Conversations on The Road

To me, it’s actually the closing of the second Yankee Stadium. The first went down in 1973 – although it was officially described as a “renovation”. Out came the famous upper deck facade (carted off to Albany where it was turned into scrap). Gone was the auxiliary scoreboard. Gone was the 296 foot right field proch. Gone were the on field monuments, relegated to a “Memorial Park”.

Well, you get the idea.

Yes, there were still reminders of the original House That Ruth Built. The rampways. The tunnels under the stands leading from the clubhouse to the dugout. The backdrop of Bronx County Courthouse (and just a bit of the elevated subway on River Avenue).

But clearly this was not the original Yankee Stadium. I considered it Yankee Stadium # 2.

So, it is with mixed feeling that I look at the closing of this Yankee Stadium.

Some of these feelings ate discussed in this podcast with Harvey Frommer, author of a wonderful book entitled “Remembering Yankee Stadium”.

Frommer, one of the nation’s leading baseball authorities, takes us on a journey through the Stadium’s 85 year history. From Murder’s Row to Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech. From Joe D, Mantle & Maris, Yogi and Whitey Ford through Jeter, Bernie and Torre. 

 

 Remembering Yankee Stadium [26:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

At first glance, it appears humorous – the idea of a cactus cop. But in the desert area of Arizona it’s serious business.

We speak with Mike Reimer,  whose official title is Investigator from the Office of Special Investigations, Arizona Department of Agriculture. Unofficially he is a cactus cop.

We learn about what he does and why ? 

 

 Cactus Cop [14:23m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Prof. Robert Thompson, professor of Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, is an author of six books and a leading authority on the impact of television on popular culture.

He again speaks with us about a series of television shows and events and their impact on television and on our society – they range from the Presidential eelection of 1968 to Yankee Stadium to 6o Minutes and the Texaco Star Theatre. 

 

 TV & Pop Culture II [28:22m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

International correspondent Jeremiah Tittle speaks with Catherine Brown, Director of Business Social Networking for Dotster, Inc., a leader in Internet businesses services, about the concept of community on the internet. 

This conversation on the ‘information superhighway’ discusses how communities are growing online, and how businesses can use online presence to unite employees and customers to participate in the community.

This conversation also highlights how like-minded individuals are using the internet more and more to connect and discuss their passions while businesses are growing their customer base now that physical borders are less of an impediment. 

More about their services at www.Dotster.com.

 

 Jeremiah Podcast [17:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Yes, there’s the popluar image of the Mountie from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police – you know “the one that always gets their ‘man’”.

But there’s more. 

The new RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina celebrates all things Mountie.

There’s an interactive forensics display for budding CSIs, an array of transport from dogsleds to planes and tales of life on the frontier, when the RCMP befriended Sitting Bull, tamed Klondike prospectors and organized manhunts.

We speak with Karen Dackiw from Regina about about Mountie heritage and the new centre enshrining it.

For more on theRCMP Heritage Centre, see: www.rcmpheritagecentre.com

 

 Mounties [12:30m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Once it was the only way to get the job done. Then it became popular as a competitive sports endeavor, drawing crowds in excess of one hundred thousand. For the finals, folks came from across the Midwest. There was no ball, no goal, no track. the simply made a sport of a job well done.

Here we speak about the tradition of cornhusking, once a big-time sport where corn is grown. It continues on a much more limited basis today in the form of the National Cornhusking Championship.

We learn more here.

This brief segment was first taped in August, 2006.

 

 Cornhusking [4:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Since 1776, the people of Bardstown, Kentucky have been making Bourbon. Their dedication to the fine art of distilling eventually gave Bardstown the title of Bourbon Capital of the World. Each year the traditions associated with this passion and history are celebrated at The Kentucky Bourbon Festival.

We speak with Milt Spaulding from Kentucky about bourbon, what it means to the area and how it is celebrated at the Bourbon Festival. 

 http://www.kybourbonfestival.com/

 

 Bourbon Festival [11:56m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Stephen Douglas was running for re-election to his U.S. Senate seat. A series of seven debates with Abraham Lincoln were held in Illinois towns from August 21-October 15, 1858. Practically the only issue discussed was slavery. Douglas defeated Lincoln in this election, but the experience contributed to Lincoln’s success when he defeated Douglas for the presidency in 1860.

This year marks 150 since those debates, which are said by many to have defined America.

We speak with Dr. Tom Schwartz, State Historian of Illinois about the debates – what made them so special at the time, and why they still matter these many years later.

 

 Linclon-Douglas [22:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

“Bluegrass and ballads. Chicken scratch and gospel. Polka and powwows. Perhaps Mike Seeger summed it up best: When he was asked what genres come under the rubric of American folk, he said ‘All the music that fits in between the cracks”.

So wrote Kip Lornell as part of his book, “The NPR Curious Listener’s Guide to American Folk”.

Kip Lornell joins us in this introduction to all the music that fits between the cracks.

And he should know.

Kip Lornell has been researching and writing about American roots music since the late 1960′s. Since 1973 he has lived and worked in the South on music-related films, record projects and books. He teaches at George Washington University, has authored 8 books (ranging from Leadbelly to Gospel, and has even won a Grammy).

He is a uniquely qualified and most helpful guide as he starts us on this journey about us and our musics.

 

 Kip Lornell [22:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download