The 3:57 by William E. Spear

CASEY AT THE BAT

By Ernest Lawrence Thayer

Start excerpted transcript:

(Take Me Out to the Ballpark comes up)

Hello. This is The 3:57 and my name is William Spear. This episode is one of the all-time sports classics - CASEY AT THE BAT.

Every sports fan knows the sting of defeat when a favorite team loses. From football to bowling to curling, fans take losses hard.

But one story has captured the despair of a crushing loss since 1888. That's when Ernest Lawrence Thayer told the tale of the Mudville fans. Losing late in the game, they hoped their hero would get a chance to bat. And he did!

And now . . . CASEY AT THE BAT.

The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day:

The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play,

And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same,

A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest

Clung to the hope which springs eternal in the human breast;

They thought, "If only Casey could but get a whack at that—

We'd put up even money now, with Casey at the bat."

But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake,

And the former was a hoodoo, while the latter was a cake;

So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat,

For there seemed but little chance of Casey getting to the bat.

But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all,

And Blake, the much despisèd, tore the cover off the ball;

And when the dust had lifted, and men saw what had occurred,

There was Jimmy safe at second and Flynn a-hugging third.

Then from five thousand throats and more there rose a lusty yell;

It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell;

It pounded on the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,

For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.

End of excerpt.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

IT SUITS HER, Episode 13

Release date: 24 October 2023

Start excerpted transcript:

(Theme for It Suits Her fades up and under)

Hello. This is William Spear, host of The 3:57 by William E. Spear. Thanks to Maxie and Celia for hosting the program while I recovered from too many milkshakes.

This is the current series called IT SUITS HER.

Maxie has gotten his suit - all puns are intended - but at a price well beyond the twenty dollars he paid. Celia has been fired from the Smart Styles Tailoring Shop. They are standing in the dark in cold weather.

For the first time, they are simply and merely two people. There is no ex-movie star. There is no assistant manager. Just two individuals with fractured pasts and blank futures.

What's next for them? Stay tuned for Episode Thirteen of . . . IT SUITS HER.

(Theme for Standing in the Cold)

Celia and Maxie are standing and nearly shivering. The evening has gone where neither expected.

She finally speaks: "I almost bit a hole in my lip to keep from laughing when you wanted a receipt."

Maxie returned the humor: "And you pushed him over the edge when you asked."

The cold temperature chilled their attempted humor laughter.

Celia nodded: "It’s a nice suit, though."

Maxie let her know he was sorry about her job.

"There are plenty of other jobs," she shrugged. "I can start over with someone else. But you missed your audition."

Celia's cell phone, muffled in her coat pocket, rang twice. Maxie paused but Celia shook her head "No" and said he could leave a message.

Maxie continued: "Anyway, the audition was a hundred to one shot that wasn’t meant to be. I’ll get another one."

Celia smiled and considered her words carefully: "Were you really a drunk?"

End of excerpt.

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THE RAVEN

By Edgar Allan Poe

Release date: 21 October 2023

Start excerpted transcript:

(The Raven Intro and Outro comes on)

Hello and welcome to The 3:57. I am the host, William E. Spear.

This episode contains a grieving heart - not to be confused with a tell-tale heart - and avian anxiety that first flew in the middle of the nineteenth century.

Edgar Allan Poe published THE RAVEN in 1845. Immediately, his "lost Lenore" and feathered fear induced "dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before" that continue to this day.

And now, quoth the host, THE RAVEN.

(Interior Theme for The Raven comes up and goes under)

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,

Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,

While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,

As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.

"'Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door-

Only this, and nothing more."

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,

And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.

Eagerly I wished the morrow;- vainly I had sought to borrow

From my books surcease of sorrow- sorrow for the lost Lenore-

For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore-

Nameless here for evermore.

[Theme for Lenore comes up and under]

And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain

Thrilled me- filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;

So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating,

"'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door-

Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;-

This it is, and nothing more."

End of excerpt.

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A DECEMBER FORCE OF POETS

Release date: 9 December 2023

Poetry with a December focus from Emily Jane Brontë, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, and Mary Bridges Caned Slade is highlighted in this edition of A DECEMBER FORCE OF POETS. William Spear narrates TO A WREATH OF SNOW, OUT IN THE COLD, and WHAT DECEMBER SAYS from Brontë, Harper, and Slade, respectively.

The first poem is Emily Jane Brontë's TO A WREATH OF SNOW.

Brontë was born in Yorkshire, England in 1818 and wrote nearly 200 poems and the novel WUTHERING HEIGHTS.

TO A WREATH OF SNOW was written in 1837 and published after Brontë's death.

The second poem is Frances Ellen Watkins Harper's OUT IN THE COLD.

Harper was born in Baltimore, Maryland USA in September of 1825. Her work included poetry, short stories, and novels.

OUT IN THE COLD includes Harper's reflections upon women who have been "Wrecked and ruined, wronged and betrayed".

The third poem is Mary Bridges Caned Slade's WHAT DECEMBER SAYS.

Slade was born in Fall River, Massachusetts USA in 1826 and was a teacher and musical composer.

Slade implores readers to "open our hearts" in WHAT DECEMBER SAYS.

Sit back and enjoy A DECEMBER FORCE OF POETS.

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