Live Wire Radio
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| Genre | Comedy, music, interview, variety |
|---|---|
| Running time | 1 hour |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| Home station | Oregon Public Broadcasting |
| Starring | Luke Burbank |
| Created by | Kate Sokoloff and Robyn Tenenbaum |
| Edited by | Jim Brunberg, Laura Hadden |
| Produced by | Courtenay Hameister, Jim Brunberg, Robyn Tenenbaum, Laura Hadden |
| Executive producer(s) | Robyn Tenenbaum |
| Recording studio |
Alberta Rose Theatre Portland, Oregon |
| Original release | 2004 – present |
| No. of episodes | 300+ |
| Website | livewireradio |
Live Wire Radio is a radio variety show that was launched in 2004 in Portland, Oregon. Staff at the upstart, weekly show are hoping to position it to possibly be considered by American Public Media as a replacement for Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion.
Live Wire was initially hosted by Rob Sample, followed by Courtenay Hameister, with current hosting duties covered by Luke Burbank. Burbank has a podcast called Too Beautiful to Live and is an occasional guest-host on the nationally syndicated NPR quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!.
Live Wire is built on various elements such as standup comedy, guest interviews, musical performances, comedy sketches, essays, and storytelling. Its emphasis is on the quirky local character of Portland. Each show is recorded in front of a live audience, every other week, which is then edited into material for two weekly shows.
In February 2003, Kate Sokoloff approached Robyn Tenenbaum with the idea for Live Wire, a younger, "hipper" version of Prairie Home Companion, in a format similar to West Coast Live. Tenenbaum had worked on rock concerts with Bill Graham Presents, and for four years had helped produce West Coast Live for NPR in San Francisco. Sokoloff was producing local theatre. The two women started a production company called Moxiefish, and put together a demo of Live Wire in September 2003, which they shopped to Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB). About 150 people watched the first taping in March 2004 at the Hollywood Theatre, hosted by Rob Sample. The first broadcast was at 7 pm on Saturday, March 27, 2004, over the OPB network.
At first, the show was produced monthly. By 2005, the taping was held primarily at the Aladdin Theatre in Portland, with 350 to 500 in the audience. One show was taped at the Mission Theatre & Pub in October 2005. The Gerding Theatre in the First Regiment Armory Annex was used for a summer show in 2013.
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