03 | Streetcars, Bootleggers, Old Downtown | LBJ at Percy Priest Dam | June 2018 Issue
Release Date: 06/04/2018
13 | Larry Brinton | Cash-for-Clemency Scandal, ‘Marie’ Movie | JFK Visit, Janet March Murder | August 2019 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Veteran reporter Larry Brinton recalls growing up in Nashville, how he became a reporter, and more of this big news stories, including the Janet March murder, President Kennedy’s Nashville visit, and the cash-for-clemency scandal, which led to his portrayal of himself in the 1985 movie “Marie.” This special podcast, on the occasion of Brinton’s recent death, is a continuation of the interview from Episode 01. The contents of the August 2019 Nashville Retrospect are reviewed.
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12 | Early TV, Hermitage Hotel, WWII Marriage | ‘Near You’ and Music City USA | March 2019 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
At 94 years old, Mary B. Williams remembers being a teenager in East Nashville during World War II, dancing at the Hermitage Hotel, and her TV career at the birth of the medium. Historian Don Cusic tells the story of Nashville’s first big hit record, “Near You” in 1947, and the beginnings of Music City USA. And the contents of the March 2019 Nashville Retrospect newspaper are reviewed.
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11 | Slavery, Runaways, Fancy Girls | Alex Haley’s ‘Roots’ | African-American Genealogy | February 2019 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Bill Carey relates how pervasive the institution of slavery was in Tennessee, as evidenced by ads in newspapers, including runaways and fancy girls. Taneya Koonce discusses the novel “Roots” and African-American genealogy. Also hear “Roots” author Alex Haley speak at the state capitol. And the contents of the February 2019 Nashville Retrospect newspaper are reviewed.
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10 | War of 1812, Andrew Jackson, Creek War | Richard Fulton’s Country Music Record | Sulphur Water | January 2019 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Dr. Tom Kanon discusses the War of 1812, including: Tennessee’s rise to national prominence, becoming known as “The Volunteer State”; Native-Americans’ loss of millions of acres of territory in the Creek War; Gen. Andrew Jackson becoming president after a lopsided victory in the Battle of New Orleans; and how a comet and earthquakes helped launch the war. Also hear U.S. Congressman Richard Fulton’s country music record. And the contents of the January 2019 issue are reviewed.
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09 | Christmas Eve River Rescue | Bygone Old Christmas | December 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
A woman jumped off the Shelby Street Bridge on Christmas Eve, 1956, with a baby in her arms. Interviews with Harold Hogue, Anne Knox, and Judy Hunt Charest about the tragic yet heroic event and its aftermath decades later. Also, Tennessee folk singers Dee and Delta Hicks discuss the lost tradition of Old Christmas. And the contents of the December 2018 issue are reviewed.
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08 | World War I Relics | Gold Star Records | Military Branch Museum | November 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Dr. Lisa Budreau discusses World War I relics in the Tennessee State Museum, including a German cannon and Sergeant York’s medals. Allison Griffey relates stories from the Gold Star Records, as well as stories about women factory workers, the influenza epidemic, and the Mexican village at the Old Hickory gun powder plant. Dan Pomeroy tells the history of the Military Branch Museum. And the contents of the November 2018 issue of The Nashville Retrospect are reviewed.
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07 | City Cemetery | Dr. Lucifur and Sir Cecil Creape | Halloween | October 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Fletch Coke tells the history of Nashville City Cemetery (established in 1822) and the stories of the people buried there. Jeff Thompson and Larry Underwood discuss Nashville legendary TV horror hosts Dr. Lucifur and Sir Cecil Creape. And the spooky contents of the October 2018 Nashville Retrospect newspaper are reviewed.
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06 | Glenn School Integration | 1957 Desegregation Hearings | Brown v. Board of Education | September 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
In 1957, the desegregation of Nashville public schools involved protests by white supremacists, political stalling, and a school bombing. Hear interviews with people who were there, including Lajuanda Street Harley, Sorena Street, Debi Oeser Cox, Joe Casey and Larry Brinton. Dr. Bobby Lovett explains Brown v. Board of Education. Also hear excerpts of desegregation hearings, and a review of the contents of the September 2018 Nashville Retrospect newspaper.
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05 | Settlement of Nashville, Indian Wars | Elvis at the State Capitol | August 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Paul Clements relates stories about the first settlers to arrive in the Nashville area in the late 1700s, including why they came and why Native Americans attacked them. Hear Elvis Presley speak to the Tennessee legislature in 1961. And the contents of the August 2018 Nashville Retrospect newspaper are reviewed. (This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence.)
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04 | Dutchman’s Curve Train Wreck | Elmer Hinton’s Humor Album | July 2018 Issue
Nashville Retrospect
Betsy Thorpe tells the stories from the 1918 Dutchman’s Curve train wreck in West Nashville, the deadliest in U.S. history. Also hear excerpts from humor columnist Elmer Hinton’s 1968 album “Down to Earth.” And the contents of the July 2018 Nashville Retrospect newspaper are reviewed.
info_outlineNashville used to be a city of streetcars, society bootleggers, and downtown shopping. Host Allen Forkum (editor of The Nashville Retrospect newspaper) interviews Frank Schwartz, who, at 92 years old, remembers a Nashville with street photographers, downtown theaters, and residents who dressed up to go out. He also discusses his family’s business, Rich-Schwartz, a women’s fine-clothing store known for such innovations as “ready-to-wear” garments and “red tag” sales. (Segment begins at 04:10.)
Frank Schwartz (right) is pictured on Church Street in 1938 with his friend Arnold Haber Jr. The photograph was taken by a street photographer, which Schwartz describes in the podcast. (Image: Frank Schwartz)
Owned by Randall Butler, this 1932 Chevrolet was the “jalopy” that he and Frank Schwartz drove as teenagers. The picture was taken in 1942 at the intersection of West End and Elliston Place. Notice the pile of metal to the right and the “Smash the Japs” sign, both part of a scrap-metal collection drive for World War II. Marshall-Donnelly-Combs Funeral Home is in the background on the left. (Image: Frank Schwartz)
This circa 1927 photo (from the Rich-Schwartz 60th anniversary booklet) shows a window of the original store, which opened in 1902 and was located on Fifth Avenue North. (Image: Frank Schwartz and Jewish Federation of Nashville Archives)
Also in Episode 03, hear excerpts from President Lyndon Johnson’s speech at the dedication of the J. Percy Priest Dam on June 29, 1968, in which he discusses nuclear weapons and conservation. Bill Staggs is interviewed about being there that day as part of The Townsmen, a rock group backing up The Jordanaires. (Segment begins at 27:00.)
President Lyndon B. Johnson speaks at the dedication ceremony for the J. Percy Priest Dam on June 29, 1968. (Image: Nashville Public Library, Nashville Room, photo by Bill Goodman)
In this Nashville Banner photo, The Jordanaires (left) perform during the dedication ceremonies for Percy Priest Dam (seen in the background). Backing up The Jordanaires is local band The Townsmen, made up of (from left to right): Nathan “Snake” Black (not fully visible on drums), Gary Jerkins, Bill Staggs, and Gerald Jerkins. (Image: Nashville Public Library, Nashville Room)
And finally, Allen Forkum reviews some of the stories in the June 2018 issue of The Nashville Retrospect, including: the birth of a girl with four legs (1868); the Ku Klux Klan's first public rally since 1869 (1923); and figure-eight racing at Fairgrounds Speedway (1963). (Segment begins at 01:26.)
SHOW NOTES
A list of articles relating to this episode contained in archive issues of The Nashville Retrospect (archive issues can be ordered by clicking here or on the issue links below):
• ”Rich-Schwartz: The World’s First ’Ready-To-Wear“ Women’s Store” by Jean Roseman, The Nashville Retrospect, July 2012
• “Blaze Destroys Loew’s Theater,” Nashville Banner, Aug. 9, 1967 (The Nashville Retrospect, August 2012)
• “The Paramount Theater,” by Stanley Hime, The Nashville Retrospect, October 2010
• “President Urges Respect For Law And Order,” Nashville Tennessean, Dec. 6, 1933, (The Nashville Retrospect, December 2016)
• “Police Raid; Restaurant Violated New Prohibition Law” by George Zepp, The Nashville Retrospect, August 2009
• “Streetcar Makes Final Run; Modern Buses Take Over,” Nashville Tennessean, Feb. 2, 1941 (The Nashville Retrospect, February 2016)
• “75 Years Later: A Look Back at Streetcars in Nashville” by Ralcon Wagner, The Nashville Retrospect, February 2016
• “The Street Car in Parade,” Nashville Banner, Oct. 30, 1926 (The Nashville Retrospect, October 2016)
• “On The Electric Cars,” Daily American, May 1, 1889 (The Nashville Retrospect, April 2010)
• See the June 2018 issue of The Nashville Retrospect for other stories referenced on this episode.
Links relating to this episode:
50th Anniversary of J. Percy Priest Dam, U.S. Arm Corp of Engineers
"Rich, Schwartz & Joseph" by Debie Oeser Cox
Marshall-Donnelly-Combs Funeral Home
Audio: President Johnson excerpts courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Music: “Near You” by Francis Craig and His Orchestra (Bullet, 1947); “Quiet Outro” by ROZKOL (2018); “Covered Wagon Days” by Ted Weems and His Orchestra; and “The Buffalo Rag” by Vess L. Ossman