Re-Imagined Radio presents Joe Frank tribute

Re-Imagined Radio presents “Joe Frank Trubute,” at 1 p.m. Aug. 15. The premier broadcast and live stream airs on KXRW-FM, Vancouver, and KXRY-FM, Portland. Subsequent broadcasts and streams will be provided by local, regional and international broadcast partners.

Over 30 years, Joe Frank entertained thousands of listeners with his radio productions. His husky, insomniac voice delivered ideas and stories that were often surrealistic, even absurd. Through monologue, radio drama and talk radio, he told at least 250 stories. Re-Imagined Radio showcases his work, sampling five of his best-known productions, including “Jewish Blues” (1978), one of the earliest known recordings of Frank hosting his late-night program, “In the Dark,” at WBAI radio in New York; “Memories,” a 10-minute short film made for CBS-TV and broadcast in 1990; “Green Cadillac,” produced and performed by Frank at KCRW in Santa Monica in 1993; “Reality Check” broadcast in 2013 by KCRW as part of a new series, “Un-Fictional”; and “A Life Well Lived” (2013), also part of “UnFictional.” The samples illustrate Frank’s early storytelling process, his distinctive mature radio style, and his technique and success as a radio storyteller in addressing difficult questions about the human condition.

Re-imagined Radio premieres episodes on the third Monday of the month on KXRW-FM and KXRY-FM. In addition, every Sunday, an episode of Re-Imagined Radio is broadcast on KXRW only, drawing from previously broadcast episodes. Episodes can be streamed on demand from the Re-Imagined Radio website, www.reimaginedradio.net.