CBS Radio Workshop - Single Episodes


(4.7 stars; 37 reviews)

CBS Radio Workshop was a revival of the Columbia Workshop of the late thirties. All 86 episodes survive today. The series aired from January 27, 1956, until September 22, 1957, on CBS. The original idea for the show came from Irving Reis, who envisioned an experimental workshop where actors, writers, and technicians could produce scripts that sponsors might be afraid to try.

In the late fifties, with television taking the big money, the time was right to revisit this concept. William Froug, a CBS vice president, was the driving force behind this revival. He chose Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" as the first program, which was narrated by Huxley himself and announced by William Conrad. The series brought together cutting-edge writing, music, and sound, becoming a big hit with both radio personnel and listeners.

The series alternated between the west and east coast production centers, allowing for a diverse range of talent and creativity. Take a moment to listen to some outstanding radio drama and compare the CBS Radio Workshop with the original Columbia Workshop. You decide which series is better, as this is dedicated to man's imagination and the theater of the mind.


This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.

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Chapters

Brave New World Part 1 29:42
Brave New World Part 2 29:47
Storm 29:06
Season of Disbelief and Hail and Farewell 29:45
Colloquy #1: Interview with William Shakespeare 29:09
The Voice of New York 29:34
Report on E.S.P. 29:25
Cops and Robbers 29:11
The Legend of Jimmy Blue Eyes 29:26
The Exurbanites 29:35
Speaking of Cinderella - If the Shoe Fits 29:25
Jacob's Hands 29:29
Living Portrait - William Zeckendorf, Tycoon 29:14
The Record Collectors 29:24
The Toledo War 29:17
The Enormous Radio 29:54
Lovers, Villains and Fools 29:42
The Little Prince 30:01
A Matter of Logic 30:03
Bring on the Angels 29:39
The Stronger 29:26
Another Point Of View 29:36
The Eternal Joan 29:21
Portrait of Paris 29:05
The Case of the White Kitten 29:27
Portrait of London 29:33
Star Boy 29:05
Subways Are for Sleeping 28:43
Only Johnny Knows 29:03
A Dissertation on Love 30:01
The Billion Dollar Failure of Figger Fallup 29:19
Colloquy #3 - An Analysis of Satire 29:13
The Hither and Thither of Danny Dither 29:17
A Pride of Carrots 29:36
The Oedipus Story 29:09
Roughing It 29:59
A Writer at Work 29:06
The Legend of Annie Christmas 29:48
When the Mountain Fell 28:05
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue 28:31
The Joe Miller Joke Book 23:12
Report on the Weans 24:54
Sounds of a Nation 24:43
The King of the Cats 24:51
The Day the Roof Fell In 24:31
I Was the Duke 24:36
The Big Event 24:41
All Is Bright 24:48
Carl Sandburg's 79th Birthday 24:37
No Time for Heartaches 24:49
Fire at Malibu 25:05
The Crazy Life 24:45
La Grande Breteche 24:52
1489 Words 25:33
Space Merchants Part 1 24:42
Space Merchants Part 2 24:42
Ballad of the Iron Horse 24:47
Air Raid (Prevarications of Mr Peeps) 23:50
The Endless Road 24:04
Harmonica Solo 24:45
A Dog's Life 24:11
Noh Plays of Japan 24:07
Carlotta's Serape 24:02
The Son of Man 24:30
Light Ship 24:04
Nightmare 24:42
The Long Way Home 24:12
Heaven Is in the Sky 24:44
I Have Three Heads 24:38
Epitaphs 25:00
The Seven Hills of Rome 24:09
Housing Problems 24:33
Meditations on Ecclesiastes 24:24
The Battle of Gettysburg 24:25
You Could Look It Up 23:41
The Silent Witness 24:14
The Green Hills of Earth 23:56
Never Bet the Devil Your Head 24:41
The Heart of the Man 24:05
Malihini Magic 24:57
The Celestial Omnibus 23:39
Sweet Cherries in Charleston 24:57
Grief Drives a Black Sedan 24:04
People Are No Good 24:36
Time Found Again 23:14
Young Man Axelbrod 24:41

Reviews

Great Radio Program


(5 stars)

This was a wonderful program that covered so many things and genres - comedy, science fiction, drama, reality, etc. with a very diverse group of voice actors and non-actors. In this series, you would have heard William Conrad, Herbert Marshall, Vincent Price, then Senator John F. Kennedy, and many others, including Aldous Huxley discussing Brave New World. This might have been one of radio's last attempts at relevance against television and this was an excellent attempt to get people away from their large 12" screens for an hour.

I wish they still made radio like this


(5 stars)

Great variety and artistic touch. Sound quality was great too. Thank you for leaving in the public service announcements for a touch of historical context.


(5 stars)

Most of these are really well done! Some episodes have lost so much fidelity as to be rendered unlistenable, but they are far and few between. These are worth a listen!

wonderful variety


(5 stars)

you don't know what to expect from each story. very well done! great that these recordings can be listened to again after all these years.

IMPROVED TRANSFERS.


(5 stars)

GAD. I collected all these ages ago, but these are 1st gen transfers. Like hearing them for the first time. Thanks.

radio gold


(5 stars)

these are great. i just wish i can find out the owner of the voice of the person that opens each show

What a jewel! I will be coming back to this one!


(5 stars)

The Duke


(4 stars)

I would love to find out HOW this got on the air in 1956, and what the ramifications were to CBS (if any) Also, if there was a lot of reaction in the media - Anyone?