During 1953 and 1954, Ted Russell’s stories were broadcast live-to-air by CBC Radio in St. John’s. Beginning in 1955, however, the stories were recorded on lacquer-coated aluminum discs which were then shipped to CBC Halifax for re-airing on The Fisherman’s Broadcast in Nova Scotia. Regrettably, many of these discs were then destroyed until Mike Gillis, then host of the show in Halifax, began salvaging as many as possible, thinking they might have some future value.
In 1982, Peter Navaez, Professor of Folklore at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, learned that Patricia Kipping, a Film/Sound Archivist in Nova Scotia, had acquired a number of “Uncle Mose” discs from CBC Halifax. The “Being Uncle Mose Back Home Project” was launched and 69 recorded stories were shipped back to the MUN Folklore Archive, with ¼” tape copies made for CBC St. John’s and the Russell Family.
I have selected 30 of the best stories and transferred them to digital format, making some technical improvements were possible. The listener will, however, notice some differences in sound quality from one story to the next. In particular, the story Comic Books was in rough shape while Jonah and the Whale is missing the last five words (“towards Aunt Sophy’s boarding house”) but I didn't think these imperfections were serious enough to warrant exclusion. I have also used a short opening introduction by CBC broadcaster Harry Brown as well as theme music played on organ by Bob McLeod, both from the original broadcasts.
-Kelly Russell
St. John’s, Newfoundland
October 2002