Joe Frank
Encyclopedia
Joe Frank is an American radio
personality, known best for his often philosophical, humorous, surrealist
, and sometimes absurd
monologue
s and radio dramas.
and moving to New York City
, where they arrived on April 12, 1939. Bills to allow the family into the country were passed in the U.S. Congress twice, the first having been vetoed by President Roosevelt. Joe's father died when he was 5 years old. The next year his mother married Freddy Frank and changed Joe's last name.
In his twenties, Frank studied at Hofstra University
in New York
and later at the Iowa Writers' Workshop
. Frank taught English literature at the Dalton School in Manhattan when he became interested in the power of radio.
WBAI
in New York
, doing experimental radio involving monologues, improvisational actors, and live music during late night free-form hours. In 1978 he moved to Washington DC to serve as a co-anchor for the weekend edition of National Public Radio's All Things Considered
, his first paying radio job.
During this period he wrote, performed in, and produced 18 dramas for NPR Playhouse
, which won several awards. His 1982 monologue "Lies" was used as the inspiration for the Martin Scorsese
movie After Hours
, without permission. (He later settled out of court for a "handsome" settlement.)
's Santa Monica affiliate KCRW
, Frank moved to Santa Monica, California
where he wrote, produced and performed in his own weekly hour-long radio program, "Joe Frank: Work In Progress."
While at KCRW, Frank received several awards, including a Peabody Award
and two Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Awards, one for his acclaimed three-part series "Rent-a-Family." Frank was also a Guggenheim Fellow
.
Joe Frank continued to work at KCRW until 2002, and his work evolved, as evidenced by the diverse series he produced: first Work in Progress, then In The Dark, followed by Somewhere Out There, and finally The Other Side.
Frank's voice is distinctive, resonant, authoritative, and—because of his occasional voice-over work—often oddly familiar. At the 2003 Third Coast Festival he explained that he was "recording in Dolby and playing back without it—which created Joe's now familiar intimate and gritty sound."
Adding to the atmosphere of Frank's monologues are edited loops of instrumental music from sources as diverse as Miles Davis
, Steve Reich
, Tangerine Dream
, Can
, Air and Antonio Carlos Jobim
.
The repetitive music and Frank's dry, announcer-like delivery are sometimes mixed with recorded phone calls with actor/friends such as Larry Block
, Debi Mae West
and Arthur Miller, broken into "acts" over the course of each hourlong program.
Frank's series The Other Side included excerpts from Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield
's Dharma talk
s at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. In an interview on KPFA
's the Morning Show, Kornfield was asked about working with Joe Frank. Kornfield explained that although he had never met or talked to Joe Frank or heard his show, he didn't mind Frank using the lectures and that many of his meditation students had found Kornfield through the show.
and Steppenwolf Theatre, in San Francisco at the Great American Music Hall
and in Los Angeles at the Hammer Museum
and Largo at the Coronet, as well as other venues.
In 2003, Joe Frank was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Third Coast International Audio Festival
.
His body of work (over 230 hours) continues to be aired on the Pacifica Radio
affiliate station KPFA
in Berkeley, California
and many NPR
stations including WNYC
New York, KCRW
Santa Monica
and WBEZ Chicago. The entire archives, Joe Frank film shorts and other extras, are available by subscription to his web site. Show CDs, downloads, and iPods are also available through his web site.
Frank's new web site launch in August 2010 now includes free daily downloads of stories excerpted from his radio shows.
Frank continues to write new work for the stage and his web site, and posts frequently on Facebook.
, and Saturn Corporation. He was the voice of the computer in Galaxy Quest
and provides voiceover for:
He also had a small acting role in The Game
.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
personality, known best for his often philosophical, humorous, surrealist
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
, and sometimes absurd
Absurdism
In philosophy, "The Absurd" refers to the conflict between the human tendency to seek value and meaning in life and the human inability to find any...
monologue
Monologue
In theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...
s and radio dramas.
Early life
Joe Frank was born Joseph Langermann in August 1938 in Strasbourg, France near the border of Germany to Meier Langermann (then 51) and his wife Friederike (then 27), while in transit from Germany (where they were living, although they were Polish citizens). Being Jewish, his family was fleeing Nazi GermanyNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
and moving to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where they arrived on April 12, 1939. Bills to allow the family into the country were passed in the U.S. Congress twice, the first having been vetoed by President Roosevelt. Joe's father died when he was 5 years old. The next year his mother married Freddy Frank and changed Joe's last name.
In his twenties, Frank studied at Hofstra University
Hofstra University
Hofstra University is a private, nonsectarian institution of higher learning located in the Village of Hempstead, New York, United States, about east of New York City: less than an hour away by train or car...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and later at the Iowa Writers' Workshop
Iowa Writers' Workshop
The Program in Creative Writing, more commonly known as the Iowa Writers' Workshop, at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, is a highly regarded graduate-level creative writing program in the United States...
. Frank taught English literature at the Dalton School in Manhattan when he became interested in the power of radio.
Early radio career
In 1977 Frank started volunteering at Pacifica Network stationPacifica Radio
Pacifica Radio is the oldest public radio network in the United States. It is a group of five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations that is known for its progressive/liberal political orientation. It is also a program service supplying over 100 affiliated...
WBAI
WBAI
WBAI, a part of the Pacifica Radio Network, is a non-commercial, listener-supported radio station, broadcasting at 99.5 FM in New York City.Its programming is leftist/progressive, and a mixture of political news and opinion from a leftist perspective, tinged with aspects of its complex and varied...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, doing experimental radio involving monologues, improvisational actors, and live music during late night free-form hours. In 1978 he moved to Washington DC to serve as a co-anchor for the weekend edition of National Public Radio's All Things Considered
All Things Considered
All Things Considered is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio. It was the first news program on NPR, and is broadcast live worldwide through several outlets...
, his first paying radio job.
During this period he wrote, performed in, and produced 18 dramas for NPR Playhouse
NPR Playhouse
NPR Playhouse was a series of radio dramas from National Public Radio. The series was a successor to the NPR series Earplay and was discontinued in September 2002....
, which won several awards. His 1982 monologue "Lies" was used as the inspiration for the Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
movie After Hours
After Hours (film)
After Hours is a 1985 American black comedy film, written by Joseph Minion and directed by Martin Scorsese. Paul Hackett , a New Yorker, experiences a series of adventures and perils in trying to make his way home from SoHo.-Plot:...
, without permission. (He later settled out of court for a "handsome" settlement.)
KCRW, 1986–2002
In 1986, on the invitation of Ruth Hirschman [Seymour] the general manager of NPRNPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
's Santa Monica affiliate KCRW
KCRW
KCRW is a public radio station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, carrying a mix of National Public Radio news, talk radio and freeform music format. The general manager of KCRW is Jennifer Ferro...
, Frank moved to Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
where he wrote, produced and performed in his own weekly hour-long radio program, "Joe Frank: Work In Progress."
While at KCRW, Frank received several awards, including a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
and two Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
Awards, one for his acclaimed three-part series "Rent-a-Family." Frank was also a Guggenheim Fellow
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
.
Joe Frank continued to work at KCRW until 2002, and his work evolved, as evidenced by the diverse series he produced: first Work in Progress, then In The Dark, followed by Somewhere Out There, and finally The Other Side.
Radio programs
Frank's radio programs are often dark and ironic, and employ a dry sense of humor and the sincere delivery of ideas or stories that are patently absurd. Subject matter often includes religion, life's meaning, death, and Frank's relationships with women.Frank's voice is distinctive, resonant, authoritative, and—because of his occasional voice-over work—often oddly familiar. At the 2003 Third Coast Festival he explained that he was "recording in Dolby and playing back without it—which created Joe's now familiar intimate and gritty sound."
Adding to the atmosphere of Frank's monologues are edited loops of instrumental music from sources as diverse as Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
, Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...
, Can
Can (band)
Can was an experimental rock band formed in Cologne, West Germany in 1968. Later labeled as one of the first "krautrock" groups, they transcended mainstream influences and incorporated strong minimalist and world music elements into their often psychedelic music.Can constructed their music largely...
, Air and Antonio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
.
The repetitive music and Frank's dry, announcer-like delivery are sometimes mixed with recorded phone calls with actor/friends such as Larry Block
Larry Block
Lawrence Joel "Larry" Block is an American radio, TV, film and theater actor. In 1971, Block appeared on Sesame Street as Tom, who worked at Hooper's Store....
, Debi Mae West
Debi Mae West
Debi Mae West is an American voice actress. In 2008, she won a Spike Video Game Award for voicing Meryl Silverburgh in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.- Film roles :* Boyz Up Unauthorized - Unknown* Superman - Billy...
and Arthur Miller, broken into "acts" over the course of each hourlong program.
Frank's series The Other Side included excerpts from Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield
Jack Kornfield
Jack Kornfield is a teacher in the vipassana movement of American Theravada Buddhism. He trained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand, Burma and India, including as a student of the Thai monk Ajahn Chah...
's Dharma talk
Dharma talk
A Dharma talk or Dhamma talk or Dharma sermon is a public discourse on Buddhism by a Buddhist teacher....
s at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. In an interview on KPFA
KPFA
KPFA is a listener-funded progressive talk radio and music radio station located in Berkeley, California, broadcasting to the San Francisco Bay Area. KPFA airs public news, public affairs, talk, and music programming. The station signed on-the-air April 15 1949, as the first Pacifica Station...
's the Morning Show, Kornfield was asked about working with Joe Frank. Kornfield explained that although he had never met or talked to Joe Frank or heard his show, he didn't mind Frank using the lectures and that many of his meditation students had found Kornfield through the show.
Other work
- He can be heard on the song 'Montok Point' on William OrbitWilliam OrbitWilliam Orbit is an English musician, composer and record producer, perhaps best known to most for his work on Madonna's album Ray of Light. He has also co-produced several unreleased Madonna songs originally recorded for other albums...
's album Strange Cargo HinterlandStrange Cargo HinterlandStrange Cargo Hinterland is the fifth album by electronic instrumentalist William Orbit. It is the fourth in a series similarly titled albums: Strange Cargo, Strange Cargo II, and Strange Cargo III.-Track listing:# "Million Town"...
. - "The Decline Of Spengler" Stage Play (New Directions 48, New York)
- "A Tour Of The City" Stage Play (Tanam Press, New York) was produced by Theatre Anima at Hangar #9 in the Old Port of Montreal in 1990, and was directed by Jordan Deitcher.
- The Queen of Puerto Rico and Other Stories,, William Morrow and Co, New York, 1993. ISBN 0-688-08765-5 a collection of short stories: Tell me what to do—Fat man—Night—Date—Walter—The queen of Puerto Rico—The decline of Spengler
2002–present
Since 2002, Frank has performed on stage in Chicago at the Art Institute of ChicagoArt Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
and Steppenwolf Theatre, in San Francisco at the Great American Music Hall
Great American Music Hall
The Great American Music Hall is a concert hall in San Francisco, California. It is located on O'Farrell Street in the Tenderloin neighborhood on the same block as the Mitchell Brothers O'Farrell Theater...
and in Los Angeles at the Hammer Museum
Hammer Museum
The Armand Hammer Museum of Art and Culture Center, or the Hammer Museum as it is more commonly known, is an art museum in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, California...
and Largo at the Coronet, as well as other venues.
In 2003, Joe Frank was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Third Coast International Audio Festival
Third Coast International Audio Festival
The Third Coast International Audio Festival is a festival based in Chicago showcasing feature and documentary audio work...
.
His body of work (over 230 hours) continues to be aired on the Pacifica Radio
Pacifica Radio
Pacifica Radio is the oldest public radio network in the United States. It is a group of five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations that is known for its progressive/liberal political orientation. It is also a program service supplying over 100 affiliated...
affiliate station KPFA
KPFA
KPFA is a listener-funded progressive talk radio and music radio station located in Berkeley, California, broadcasting to the San Francisco Bay Area. KPFA airs public news, public affairs, talk, and music programming. The station signed on-the-air April 15 1949, as the first Pacifica Station...
in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
and many NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
stations including WNYC
WNYC
WNYC is a set of call letters shared by a pair of co-owned, non-profit, public radio stations located in New York City.WNYC broadcasts on the AM band at 820 kHz, and WNYC-FM is at 93.9 MHz. Both stations are members of National Public Radio and carry distinct, but similar news/talk programs...
New York, KCRW
KCRW
KCRW is a public radio station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, carrying a mix of National Public Radio news, talk radio and freeform music format. The general manager of KCRW is Jennifer Ferro...
Santa Monica
Santa Mônica
Santa Mônica is a town and municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.-References:...
and WBEZ Chicago. The entire archives, Joe Frank film shorts and other extras, are available by subscription to his web site. Show CDs, downloads, and iPods are also available through his web site.
Frank's new web site launch in August 2010 now includes free daily downloads of stories excerpted from his radio shows.
Frank continues to write new work for the stage and his web site, and posts frequently on Facebook.
Inspiration to other artists
Frank's body of work has inspired a variety of other artists including:- Ira GlassIra GlassIra Glass is an American public radio personality, and host and producer of the radio and television show This American Life.- Early life :...
of This American LifeThis American LifeThis American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
: "Ira Glass worked under Frank as one of his first jobs in public radio, and credits him as his greatest inspiration." - David SedarisDavid SedarisDavid Sedaris is a Grammy Award-nominated American humorist, writer, comedian, bestselling author, and radio contributor....
, writer - Troy Schulze, a theater artist in Houston who created the show Jerry's World (2003) for the Houston, Tx.-based theater group Infernal Bridegroom ProductionsInfernal Bridegroom ProductionsInfernal Bridegroom Productions was a theater company located in Houston, Texas, formed in 1993 and dissolved in 2007. IBP garnered national attention when it was featured on the cover of American Theatre in September, 2002, for its original play, We Have Some Planes, by Brian Jucha, about the...
. Utilizing material from several Frank shows, the piece was deemed "Best Original Show" in Houston that year, by the Houston PressHouston PressThe Houston Press is an alternative weekly newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in Downtown Houston....
. - Jeff CrouseJeff CrouseJeff Crouse is an American artist and hacker/creative technologist who works with live data feeds from the internet to make art works.-Background:...
, artist and technologist, created Interactive Frank, which uses content from the web to dynamically create a Joe Frank Show. "The user types in a sentence, and Interactive Frank takes over, scouring the web for another sentence that follows a sentence with the last three words. Frank can also find streaming audio to accompany the generated narrative based on a word analysis, and it can read the narrative using an online text-to-speech generator." - Filmmakers like Francis Ford CoppolaFrancis Ford CoppolaFrancis Ford Coppola is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is widely acclaimed as one of Hollywood's most innovative and influential film directors...
, Michael Mann, David FincherDavid FincherDavid Andrew Leo Fincher is an American film and music video director. Known for his dark and stylish thrillers, such as Seven , The Game , Fight Club , Panic Room , and Zodiac , Fincher received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and...
and Ivan ReitmanIvan ReitmanIvan Reitman, OC is a Canadian film producer and director. He is known for the comedies he has directed and produced, especially in the 1980s and 1990s.He is the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 2000.-Early life:...
have optioned or bought stories from Joe Frank's radio shows.
Voiceover and acting work
Joe Frank has done voice over work for commercials including ZimaZima
Zima is a clear, lightly carbonated, alcoholic beverage, made and distributed by the Coors Brewing Company, ultimately MillerCoors. Introduced in 1993, it was marketed not as a beer, but as an alternative to beer, an early example of what is now often referred to as alcopop. Its domestic production...
, and Saturn Corporation. He was the voice of the computer in Galaxy Quest
Galaxy Quest
Galaxy Quest is a 1999 science-fiction comedy parody about a troupe of human actors who defend a group of aliens against an alien warlord. It was directed by Dean Parisot and written by David Howard and Robert Gordon. Mark Johnson and Charles Newirth produced the film for DreamWorks, and David...
and provides voiceover for:
- "Wild Rescues" on Animal PlanetAnimal PlanetAnimal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
- "Conspiracies" on A&EA&E NetworkThe A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
- "Ends of the Earth" on the Learning Channel
- "Hurricane X" on the Discovery channelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
- "Sexy BeastSexy BeastSexy Beast is a 2000 British-Spanish crime drama film directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, and Ian McShane. Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was Glazer's debut feature film, who had previously been a music video director for videos such as Rabbit in Your Headlights for...
" film: narrator on trailer. This trailer was nominated for best film trailer in 2004.
He also had a small acting role in The Game
The Game (film)
The Game is a 1997 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Polygram. It tells the story of an investment banker who is given a mysterious gift: participation in a game that integrates in strange ways with his life...
.
During NPR Playhouse
- 1982
- Broadcast Media Award
- 1983
- Radio Program Award from the Corporation For Public BroadcastingCorporation for Public BroadcastingThe Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
- Gold Award from the International Radio Festival of New York
- Radio Program Award from the Corporation For Public Broadcasting
- 1984
- Gold Award from the International Radio Festival of New York (second)
- American Nomination to the Prix ItaliaPrix ItaliaThe Prix Italia is an international Italian television, radio-broadcasting and Website award. It was established in 1948 by RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana in Capri...
- 1985
- Special Commendation from the Berlin Prix Futura
During Work In Progress
- 1988
- Major Armstrong Award
- Corporation For Public Broadcasting Program Award
- 1991
- Peabody AwardPeabody AwardThe George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
- Peabody Award
- 1993
- Guggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
for Radio Art
- Guggenheim Fellowship
External links
- The Official Joe Frank Web Site
- Joe Frank on Facebook
- Joe Frank Fan Page on Facebook
- WFMU Joe Frank FAQs
- A Joe Frank Wiki
- Joe Frank Music Page
- Public Radio's Bad Dream Salon.com feature on Frank.
- UK Guardian UK Guardian comment on Joe Frank