Jack's World
Bedtime Stories--with Science!
I can't believe you didn't listen to Jack's World as a kid. I loved Jack's World. It was my favorite show!
Jack's World was a children's educational radio program that ran from 1952-1958 on VRWC in Rain Wood City. At the beginning of each episode, "Insomniac" Jack Pawly would explain to his audience that some troublesome question had kept him up all night. Jack would then go out into the field to investigate the question, usually interviewing experts and describing their research in kid-friendly terms. Other times, he would interview experts in the studio. Each episode ended with Jack insiting he was ready for a nap.
My daughter was getting old enough to understand what I did. I wanted to do the kind of reporting that she could understand--and help her understand why it was important.
Pawly, who had worked several years as a news reporter for the station, pitched the show as a chance to engage young people, such as his then ten year old daughter, Beatrice, in science, history, and current events. Already known for his upbeat personality, Pawly decided to put his recent nickname--earned for the extra hours he had spent researching a story--to good use. The show covered a variety of topics, from The Diamondheart Die-off to The Origin of the Species, and usually left its listeners with an unanswered mystery just as Jack was falling asleep. The show ended in 1958, due to lack of interest, but has recently experienced a resurgance, with several stations throughout Virarona replaying old episodes, and Pawly being booked on educational tours.
I don't think it bothered my dad too much when the show ended because by then I was old enough to understand his "real" stories. But it was still a great show, and I'm glad it's finall getting the attention it deserves.
I love that he was inspired to start it for his daughter. I would 100% have watched all the episodes of this when I was a child.
I wanted it to be a Bill Nye type show, but couldn't come up with something quite as catchy. Then I remembered watching Beakman's World as a kid, and I recall that Beakman's co-host was Jax, so it transformed into Jack's World. Beakman ran at the same time, and was less popular, but my brither and I loved it. We even had the board game.