BackTalk with Becca

New This is Us Blog Coming Soon!

becca — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 22:01:29 +0000

In the future, I'll be bringing you the inside scoop on a new This Is Us blog located on KQED.org. Look for it in October. I'll take you behind the scenes, bring you sneak previews of future stories and updates on past profiles so be sure to check out the new blog in its new home.

The TIU blog will have some fun new features we hope you'll like, such as a place for you to suggest people you'd like us to profile. All the past TiU stories will be archived on the new blog so you'll easily be able to find any story you're looking for. The new stories will be a lot easier to find, too.

This will be the last post on BackTalk with Becca. As you know, KTEH is now KQED+. We'll be moving
our KTEH web content over to KQED.org around the end of October so you'll be able to find everything you like all in one place.

The KQEDPlus TV schedule is already on KQED.org and soon you'll be able to keep up with This is Us and The History Quiz there, too. KTEH past productions will be archived on KQED.org as will our Facing the Mortgage Crisis blog so you can still access that information.

I hope to hear from you soon on the new This is Us blog.

Japantown is a Rare Sight in the U.S.

becca — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:44:13 +0000

There are only three Japantowns left in the United States. One of them is here in San Jose. Established at the turn of the 20th century, it offered Japanese emigrants a community that felt more like home.

About 80 years later, in 1981, KTEH produced an historical tour of Japantown featuring many of its historic buildings. In this clip you will hear about the early history and see what Japantown looked like in 1981

Have you visited San Jose's Japantown?

When Grapes Were Crushed by Hand….or Foot

becca — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 22:54:39 +0000

In the second part of the KTEH's 1970 documentary, "The Valley That Was," vineyards vie for the top crop spot. In 1880 vintners like Mirassou, Paul Masson and Picchetti Brothers were growing grapes. Their children were crushing them….. Take a look.

What is your fondest memory of the valley before silicon?

Early Japanese Farmers in Santa Clara Valley

becca — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 23:32:10 +0000

Japanese farmers began arriving in the Santa Clara valley around the end of the 19th century. By 1908 Japanese farmers of the San Jose district controlled 3241 acres of land. Some of that land was purchased by the Sakawa family. Edward Sakawa talks about his father, and working on their turn of the century pear farm, in this clip from "The Valley That Was."

Will SETI Get to Tell Us if We Alone in the Universe?"

becca — Tue, 10 May 2011 20:49:19 +0000

SETI Director, Dr. Jill Tarter Wonders, too. For many years she has been listening to the cosmos for evidence of other beings. Her listening tour may come to an end if government funding is discontinued.

We profiled Dr. Tarter on This is Us. Here's her story:

21 Emmy Nominations

becca — Tue, 10 May 2011 17:59:13 +0000

KQED and KTEH, together, received 21 nominations for the 2011 Northern California Emmy® Awards for our local programs. The stations are recognized for quality programming, which includes QUEST, a local series concentrating on science, nature, and the environment; This is Us, a series profiling the remarkable people of the South Bay; This Week in Northern California, the long-running local public affairs program; Check, Please! Bay Area, a local restaurant review series; and Truly CA, a series of independent documentary films about life in the Golden State.

John Gregg, a KTEH producer, received six nominations, one of the highest numbers for an individual. Linda Giannecchini, a long-time engineering special projects manager and assistant director at KQED, will be presented with the prestigious Governors’ Award.

Here's a clip form one of the nominated stories, This is Us: Barbara London

How Did You Spend Your Summer Vacation?

becca — Fri, 06 May 2011 23:16:02 +0000

Before World War II, cutting apricots for the drying process was the summer job of choice in the valley.
Whole families would would work together making 10 cents a box - or about 10 cents an hour. Apricots were also canned in some of the 50 canneries running in the area. A local woman remembers her apricot summers in this clip from "The Valley That was."

What was your favorite summer job?

The Brilliantly British Mayhem Continues Tomorrow

becca — Thu, 05 May 2011 16:00:24 +0000

Eighty-three episodes have aired, and we're working our way through all of them! The international hit Midsomer Murders returns for a third season tomorrow—Midsomer is a fictional English county that averages three deaths per episode! It's classic British television mystery, with quirky characters and countless twists and turns. Investigations are presided over by the incredibly busy Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby, the bane of any cocky perpetrator. Discover whodunit Fridays at 9pm on KTEH.

The Valley That Was

becca — Mon, 02 May 2011 22:54:39 +0000

One day into May, it seems like Spring is really, finally here. The sun is out, the flowers are in bloom an tissues fill my pockets. There is a dark side to our valley's beauty - pollen.

I'm sure I'm not the first allergy sufferer to wonder what is was like back when Blossom Hill really was covered in blossoms; when we were the Prune Capital of the world. I did a little research and found something very interesting.

Back in the 1970's KTEH made a documentary called, "The Valley That Was." It told the story of farming in the Valley of Heart's Delight from the beginning. It features some wonderful early silent movies, produced
to promote travel to the area. Here's a clip:

The Monk Amoung Us

becca — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:35:08 +0000

Tibetan Monk, Venerable Thupten Donyo, befriended and toured with the legendary rock band The Grateful Dead in the late 1980's. He liked the United States so much, he eventually settled in San Jose where he converted a suburban home into a temple and founded The Gyuto Vajrayana Center. The center is not only a place of worship for local Buddhists, but a learning center for Tibetan history and language.

A mentee of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Donyo has worked hard to raise the money to realize his dream including, busing tables and delivering auto parts. Take a look at his remarkable journey from Tibet to San Jose.