Our thanks to John Bisci for this rare flashback to Christmas Eve, 1967, and WCFL, Chicago.

This exhibit was a special holiday presentation in 2014, 2015, 2016 and again in 2017.

TOP STREAM 32Kbps (10KHz) WCFL Chicago Christmas Eve Special, December 24, 1967 (48:36) . . . From the ordinary people, and the extraordinary people, we've been reporting Christmas, 1967 . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] One of the greatest voices from this era of Chicago radio, Joel Sebastian (d. 1986), opens this 48-minute hour, allegedly the 5th of five hours broadcast on Christmas Eve, 1967, by the venerable Voice of Labor. WCFL personalities Barney Pip and Ron Britain join Joel in a presentation that proclaims Christmas is for the children. King B (Britain) 'cold calls' Christmas cheer, and recipients don't know what to make of it. Sebastian reads The Selfish Giant and quotes some other potentially arcane literature. But Pip is the star, recalling the Christmases of his youth and his favorite gifts. He reads The Night Before Christmas to a small group of Head-Start Kids, and masquerades as an Elf for a boy who says he doesn't believe in Santa Claus. And, the grinch of alignment error couldn't leave this one alone. The original was probably a pre-recorded studio master, which makes it frustrating. There was a lot of fidelity here originally. The alignment issues are most noticeable in the second half. Hopefully, the swishing in and out of high frequencies won't make you queasy, and you will enjoy this imperfect copy of an otherwise very professional program from a legendary radio station. It's Christmas Eve, Chicago.

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