Archiver

In the season finale of Archiver: Queen Bey from KCK , we return to the historic Gem Theater, where Queen Bey—at 83—sings “Misty” in a pandemic-era tribute concert. Though the crowd is sparse, the emotion is rich. This episode reflects on Queen’s final years, her role as a mentor, and her unwavering commitment to Kansas City jazz. Through intimate stories from Kelley Hunt, Curtis Smith, Chuck Hadd...

In this episode, we follow Queen’s journey across continents—from singing in Saudi Arabia and performing for royalty in Bahrain to captivating audiences in Germany, Costa Rica, and beyond. Despite early struggles in California, Queen Bey found her voice on the global stage and eventually returned home to Kansas City, where she flourished. Named Kansas City Jazz Ambassador in 1980, she became a fix...

Queen Bey wasn’t just a singer—she was a natural-born performer whose acting career added another layer to her story. In this episode, we explore her work on stage and screen. Oscar-winning filmmaker Kevin Willmott reflects on Queen’s soulful presence and instinctive talent, and how he wrote roles specifically for her in films like Ninth Street,Confederate States of America , The Only Good Indian...

Queen Bey’s artistry didn’t emerge in a vacuum—it was nurtured by a rich musical legacy rooted in Kansas City, Kansas. In this episode, we trace the deep cultural and educational foundations that shaped her, from ragtime pioneer Charles Johnson to the groundbreaking music programs at Sumner High School and Western University, the first historically Black college west of the Mississippi. Historian...

Queen Bey’s musical genius emerged early—so early, in fact, that she wrote a sultry R&B hit for Linda Hopkins while still a teenager. In this episode, we explore Queen’s formative years as a songwriter and performer, shaped by the legendary club scene of Kansas City’s 18th and Vine. From jazz ballads to blues shouts, Queen Bey absorbed the styles of the greats and made them her own. Through in...

In this premiere episode, we meet Queen Bey—born in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1937—via the final interview she gave before she died in 2024. Raised in a Muslim household in a segregated city, Queen Bey found her calling in music early, performing in legendary Kansas City clubs by age 12. She crossed paths with icons like Billie Holiday and Richard Pryor, but she never had an agent who could launch h...

In many states teachers are being attacked by politicians who oppose public education. In many states trans people are being attacked by politicians for, well, who really knows. So imagine you’re a transgender, public school teacher. How hard is that? In this episode we find out from Riley Long, a trans high school teacher in Kansas.

Chances are whatever you know about trans issues in education came from reporters who cover the issue. The best education reporting starts with students and works its way out to larger issues. Few things have complicated education reporting more than trans issues. The reporting is complicated by state lawmakers and school board members who use it as a campaign issue. On this issue, we speak with v...

With everything else they must deal with…law enforcement, taxes and economic development…state legislators spend an enormous amount of time on transgender issues in education. Why, is the most important question but also, are we done watching endless debates on trans students in statehouses? On this episode, we hear from Missouri state Sen. Greg Razor, a Democrat from Kansas City and the only open...

It’s hard enough being the parent of a middle school student. But now your child comes out as trans and you have to navigate the school district bureaucracy to make sure your child is safe. Add to that, many school board members lean towards anti-trans and that makes parenting even harder. In this episode, we hear from Virginia Franzese from Leawood, Kansas. She has faced all of these problems and...

There are few education topics more heated than transgender students. Should teachers use preferred pronouns? What restroom should trans kids use? And the question that generates the most heat: should kids be allowed to play sports on the teams they identify with? In this episode, we ask two former school district superintendents how we got here. We hear from Cynthia Lane, former superintendent in...

We start this season of Archiver in 1960 on the streets of Russell, Kansas right there on the plains about half-way between Kansas City and Denver. It was a railroad town, an oil town but for our purposes, it’s Bob Dole’s town. His first campaign for federal office featured four girls in homemade skirts called the Bob-O-Links singing on the streets of western Kansas. In between numbers they handed...

By 1960 Bob Dole had his sights on a much bigger political stage after his one term in the Kansas Legislature and five terms as Russell County attorney. There was a shake-up in the western Kansas political landscape starting in 1954 and by 1960 Dole saw his opening. There was a bigger three-way fight for the Republican nomination for Congress from western Kansas that year. In the race with Dole wa...

When Bob Dole was sworn in as a member of the House of Representatives in 1961 it didn’t take the freshman congressman from western Kansas long to attack the Democrats. He opposed almost everything the new Kennedy Administration wanted. In March, 1961 he voted against extending unemployment benefits and Democrats in Kansas immediately labeled him a reactionary. But he also latched onto a controver...

The 1964 election was a disaster for Republicans. Lyndon Johnson crushed Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater with 61% of the vote. Goldwater only carried six states. It was the biggest landslide since Franklin Roosevelt crushed Kansas Gov. Alf Landon in 1936. But, out in western Kansas, Bob Dole was bucking the trend as he sought another term in the House. Even though he was doing better than most Republ...

After Bob Dole’s victory in 1966 many political observers believe he started to move toward the middle. Hunger became an issue that Dole got deeply involved in. CBS showed the documentary “Hunger in America” on May 21, 1968 and it helped profoundly change how the U-S government dealt with hunger. It would also help solidify Bob Dole’s moderation. No longer the Kansas Againster, as the Salina Journ...

In his first run for Senate in 1968, Bob Dole had no trouble winning. He crushed Gov. William Avery in the Republican primary with 68% of the vote and in the general election he beat Democrat William I. Robinson with 60%. It probably didn’t hurt that Tonight Show regular and Kansas City jazz singer Marilyn Maye sang his campaign jingle, a far cry from the Bob-O-Links in Russell. But Dole’s reelect...

On August 20th, 1976 the new ticket of Gerald Ford and Bob Dole made their first campaign stop in Dole’s hometown of Russell, Kansas. It was the night before the two were nominated at the Republican National Convention in Kansas City. It was also Bob Dole Day in Russell, 95 degrees with a 20-mile-an-hour wind that can make the plains feel like a convection oven. Still, a thousand people showed up...

After losing as Gerald Ford’s 1976 vice presidential running mate, Dole made another run for the White House in 1988. It was a crowded GOP field that included Ronald Reagan’s vice president, George H.W. Bush. The campaign started well enough with Dole winning in Iowa. But Bush started running ads in New Hampshire saying Dole helped raise taxes, and he won the primary. On TV that night, Dole ended...

On November 8th, 1996 just three days after Bob Dole got pasted by Bill Clinton for president, he walked on stage at the Late Show with David Letterman to a standing ovation. There has never been a politician just as comfortable and formidable marking up legislation as they are on late night TV. He joked that he was making $200 for the appearance and it was the first work he’d had in sometime. Whi...

KMBC radio was headquartered atop the swanky Pickwick Hotel in downtown Kansas City. The Pickwick was the place to stay for men doing business with the city and county. It was a favorite of Harry Truman when he was Presiding Judge of Jackson County. And while there were probably plenty of deals made by men in smoke-filled rooms, at KMBC they were thinking about and celebrating, women.

We kick off this season of Archiver on February 8th, 1941 at the Ivanhoe Temple in Kansas City. The Ivanhoe was home to much of the city’s musical talent but on Saturday nights it was home to the Brush Creek Follies which originated on KMBC in Kansas City.

It's been more than a half century since the start of the Vietnam War. Vietnam changed American politics, changed the US military and most importantly changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans. In this special Archiver series, we meet four Kansans who fall into that category. Four people who fought the war, not with claymore mines and grit, but with bandages, medicine, and pure compa...

It's been more than a half century since the start of the Vietnam War. Vietnam changed American politics, changed the US military and most importantly changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans. In this special Archiver series, we meet four Kansans who fall into that category. Four people who fought the war, not with claymore mines and grit, but with bandages, medicine, and pure compa...

It's been more than a half century since the start of the Vietnam War. Vietnam changed American politics, changed the US military and most importantly changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans. In this special Archiver series, we meet four Kansans who fall into that category. Four people who fought the war, not with claymore mines and grit, but with bandages, medicine, and pure compa...