Gary R. Maslow

February 23, 1999

Post #812 – 19990223

Howdy Mr. Pinkwater. I am a student at Dartmouth College and have started a children’s radio show for the kids at the children’s hospital here, called Mystery and Myth. I heard about your Chinwag theatre radio show and was wondering if you had any advice for a group of students interesting in entertaining children over the radio. I also liked your book Fat Men from Space so much that I ate it, just kidding, but it did look pretty tasty with those burgers on the cover. Yours on the radio,

gary maslow

p.s. I am also in a children’s literature course at dartmouth with Randy Testa and was going to come interview you, but that fell through, I was wondering if I could send you some questions over e-mail and do an interview that way or over the phone. Thanks for the laughs.

Daniel replies:

I wouldn't presume to give advice, but I can tell you a little about our aproach to Chinwag Theater. To make it simple, I'll just say that I think ""Barney"" is an obscenity, and maybe a crime. It's a school for bad taste and there is something unwholesome about those cyborg child actors. So, what Charity Nebbe and I agree upon, and try to keep in mind in making our radio program is that we ought to respect our listeners and not treat them like little idiots. It's not a big deal, but surprising how few people share that attitude. I think that, in his free time, Barney hates children, and eats them. I suggest you approach your local public radio station, and ask them to download Chinwag Theater for you. It's on the satellite, (I think we send it on Wednesdays). It's free for the taking by any non-profit radio station, so do me a favor and suggest to the Program Director that s/he make a copy for station evaluation too. See if you like what we do, if you can identify an approach, and whether you agree with it or not. You're welcome to broadcast the program along with yours if you want to.
Sure we can do something via email, or phone, or tape cassette, but I suggest it be a class project lest I deal with you, and then one of your classmates also wants to question me, etc. You can conduct your Q&A right here in this forum, and allow anyone who's interested to observe the process. Give my best wishes to Randy Testa, and tell him I like this approach better.