Listen again to your favorites, or discover a gem from yesteryear. Click the READ MORE link and listen up!
When Shane and Wayne Mitchell show up, it’s always fun!
They bring their entertaining skills from their non-profit TBA (Training Better Artists) to the Big Alaska Show.
They even tell a scary tale ... BEWARE – only listen if you can handle laughter!
For more about TBA visit www.tbatheatre.org.
Fun show! From our 2008 archives an interview with Jeff Smith, the great grandson of Soapy Smith. A Skagway Robin Hood or was he a scoundrel? Or both?
Alaska’s Gold Rush saw some interesting characters. Soapy Smith was one of them! Jeff tells us about Soapy’s life.
Check out his website at www.soapysmith.net.
Then we discussed RVs with RV expert, Henry Huizenga. We’re adding an RV element to our show for Alaskans who like to hit the road.
Plus, we get to know our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris! His Kodiak commercial fishing career started when he was 11!
Check out the full podcast!
Forest Fires. Romance and Science Meet!
Our guests, Lolo Paige, author of Alaska Spark, and our Science Guy, Dr. Gordon Snyder, take us into the world of forest fires.
Lolo and Gordon have spent their educational lives and professional careers around the forest industry.
Their roundtable chat helps us better understand the West Coast fires and other forest phenomena.
We even have a science fair project from Dr. Gordon Snyder!
Be sure to visit our Book Review Section for Lolo’s book, Alaska Spark.
Listen to the full podcast!
Co-host, Mike Ford, will need a strong cup of broadcast brew to keep up with our guests! Actor, Robert Forgit, talks about his role and experience as detective and partner to Nicolas Cage in “The Frozen Ground”! Filmed in Anchorage, Netflix announced this movie as #1 on their hit list reaching 100 million viewers!
Then, Iditarod CEO, Rob Urbach, updates us on the 49th Iditarod in 2021! Planning around a pandemic channels the 1925 Serum Run and the Iditarod Nation!
Iditarod 2020 Summer Raffle information visit www.iditarod.com or call (800) 545-6874
Download the full podcast sans commercials:
Robert Forgit talks about his part in The Frozen Ground.
Iditarod CEO Rob Urbach gives 2021 Iditarod Update.
Our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris, cleans up nice when it comes to Rotary!
After all, he is the 2022 Rotary District Governor Elect. He gives us an update what is happening in
Rotary these days reminding us what we can accomplish when working together!
Then author, Chris Lundgren, talks about her book, Accidental Adventures: Alaska--True Tales of Ordinary People Facing Danger in the Wilderness!
Whoa! Talk about situations you don’t want to find yourself in ... Chris talks about them!
Plus, a drive-by with our good buddy, John “Tales of the Tundra” Gailey!
Hear the full podcast sans commercials!
Mike Ferris gives Rotary Update.
Chris Lundgren talks about her book
Accidental Adventures: Alaska--True Tales of Ordinary People Facing Danger in the Wilderness
Netflix announced the 2013 movie thriller, The Frozen Ground, filmed in Alaska and featuring Nicholas Cage and John Cusack had received #1 billing by reaching 100 million viewers!
Whoa! That got our attention! So we asked a couple of friends from the cast and crew to join us on the Big Alaska Showa and take us behind the scenes. Ron played an attorney and Rose was with the crew from LA.
Based on a true story about a serial killer in Alaska, John Cusack plays the Robert Hansen, the bad guy, and Nick Cage plays Detective Jack Holcomb, the good guy. There’s more too it of course.
But save yourself time and listen to our podcast to hear Rose and Ron tell what it’s like to work with John and Nick as well as some other behind the scenes tales!
Download the full podcast sans commercials (well almost!)
Rose Davidson was also in Alaska a year before to work on the movie “Big Miracle” about whales trapped by ice and city of Barrow showed up to save them! She shares some stories as well.
Good show, peeps! Let’s get to the point. The Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, AK is a major Alaskan tourist attraction AND an important marine research science center. Alaskans love it. So when it came very close to closing its doors, possibly forever due to the pandemic, Alaskans showed up to raise BIG BUCKS to keep the doors open. But they need more and it’s worth it!
Our guests, Dr. Tara Riemer, CEO/President of the Alaska SeaLife Center and our Science Guy, Dr. Gordon Snyder tell us why. Plus, they make it informative and fun! These science geeks love research, results and discovery. They know a good deal when they see one. They point out the Alaska SeaLife Center is more than a good deal, it’s a treasure!
Check out the podcast with Tara and Gordon – lots of fun. Plus, we even have a Tall Alaska Tale!
Here’s the full show sans commercials.
Check out the Alaska SeaLife Center’s website and their special matching fundraiser in the month of September!
Today’s show featured a wide variety. John “Tales of the Tundra” Gailey gave us a snapshot of Alaska’s tour challenged economy.
But John’s a well-loved guide in Alaska’s tour industry and leading tours bouncing between Anchorage, Denali and Fairbanks.
Dr. Gordon Snyder
Ocean Science with our Science Guy
Our Science Guy, Dr. Gordon Snyder, gives us a scientific perspective on the latest hurricanes and orca whales.
Be sure to check out his Whales Without Borders facebook site.
Remembering an Aviation Great
Marcus Paine and Mike Ford
Marcus Paine was a bright star in Alaska’s aviation history. Had he lived in the 1920’s like the Wien Brothers, his name would be mentioned in the same breath.
We admired Marcus because he made aviation exciting sporting a joyful spirit and a warm smile to back it. Sadly, we lost Marcus in air accident at a Madras, Oregon airshow, August 27, 2016.
We pulled from our archives an interview with Marcus shortly before his appearance at 2012 Arctic Thunder, the 5th largest air show in the world.
Alaska’s tourism industry took a big hit this year. So we invited our Big Alaska Show Guest Tourist, Henry Lenz, a retired CBS radio engineer who worked with broadcast legends, to come visit us. It’s fun to get to know and appreciate our visitors – and their money ... especially their money! We even celebrated his birthday with a Tall Alaska Tale! (We “forgot” to tell him we win our own prizes!) Author, Lolo Paige, a former firefighter with the Bureau of Land Management, joins us to give a sneak preview of her book, Alaska Spark, plus much more!
Former Alaskan Bureau of Land Management firefighter, Lolo Paige, talks about her book, Alaska Spark!
We’ll have Lolo Paige back to discuss her book once I read it!
In the meantime, you can check it out for yourself.
Big Alaska Show Guest Tourist
Henry Lenz and his cousin Jerry
Henry Lenz shares stories about a remarkable broadcast career with Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather and more! Plus we play Tall Alaska Tales!
Great way to spend a Saturday! Authors Mike Gordon and Andy Hall share climbing tales from their books: Learning the Ropes: An Alaskan Memoir by
Mike Gordon and Denali’s Howl: The Deadliest Climbing Disaster on America’s Wildest Peak by Andy Hall.
Each shares experience adventures you’ll find in our Big Alaska Show Book Review Section!
Mike and Shelli have lived an amazing Alaskan adventure and share it in this book!
Learning the Ropes: An Alaskan Memoir
Denali’s Howl by Andy Hall
Andy Hall talks about his book and Denali’s deadliest climbing accident!
Denali’s Howl: The Deadliest Climbing Disaster on America’s Wildest Peak
Mike Ferris our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster
Steve Stripling and Mike Ferris
Our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris, returns after a month commercial fishing in Bristol Bay.
Covid 19, a fire on board, dangerous close calls, Mike even had a showdown with a hostile boat!
Not one to back down, Mike shares the sordid details!
Pipeline Vocal Project
Meet the members of Pipeline Vocal Project as they share what they’re doing to adjust to the pandemic.
Send one of their Singing Telegrams to a loved one or friend! Visit their website:
Tall Alaska Tale!
We even had a Tall Alaska Tale .... What do you think is the answer?
We’ll share the answer 8/15 show.
http://www.bigalaskashow.com/tall-alaska-tales/buck-snort-palace
If you want to hear the full show sans commercials!
Rob Stapleton
Rob Stapleton is passionate about Alaska aviation and photography.
He’s one of those guys you don’t hear much about, but we thought you should!
Co-host, Mike Ford, and Rob Stapleton did a broadcast feature over the years that focused on Alaska aviation.
We thought it time to bring that back and introduce Rob into our group of friends that enjoy Alaska’s rich history of aviation!
Check out some of Rob’s work.
www.alaskafoto.com, www.alaskafoto.net, robstapletonphoto.com
THANKS TO SHEILA MAHONEY FOR THE AWESOME PIC OF THE WOMEN!
Our Big Alaska Show Women’s Biker Club is back! They’ve had a busy summer and we asked them back to join us. Download to hear the podcast!
Quite the variety in this edition of the Big Alaska Show!
Sons, Tim Stevens and Phil Gaines talk about their dads, Alaskan broadcast legends, Ed Stevens and Ruben Gaines!
This pic is from early 1950s when they decided to “get away from it all” and rough it in rural Alaska for two years.
From the archives our attempt to follow the broadcast legends of old doing live radio with sound effects in real time with “Tales of the Tundra!”
Plus, we catch up with our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris, talking about a day in the life of commercial fishing.
’67, ’68 Reunion West Reprise
2020 has been a tough year on graduations and reunions.
Today’s show was a compilation of reunion podcasts from West Anchorage High School 1967 and 1968.
Rick Stanfield and Steve Meeks from the class of 1967 joined us.
Steve Nerland and Bill Campbell from the class of 1968 joined us.
Hear the compilation podcast!
Full WHS 1967 Reunion Podcast
http://www.bigalaskashow.com/bas-shows-archive/full-whs-1967-reunion-podcast
Full WHS 1968 Reunion Podcast
http://www.bigalaskashow.com/bas-shows-archive/west-high-school-1968-50th-high-school-reunion
Full WHS 1969 Reunion Podcast
http://www.bigalaskashow.com/bas-shows-archive/west-high-school-50th-reunion
Uncle Steve with Big Alaska Show Friends RICK STANFIELD AND STEVE MEEKS
Hear their podcast!
1967 Graduates, Rick Stanfield and Steve Meeks, joined us on the Big Alaska Show to share high school tales we can actually say on the air!
We even played Tall Alaska Tales with them!
Our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris is commercial fishing in Bristol Bay. Like his dad, Mike passes those lessons to his son, Curtis.
Commercial fishing is tough enough without covid. Mike meets the challenge. His show IS a reality!
Tim Sullivan Sr is a 4th generation Alaskan. Tim’s dad, George Sullivan was a popular Anchorage Mayor in the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. He also lived an Alaskan life filled with tales from the Last Frontier.
Tim shares some of those nuggets about 6 generations of Sullivans!
Max Farrand Stripling was my hero and gave me my favorite gift – Joe the Beagle!
Tundra Comic creator, Chad Carpenter, gives us a Tundra Comics update as well as shares a Tall Alaska Tale!
Visit website www.tundracomics.com.
Don’t take our word for it – hear Chad in his own words!
Mike Gordon talks about his entertaining and inspirational book, “Learning the Ropes: An Alaskan Memoir”.
Mike Gordon had created the most popular nightclub in Alaska, Chilkoot Charlie's. But his personal life was in shambles - drug addiction, failed marriages and about to lose another. So he decided to turn his life around. And boy did he ever! Seven summits on the highest mountains on 7 continents, 15 marathons and 48 years after leaving college went back to get his BA and M.A. His M.A. thesis was his book.
Visit Mike Gordon’s website for an autographed copy! www.mikegordonauthor.com.
Hear the podcast!
(The Zoom quality varies, our apologies, but overall some gold nuggets!)
Our Deadliest Catch Myth Buster, Mike Ferris, updates us on commercial fishing in Bristol Bay
Kyle Kaiser and Gary Olson update us on the VIPER Program in the fight against military suicides!
Some say this is Alaska’s state bird! But we have the real story- or is it a no good lyin’ through your tooth Tall Alaska Tale?!
Special Assistant to the Commissioner of Fish & Game, Rick Rydell, takes us into the world of wildlife management.
It’s a BIG job and they have the right man for it. Rick’s resume includes decades as a fish & game hunting guide as well as a popular radio personality.
For more information about Alaska Department of Fish and Game visit https://www.adfg.alaska
We also pay special tribute the Mayor of Nome, Richard Beneville, who passed away this month. Nome’s colorful Ambassador who showed us there truly is No Place Like Nome!
It means something extra when Kim Carlson has attendst he annual Polar Bear Jump Off in Seward, AK, as she has done for ten years—raising tens of thousands of dollars. She has dedicated her jumps, first to her mother, who was lost to cancer, and subsequently to other victims and their families.
It was a packed house and a packed show of fun! Alaskans and Texans- in the same room! Only on the Big Alaska Show can such a combination co-exist in the same room.
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