History of Yiddish Radio

From the 1930s to '50s, Yiddish radio was heard coast to coast, with a dozen stations in New York alone. Explore its forgotten history and learn how one man stumbled upon -- and rescued -- its last remnants.

Yiddish Melodies in Swing

The radio program Yiddish Melodies in Swing ran from 1938 until 1955 and celebrated a peculiar but wonderful fusion of traditional Yiddish klezmer music with popular American swing.

The Radio Dramas of Nahum Stutchkoff

Stutchkoff's days were spent creating some of the most memorable, intimate radio dramas of the age, his nights, compiling history's only Yiddish thesaurus.

Levine and His Flying Machine

Most know Charles A. Lindbergh was the first man to fly across the Atlantic. But have you ever heard of Charles A. Levine? Discover the incredible story of the first man to cross the Atlantic in an airplane -- as a passenger.

Commercials on Yiddish Radio

And now a word from our sponsor. They were the seven most dreaded words on Yiddish radio -- until the Joe and Paul jingle hit the airwaves.

The Jewish Philosopher

Before Dr. Laura, before Dr. Ruth, before Ann Landers, there was C. Israel Lutsky, "The Jewish Philosopher," radio's first advice columnist.

Seymour Rexite

Crooning sensation Seymour Rexite thrilled his radio audience for forty years, singing all the American standards -- in Yiddish. "Surrey with a Fringe on Top" never sounded so good!

Victor Packer

An avant-garde poet turned programming director, Victor Packer experimented with every genre imaginable in a desperate attempt to fill his four-hour slot.

Rabbi Rubin's Court of the Air

From disputes over ill-measured bedsheets to appeals by abandoned grandparents, no program takes us closer to the real struggles of poor Jews living in New York's Lower Eastside.

Reunion

Decades before the word "Holocaust" entered our vocabulary, this short-lived series featured the voice of a holocaust survivor telling his own story. His name was Siegbert Freiberg, and his story was unlike anything ever before heard on the radio.