''Columbia Workshop'' was a radio series that aired on the

Columbia Broadcasting System CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

from 1936 to 1943, returning in 1946–47.

Irving Reis

The series began as the idea of

Irving Reis Irving Reis (May 7, 1906 in New York City – July 3, 1953 in Woodland Hills, California) was a radio program producer and director, and a film director. Biography Irving Reis was born into a Jewish family.http://www.hillsidememorial.org/pdfs/Di ...

. Reis had begun his radio career as an engineer and developed a fascination with the possibilities of the relatively new medium. His idea was to use experimental modes of narrative to enhance the way a narrative was conveyed over the radio. Reis had isolated attempts to experiment on the radio: Before the ''Columbia Workshops debut, he had directed at least a few radio dramas. For Reis, the ''Columbia Workshop'' was a platform for developing new techniques for presentation on radio as noted in the debut broadcast: :The ''Columbia Workshop'' dedicates itself to the purposes of familiarizing you with the story behind radio, both in broadcasting, as well as in aviation, shipping, communication and pathology, and to experiment in new techniques with a hope of discovering or evolving new and better forms of radio presentation, with especial emphasis on radio drama; to encourage and present the work of new writers and artists who may have fresh and vital ideas to contribute. As a

sustaining program A sustaining program is a radio or television program that, despite airing on a commercial broadcast station, does not have commercial sponsorship or advertising. This term, mostly used in the United States, was common in the early days of radio, b ...

, the ''Workshop'' served as a symbol to prove to the public (and the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

) that CBS was concerned with educating and serving the public. Early shows on the ''Workshop'' exemplified Reis's penchant for experimentation through narrative and technical means. The second program, ''Broadway Evening'' followed a couple as they meandered down Broadway during an evening. A subsequent show had at least 30 characters functioning within a half-hour drama. Among the technical demonstrations were sound effects, the use of various kinds of microphones to achieve various aural effects and voice impersonators (including sound effects produced by voice). Fall-of-the-City-FE

Reis called upon others to try their hand in writing new or adapting existing material for the experimental nature of the Workshop.

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

did a two-part adaptation of Shakespeare's ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'' (mentioned along with the Workshop in the fictitious film

Me and Orson Welles ''Me and Orson Welles'' is a 2008 period drama film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Zac Efron, Christian McKay, and Claire Danes. Based on Robert Kaplow's novel of the same name, the story, set in 1937 New York, tells of a teenager hir ...

), as well as a 30-minute condensation of ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

''.

Irwin Shaw Irwin Shaw (February 27, 1913 – May 16, 1984) was an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short-story author whose written works have sold more than 14 million copies. He is best known for two of his novels: ''The Young Lions'' ( ...

contributed one show, and

Stephen Vincent Benét Stephen Vincent Benét (; July 22, 1898 – March 13, 1943) was an American poet, short story writer, and novelist. He is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, ''John Brown's Body'' (1928), for which he receive ...

adapted several of his short stories. Reis also experimented with readings and dramatizations of poetry, including works by

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poe ...

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate from 1930 until 1967. Among his best known works are the children's novels ''The Midnight Folk'' and ''The Box of Delights'', and the poem ...

and

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

. One of the most notable presentations of Reis's tenure was Archibald MacLeish's original radio play, ''

The Fall of the City ''The Fall of the City'' by Archibald MacLeish is the first American verse play written for radio.Louis Untermeyer, "New Power for Poetry," ''Saturday Review of Literature'', May 22, 1937, p. 7.Wolfe Kaufman, (untitled article), ''Variety'', Ap ...

''. With a cast that included

Burgess Meredith Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907 – September 9, 1997) was an American actor and filmmaker whose career encompassed theater, film, and television. Active for more than six decades, Meredith has been called "a virtuosic actor" and "on ...

and 300 students, the play was notable for its portrayal of the collapse of a city under an unnamed dictator, a commentary on fascism in Germany and Italy. Reis recognized music as an important part of radio presentation. As part of CBS's commissioning of five classical composers to write original works for radio, Deems Taylor narrated a concert (November 7, 1936) which demonstrated the possibilities of idiomatic music composition for radio by playing orchestrations of three works by staff arranger Amadeo de Fillipi. Among the most significant musical contributions Reis made was appointing

Bernard Herrmann Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in composing for films. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely re ...

music director of the ''Workshop''. Herrmann had previously worked on CBS primarily as a conductor. He had composed his first radio drama for the ''Workshop'', but it was only after his second program, ''Rhythm of the Jute Mill'' (broadcast December 12, 1936) that the appointment was made. Thereafter Herrmann composed many radio shows himself, also conducting the music of others and even proposing a show entirely devoted to music composed for the ''Workshop''. Other significant musical contributions during Reis's directorship include Paul Sterrett's and

Leith Stevens Leith Stevens (September 13, 1909 – July 23, 1970) was an American music composer and conductor of radio and film scores. Early life and education Leith Stevens was born in Mount Moriah, Missouri,DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An ...

's score for a two-part presentation of ''

Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatur ...

'' in which music took the place of all sound effects, and

Marc Blitzstein Marcus Samuel Blitzstein (March 2, 1905January 22, 1964), was an American composer, lyricist, and librettist. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical ''The Cradle Will Rock'', directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Wo ...

's half-hour musical '' I've Got the Tune'', which similarly tried to convey sound effects and long-distance travel through purely musical means.

William N. Robson

On the broadcast of December 23, 1937 (the first of a two-part dramatization of Lewis Carroll's ''Alice Through the Looking Glass''), it was announced that

William N. Robson William N. Robson (October 8, 1906 – April 10, 1995) was a director and producer of radio programs. Early life Robson was born William N. Robson II in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of William N. Robson and Gertrude Brehm Robson. His father ...

had succeeded Irving Reis as director of the ''Columbia Workshop''. Reis moved to Hollywood and continued his career in the film industry. Though the ''Workshop'' continued some experimentation, Robson placed greater emphasis on good dramatic adaptations, rather than didactic explanations of radio techniques. Robson was not averse to experimentation. His ''San Quentin Prison Break'', originally broadcast prior to the ''Workshop'' on January 16, 1935 was based on an actual incident. To achieve a sense of realism, the dramatization was a combination news report or documentary. Unlike most radio dramas, there was no narrator involved. This was later rebroadcast as part of the ''Workshop'' on September 10, 1936. Under Robson's aegis, the ''Workshop'' was able to broadcast a number of notable shows. Known more as a film director,

Pare Lorentz Pare Lorentz (December 11, 1905 – March 4, 1992) was an American filmmaker known for his film work about the New Deal. Born Leonard MacTaggart Lorentz in Clarksburg, West Virginia he was educated at Buckhannon High School, West Virginia Wesl ...

wrote and directed ''Ecce Homo'', a story concerning the relationship of man and technology. Both Irwin Shaw and Archibald MacLeish were invited back to write and direct shows as they had done under Reis's leadership. The ''Workshop'' extended its experimental mode by preceding the new MacLeish play, ''Air Raid'' with a broadcast of its rehearsal. Stephen Vincent Benèt continued to write for the ''Workshop'', and author Wilbur Daniel Steele made his own adaptations of his previously written short stories.

Arch Oboler Arch Oboler (December 7, 1909 – March 19, 1987) was an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, producer, and director who was active in radio, films, theater, and television. He generated much attention with his radio scripts, particular ...

, known for ''Lights Out!'' series, contributed one script, as did

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' — a ...

and budding writer

Arthur Laurents Arthur Laurents (July 14, 1917 – May 5, 2011) was an American playwright, theatre director, film producer and screenwriter. After writing scripts for radio shows after college and then training films for the U.S. Army during World War II, ...

. At times, Robson reached beyond the typical crop of radio authors, selecting at least one script (Anita Fairgrieve's ''Andrea del Sarto''), from his class in radio writing at New York University as well as soliciting scripts on the air from the listening audience. With Bernard Herrmann continuing as music director, Robson (probably at Herrmann's insistence) included a few extended musical works and opera on the Workshop.

Frederick Delius Delius, photographed in 1907 Frederick Theodore Albert Delius ( 29 January 1862 – 10 June 1934), originally Fritz Delius, was an English composer. Born in Bradford in the north of England to a prosperous mercantile family, he resisted atte ...

's ''Hassan'', and two operas by

Vittorio Giannini Vittorio Giannini (October 19, 1903 – November 28, 1966) was an American neoromantic composer of operas, songs, symphonies, and band works. Life and work Giannini was born in Philadelphia on October 19, 1903. He began as a violinist under the t ...

, ''Beauty and the Beast'' and ''Blennerhasset'', were among those heard. Robson apparently stepped down sometime in mid-1939, after which the ''Workshop'' was somewhat adrift. Brewster Morgan and Earle McGill are credited as being those responsible for continuing the series.

Norman Corwin

Norman Corwin had been a rising star at CBS for a few years, and had even some of his work aired on the ''Workshop'' as early as 1938, when his adaptation of

Stephen Crane Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism an ...

's ''

The Red Badge of Courage ''The Red Badge of Courage'' is a war novel by American author Stephen Crane (1871–1900). Taking place during the American Civil War, the story is about a young private of the Union Army, Henry Fleming, who flees from the field of battle. Ove ...

'' aired. But his sense of social justice again changed the direction of the ''Workshop'' into one frequently addressing current issues. By the fall 1940, Corwin was leading the ''Workshop'', and in 1941, the series was giving the subtitle ''26 by Corwin'', attesting to the author's seemingly indefatigable energy. Given Corwin's strong interest in issues of the day, it is ironic he left the ''Workshop'' just one month prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Final years

It is not entirely clear who led the ''Columbia Workshop'' during 1942, but interest in the program was clearly waning. There were a few significant programs (historically the most interesting of them is probably the airing of

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

's and

Kenneth Patchen Kenneth Patchen (December 13, 1911January 8, 1972) was an American poet and novelist. He experimented with different forms of writing and incorporated painting, drawing, and jazz music into his works, which have been compared with those of Will ...

's ''The City Wears a Slouch Hat''). There are only a few references to shows in 1943. The show had a revival in the 1946–47 season. When it was revived in 1956, it was retitled the ''

CBS Radio Workshop ''The CBS Radio Workshop'' was an experimental dramatic radio anthology series that aired on CBS from January 27, 1956, until September 22, 1957. Subtitled “radio’s distinguished series to man’s imagination,” it was a revival of the earlie ...

''.

Radio techniques

The ''Columbia Workshop'' gave authors, directors, sound engineers and composers many opportunities to experiment with the use of sound as a device for enhancing narrative.

Sound filters

''Buck Rogers'' was broadcast from a 21st-floor studio that had been troubled with air conditioning noises. At a bend in a duct the air gave a ''whoosh'' that had been difficult to dampen. Later, when it became necessary to suggest a rocket traveling through outer space, someone remembered the duct and put a microphone in the bend. Whenever Buck Rogers was on the move, the microphone was opened, producing the sound of a spaceship. This was the first development in sound filters. Filters developed upon the need for radio directors to find a way to portray a voice over the telephone. The filters were generally small boxes through which a microphone circuit could be shunted. The box had dials on its surface. Its inner mechanism could remove upper or lower tones or a combination of them to give an ''incomplete'' reproduction, as given by a telephone. The dials allowed the engineer to vary the effect, creating varieties of incompleteness. It became common for radio personnel to play around with the filters to find new sounds, and then having radio shows based upon their discoveries.

Staff

Many of the staff who worked on the ''Columbia Workshop'' would continue with CBS and work for television. *

, composer *Earle McGill, writer, director *

, writer, director *

, composer *Guy Della-Cioppa, writer

Award

The ''Columbia Workshop'' received a 1946

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

for Outstanding Entertainment in Drama.

List of ''Columbia Workshop'' programs

This is a list of all the ''Columbia Workshop'' programs, giving known information about authors, adaptors, directors/producers, composers.This list is drawn from a variety of sources, in particular the catalog of the Paley Center, and many

old time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early ...

lists. Occasional remarks have been included. Gaps in dates usually refer to programs that were pre-empted. Information for the years 1942–43 is difficult to come by.

Sources

* * * * * *

References

Listen to

*{{InternetArchiveOTR, id=ColumbiaWorkshop, title=Columbia Workshop
''Columbia Workshop'': "Meridian 7-1212" (rebroadcast of August 24, 1939)

External links

American radio dramas 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs 1950s American radio programs CBS Radio programs Peabody Award-winning radio programs 1936 radio programme debuts 1943 radio programme endings 1946 radio programme debuts 1947 radio programme endings