Performance audiobooks

FDR: Selected Speeches of President Franklin D Roosevelt

By: Franklin D. Roosevelt

Narrated by: Franklin D. Roosevelt

Length: 16 hours 17 minutes

Abridged: No

The longest-serving President in American history, Franklin D Roosevelt led the nation through its two most lethal challenges of the 20th century - the Great Depression and the Second World War. This is a collection of FDR's most stirring speeches, from his First Inaugural Address ('the only thing we have fear is fear itself"), to his speeches... Read more

Pebble in the Sky (Dramatized)

By: Isaac Asimov 

Narrated by: Isaac Asimov

Length: 4 minutes

Abridged: No

One moment Joseph Schwartz is a happily retired tailor in Chicago, 1949. The next he's a helpless stranger on Earth during the heyday of the first Galactic Empire. Earth, as he soon learns, is a backwater, just a pebble in the sky, despised by all the other 200 million planets of the Empire because its people dare to claim it's the original... Read more

Les Miserables

By: Orson Welles

Narrated by: Isabel F. Hapgood

Length: 3 hours 16 minutes

Abridged: No

Les Miserables (1937) was Orson Welles' first radio series. He served as actor, director, producer, and adaptor, developing narrative and audio techniques that would later be used for The Mercury Theatre on the Air. Read more

Muhammad Ali - The Greatest of All Time Speaks

By: Muhammad Ali

Narrated by: Muhammad Ali

Length: 53 minutes

Abridged: No

His own humble roots, his inspirational religious conversion. His many colorful opponents, and his larger than life persona.... In his own words. Read more

The Cinnamon Bear - Complete Radio Shows (1937)

By: Barbara Jean Wong

Narrated by: Verna Felton

Length: 5 hours 19 minutes

Abridged: No

The Cinnamon Bear is an old-time radio program produced by Transco (Transcription Company of America), based in Hollywood, California. The series was specifically designed to be listened to six days a week between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Read more

The Story of Wake Island

By: James P. S. Devereux

Narrated by: Joel Shrank

Length: 6 hours 12 minutes

Abridged: No

“The courageous conduct of the officers and men who defended Wake Island will not be forgotten so long as gallantry and heroism are respected and honored.” Citation of the President “Excellent” The New York Times On 8th December 1941, just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, thirty-six Japanese bombers attacked Wake Island and destroyed... Read more

Orson Welles: The Ultimate Collection

By: Orson Welles

Narrated by: Harold Bloom

Length: 63 hours

Abridged: No

If you are a lover of old-time radio and a fan of Orson Welles, you won't want to miss this treasure chest of legendary Orson Welles radio broadcasts! With his flair for the sensational and innovative, Welles captured audiences' attention with his 1930s CBS weekly drama series The Mercury Theatre on the Air, later renamed The Campbell Playhouse,... Read more

The Measure of a Man

By: Martin Luther Jr. King

Narrated by: Martin Luther Jr. King

Length: 31 minutes

Abridged: No

The Measure of a Man, first published in 1959, is the text of two devotional speeches made by Dr. King at the National Conference on Christian Education of the United Church of Christ, held at Purdue University in the summer of 1958. The speeches were praised by many who were inspired and enlightened by their clear message on how to live a... Read more

The Adventures of Phillip Marlowe - The Complete Collection

By: Gerald Mohr

Narrated by: Phillip Marlowe

Length: 61 hours 40 minutes

Abridged: No

Raymond Chandler'scelebrated hard-boiled private eye, Philip Marlowe, made his radio debut in1945 on the Lux Radio Theatre with "Murder, My Sweet", starring Dick Powell. Two years later, NBC brought the character to the air in his own weekly series starring Van Heflin: The New Adventuresof Philip Marlowe. A summer replacement for The Bob Hope... Read more

CBS Radio Mystery Theater – Volume 1

By: Himan Brown

Narrated by: E. G. Marshall

Length: 317 hours 9 minutes

Abridged: No

In 1974 long-time radio producer Himan Brown convinced CBS to green-light a new anthology of Radio Dramas, CBS Radio Mystery Theater (CBSRMT). Radio Drama had been declared "dead" twelve years before. CBS Radio Mystery Theater was meant to appeal to an audience that remembered when old time radio drama was a popular form of family... Read more

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

By: Tennessee Williams

Narrated by: Troy W. Hudson

Length: 4 hours 18 minutes

Abridged: No

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof first heated up Broadway in 1955 with its Gothic American story of brothers vying for their dying father's inheritance amid a whirlwind of sexuality, untethered in the person of Maggie the cat. The play also daringly showcased the burden of sexuality repressed in the agony of her husband, Brick Pollitt. Read more

Dragnet – The Complete Collection

By: Jack Webb

Narrated by: Barton Yarborough

Length: 138 hours 15 minutes

Abridged: No

Dragnet, the brainchild of Jack Webb, may very well be the most well-remembered, and the best, radio police drama series. From September, 1949 through February 1957, Dragnet's 30 minute shows, broadcast on NBC, brought to radio true police stories in a low-key, documentary style. The origins of Dragnet can be traced to a semi-documentary film,... Read more

CBS Radio Mystery Theater – Volume 2

By: Himan Brown

Narrated by: E. G. Marshall

Length: 265 hours 39 minutes

Abridged: No

In 1974 long-time radio producer Himan Brown convinced CBS to green-light a new anthology of Radio Dramas, CBS Radio Mystery Theater (CBSRMT). Radio Drama had been declared "dead" twelve years before. CBS Radio Mystery Theater was meant to appeal to an audience that remembered when old time radio drama was a popular form of family... Read more

Why Millennials Are Increasingly Choosing An Alcohol-Free Lifestyle

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 6 minutes

Abridged: No

Millennials are increasingly reevaluating their relationship with alcohol.
A movement known as “sober curious” is gaining popularity with these young
adults, who are questioning both the physical effects of alcohol and the
way drinking is ingrained in American culture. And now, bars and breweries
are looking to capitalize on the trend by... Read more

Barnabas Collins Versus the Warlock

By: Marilyn Ross

Narrated by: Kathryn Leigh Scott

Length: 6 hours 10 minutes

Abridged: No

Barnabas Collins Vs. the Warlock (October 1969)

David Collins and Amy Jennings, two charming, innocent children are suddenly turned into demons. At first their pranks only annoy Maggie Evans, their governess. But soon she realizes they have become malicious, bent on destroying all of Collinwood.

Convinced the children are possessed by a... Read more

The Peril of Barnabas Collins

By: Marilyn Ross

Narrated by: Kathryn Leigh Scott

Length: 6 hours 1 minute

Abridged: No

The Peril of Barnabas Collins (November 1969)

After falling in love with beautiful heiress Diana Hastings, Barnabas Collins makes a desperate attempt to find a cure for his vampire curse. He summons to Collinwood Dr. Rudolf Padrel, a strange scientist who claims he can develop a serum that will make Barnabas a normal man again.

But as time... Read more

After 23 Years Wrongly Imprisoned, Ricky Kidd Is Free — And Using His Voice

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

The exoneration of Ricky Kidd, a wrongly convicted man in Missouri who
spent more than two decades in prison, highlights major problems with U.S.
criminal justice. As covered in our Broken Justice podcast, Kidd was freed
largely due to pro bono legal efforts. Kidd and attorney Sean O’Brien join
Amna Nawaz to discuss the overburdened public... Read more

These Forest Fungi Are A Bounty For Arizona Mushroom Hunters

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 2 minutes

Abridged: No

Mushroom hunters have long fanned out across the forest floor seeking what can be lucrative and delicious finds for teas, broths and medicinal remedies. But what does climate change mean for the fungi? From the Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University, Melanie Porter reports on what the foragers of the Arizona Mushroom Society... Read more

Inside The ‘Extraordinary' Campaign To Put Brett Kavanaugh On The Supreme Court

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

President Trump's nomination of federal judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court in 2018 launched a bitter partisan fight that grew even more polarized when Christine Blasey Ford said Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her in high school. Kavanaugh was ultimately confirmed and now sits on the Court. The Washington Post’s Ruth Marcus details his... Read more

The Shakespeare Book

By: DK

Narrated by: Roger May

Length: 16 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: No

This is the perfect study guide to the complete works of Shakespeare, covering everything from the romantic comedy of Romeo and Juliet to the tragedy Macbeth, alongside his Elizabethan history plays, sonnets, and other poems.

With detailed plot summaries and an in-depth analysis of the major characters and themes, this is a brilliant, innovative... Read more

‘The Overstory' Author Richard Powers Answers Your Questions

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 6 minutes

Abridged: No

Richard Powers, author of our November pick for the NewsHour-New York Times book club, Now Read This, joins Jeffrey Brown to answer reader questions on “The Overstory,” and Jeff announces the December book selection. Read more

As Taliban Peace Talks Resume, What's At Stake For Afghan Women?

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 9 minutes

Abridged: No

During his surprise Thanksgiving trip to Afghanistan, President Trump
announced he had restarted talks with the Taliban. The ability of the
conflict-wracked nation to achieve peace is at stake -- but so is progress
for women, who could not work, study or even leave home unescorted under
Taliban rule. Special correspondent Jane Ferguson reports... Read more

What 1 Euro Can Buy You In Sicilian Real Estate

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 5 minutes

Abridged: No

In Sicily and across Italy, towns are on the brink of extinction. Locals have been leaving these picturesque communities, with their antique buildings and narrow roads, in search of economic opportunity, and few babies are being born there. Some towns are trying to lure new residents with the prospect of cheap real estate. Special correspondent... Read more

In Italy, Rising Anxiety Over Falling Birth Rates

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

Family size has been shrinking in the industrialized world for decades, and in Italy, the decline has been particularly dramatic. A generation ago, Italian mothers commonly had more than four children. Now they average less than two. Demographers warn that a shrinking population could yield an unprecedented economic crisis. Special correspondent... Read more