See You on the Radio

By: Charles Osgood

Narrated by: Charles Osgood

Length: 3 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

At least 12 million people listen to Osgood every day on CBS radio, and millions more watch him on CBS News Sunday Morning. All of them would agree that no one delivers quite the way he does the offbeat stories that make listeners stop and pay attention; the commentaries in which he shares his sense of wonder, dismay, or amusement; and the well-spun tales of irony that often burst forth into wordplay or even poetry.

See You on the Radio gathers together some of the best of Osgood's work - over 100 essays on everything from potholes, perfumes, felons, and freeloaders; to psychopaths and politicians (more alike than you think); to earthquakes, animal heirs, and the advancement of science. ("Osgood's First Law: Just because something is obvious doesn't necessarily mean that science isn't going to discover it tomorrow.")

©1999 Charles Osgood (P)2000 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"Charles Osgood's gentle, bemused style of brief human interest stories and doggerel poetry remains a favorite....Those who haven't heard Osgood's show should pick this up to discover what they've been missing." ( AudioFile)

The Years Melt Away

From sixth grade through high school I lived just outside New York City. "77 WABC," the local Top 40s AM station, was the radio channel preferred by everyone my age,

Not me. I grew up listening to WCBS, "News Radio 88." Nonstop. Whenever I could listen to the radio. So much so that during a week-long stay in a hospital, when I could listen for hours, my roommate, also in his teens, cried out in disbelief, "Is news all you listen to?"

Well, yes . . . yes it was. News Radio 88 was informative and entertaining, and from 1967-1974 there was a lot of interesting news. Plus, WCBS had great local special segments. Which brings me to Charles Osgood.

While most people now Charlie Osgood from his long-running stint as the host of CBS Sunday Morning, I knew him from his daily three-minute stories on WCBS, where he was the first anchor of the first morning drive shift after the station converted to all news in 1967.

In addition to his anchor duties, Charles created "The Osgood File," a series of three-minute stories broadcast first as a segment on WCBS in 1967. The Osgood file was not "hard news." It was "fun" news. Charles had a great nose for finding the kind of quirky topics that make an interesting story, such as a man who tried to evade police by pulling twenty dollar bills out his underwear and throwing them to slow down the cops' pursuit. And Charles knew how to write these story for radio. Short sentences and short paragraphs he said were the key.

But as anyone who grew up listening to Charlie knows, it was his voice that made these stories. Warm. Buttery. Welcoming. Like a cup of hot chocolate next to a warm fire on a snowy day. He wrote for himself and his unique style of delivery. Respites from "hard news" delivered in three-minute slices.

"See you on the radio" was his trademark sign-off, and this audible book collects scores of his best stories over the years. Charles kept producing his radio stories even as he became known to a wider audience for hosting Sunday Morning. You cannot listen to this book for hours straight as you might another. Like chocolate mousse, each carefully crafted vignette is too rich, too filling. They are best consumed in small doses. Besides, like a good mousse, you will want to make it last.

easy listening to

the narrator and his voice I enjoyed them both. I'm glad I listened to this book.

I loved hearing Charles Osgood’s calming voice again. I could hear the twinkle in his eyes as he told the stories.

I loved hearing all of Charles Osgood’s stories. I hated that it ended much too soon.