Burning Bright
Passager’s weekly podcast, presenting poetry and prose by writers over 50. Hosted by Jon Shorr.
Episodes
255 episodes
Periodic Table
Elemental tangents, with poems by Jim Nawrocki, Kay Cash-Smith, and Susan Haroutunian Cunningham.
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Season 6
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Episode 19
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7:37
Black History Month
Poems and excerpts on learning about Black history, by Kevin Nance, Elizabeth Esris, Kathleen O’Toole, and Melvin Douglas Williams.
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Season 6
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Episode 19
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8:14
The Holocaust
Recognizing International Holocaust Remembrance Day with pieces from Rachel Heimowitz, Claire Kahane, Fran Markover, and Rosanne Singer.
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Season 6
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Episode 18
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7:13
Ben Franklin and Philadelphia
Poems from Philadelphian writers Joy Gorson, Beth Brown Preston, and Bill Buskirk.
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Season 7
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Episode 3
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6:38
It’s Cold!
Celebrating Robert Service’s Birthday, with poems by Rebecca Leet, John J. Hohn, and Pamela Wynn.
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Season 7
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Episode 2
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6:41
New Year's Hope
Poems about small hopes, from Kathleen Hellen, Becky Sakellariou, Paula Sergi, and Martin Steyer.
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Season 7
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Episode 1
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6:44
Christmas 2025
Pieces about Christmas and New Year's, from Nancy Smith Harris, Patric Pepper, and Liz Abrams-Morley.
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Season 6
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Episode 14
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8:22
The 2025 Passager Poet
Four sonnets from 2025 Poetry Contest winner Angie Minkin.
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Season 6
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Episode 13
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7:40
Morgenthau Prize
Poems from Henry Morgenthau III and past Morgenthau Prize winners Dennis Lee, Mark Elber, and Winifred Hughes.
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Season 6
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Episode 12
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8:35
The Evils of Drink
Featuring excerpts and poems about drunkenness from Andrew Brown, Terri Steel, and Rick Rohdenburg.
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Season 6
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Episode 11
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5:49
The Bill of Rights
The right of peaceful assembly, with excerpts and poems from Esther Cantu, Judy Callarman, and Tillie Friedenberg.
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Season 6
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Episode 10
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7:40
World Kindness Day
Recognizing the kindness of others, with poems from David Bergman, Henry Morgenthau III, and Rhett Watts.
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Season 6
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Episode 9
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7:46
Women in Medicine
Featuring pieces from Dr. Denisha Naidoo, Dr. Beverly Greenspan, and Dr. Michelle Morouse.
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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7:15
College
Writing about College from Joyce Abell, Terry Miller, and Winifred Hughes.
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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7:03
Words for Webster
Celebrating Noah Webster with poems about words from Jennifer Pratt-Walter, Sherri Stepakoff, Sarah Yerkes, and Hal Grinberg.
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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7:02
Indigenous Peoples' Day
Poems about Indian Schools from Red Hawk and Joel Savishinsky, and a painting from Alma Roberts.
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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6:48
World Teachers’ Day
Tributes to teachers from Roy Cheng Tsung and Maureen Murphy Woodcock.
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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7:00
October is for Oceans
Recognizing October is for Oceans month, with pieces from Passager’s Pandemic Diaries series from Mark Tochen, Johan Fremling, Isabel Learza, and Suzanne Iuppa.
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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8:01
National Cooking Day
Poems about food from Wendy Hoffman, Christine Higgins, and Fran Markover.
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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6:45
A Peek Inside the New Issue
Selections from the forthcoming 2025 Poetry Contest issue, featuring poems by Philip Stern, Buffy Shutt, Susan Miller, and Byron Hoot.
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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6:32
National Grandparents’ Day
Honoring the memory of Marian McQuade, with poems and a letter by Richard Levine, Alice Duggan, and Sue Marcus.
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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5:50
An Interview with Susan Baur
A special episode of Burning Bright, featuring an interview with Susan Baur, founder of Old Ladies Against Underwater Garbage (OLAUG) and author of "In the Company of Turtles."
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Season 5
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Episode 42
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16:29
Nature
Observing the beauty of nature, featuring four poems by Catherine Young, Deborah Casillas, Robert Tremmel and J. I. Kleinberg.
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Season 5
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Episode 41
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7:18