Spotlight – Ray Bradbury

On this week’s podcast we will focus on the life and times of Ray Douglas Bradbury born August 22, 1920. He was an author, screenwriter, and one of the most celebrated 20th-century creators of amazing stories. Bradbury was mainly known for his short-story collections The Martian Chronicles (1950) and The Illustrated Man (1951). Most of his best known work is speculative fiction, but he also worked in other genres, such as the coming of age novel Dandelion Wine (1957) and the fictionalized memoir Green Shadows, White Whale (1992). He also wrote and consulted on screenplays and television scripts, including Moby Dick and It Came from Outer Space. Many of his works were adapted into television and film productions as well as comic books.

Here are some little known facts about Ray Bradbury:

He was given the middle name “Douglas” after the actor Douglas Fairbanks.
He was a descendant of Mary Bradbury, who was tried in Salem witch trials in 1692.
Bradbury attended Los Angeles High School and often roller-skated through Hollywood in hopes of meeting celebrities.
Bradbury’s first pay as a writer was at age 14. He wrote a joke he sold to George Burns to use on the Burns and Allen radio show.
At the age of 25, Bradbury finally summoned up the courage to ask a girl out for the first time ever. She was a bookstore clerk named Maggie, who thought he was stealing from the bookstore because he had a long trench coat on.
Not only did Bradbury never get a driver’s license, he didn’t believe in cars for anyone.
Though he wrote Fahrenheit 451 at UCLA, he wasn’t a student there. In fact, he didn’t believe in college. “I believe in libraries because most students don’t have any money,” Bradbury told The New York Times in 2009. “When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years.”
A fitting memorial came when NASA landed a rover on Mars a few months after Bradbury’s death in 2012. They named the site where Mars rover Curiosity touched down “Bradbury Landing.”

On the program this week you we hear his view on life, the universe, and everything. Yes, I kind of stole that from Douglas Adams, but I am sure he won’t mind. I try to tie in all of our stories, including those from you guys, back to Bradbury and I think you will enjoy the result.

You can listen to this podcast on Thursday at Ron’s Amazing Stories, download it from Apple Podcasts, stream it on Stitcher Radio or on the mobile version of Spotify. Do you prefer the radio? We are heard every Thursday at 10:00 pm and Sunday Night at 11:00 PM (EST) on AMFM247.COM. Check your local listing or find the station closest to you at this link

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RAS #502 – The 1904 Olympics

On Ron’s Amazing Stories today it is one of those shows where you are going to hear a lot of stuff. We have no less than 12 different tales that range from ghost stories, to science fiction, to a memorial tale and even a brand new Johnny Is It True. We will even visit the 1904 olympiad. So sit back, enjoy, because I think you’re in for something completely different.

Featured Story – The 1904 Olympics

Well as you know these past two weeks we have been watching the 2020 Olympics from Japan. Something that I have really been enjoying. America’s first Olympics may have been its worst, or at least its most bizarre. Held in 1904 in St. Louis, the games were tied to that year’s World’s Fair, which celebrated the centennial of the Louisiana Purchase. The Olympics’ signal event, the marathon, was conceived to honor the classical heritage of Greece and underscore the connection between the ancient and modern. But from the start, the 1904 marathon was less showstopper than a sideshow, a freakish spectacle that seemed more in keeping with the carnival atmosphere of the fair than the mood of the games. The outcome was so scandalous that the event was nearly abolished for good. On this podcast, we feature that story and you are not going to believe it.

Other Stories Include – The Needle Murder, Grand Theft Astro, Why don’t people believe, Don’t Touch My Batman Bank, My Rose Recorder, The Test Rocket, Johnny Is It True – Facebook Edition, Last Scene Of All, and The Marathon of The 1904 Olympics.

Ron’s Amazing Stories Sponsored by: Audible – You can get a free audiobook and a 30 day free trial at audibletrial.com/ronsamazingstories and Gladdy’s Goodies – Good Treats for your dog to eat.

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Podcast Early This week!

Hello!

The podcast this week will be dropping one day early. My nephew is getting married this Thursday and for better or worse he and his lovely bride have asked me to attend. I am looking forward to it and am sure it is going to be very fun. It is an outside event with the backdrop being the Columbia River Gorge. Quite beautiful actually.

On the podcast this week we have a tribute to the olympics (Kind of). We will take a look at the 1904 edition. The 1904 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the III Olympiad was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in St. Louis, Missouri from August 29 until September 3, 1904. We will be focusing on the marathon which has gone down in history as one of the strangest events of all time.

Also, on the show will be a brand new Johnny Is It True – Facebook Edition, a story from Lord Dunsany titled Last Scene Of All, and of course stories from you guys.

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RAS #501 – Rocket Ship

On Ron’s Amazing Stories we have a pretty odd collection of tales that range from strange music that has no source, to a haunting train whistle, and then a presence that really loves its pink shed. Our featured story comes from the OTR series Light’s Out. Now, I’ll bet you think it is going to be horror. You would be wrong! It is a science fiction classic titled Rocket Ship. So press that play button and enjoy the show.

Featured Story – Rocket Ship

Our featured story comes from the classic OTR series Lights out. We take a trip to the moon and back, but not a happy one. This story is a real departure for the folks at Lights Out. The creators, In this case, Arch Obler, rarely did science fiction. The program leaned more towards horror and suspense. The good news is that this really shows just how talented the production crew of Lights Out was. Our story is titled Rocket Ship and it first aired on July 28th, 1947.

Other Stories Include – No Leg To Stand On, Riders of the Purple Sage, The Music Never Stops, The Train Whistle, Little Pink Shed, and Rocket Ship

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But I’m Naked!

A few years ago I put out a call for UFO stories. I got a lot of responses, but this story wasn’t one of them. However it is strange and kind of funny. It comes from Bobby Francis who lives and resides in New York.

Hey Ron, I don’t have a UFO story, but I did see something I can’t explain or would even try. I was in college when this happened. I was known as a bit of a party animal in those days and because of that no one believed me, so I stopped telling it. Each week you ask for stories and here is mine dusted off from some 10 years ago.

We were at a nearby lake, we had too much stuff and everyone thought it was smart to go skinning dipping in November. If you live in New York you know what a really bad idea this was. We arrived at the lake and got naked.

It turns out that, in fact, I was only one to get naked and everyone fled the scene taking my clothes with them. Very funny, right? Here I am sobering up very quickly, snow falling, and just waiting to be caught. I ran to a bush and hid hoping that the joke was soon to be over. As I waited I saw a creature of some sort wander into the area. It was small and completely hairless. A fate I could understand with complete empathy.

It stopped, got on its hind legs and looked right at me. I thought I was hidden, but this thing could see me. It stood about five feet tall and looked fairly natural on its hind legs. In fact it began to walk towards me.

I got a bit nervous and ran back towards the park entrance. The thing followed me and I picked up the pace. I was a bit of an athlete in those days, so I decided to run faster. I heard a sound coming from the beast that was not human and I kicked it into overdrive. I ran right into my friend who had come back with my clothes and apology. I turned to look at the beast, but nothing was there.

What was it? Was it part of the joke? Nobody at that party ever fessed up to anything.

Bobby Francis – New York

This Week’s Podcast: On the show this week we head back into the world of old time radio with a very dramatic science fiction story titled Rocket Ship. It comes from the folks at Light’s Out and is a thriller, chiller and word of warning all rolled into one. You can listen to this podcast on Thursday at Ron’s Amazing Stories, download it from Apple Podcasts, stream it on Stitcher Radio or on the mobile version of Spotify. Do you prefer the radio? We are heard every Thursday at 10:00 pm and Sunday Night at 11:00 PM (EST) on AMFM247.COM. Check your local listing or find the station closest to you at this link

Social Links:
Main Podcast Site by LibSyn
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