Journey #83 - The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry

Jim and Della have great love for each other but very little money.  How can they hope to get each other a gift for Christmas?

 
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William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910), known by his pen name O. Henry, was an American writer. He wrote and published several stories through his life.  O. Henry's short stories are known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization, and clever twist endings.

However, Porter was found guilty of embezzlement in February 1898, sentenced to five years in prison. While in prison, as a licensed pharmacist, he worked in the prison hospital as the night druggist. Porter was given his own room in the hospital wing, and there is no record that he actually spent time in the cell block of the prison. He had fourteen stories published under various pseudonyms while he was in prison, but was becoming best known as "O. Henry". A friend of his in New Orleans would forward his stories to publishers, so they had no idea the writer was imprisoned.

Josh Roseman (not the trombonist; the other one) lives in Georgia (the state, not the country). His writing has appeared in Asimov’s, Escape Pod, and the Crossed Genres anthology Fat Girl in a Strange Land. His fiction has been reprinted by the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine and StarShipSofa, and his voice has been heard on two Escape Artists and all four District of Wonders podcasts. He is a 2013 graduate of the Taos Toolbox writing workshop. When not writing, he mostly complains about the fact that he’s not writing.

Check out Josh's very cool short story "Secret Santa" on Kindle or in audio

Other related links:
New Media Expo - January 4-6 Las Vegas
My Panel - Choosing the Right Content For Your Show

Music used for this production:
Vivaldi's Four Seasons (Winter)
We Three Kings by The Paradise Room


Theme music by Man In Space and the Vince Guaraldi Trio


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Journey #82 - Miracle on 34th Street starring Edmund Gwenn (presented by Lux Radio Theater)

A department store Santa Clause must go to court to prove that his is the real deal.

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Lux Radio Theater was  a long-running classic radio anthology series. Initially, the series adapted Broadway plays during its first two seasons before it began adapting films. These hour-long radio programs were performed live before studio audiences. It became the most popular dramatic anthology series on radio, broadcast for more than 20 years and continued on television as the Lux Video Theatre through most of the 1950s.

Other related links:
New Media Expo - January 4-6 Las Vegas
My Panel - Choosing the Right Content For Your Show
Book:  The Dog Who Thought He Was Santa by Bill Wallace


Theme music by Man In Space and the Vince Guaraldi Trio


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Superhero Marathon Spectacular - Day 30: Superhero Movie Lightning Round, Part 2

Discussing superhero movies from Fantastic Four to Man of Steel

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Music used in this production:

"Take A Chance" by Kevin MacLeod

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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Superhero Marathon Spectacular - Day 29: Superhero Movie Lightning Round, Part 1

Discussing superhero movies from Superman to Fantastic Four

 
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Music used in this production:

"Take A Chance" by Kevin MacLeod

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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Superhero Marathon Spectacular - Day 28: Alien of Steel

My review of the movie Man Of Steel

 
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Music used in this production:

"Take A Chance" by Kevin MacLeod

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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Superhero Marathon Spectacular - Day 27: The Green Lama: The Man Who Never Existed

It is hard to fight against someone who never existed.

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The Green Lama first appeared in a short novel entitled The Green Lama in the April 1940 issue of Double Detective magazine. The novel was written by Kendell Foster Crossen using the pseudonym of "Richard Foster". Writing in 1976, Crossen recalled that the character was created because the publishers of Double Detective, the Frank Munsey company, wanted a competitor for The Shadow, which was published by their rivals Street & Smith.

The Green Lama's first comic book appearance was in Crestwood Publications' issue #7 of Prize Comics (December 1940), where he continued to appear for 27 issues . All stories were written by Ken Crossen, with art by Mac Raboy and others.  He then moved to his own title, The Green Lama (Spark Publications) which lasted for eight issues from December 1944 to March 1946.

More than three years after the demise of his comic book, the Green Lama was resurrected for a short-lived CBS radio series that ran for 11 episodes from June 5 to August 20, 1949, with the character's voice provided by Paul Frees. This version of the Green Lama was also written by creator Kendell Foster Crossen, along with several co-writers.

Music used in this production:

"Take A Chance" by Kevin MacLeod

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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Superhero Marathon Spectacular - Day 26: The Avenger: The Mystery of the Giant Brain

The Avenger vs. a mad scientist

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The Avenger originally appeared in September 1939 in the pulp magazine The Avenger, published by Street and Smith Publications.  The Avenger was a pulp hero who combined elements of Doc Savage and the Shadow. The authorship of the pulp series was credited by Street and Smith to Kenneth Robeson, the same byline that appeared on the Doc Savage stories. The "Kenneth Robeson" name was a house pseudonym used by a number of different Street & Smith writers. Most of the original Avenger stories were written by Paul Ernst.

The Avenger radio show originated from Long Island, NY-based station WHN and was broadcast over a time-span of 62 weeks. It also aired on many stations across the United States as a transcription series. The 62 weeks refer only to the period during which the program aired, not the number of shows. Most likely, the series consisted of a then standard run of 26 half-hour episodes (plus repeats). Unfortunately, despite the fact that the program was recorded for syndication, the only remaining artifacts of the show are seven scripts.

Music used in this production:

"Take A Chance" by Kevin MacLeod

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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