The Columbia Workshop was an high-art radio show that aired from 1936 to 1957. The show’s creator was Irving Reis, who once worked as a radio director, as well as a sound engineer. Columbia Workshop was sort of like Reis’ experiment, since he wanted to focus on using different sound effects to bring his show to life, as opposed to other radio shows which he believes have overused popular celebrities. Hundreds of different sound effects were used for the show.
The show’s first director was William Robson, and his first show was Alice in Wonderland. Unlike Reis, Robson focused more on the brilliant acting of the characters and less on the sound effects. Then, in 1941, Norman Corwin took over and made the show more social (and political), as he focused more on delivering the day's newsworthy happenings.Most of the episodes presented, nevertheless, were derived from the work of classical authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, William Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, and more. Although quite serious in theme, Columbia Workshop was well-received by the listeners, and the fact that it lasted for over two decades is an excellent proof to that.
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Please enjoy these 332 old time radio episodes:
| Air Date | Title | Synopsis | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12.09.1937 | columbia workshop marconi, the man and his wireless |
+A broadcast on the thirty-sixth anniversary of the first trans-Atlantic radio message. The story of... | |
| 12.16.1937 | columbia workshop (069) metzungerstein |
+A very well-done dramatization of the baroque tale of feudal noblemen, castles, and a cursed tapest... | |
| 12.23.1937 | columbia workshop (070) alice through the looking glass pt 1 |
+An experiment using music instead of sound effects. Alice's trip from the looking glass to Tweedle ... | |
| 12.30.1937 | columbia workshop (071) alice through the looking glass pt 2 |
+Alice continues her journey across the checkerboard world of Looking Glass Land. | |
| 01.08.1938 | columbia workshop (072) the ghost of benjamin sweet, part 1 |
+An amusing ghost story, told from the ghost's point of view. | |
| 01.15.1938 | columbia workshop (073) the house that jack didn't build |
+A drama-documentary about the housing shortage. A subjective treatment. "An experiment in vocal rhy... | |
| 01.29.1938 | columbia workshop (075) madame curie |
+ A creatively produced, dramatized biography of the famed woman scientist. | |
| 02.05.1938 | columbia workshop (076) andrea del sarto |
+ "A second experiment in adult education." Written by a student of radio writing at New York Univer... | |
| 02.12.1938 | columbia workshop (077) be prepared |
+ A salute to the Boy Scouts on their 28th anniversary. The history of the organization is told by d... | |
| 02.19.1938 | columbia workshop (078) well of the saints |
+The first radio presentation of an Irish folk play. The supernatural effects and themes presented b... | |
| 02.26.1938 | columbia workshop (079) night patrol |
+ "An experiment in realism." A police drama of the night. A typical New York Irish cop captures a k... | |
| 03.12.1938 | columbia workshop (081) hassan |
+The second American production of the play, written in 1922. The story of Hassan the candy maker, a... | |
| 03.19.1938 | columbia workshop (082) the wedding of the meteors |
+ "An Industrial Fantasy." An interesting story, capable of production only through the medium of ra... | |
| 03.26.1938 | columbia workshop (083) j. smith and wife |
+ "A play without sound effects." A beautiful story about a common, everyday couple who die and try ... | |
| 04.02.1938 | columbia workshop (084) seven waves away |
+ A dramatic story of a lifeboat with too many people in it. Several people must be thrown overboard... | |
| 04.09.1938 | columbia workshop (085) broken feather |
+A fantasy about the capitol city of Bedlam, in the land of Discord, where Princess Bell tries to fi... | |
| 04.16.1938 | columbia workshop (086) the terrible meek |
+An Easter story. Three people sit talking at the foot of the Cross. "A one-act play for three voice... | |
| 04.23.1938 | columbia workshop (087) never come monday |
+ A funny British story about the day everyone woke up and decided it would be Sunday permanently. | |
| 04.30.1938 | columbia workshop (088) four into seven won't go |
+A drama produced in the "British" style, by the head of the BBC's drama department. A tense story a... | |
| 05.07.1938 | columbia workshop (089) the fisherman and his soul |
+ A fantasy about a fisherman who captures a mermaid in his nets, and must send his soul away to kee... | |
| 05.14.1938 | columbia workshop (090) meloddrams |
+ A series of experiments in music and poetry. | |
| 05.21.1938 | columbia workshop (091) ecce homo (behold the man) |
+ This is the first (possibly the only) radio documentary by Pare Lorentz (the famous documentary fi... | |
| 05.28.1938 | columbia workshop (092) bury the dead |
+ A strange and very well-done story about six dead soldiers who refuse to be buried. A deeply movin... | |
| 06.04.1938 | columbia workshop (093) tranga man, fine gah |
+ A story about the singing and talking drums of west Africa, with west Africans in the cast. Two me... | |
| 06.11.1938 | columbia workshop (094) surrealism (from ooh to aah) |
+ The worlds of surrealism are explored. A tour through strange places in many media. A play is pres... |
COLUMBIA RADIO WORKSHOP
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