Tony Schwartz died Sunday (NY Times obit | Wikipedia | Tony’s site). In 1945 Tony Schwartz began documenting life in sound. He recorded New York City cab drivers, French folk songs, kids’ street games — tens of thousands of field recordings made all over the world. His work, now collected at the Library of Congress, is an aural history the way we sound.

In 1999 the Kitchen Sisters did this exquisite sound-portrait, “Tony Schwartz: 30,000 Recordings Later” (20:38 mp3):

The above is from the KS’s CD Best of NPR’s Lost and Found Sound Vol. 1.

Tony also worked in the ad industry, and co-created this classic 1964 LBJ (vs Goldwater) “Daisy ad”:

Oh, the many faces of the Public Service Announcement. There’s this 2004 Radio Mercury Awards winner for Stonewall - Columbus; “Method: The Gay Son” (1:00 mp3):

Contrast that with this recent ad (found on Music For Maniacs) opposing a 2008 Colorado Senate Bill prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation (SB 200, now law); “Focus on the Family ad” (0:38 mp3):

Every year amongst the Radio-Mercury Awards Winners are some real radio gems. This year one ad turns radio’s fear of dead-air on its arse. It’s for the revolutionary new car, “Aptera” (1:00 mp3):

Others to check are winners in the PSA, Political, and Student categories. Or just listen your way thru Mercury’s Ad/PSA winners library.

This American Life on the radio, on TV, on tour: you never know where Ira’s face might pop up.

Play the FreeRice vocabulary game and for each word you get right, they donate rice “through the United Nations to help end world hunger.” The words get progresively harder as you proceed: “WARNING: This game may make you smarter.” Ad revenues fund the food donations. The virally marketed charity started with 830 grains of rice donated the day it launched, Oct 7 2007. Nov 1 total was 59,167,790 grains. Yesterday 140,585,040.

Just when you think the web is a crass commerical lowest common devolutionary ticket to viral idiocracy… you stop and realize, it’s actually much worse than that. But, hey, Jesus’ b-day approacheth, so go Elf Yourself.

(My wife and sis-in-law elfed.)

Douglas Grant of Low Noise Records has this ad-spoof for the US.gov’s radio time channel, “WWV- The Tick” (0:46 mp3):

Firesign Theatre has their old podcasts at Archive.org, inclduing their NPR “April Fools” ads; like this gem, “US Plus” (0:40 mp3):