a number of shortcomings, falling well short of the novel versions. Happily, the radio series works wonderfully.

It also makes me appreciate the fact that Douglas kept no version of Hitchhiker strictly faithful to any other version, making each unique in its own way. Great as bits like the babel fish and the search for the question to the ultimate answer of life, the universe, and everything are, I've seen/heard/read them a lot in repeated readings/viewings of the other versions. So, it's very refreshing, now, to hear the radio series go off into different directions than later versions. The second series, in particular, contains episodes that bear almost no resemblance to anything whatsoever contained in the novels, effectively reminding me of just why his writing appealed so much to me all those years ago.

If you're a Hitchhiker fan, you owe it to yourself to listen to the radio series. If you're not a Hitchhiker fan, but wondering if maybe you could be one, I would suggest starting with the books, if only on the basis that the CD set price tag is a bit high for a simple introduction. If, like me, you find that Douglas Adams's brand of insightful satire and absurd humor speaks to you, then, yeah, you'll want to hear this.

I enjoyed this book from first page until last. How often does a book cause the reader to laugh out loud? It happened to me at least on every page. Not only does this book contain all of the original radio scripts and every episode (including a hilarious lost episode), but it has numerous eccentric "stage and sound directions" from the author throughout every episode. The book also contains many stories about the creations of some Hitch Hiker characters, story ideas, music, writing and recording process, direct from the author and creator of Hitch Hikers Guide To The Galaxy. When I finished reading this book I realized how Douglas Adams took radio plays to another level and beyond.
I would rate this 5 stars...and beyond.

For more than three decades The Hollywood Reporter has published the Blu-Book Production Directory - the ultimate resource for production. Now the Hollywood Creative Directory, the most reliable contact resource for Hollywood insiders, has joined forces with The Hollywood Reporter to make the Blu-Book even better. For professionals and new filmmakers alike, the 2004 Blu-Book Production Directory has comprehensive contact info on everything you need to produce a film, TV show, commercial or music video - "the yellow pages to the production business." If you want to produce, this is a must-have directory for film, TV, commercials and music video

1. Over 200 product & service categories
2. Over 6,000 listings

-- Production Equipment & Services - From Storyboards to Screening Rooms
-- Camera, Lighting & Sound - Equipment & Services
-- Sound Stage Specs - Expanded to include New York Stages
-- Post Production Services - Includes Animation, Title Design & Film Scoring
-- Special Effects - Equipment & Services
-- Location, Transportation & Travel Services
-- Below-the-Line Talent - Includes DP's, Cinematographers, 1st AD's, Film & Video Editors, make-up artists and more (with contacts)
-- Expanded NY Production Services and Stage Charts

David delivers a passionate and balanced survey of the state of affairs in the Middle East. Anyone with a passion for information and food for thought about Israel and the Middle East in general will love this one!

Bearmanor Media presents "JINGLE OF THE SILVER SPURS: THE HOPALONG CASSIDY RADIO PROGRAM", by Bernard A. Drew --- The Hopalong Cassidy Radio Show starring William Boyd and Andy Clyde premiered on January 1st 1950 --- The series was well produced with interesting stories, complemented by good writing, acting and sound effects --- Andy Clyde who had played Hoppy's side-kick, California Carlson in the 40's western films joined William Boyd on the sound stage --- California, who had developed his own loyal following via the movie series, brought that same "grizzled charm" to the microphone --- The warm of the relationship between Hoppy and California was a feature of the series whilst loyalty and good citizenry were the cornerstone of the values espoused by this unlikely pair --- Often the stories were of trouble shrouded in mystery, and the listener was not privy to the culprit's identity until the end, making it a true cowboy detective show - and almost every story ended with Hoppy's boisterous laugh!

The ring of the silver spurs heralds the most amazin' man ever to ride the prairies of the early West --- Who is that man? Hopalong Cassidy, of course --- This cowboy hero, dressed all in black, is as straight as an arrow --- He is well mannered, doesn't drink or smoke, and believes in justice --- Saddle up for 10 full hours with William Boyd, the same Hoppy you cheer in pictures, and Andy Clyde, the same California you've laughed at a thousand times --- When these two ride out from the Bar-20 Ranch, there's always "plenty of action that spells trouble!"

Hopalong Cassidy was the success story of 1950, a commercial juggernaut that defied all reason to become a radio triumph of its day --- It was the making of Commodore Productions, who alone felt that a radio show could be built around the Hopalong Cassidy character, as played by William Boyd in the 30's and 40s B Western films --- Boyd had a unique voice, radiating power and authority - and his signature belly laugh was famous throughout the world --- Also, the Hoppy character had a no-nonsense demeanor: he was steel eyed and quick on the draw, and he meted out justice without the endless warbling and sugar coated romance that came with other cowboy radio shows --- He became a hero in black and on a white horse - a super hero of the West --- He rescued damsels and cowboys in trouble, along with ranchers and bankers and railroad owners, always against the bad guys - robbers, thieves, rustlers and the like.

"JINGLE OF THE SILVER SPURS" examines the Mutual, and later CBS, networks series, its background, its producers, its performers, its writers, its sponsors, its story lines, its merchandising in detail seldom seen in histories of old-time radio shows --- Illustrations include rare advertisements, photographs and press kits --- Foreword by Western author, Loren D. Estleman.

Deep in the saddlebags that contain all the Hopalong Cassidy prose, motion picture, comic book and newspaper comic strip stories there are often forgotten nuggets: 104 half-hour radio adventures which hold up as well today as when they were first broadcast in 1950-52 --- Unfortunately Andy Clyde was unavailable for a time and Joe du Val took over the role of California for 26 episodes which were broadcast from and including "The Sundown Kid" (7/02/1951) until "The Golden Lure" (12/30/1951) --- Andy was back though for the remainder of the series commencing with the 1951-01-06 episode: "The Case of the Last Word" (1/06/1951) - - - - - - Note: During the du Val run, Andy did appear as California in the Xmas show "The Santa Claus Rustlers" (12/23/1950) --- All of the episodes survive and are available in audio tape and MP3 formats for the avid collector or casual listener --- It ran for 104 episodes, each of 30 minutes duration.

Table of Contents (Chapter, Title and Page Numbers)
IN THE SADDLEBAG
Foreword by Loren D. Estleman - 1
Rider on a White Horse - 2
Clarence E. Mulford Brands the Bar-20 - 3
A Calculated Risk - 9
Slow Trail To A Radio Show - 11
By Mutual Agreement - 15
Voices Out of the Speaker - 21
Pards Solve Rangeland Crime - 26
Stagecoach Robbery Near Ten Strike - 30
Forecast Audition Program for CBS, 1941 - 35
Mutual Network Hopalong Cassidy Series, 1950 - 37
CBS Network Hopalong Cassidy Series, 1950-1952 - 60
Further Radio Adventures - 95
Hoppy Draws His 78s - 98
Songs For Hoppy - 101
Vinyl Roundup - 104
Afterword by Bernard A. Drew - 106
Sources - 110
Appendix A: Radio Promotion From United Artists ... Theater Manual, 1942 - 115
Appendix B: Radio Publicity Kit, 1949 - 118
Index - 135

Here is a glimpse at the Author's Biography --- Bernard A. Drew (BA, English, Northeastern University) is a copy editor for the "Lakeville Journal", a weekly newspaper in northwestern Connecticut. He edited the mystery anthology "Hard-Boiled Dames" (St. Martin's Pres, 1986) and has completed four popular fiction reference guides, including "Lawmen in Scarlet: An Annotated Guide to Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Print and Performance" (Scarecrow, 1990). He has also written a number of local Berkshire County history books including "A Berkshire Photo Album" (1999).

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Ben Ohmart (Bearmanor Media), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") and Trevor Scott (Down Under DVD Com) as they have rekindled my interest once again for Film Noir, B-Westerns and Serials - - - "The ring of the silver spurs heralds the most amazin' man ever to ride the prairies of the early West ...." --- just one more thing, all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Page: 148 Pages ~ Bearmanor Media #ISBN-13: 978-1593930264 ~ (1/30/2005)

I love this book!! It is funny and teaches me more than the Eyewitness Tudor book did!! I also like the sequel, Even more terrible tudors!!!

Produced near the end of the Classic Horror era (and near the end of World War II), HOUSE OF DRACULA provides an entertaining storyline populated by the top three Universal Monsters: Count Dracula, the Wolf Man, and the Frankenstein Monster, in their last all-out horror venture before co-starring with Abbott and Costello for their final film appearances.

Within this thoroughly-researched filmbook lies an informative production background, a comprehensive look at the script's evolution (including a shot--but deleted--scene of the doctor healing a youthful patient), a wonderful narrative synopsis by film historian Gregory Mank, an introduction by star John Carradine, an exclusive interview with star Jane Adams, and much much more.

A nice addition to anyone's collection of Classic Horror memorabilia, the HOUSE OF DRACULA filmbook, like the movie itself, has something for just about everyone. Scary fun!

Not only does he teach you how to do what DJs must do now in order to sound and look fresh on the dancefloor, there are also multiple tips to becoming a Disc Jockey Superstar. My hat is off to you, Mr. Kriel.