The Apple Seed

Stories featured in this episode:

Jay O'Callahan

Story 1: Equations

Teller: Jay O'Callahan

Site: www.ocallahan.com/

Notes: A memory from Jay's childhood of a neighbor's last minute dinner party getting a little out of hand.

Michael Reno Harrell

Story 2: Cleaning Out Momma's House

Teller: Michael Reno Harrell

Site: www.michaelreno.com/

Notes: A contest over who can find the most "ridiculous thing" arises between Michael and his siblings as they clean out their deceased mother's home.

Diane Ferlatte

Story 3: The Word the Devil Made Up

Teller: Diane Ferlatte

Site: www.dianeferlatte.com/

Notes: A tale about the devil going up to heaven to steal some angels, and the evil of the slang people use today.

Leeny Del Seamonds

Story 4: Suki

Teller: Lenny Del Seamonds

Site: leenydelseamonds.com/

Notes: A Japanese folktale about a lonely couple who take in a mysterious young woman. This beautiful girl brings them joy and later prosperity, until they discover her secret. The cello and other sound effects accompanying this story are by Gideon Freudmann.

Fran Yardley

Story 5: The Clown of God

Teller: Fran Yardley

Site: www.creativehealingconnections.org/

Notes: The story of Giovanni, a traveling clown. In his old age Giovanni discovers himself alone and back on the streets where he grew up as a child. Looking for somewhere to stay, he stumbles into a church on a very special night.

Stories, poems and interviews included in this episode:

Ted Dennison

Poem 1: Young Gun

Teller: Ted E. Dennison

Site: http://www.mytexasmusic.com/

Notes: A father nostalgically watches his son play cowboy in their backyard.

Paul Bliss

Poem 2: Salem on the Mountains

Teller: Paul Bliss

Site: http://www.kindcrone.com/

Notes: Paul's CD Pure Bliss is nominated for the Western Music Association's Poetry CD of the Year award! This is his poem that captures the love and reverence cowboy's have for the land they work.

Waddie Mitchell

Poem 3: The Sounds a Cowboy Hears

Teller: Waddie Mitchell

Site: http://www.somagency.com/

Notes About This Episode: This poem is the musings of a cowboy as he looks back on his life.

Paul Bliss

Poem 4: There'll Never Be Another Ewe

Teller: Paul Bliss

Site: http://paulfbliss.blogspot.com/

Notes: A man tries to wrestle with a ewe (female sheep) and she runs him all around the barnyard.

Paul Bliss

Interview 1: Jeff Streeby

\*\*Notes:\*\* In the interview Sam Payne talks with and Jeff Streeby to discuss the academic treatment of cowboy poetry.  They talk Jeff's book "Sunday Creek" and they also have Jeff recites a little cowboy poetry for us on the show.

Paul Bliss

Story 5: The Bust

Teller: Paul Bliss

Site: http://paulfbliss.blogspot.com/

Notes: A poem that portrays the intense relationship between man and horse.

Paul Bliss

Story 6: The Whole Load

Teller: Waddie Mitchell

Site: http://www.somagency.com/

Notes: A preacher becomes discouraged by his lack of a congregation until a lone cowboy shows up to be taught.

Paul Bliss

Story 7: Old Night Hawk

Our fifty-fourth episode features an interview with one of the world's top tellers: Syd Lieberman! Syd has appeared at major storytelling festivals across the country, including featured appearances at the National Festival in Jonesborough, TN and the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival in Orem, UT.  In the interview, Syd and Sam discuss Jewish storytelling tradition, Syd's work in the the storytelling division of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the ties between Syd's family and his storytelling. Along with the interview today's episode contains a few of our favorite stories by Syd, "Zen and the Art of Storytelling" and "The Day the Nazi Came."

For more information regarding Syd and his storytelling visit his website http://www.sydlieberman.com/.

Sam Payne hosts this episode of "The Apple Seed" that features a variety of folk tales.

Simon Brooks

Story 1: Death in a Nut

Teller: Simon Brooks

Site: diamondscree.com

Notes: This is a classic folktale about the time Death wasn't able to do his job, and the consequences that followed.

Jill Lamede

Story 2: The Stone Before the Door

Teller: Jill Lamede

Site: lamede.com

Notes about this story: A young man seeks the help of a family friend as he searches for a bride.

Norah Dooley

Story 3: Simply Guido

Teller: Norah Dooley

Site: norahdooley.com

Notes: An Italian folktale about four friends. Three of them are scholars aspiring to fortune and fame while the other is, "simply Guido."

Laura Simms

Story 4: The Girl Who Walks in Moonlight

Teller: Laura Simms

Site: laurasimms.com

Notes: Some beauty is too precious to be seen during the day. This is the story of uncommon beauty and its consequences.

Heather Forest

Story 5: The Contest Between Wisdom and Luck

Teller: Heather Forest

Site: heatherforest.com

Notes: To determine who is more important, Wisdom and Luck give themselves to a young man who subsequently wins the love of a princess.

Joel ben Izzy

Story 6: The Old King and His Daughters

Teller: Joel ben Izzy

Site: storypage.com

Notes: A story about how treasures are to be shared with others.

The Apple Seed Team

Sam Payne discusses the 2013 Timpanogos Storytelling Festival that was held in Orem, Utah - about 50 miles south of Salt Lake City. The festival is one of the most highly accredited storytelling events in the United States, with top tellers from around the world sharing stories over the course of a weekend. The Apple Seed team attended the festival as well, so one of the stories you'll hear today was recorded right off the main stage, and others were told to us by festival attendees at our Apple Seed booth. Either way this episode features a variety of recordings to share with you, along with an interview between our host Sam Payne and Karen Acerson, president of the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival.

Stories featured in this episode:

The Apple Seed

Story 1: Pranking My Brother

Teller: Samuel & Jonathan Ashton

Notes: This is a story from a festival attendee who happened to pass by our table. Jonathan tells the story about how Samuel dared him to lie on an ant hill they found in their backyard.

The Apple Seed

Story 2: Baby Mix-Up

Teller: Ursula Romboy Gamble

Notes: Ursula shared her mothers story of giving birth during World War II with us, and all the chaos that ensued afterward.

The Apple Seed

Story 3: Three Animals

Teller: Unknown

Notes: We were blown away by this boy's ability to come up with stories! This is the tale of a cow, a chicken, and a pig who talk their way out of being eaten by a witch.

Bil Lepp

Story 4: There Stands a Bridge (Live)

Teller: Bil Lepp

Site: www.leppstorytelling.com 

Notes About This Episode: Bil shares with us a hilarious vignette about the culture of the state of West Virginia.

Liz Weir

Interview 2: Liz Weir

Site: www.lizweir.net 

Notes: In this interview Sam and Irish storyteller Liz Weir discuss her career as a librarian, how she began listening to American storytelling, and how she goes about preparing the stories she tells onstage.

Liz Weir

Story 5: A Wee Lift

Teller: Liz Weir

Site: www.lizweir.net

Notes: A story about farmer and his wife who are in need of a pick-me-up due to the failure of their crops and livestock.

This episode features clips of our host Sam Payne on BYU Radio's "The Morning Show." Sam's weekly segments acted as some of the first promos for The Apple Seed,  and the stories he shares with The Morning Show's host Marcus Smith really set the standard for the material we air daily.

The Morning Show clip that begins this episode includes Sam reading a passage from Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat, and the story "The Marriage Boulder" by Clare Murphy, which was recorded live at the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival. This episode's second segment includes a chilling ghost tale by Japanese storyteller Motoko. The third and final segment of this episode includes a piece from Sam's personal album Bow Me Down, a story by the Storycrafters titled "The Day my Dad Met His Hero", and another slightly more humorous passage from Three Men in a Boat.

This episode contains something really special: recordings from our first ever live event!  In October of 2013 we invited graduate students from Brigham Young University to come into our studio and share some stories with our staff. The theme of the night was "courage", and this episode features some of their humorous and compelling tales.

Pictured Above: BYU graduate students (Front Row) Madeleine Dresden, Tonja Vincent, Anne Turner, Allison Hymas, Laura Randle, (Back Row) Lauren Matthews,  JaNeal Freeman, Devon Cook, and RoseE Hadden.

Stories and interviews included in this episode:

The StorycraftersStory 1: The Day My Dad Met His Hero

Teller: The Storycrafters

Site:  www.storycrafters.com/

Notes: We all have people in our lives who inspire us. Whether we idolize artists, actors or athletes, sometimes it's important to remember that the real heroes in our lives are the people who have been near us all along.

Rich ReaganInterview: Rich Reagan

Notes: With more than 20 years in game development, Rich Reagan is currently acting as a creative director at Electronic Arts’ Salt Lake City studio as part of their digital gaming team. Combining his love of baseball with his career as a video game developer, Rich has traveled to baseball venues all over the US to virtually recreate the quintessential experience of watching a game at the ball park.

Syd Lieberman

Story 2: Some Enchanted Wednesday

Teller: Syd Lieberman

Site: www.sydlieberman.com/

Notes: A story about growing up, learning important lessons and falling in love with baseball.

Stories included in this episode:

Motoko

Story 1: The Candy Shop

Teller: Motoko

Website: http://motoko.folktales.net/

Notes: A candy shop owner is visited by a mysterious woman looking for rice candy to feed her baby.

Megan Hicks

Story 2: The Janitor's Closet

Teller: Megan Hicks

Website: http://www.meganhicks.com/

Notes: A story reminding us of a parent's worst fears.

Joel ben Izzy

Story 3: King Solomon and Death/The Graveyard in Safed

Teller: Joel ben Izzy

Website: http://storypage.com/

Notes: A story about King Solomon, who is believed to be the only man who can summon death, and a short story about traveling in Israel to visit the eerie graveyard in Safed.

Mary Grace Ketner

Story 4: La Llorona

Teller: Mary Grace Ketner

Website: http://talesandlegends.net/

Notes: A story from the Mexican-American boarder about a women who is blinded by her own pride as she seeks to marry a man above her status.

Alton Chung

Story 5: A Promise Broken

Teller: Alton Chung

Website: http://www.altonchung.com

Notes: A samurai breaks his promise to never marry again after his wife's death.

Stories and interviews included in this episode:

Betty Ann Wylie

Story 1: Girl in the Rain

Teller: Betty Ann Wylie

Website: www.yawac.org

Notes: A women picks up a peculiar teenage girl off the side of the road.

Donna Washington

Story 2: Tailypo

Teller: Donna Washington

Website: www.dlwstoryteller.com

Notes: Hank James is a stubborn man who insists on living alone. He appears to be doing alright, until one night he is visited by the Tailypo.

Teller: Robert Oakes

Interview 1: Ghost Tours and The Mount

Teller: Robert Oakes

Website: http://www.oakesandsmith.net/ and www.edithwharton.org (The Mount)

Notes: In his interview with our host Sam Payne, Robert discusses the lore of Edith Wharton's estate and what makes a good ghost story.

Teller: Beth Horner

Story 3: Phantom Black Carriage

Teller: Beth Horner

Website: www.bethhorner.com

Notes: The story of a home on the edge of a bluff, and how it fares when the undertaker comes for a visit.