Archive Adventures: Do You Hear What I Hear?

It's finals week here at Penn State, and for students, professors, and staff...that means long hours and hard work before finally getting a break for the Christmas holiday. For everyone everywhere, however, it's the week before Christmas and it's just as busy! Carolers, or wassailers*, are crawling all over the place and even if you haven't heard them (yet), you certainly can't have missed the constant barrage of Christmas tunes in any location with an available speaker to hook up. When I think of it, music and Christmas have probably always gone hand in hand. Not surprisingly, here at Special Collections, we have a book for that....and videos!

Now we're in my domain! Up in Fred Waring's America, we have EVERYTHING Fred Waring. Considering how long his career was, it's no wonder there are five million and two Christmas songs put onto two million and a half albums (warning: these numbers may be off; which way is your guess), and for many Americans around during the Pennsylvanians' heyday on television and radio these songs are the staple of holiday cheer. Thankfully, due to the modern marvel of digitization and YouTube, we get to continue sharing them with you.

The most expensive song in Christmas was a dramatic moment for the Fred Waring Show. During "The Twelve Days of Christmas," they fit nearly the entire cast and crew of the show on set and created a surprise formation at the end similar to their "dancing dominoes" routine. You'll want to skip to 1:25 to get straight to the song I'm talking about. Remember: this was live television, and it was in the youth of broadcast television (most agree 1948 as its public birth year), so the routine was quite impressive for its time!

Christmas, just like any other family gathering, is not exempt from familial strife. In one of the funniest videos I have ever come across in Fred Waring's America, Fred gets caught up in a battle of the wills. And we all know that a large group of upset toddlers is more than a match for any one adult. Though the segment was originally entitled "Babes in Toyland," we in FWA have lovingly nicknamed it "Fred Waring in the Christmas Octagon." You'll see why...

Of course, there are always a wealth of beautiful, traditional Christmas songs. One of our most popular videos is the 1954 Christmas Special of The Fred Waring Show, hosted by Ronald Reagan. This three-parter on our channel is chock-full of songs, from traditional carols to popular modern ballads and devotional hymns. *Sigh* I do love the smooth, sweet tenor of Gordon Goodman crooning "The Christmas Song," and of course the sampling of scenes from Harry Simeone's "The Nutcracker Suite" is a classic. We hope you enjoy these, and the many other videos we have on the FredWaringsAmerica YouTube channel. (Pssst...We have Stuart Churchill singing Schubert's Ave Maria, one of my absolute favorite pieces of all time. Great Christmas music right there!)

We're not done yet!

Back down in the main Special Collections holdings, we have the Allison-Shelley Christmas collection to drool over for our pretty pictures. I had actually never heard of this specific part of the larger Allison-Shelley Collection (is that new? no...you could spend your life devoted to this archive and still find something new on your last day) until I started digging for post ideas. I'm very thankful I learned about it, because what I found is darn cool.

I haven't seen Sound of Music in awhile (and I don't know if it really counts as a Christmas film), but as soon as I saw "Trapp family" I knew this had to go up here. What I love is that you get the English words above the German, so you have some options for fun party games after the eggnog has been served. Try it with a whole room of people who don't speak German and watch out for those 3+ syllable words!

The unique, woodblock-like illustrations were done by Agathe Trapp

I'm particularly smitten by this 1910 print of Weihnachtsklaenge, a German Christmas music book. It has such wonderfully illustrated pictures in full color along with German carols.

Instant love from the moment I laid my eyes on it.

I love the richness of the colors! This was one of those times where I had to tear myself away or risk spending the afternoon doing nothing else but drooling over the illustrations.

This picture in particular caught my eye. It perfectly captures a cloudy, winter night with all its stillness. Reminds me of waking up at midnight in 2009 when the mini-blizzard hit PSU on homecoming weekend and knocked out the electric across town.

Finally, the Frost Queen and Santa Claus tickled me pink just because it sounds like a 1950s TV special. Really, it's an 1890 cantata written for children by William Howard Doane, who turns out was famous for his hymn-writing. Sunday school teachers must have loved his work, because an enthusiastic ad for this particular cantata appears in their circular and in my research on this I found out Doane amassed a sizable financial cushion to retire on. Part of it was his work in industry, but I have to be honest...if this were around today, I'd probably buy a whole bunch and give them out as Christmas gifts because it looks like a hoot. I can see why they were so popular back then!

Well, while our Christmas tour has ended, the joy of learning does not! We here at Special Collections wish you the merriest and happiest of holidays, and hope to see you in January 2013! Be safe, everyone, and to all a good night!

-Alex





*Fun fact: the word wassail is derived from the Anglo-Saxon toast of be in good health. Also, groups of young men would sing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" for a musical excuse to trash prominent neighborhoods by demanding food and drink in exchange for not destroying people's homes. You know, in good cheer and all.Today's wassailers are laaaaame!

Fred Waring's America releases new music

As a tribute to the Big Ten Conference and the upcoming college football season, Fred Waring's America announces a newly released compilation of vintage collegiate songs.  These songs of the Big Ten were originally recorded in the 1930s on aluminum disc and featured on Fred Waring's weekly radio shows.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52bV1InqwJc

Two Waring Films to be Screened at Arts Fest!

Two rare Fred Waring motion pictures, featuring the music and acting of Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians, will be featured at 3 p.m. on July 13 and 14 at the State Theatre in State College, Pa., during the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.  An Arts Festival button will be required for entrance.

Syncopation (1929) was publicized as the “first mammoth all-talking screen extravaganza, featuring the world’s greatest band making their film debut in a spectacular musical drama." The film featured the band’s first female performer, Dorothy Lee along with actors Barbara Bennett and Morton Downey. Syncopation will be screened at 3 p.m. on July 13th.

Warner Brothers' Varsity Show (1937) will be shown at 3 p.m. on July 14th. Nominated for an Academy Award for best dance direction in 1937, the film starred Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians as themselves, along with a supporting cast that included Dick Powell, Ted Healy, and Rosemary and Priscilla Lane. With music and lyrics by Johnny Mercer and Richard Whiting, the dynamic selection of songs in this lively musical included "Old King Cole," sung by Johnnie Davis; "We're Working Our Way Through College," sung by Dick Powell; "I'm Dependable," sung by Priscilla Lane and Fred Waring and written by Tom Waring and Don Raye; "Love Is on the Air Tonight," sung by Buck and Bubbles; among others. The highlight of "Varsity Show" was a memorable college finale, orchestrated by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians and choreographed by Busby Berkeley.

The films are from Fred Waring's America Collection, part of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library. For more visit the Waring Collection online at www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/digital/fwa.html.

Special Collections Library offers Thanksgiving wishes with Waring Show

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, take time to reflect on all that we have to be thankful for with Fred Waring’s America latest video podcast. This recently produced podcast features the music of Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians as seen on their weekly CBS television program, the Fred Waring Show. This month’s presentation features an entire 30-minute television show with songs all related to the Thanksgiving holiday and the spirit of thankfulness.

For television history buffs, the show also includes advertisements of the day, offering an interesting contrast to today's networks.

Videos from Fred Waring’s America may be viewed on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/FredWaringsAmerica.

For other Fred Waring podcasts, visit http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/psu.edu.2125864609 or follow these steps:

-- Go to https://itunes.psu.edu/

-- Log in as a Penn State user or a guest (wait for iTunes to launch)

-- Select Penn State Podcast Shows

-- Select Fred Waring Collection

Fred Waring's America documents 20th-century American popular culture through song, radio, movies and television performance. The large-scale collection provides primary source material for researchers, musicians and music educators, orchestra and choral conductors, documentary filmmakers, golden-age radio enthusiasts as well as media and cultural historians.

New podcasts are added each month and feature clips from the collection's vast archive of 25,000 recordings on disc, wire, tape, kinescope and video. The recordings cover every radio and television broadcast made by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians from 1933­ to 1960; concert recordings; reference recordings of Fred Waring music workshop sessions and concerts; and other miscellaneous performances, appearances and interviews, including recent interviews with famous cartoonists who spent time at Waring's golf resort every summer from the late 1940s through 1970s.

For more information, email Tim Babcock- Coordinator of Fred Waring's America @ trb157@psu.edu or call 814-863-2911.

Local Contest at Eberly Family Special Collections Library, Penn State University Libraries

“I Found it in the Archives” Contest

Nationally Sponsored by the Society of American Archivists (SAA), www.archivists.org

The contest is an opportunity for Special Collections researchers (all categories) to submit a short story of their quest for information and their success in finding it in the Penn State Special Collections Library. The story – submitted either as a 400-word written essay or as a video recording of no more than two minutes – should tell their tale of discovery and show the result/s of their search.

Ground Rules:

1) Who Can Enter? Any person who has utilized Special Collections materials within the past calendar year (January 1, 2011-Present).

Faculty, staff and student employees (current or former) of the Special Collections Library or its affiliated Library departments are ineligible to enter this contest.

2) Where to submit entries? General drop off of entries can be accomplished in person at: 104 Paterno Library, University Park, Pa 16802 or online to UL-SPCOLREF@lists.psu.edu

3) How will they be judged? A five-person panel of Penn State University archival professionals will review all submitted entries and choose three winners who will be awarded first, second and third place prizes.

The first place winning entry will then be submitted to the Society of American Archivists national contest. The winner of the national contest will receive a trip to the SAA Annual Meeting to be held in San Diego, CA in August 2012.

4) What is the timing? Entries for the local Penn State contest will be accepted beginning 8:00 a.m. EST, Tuesday, November 1, 2011 through 5:00 p.m. EST, Friday, December 2, 2011. Prize winners will be announced at a public event in the Foster Auditorium, University Libraries on Wednesday, January 18, 2012 at 2:00 p.m.

5) What are the prizes?

FIRST PRIZE: $100 Barnes and Noble Bookstore Gift Card

SECOND PRIZE: Penn State Fleece Jacket

THIRD PRIZE: Autographed Penn State Creamery book authored by former Penn State University Archivist and SAA President Lee Stout

Additional information about the contest can be obtained by contacting Contest co-Chairs Jeanette Eisenhart at jce3@psu.edu and/or Meredith Weber at maw9@psu.edu at 814-863-1793.

(Belated) St. Patrick's Day Treat: Fred Waring on iTunes U

Listeners can now view a Fred Waring St. Patrick’s Day video podcast on the Fred Waring Collection on iTunes U. The collection known as Fred Waring’s America, is a unique part of the Special Collections Library at Penn State University Libraries. The current selection lets listeners relive Fred Waring’s St. Patrick’s Day shows, originally aired on CBS from 1949 to 1955.

Fred Waring’s America documents 20th century American popular culture through song, radio, movies and television performance. The large-scale collection provides primary source material for researchers, musicians and music educators, orchestra and choral conductors, documentary filmmakers, golden-age radio enthusiasts as well as media and cultural historians.

Listeners can link via http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/psu.edu.2125864609 or they can follow these steps:

1. Go to https://itunes.psu.edu/

2. Log in as a Penn State use or a guest (wait for iTunes to launch)

3. Select Penn State Podcast Shows

4. Select Fred Waring Collection

New podcasts will be added, on or around the 15th of the month. The podcasts will feature clips from the collection's vast archive of 25,000 recordings on disc, wire, tape, kinescope and video. The recordings cover every radio and television broadcast made by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians from 1933­1960; concert recordings; reference recordings of Fred Waring music workshop sessions and concerts; and other miscellaneous performances, appearances and interviews, including recent interviews with famous cartoonists who spent time at Waring's golf resort every summer from the late 1940s through 1970s.

Fred Waring Podcasts featured in the Centre Daily Times

From reporter Stephanie Koons:

Many people in central Pennsylvania have probably heard of Fred Waring, a Tyrone native known as “The Man Who Taught America How to Sing.” Not as many, however, may have had the chance to hear his music.

By using digital technology, Penn State University Libraries is now making Waring’s music more accessible than ever...

Read more: http://www.centredaily.com/2011/01/21/2467685/mans-music-free-to-public.html

Fred Waring’s Songs for 2011 on iTunes U

Revive your hope and inspiration for the new year with with a video podcast on iTunes U featuring the music of Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians. This recently produced podcast, part of the Special Collection Library’s Fred Waring’s America collection, features 7 songs from 4 different Fred Waring albums.  These songs, all inspirational in theme, include performances from Fred Waring’s orchestra, glee club, and featured soloists. 

To view the video, go to http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/psu.edu.2125864609 or follow these steps:

1. Go to https://itunes.psu.edu/
2. Log in as a Penn State use or a guest (wait for iTunes to launch)
3. Select Penn State Podcast Shows
4. Select Fred Waring Collection

New podcasts will be added to iTunes U on or around the 15th of the month and will feature clips from the collection’s vast archive of 25,000 recordings on disc, wire, tape, kinescope and video, covering every radio and television broadcast made by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians from 1933–1960; concert recordings; reference recordings of Fred Waring music workshop sessions and concerts and other miscellaneous performances. For more information, call 814-863-2911.

Tim Babcock's First Podcast for the Fred Waring Archives

Follow the link to I-Tunes University, wherein Tim shares an excerpt from one of Fred Waring's classic Christmas-themed television shows!

Fred Waring Collection Podcast

The first podcast of the Fred Waring Collection is available for your listening pleasure on iTunes!

Simply open iTunes, choose iTunes Store and type Fred Waring in the search box.

Cursor down to the bottom of the page and you will be able to click on the Podcast.

If you have any trouble finding it, let me know. Feel free to give me your comments and suggestions. I will be posting a new Podcast every month.

Thanks,
Eileen