Program 04-01-04-A

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To The Best of Our Knowledge
from Wisconsin Public Radio

It's one of the great stories in the history of books. James Murray was a poor kid from Scotland who dropped out of school at age 14. Somehow, he taught himself the history of words in various languages, and went on to create the world's greatest dictionary. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge Simon Winchester tells the remarkable story of James Murray and the Oxford English Dictionary.

SEGMENT 1:

Paul Flores and Marc Bamuthi Joseph are spoken-word poets in the San Francisco Bay area. They tell Steve Paulson this is a new kind of poetry, revolutionizing the literary landscape and creating a new generation of writers.

SEGMENT 2:

The Oxford English Dictionary was created in 1857, and was expected to be finished within ten years. The first edition was finally completed 71 years later. Simon Winchester tells Jim Fleming about the central character in the story, a high-school dropout named James Murray. He edited the dictionary for nearly 40 years, and refused to cut corners even when his publishers pressured him to speed things up. Winchester's book is The Meaning of Everything. Abram de Swaan is a Dutch sociologist who studies the politics of language. He tells Steve Paulson that English is the worldwide language of business and diplomacy, though many wish it weren't.

SEGMENT 3:

Billy Collins has stepped down as America's Poet Laureate, but he hasn't stopped trying to make poetry more accessible and more widely read. His own poems do much of the work, grabbing the reader in the very first line. He tells Jim Fleming about the art of writing a poem. His latest collection is called Nine Horses.

Cassette copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 04-01-04-A.

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Books:

• Billy Collins, Nine Horses: poems (Random House)
  
• Simon Winchester, The Meaning of Everything: the Story of the Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford)

Music:

• Before Flores & Joseph interview: Paul Flores w/ "I am on a journey to my soul, but the police just pulled me over" on "Handbook for the Apocalypse" CD Wide Hive Records
• After Flores & Joseph interview: Marc Bamuthi Joseph w/ "Late" on "Seeking" CD
• Jasmon w/ "Dimdana" on Putamayo's "World Lounge" CD Putamayo World Music
• After Simon Winchester: Tony Barrand w/ "The Battle of Hastings"
• After Abram de Swaan: Bjork w/ "Visur Vatnsenda-Rosu" on "Songs from the Cold Seas" Columbia
• After Billy Collins: Dissidenten w/ "Instinctive Traveler" on Putamayo's "World Lounge" CD Putamayo World Music
  

Distribution dates:

week of 11/14/2004 - hour 1 week of 01/04/2004 - hour 1

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Questions and comments can be addressed to: flemingj@wpr.org

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