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Historic audio from the WYSO Archives

Rediscovered Radio: Harold Wright's "Christmas Leaves"

Harold Wright in 1974
courtesy of Antiochiana
/
Antioch College
Harold Wright in 1974

One of the best things about the WYSO Archives is the sheer variety of recordings we have. There are news reports, documentaries, radio dramas, and concerts, many from the early years of WYSO. Jocelyn Robinson of Rediscovered Radio brings us yet another holiday special, this one recorded over three decades ago, about a boy looking forward to celebrating the holidays with great anticipation.

Here’s a story about a little a boy who wasn’t allowed to say the words “Christmas tree.” It’s a reminiscence by Harold Wright, and it takes us back to 1938, and the Appalachian community of Depression-era Dayton.

Wright was born and raised in Dayton. He graduated from Northridge High School, and served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. That led him to Japan and ultimately, to his calling in life. He’s Professor Emeritus of Japanese Language and Literature at Antioch College, where he taught for over thirty years. He’s an award-winning translator, a poet, and a folklorist in two cultures. He and wife Johnatha are well-known storytellers, spinning yarns of all sorts, from the spooky to the sublime.

Major funding for Rediscovered Radio is provided by the Ohio Humanities Council and the Greene County Public Library. The WYSO digital audio archives will open for public listening in 2015.

Jocelyn Robinson is a Yellow Springs, Ohio-based educator, media producer, and radio preservationist. As an educator, Robinson has taught transdisciplinary literature courses incorporating critical cultural theory and her scholarship in self-definition and identity. She also teaches community-based and college-level classes in digital storytelling and narrative journalism.
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