NBC radio aired an annual OSF broadcast starting in 1951. This began the Festival’s rise from a local theater to a national destination, but in 1951 Ashland did not have the tourist infrastructure it has today. This talk explores the impact radio had on OSF and the town, growing together until both were big enough to be sustained without the radio series. This talk celebrates OSF’s 90th anniversary season in 2025.

Michael P. Jensen is a Shakespeare scholar of international reputation, with over 100 published articles about William Shakespeare. He is the author of The Battle of the Bard: Shakespeare on U.S. Radio in 1937, the first book about radio Shakespeare.