Wordy Birds

Lesbian and Gay Richmond

(with Alex Lorch)

Original airdate: July 11, 2008

“Lesbian and Gay Richmond” is a look at the histories and contributions of homosexual Richmonders . It begins with Richard Cornish, one of the original Jamestown settlers, who was sentenced to death for breaking the sodomy laws. It moves through the centuries of fear, anger and rebellion and remarks on the achievements that have shaped Richmond just as much as Thomas Jefferson’s design of the State Capitol Building.

Unfortunately, many of these remarkable people who helped create our city were not recognized as LGBT. So while we celebrate their contributions, a large part of the creator was censored and misrepresented.  The truth was, despite some adamant docent’s decrees, that Lewis Ginter was a homosexual… as were so many others who designed our capital city.

(Another appalling anecdote of LGBT history is that it was against the law to serve a homosexual person alcohol until the late 1970s!)

In my opinion, the people in this book are our great romantic heroes.  The people in “Lesbian and Gay Richmond” have been true to themselves and, in some cases, risked their fame, fortune and physical safety to be with the ones they loved.

This is a good show. I hope you tune in.

Sincerely,

Liz

Listen to the show:

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The Marriage of True Minds

Original airdate: June 27, 2008

Here is what Kinky Friedman said about this book, “Stephen Evans’ first novel, ‘The Marriage of True Minds,’ is a funny, poignant, oddly beautiful book about three divergent life forms-animals, people and lawyers. You will love it if you read it with a true mind.”

What more can I say? Look up Kinky Friedman if you won’t take his word for it.

The rest is best left to the audio. At the end of the show, Mr. Evans does a great job explaining the different types of laughs one gets on stage. It’s worth a listen…and a read. Oh… it’s short and fun too – great  for airports and train stations.

Thanks for tuning in.

Liz

Listen to the show:

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Haunted Battlefields

Original airdate: July 4, 2008

Virginia’s gruesome history is reanimated again, but this time in the pages of Beth Brown’s book, “Haunted Battlefields: Virginia’s Civil War Ghosts.”

Beth visits thirteen of Virginia’s (presumably) most haunted Civil War battlefields with recording equipment and a digital camera. Her goal is to capture the truth behind the rumors… or explain life after death.  In the show you’ll hear two of the recordings she made during her escapades. You can form your own opinion.

“Haunted Battlefields” is a local book, published by a small press, but a worthy tool for the adventurous looking for a new way to scare the bejesus out of themselves.

What I liked specifically about the book was the structure. Beth starts every chapter with a history lesson, explains her visit to the site and then summarizes what she determined about the haunting based on impressions and her recordings.

It’s a great show, but alas… the great mysteries of life were not solved here.

Thanks for tuning in.

Liz

Listen to the show:

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