Between the Covers on 10/20/11

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Produced by: 
KBOO
Air date: 
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 11:00am to 11:30am
Bill Adler discusses his book, "The Man Who Never Died: The Life, Times and Legacy of Joe Hill"

The guest is Bill Adler, author of "The Man Who Never Died: The Life, Times, and Legacy of Joe Hill, American Labor Icon."

In 1914, Joe Hill was convicted of murder in Utah and sentenced to death by firing squad, igniting international controversy. Many believed Hill was innocent, condemned for his association with the Industrial Workers of the World -- the radical Wobblies. Now, following four years of intensive investigation, William M. Adler gives us the first full-scale biography of Joe Hill, and presents never before published documentary evidence that comes as close as one can to definitively exonerating him.

Joe Hill's gripping tale is set against a brief but electrifying moment in American history, between the century's turn and World War I, when the call for industrial unionism struck a deep chord among disenfranchised workers; when class warfare raged and capitalism was on the run. Hill was the union's preeminent songwriter, and in death, he became organized labor's most venerated martyr, celebrated by Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, and immortalized in the ballad "I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night."

Bill Adler speaks in Portland on Thursday, October 20, 2011 at 6:00 pm at the Red & Black Cafe, 400 SE 12th Ave. Portland, OR 97212, 503-231-3899

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