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- Description:
- William Penn, essayist, fiction writer, and professor of English at Michigan State University, talks about his novel "The Absence of Angels," settings and plots in his works, inspiration from his family, his in-progress works, Native American dramas, and his reading habits. Penn is interviewed by MSULibrarian Jane Arnold for the MSU Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 1999-11-19T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Science fiction writer and Detroiter Kathe Koja talks about why she would like to be a cat, the sources of her inspiration, research for her books, her family, and her soon to be published works. Koja is interviewed by Michigan State University Librarian Leslie Behm for the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series. Held in the MSU Main Library.
- Date Issued:
- 2001-04-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Wayne Nunheimer recalls his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1945 to 1975. He talks about his father working for REO, the REO Clubhouse, the 1937 strike, the company in the post-war period, his job as a spot welder, lawnmower production, piecework and the beautiful REO Flying Cloud automobile. Nunheimer also recalls the mergers which led to the end of the company, ongoing legal battles in bankruptcy, and says how fortunate workers were to have union representation and what a positive influence the union was in the plant. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-18T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Dona Jean describes working at other GM plants in Lansing before coming to Fisher in 1994. She discusses learning about unionism at Fisher and the start of her union and political activism. She talks about life on the second shift, family issues, lay-off, sexism, and meeting her husband at a union meeting. Dona Jean discusses being elected Recording Secretary and other accomplishments.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Betty talks about her Russian-Jewish ancestry, leaving home in Toronto at 16 to avoid cultural obligations, and coming to the U.S. She hired into Fisher in 1946 and again in May 1948. Betty talks about factory life for the few women including lower pay, harder work, community restrooms, and stereotypical perceptions of factory women. Betty shares her opinion of the union and management, describes her union activity, smoking, strikes, layoffs, and paying union dues.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-09-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Michigan State University Professor Emeritus of Economics C. Patrick "Lash" Larrowe, talks about his family and childhood in Portland, OR, how his interest in working class issues and unionism grew and why he chose economics as a way of teaching about labor issues. Larrowe describes his early union experiences while in college, joining the Association of Catholic Trade Unionists, his service in World War Two, getting his first professorship at the University of Utah, and finally coming to work at the Labor and Industrial Relations Center at MSU. Larrowe discusses settling in at MSU and the people he worked with including, Jack Stieber, Charles Killingsworth, and MSU President John Hannah. He also explains the tensions between the Labor School and state conservatives and why the MSU faculty grievance system was created in the face of professors being terminated. Larrowe says he left the Labor School and moved to the Economics Department when his research and published material was threatened with censorship. Larrowe is interviewed by John Revitte, MSU professor of Labor and Industrial Relations.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-06-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Sal describes his childhood in Texas as a farm laborer, his Army and National Guard experience, and work in the plant cafeteria before being hired by Fisher in October 1968. He describes factory life, jobs he did, pranks, relations with coworkers and supervisors, and his role in the change to a team based system. Sal talks about his family connections to GM and his active social life in and outside the plant.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Mabel McQueen talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, MI, from 1953 to 1975. She describes her youth on the family farm, working at Motor Wheel through the war, her work as a secretary and bookkeeper, her supervisors, and her feelings about the union. McQueen says that many of her family members also worked at REO and that REO itself felt like one big family. She says that the bankruptcy was a terrible time and that it was heartbreaking watching friends and co-workers being fired and losing their pensions. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Hattie describes being hired in April 1953 and working in the Paint Shop. She talks about wages, undesirable jobs, and discrimination. Hattie discusses relations with coworkers, sexual harassment, swing shifts, family life, and day-to-day life in the factory.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-11-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Mildred Alspaugh, daughter, sister and wife of REO Motor Car/Diamond-Reo Truck, Inc employees, talks about the company and her life in a REO workers family in Lansing, MI. Alspaugh tells of her father bringing home his "piece count pay slips" so that she could tally his earnings, of going to the REO Clubhouse as a child, listening to the REO Band, and watching the company ball teams. Alspaugh says that her husband died at the plant after forty years on the job and that other workers collected money to give to her and her children. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-25T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Willie recounts his youth in Mississippi, his service in the U.S. Army in Korea, and being hired at Fisher in December 1954. He describes the jobs blacks were placed on, discrimination, and being denied an apprenticeship. He comments on millwright work, family, neighborhood, and retirement.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-01-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Vernon Cook recalls working at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, Mi, between 1944 and 1948. Cook says that much of his family worked at REO, including his future wife and that company culture dominated their lives. He describes factory working conditions, the REO Clubhouse, seeing the "Baby REO" car on display, the 1937 sit-down strike, and listening to WREO, the company radio station. He also talks at length about his job as a stock chaser in the plant and describes how trucks were built, tested and then dismantled for export. Interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- R.T. recalls her family and life in Endicott, NY, coming to Lansing with her new husband in 1972, being laid off from her job and standing in the rain with her sister for six hours to apply at Fisher before being hired in March 1981. She comments on the Trim Shop, coworkers, supervision, liking second shift, and her union activism. R.T. talks about her duties as a committee person and bargaining committee member, grievance handling, and the contract.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-01-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Poet Elinor Benedict talks about her book "All that divides us", Christianity in her life and her writings, her family and relatives in China, and her work in process. Benedict is interviewed by librarian Stephanie Mathson for the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2001-04-20T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Jane Arnold, humanities collection coordinator at the Michigan State University Libraries, interviews poet Katherine Fishburn on why she chooses to be a poet, her book "The dead are so disappointing", the healing power of writing poems, how she brings in her relationship with her parents, especially her father, into her poems, nature as a theme in her poems, her in-progress works.
- Date Issued:
- 2000-03-31T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Connie talks about being hired in 1972 and working in Sanitation and Trim, being laid-off in June 1973 and quitting to care for her child. She rehired straight into skilled trades in April 1985 with a journeyman's card from her time with the Tennessee Valley Authority. Connie recalls being one of only a few women in the trades, relations with bosses and coworkers, life in the factory, and social time. Connie comments on her family ties to GM and her union activity.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-08-31T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Author Tom Springer credits his mother for developing his passion for reading and explains how he came to writing, calling himself "the least likely person to be standing up here". Springer, who works as chief editor and program manager for the Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan, describes his journey from a below average, blue-collar kid in southwest Michigan to the writing profession. He reads from his collection "Looking for hickories: the forgotten wildness of the rural Midwest", named a 2009 Michigan Notable Book. Springer interjects his observations on life in Michigan and its cultural history, while reading. He concludes by answering questions. Introduced by MSU Librarian Michael Rodriguez. Part of the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2009-04-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Native-American author Heid Erdrich describes a student writing contest she judged earlier in the day and then reads from her first book of poetry. Erdrich also reflects on her family and life as a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibway and describes influences on her writing from classic literature to tabloid headlines. Erdrich reads selections from her work that portray the tension between her Ojibway traditions and her German-American upbringing and concludes by revealing the winners of the writing contest. Erdrich is introduced by MSU Professor of English Gordon Henry. Part of the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2008-04-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Shelton talks about being hired in November 1984 when the plant converted to small cars. He tells of standing in line six hours to apply at Fisher, his first day in the Body Shop, and the type of work he did. Shelton discusses coworkers, supervisors, meeting his wife, night shift family issues, lunch at Gus's Bar or Harry's, friendships and his union activity.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-21T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Layton Aves, a production worker and UAW organizer at REO Motor Cars/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., claims that in the 1940s only Ku Klux Klan members were allowed to join the union and work at the Lansing, MI plant. Aves says the UAW cooperated with the Klan in order to increase its strength and ability to organize workers and that union-management relations in the plant were often filled with animosity. Aves also talks about his duties at REO, where he worked from 1941 to 1975, life in the plant, his experiences with line speed-ups, piece counts, and time study, and the lives of his grandfather, father and mother, who all worked beside him the the REO factory. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1995-08-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Craig tells of being hired in March 1981 into Fisher where his father was a supervisor. He lists family members that work for GM, describes what it was like to work for his father, jobs he had, and some pranks pulled on him. Craig also talks about his union activity and being elected to the Recreation Committee.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-04-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Ninety-six-year-old Hilda Smith recalls her career at the REO Motor Car Company, in Lansing, MI, between 1923 and 1964. Smith talks fondly about her family, her job in REO's Human Resources Department, and her retirement after a forty-two year career. She looks through a scrapbook with the interviewers, identifying managers and coworkers and talks about the REO Clubhouse, movies, and caring for her thirteen siblings. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Sally describes being hired in June 1978 and considered the factory a "scary place." She talks about family issues that influenced her to apply at Fisher. Sally describes various production jobs, her relations with bosses, engineers and coworkers and life in the plant. She recalls being selected as an Ergonomics Rep in 1987 and discusses the frustration of trying to get jobs set up properly.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Otto Aves talks about his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1944 to 1972. Aves describes growing up on a Delta Township farm and following both of his parents into the plant. He also talks about building military vehicles without heaters and defrosters, trying to run the family farm while working double shifts, a wildcat strike over piece rate pay, conditions on the shop floor, building custom trucks for celebrities, and the tremendous influence of the UAW. He says that REO was much like a family and reminisces about REO picnics, outings at Lake Lansing, the REO Clubhouse, movies, bowling, and the ball teams. As in any family, he says, there were problems and he describes filing a shop grievance against his real-life father-in-law who also worked at REO. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-01-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Frances Barnhart talks about her brief career at the REO Motor Car Company, in Lansing, MI, from 1942 to 1953. Barnhart describes growing up in Lansing and going to the REO Clubhouse as a child, working at Kresge's in downtown Lansing, and finally being hired into the REO Navy Department to make make bomb fuses during the war. Barnhart describes the many family connections that brought her to the plant, earning 65 cents an hour, piece rate, safety issues, and being one of the older women to work at REO. She says that she moved to the lawn mower line after the war, met her husband, was soon laid off and declined a callback in 1959 to raise her family. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-03-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Nineteen year old Lansing Community College freshman Tyler Ford talks about living in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia with his father who worked for an oil company and moving back to the U.S. to live in East Lansing, MI with his mother, and says that he regrets not taking full advantage of living abroad. He also discusses his parent's marriage and divorce and life at LCC saying he has remained focused in college despite the "freshman foolishness" around him. Ford sees extensive travel in his future and says that he doesn't believe that children will fit into that life style.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-04-27T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marilyn Shadduck talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1942 to 1975. Shadduck describes her youth, going to weekly free movies at the REO Clubhouse, working at REO through the war years, being selected as "Miss REO", raising a family, and being part of the "REO family" until the plant closed. She talks about the dissolution of the company, the loss of the pension fund, and the start of Spartan Motors by former REO workers. She says that REO "was a great place to work". The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recorded as part of the commemoration of REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-06-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Lyle tells of being hired in August 1976 and being assigned to the Trim Shop. He tells of working on weld integrity in Quality Control, of meeting his wife, his love of music and he even plays his harmonica. Lyle also discusses the difference between hourly and salaried people, the BOC talent show, his union activity and his job as plant tour guide.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Dave talks about being hired in August 1976, his first day in the Body Shop jungle, and a variety of pranks. He tells of beginning his apprenticeship in 1979 and receiving his journeyman's card 1989. Dave discusses lines of demarcation, overtime, wages, family issues and working Sundays when families of the tradesmen would come to the plant and picnic outside.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-10-17T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Doris Dow recalls her career as a secretary at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, Mi, between 1950 and 1975. Dow talks about joining her mother and other relatives at the plant and describes her first job running a blueprint copier, becoming a secretary and later working for Oldsmobile. She says that at REO, the company was more a part of the social fabric of a worker's life than at Oldsmobile and goes on to describe the "fun" she had at the REO Girls Club, and performing charity work with other employees. Dow also discusses the decline of REO, the day that the doors were locked, the aftermath of the closing, the demolition of the REO Clubhouse and the loss of the REO pension fund. She explains the complexity of selling the company as a unit because of the way owner Francis Cappaert had divided the operations from the property. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-19T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Ena Malin talks about her life in domestic service at the Olds mansion on Main Street in Lansing, MI. Malin and her husband, who came to the U.S. from Germany in 1961, were employed by Gladys Olds Anderson, daughter of auto magnate Ransom E. Olds. She talks about the pressures of working for demanding, wealthy people, her duties and how she came to work at the mansion and how her husband became the family chauffeur. She also discusses the mansion's opulence, the many famous and powerful house guests entertained by the Olds-Anderson family, and laments the demolition of the mansion and the end of an era in Lansing high society. The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recording ends abruptly. Recorded in commemoration of the REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-06-26T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Lue talks about being hired in November 1954 and going to the Paint Shop. He discusses becoming a paint mixer and being one of the first blacks put on supervision. Lue talks about the technical duties of paint mix, swing shifts, women in the plant, and his family.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marjorie Koehler talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1947 to 1975. She says that her grandfather and father were working at REO when she came on board, after working for the State of Michigan, the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) and the Works Projects Administration (WPA). She describes working in the payroll and catalog departments at REO, shares stories of the REO Clubhouse, employee picnics and the annual employee fair and says that working at REO was much better than Oldsmobile, where her husband was worked. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Rudy talks about being hired, quitting, and being hired again in April 1969 and his father's resistance to Rudy working at Fisher. He describes a variety of jobs, work on the second shift, his union activity, union community service and his passion for helping people, achieving elected office in Local 602, and the strike in 1970.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-08-11T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marvin Grinstern talks about his employment at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, MI, from 1965 and 1975. Grinstern describes growing up in Lansing, farming, visiting his father at the plant, as a boy, during the 1937 strike and finally joining his father and other relatives at REO. Grinstern also talks about a fatal accident on the shop floor, managers abusing their position, the REO bankruptcy, the plant closing, and the resulting shock, depression and suicides among workers. Grinstern laments the loss of manufacturing companies and jobs in Lansing and remarks on the great changes that came to factories in the wake of unionization and women in the workplace. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-12-03T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marta describes her life as a Cuban American immigrant, her family, the hiring process and her first day in the factory in August 1977. Marta comments on Latino culture, the treatment of women, sexism, sexual harassment, life on the night shift, her UAW involvement and elected offices and community activity. She also talks about special assignments on new product launches.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-02-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Leslie Mitchell remembers REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, as a great place to work, in this interview conducted by historian Shirley Bradley. Mitchell discusses growing up across from the REO plant where both of his parents worked, starting his work life at the General Motors Oldsombile plant and later moving to REO. Mitchell describes a tragic death at the plant during his tenure which led to UAW Local 650 successfully organizing REO workers. Recorded as part of the commemoration of REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-05-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Michigan State University sophomore James Porter talks about growing up on a farm in Heartland, MI, his family and siblings, and his parent's careers. He talks about the transition from high school to college, says that he is living off campus now and calls dorm life "insane". Porter says that in ten years he expects to be actor, but would be happy to have any job in professional theater. Theater life, he says, does not lend itself to starting a family.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-11-28T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Sue Ellen Houghtalling Brown talks about her life in a REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc. family and her father's career with the company. Brown describes a worker family Christmas party at the elaborate, company owned, REO Clubhouse in Lansing, MI and discusses her father's job as a sales and distribution manager for REO, and his jobs after the REO bankruptcy in 1975. She also gives a detailed, first-hand account of the massive January 1980 fire at the plant and of taking photos of the blaze before police or firefighters had even arrived. She says that she later hid her uncensored photos and negatives because she was afraid they would be confiscated by the authorities. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-03-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Helen Piwkowski and Jeannette Oksa talk about their lives, families, and their work in a cigar factory in Detroit, Michigan. They also discuss being born in Poland and emigrating to the U.S., their education, their union activity, race relations in Detroit neighborhoods and in the workplace, and the Polish community in Detroit.
- Date Issued:
- 1981-02-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Doris Faustman talks about her three periods of employment at the REO Motor Car Company in Lansing, MI. She says that she first worked as a clerk from 1945 to 1947, left to raise children, came back from 1949 to 1951 and returned to REO again in 1967 when her kids were older. She describes her work in the parts department, her coworkers, bosses, and being a grateful member of the union. Faustman talks about the first attempts to computerize REO administrative offices and how foreign and strange all of the equipment seemed to staff. She also sadly recalls being laid off in 1975 when REO closed in bankruptcy. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-23T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Thomas Morefield talks about his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1960 to 1975. Morefield describes his childhood, joining REO to work with other family members, the various jobs he held, and building military vehicles. Morefield says that moving from the union ranks into management strained many of his relationships in the plant, and that losing his union seniority as a manager was an unnerving experience. The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recorded as part of the commemoration of the REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-05-11T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Elizabeth Byington describes her suburban Detroit family life and tells how her aspirations have changed between high school and her sophomore year at Michigan State University. Byington says she no longer has an immediate interest in marriage and children and has changed her major to something which she finds more satisfying. Byington also discusses her college experiences, the quality of her professors, career possibilities, and her hopes for the future. Byington says she expects to enjoy her future career and although her peers are much too focused on material things, she does not think that they deserve to be labeled the "me generation".
- Date Issued:
- 1988-05-23T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marilyn Shadduck talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1942 to 1975. Shadduck describes her youth, going to weekly free movies at the REO Clubhouse, working at REO through the war years, being selected as "Miss REO", raising a family, and being part of the "REO family" until the plant closed. She talks about the dissolution of the company, the loss of the pension fund, and the start of Spartan Motors by former REO workers. She says that REO "was a great place to work". The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recorded as part of the commemoration of REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-06-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Lyle tells of being hired in August 1976 and being assigned to the Trim Shop. He tells of working on weld integrity in Quality Control, of meeting his wife, his love of music and he even plays his harmonica. Lyle also discusses the difference between hourly and salaried people, the BOC talent show, his union activity and his job as plant tour guide.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Dave talks about being hired in August 1976, his first day in the Body Shop jungle, and a variety of pranks. He tells of beginning his apprenticeship in 1979 and receiving his journeyman's card 1989. Dave discusses lines of demarcation, overtime, wages, family issues and working Sundays when families of the tradesmen would come to the plant and picnic outside.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-10-17T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Doris Dow recalls her career as a secretary at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, Mi, between 1950 and 1975. Dow talks about joining her mother and other relatives at the plant and describes her first job running a blueprint copier, becoming a secretary and later working for Oldsmobile. She says that at REO, the company was more a part of the social fabric of a worker's life than at Oldsmobile and goes on to describe the "fun" she had at the REO Girls Club, and performing charity work with other employees. Dow also discusses the decline of REO, the day that the doors were locked, the aftermath of the closing, the demolition of the REO Clubhouse and the loss of the REO pension fund. She explains the complexity of selling the company as a unit because of the way owner Francis Cappaert had divided the operations from the property. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-19T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Ena Malin talks about her life in domestic service at the Olds mansion on Main Street in Lansing, MI. Malin and her husband, who came to the U.S. from Germany in 1961, were employed by Gladys Olds Anderson, daughter of auto magnate Ransom E. Olds. She talks about the pressures of working for demanding, wealthy people, her duties and how she came to work at the mansion and how her husband became the family chauffeur. She also discusses the mansion's opulence, the many famous and powerful house guests entertained by the Olds-Anderson family, and laments the demolition of the mansion and the end of an era in Lansing high society. The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recording ends abruptly. Recorded in commemoration of the REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-06-26T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Frances Barnhart talks about her brief career at the REO Motor Car Company, in Lansing, MI, from 1942 to 1953. Barnhart describes growing up in Lansing and going to the REO Clubhouse as a child, working at Kresge's in downtown Lansing, and finally being hired into the REO Navy Department to make make bomb fuses during the war. Barnhart describes the many family connections that brought her to the plant, earning 65 cents an hour, piece rate, safety issues, and being one of the older women to work at REO. She says that she moved to the lawn mower line after the war, met her husband, was soon laid off and declined a callback in 1959 to raise her family. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-03-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Shelton talks about being hired in November 1984 when the plant converted to small cars. He tells of standing in line six hours to apply at Fisher, his first day in the Body Shop, and the type of work he did. Shelton discusses coworkers, supervisors, meeting his wife, night shift family issues, lunch at Gus's Bar or Harry's, friendships and his union activity.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-21T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marvin Grinstern talks about his employment at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, MI, from 1965 and 1975. Grinstern describes growing up in Lansing, farming, visiting his father at the plant, as a boy, during the 1937 strike and finally joining his father and other relatives at REO. Grinstern also talks about a fatal accident on the shop floor, managers abusing their position, the REO bankruptcy, the plant closing, and the resulting shock, depression and suicides among workers. Grinstern laments the loss of manufacturing companies and jobs in Lansing and remarks on the great changes that came to factories in the wake of unionization and women in the workplace. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-12-03T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Rudy talks about being hired, quitting, and being hired again in April 1969 and his father's resistance to Rudy working at Fisher. He describes a variety of jobs, work on the second shift, his union activity, union community service and his passion for helping people, achieving elected office in Local 602, and the strike in 1970.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-08-11T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Lue talks about being hired in November 1954 and going to the Paint Shop. He discusses becoming a paint mixer and being one of the first blacks put on supervision. Lue talks about the technical duties of paint mix, swing shifts, women in the plant, and his family.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marjorie Koehler talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1947 to 1975. She says that her grandfather and father were working at REO when she came on board, after working for the State of Michigan, the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) and the Works Projects Administration (WPA). She describes working in the payroll and catalog departments at REO, shares stories of the REO Clubhouse, employee picnics and the annual employee fair and says that working at REO was much better than Oldsmobile, where her husband was worked. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Marta describes her life as a Cuban American immigrant, her family, the hiring process and her first day in the factory in August 1977. Marta comments on Latino culture, the treatment of women, sexism, sexual harassment, life on the night shift, her UAW involvement and elected offices and community activity. She also talks about special assignments on new product launches.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-02-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Dona Jean describes working at other GM plants in Lansing before coming to Fisher in 1994. She discusses learning about unionism at Fisher and the start of her union and political activism. She talks about life on the second shift, family issues, lay-off, sexism, and meeting her husband at a union meeting. Dona Jean discusses being elected Recording Secretary and other accomplishments.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Betty talks about her Russian-Jewish ancestry, leaving home in Toronto at 16 to avoid cultural obligations, and coming to the U.S. She hired into Fisher in 1946 and again in May 1948. Betty talks about factory life for the few women including lower pay, harder work, community restrooms, and stereotypical perceptions of factory women. Betty shares her opinion of the union and management, describes her union activity, smoking, strikes, layoffs, and paying union dues.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-09-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- William Penn, essayist, fiction writer, and professor of English at Michigan State University, talks about his novel "The Absence of Angels," settings and plots in his works, inspiration from his family, his in-progress works, Native American dramas, and his reading habits. Penn is interviewed by MSULibrarian Jane Arnold for the MSU Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 1999-11-19T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Science fiction writer and Detroiter Kathe Koja talks about why she would like to be a cat, the sources of her inspiration, research for her books, her family, and her soon to be published works. Koja is interviewed by Michigan State University Librarian Leslie Behm for the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series. Held in the MSU Main Library.
- Date Issued:
- 2001-04-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Wayne Nunheimer recalls his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1945 to 1975. He talks about his father working for REO, the REO Clubhouse, the 1937 strike, the company in the post-war period, his job as a spot welder, lawnmower production, piecework and the beautiful REO Flying Cloud automobile. Nunheimer also recalls the mergers which led to the end of the company, ongoing legal battles in bankruptcy, and says how fortunate workers were to have union representation and what a positive influence the union was in the plant. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-18T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Part 1: In an oral history interview, former Michigan Supreme Court Justice John W. Fitzgerald discusses his family background, serving in the armed forces, attending law school at the University of Michigan, the early days of his legal career, and running for the the Michigan Senate in 1958 and the newly created Michigan Court of Appeals in 1964. Justice Fitzgerald also talks about his decision to leave the Court of Appeals to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court, the Supreme Court election process, his own campaigns and his decision not to accept campaign contributions from lawyers. Fitzgerald further provides insight on the Supreme Court's decision making process, the composition of the Court during his tenure and the famous Scholle vs. Secretary of State case. Part 2: In an oral history interview, former Michigan Supreme Court Justice John W. Fitzgerald talks about his early days on the Michigan Supreme Court and difficult issues faced by the Court in the nineteen-seventies, including selecting a new Chief Justice in 1974, the death of Justice Thomas M. Kavanagh in 1975, and the investigation of Justice John Swainson later that same year. He says that some cases suffered during that period because the Court was "short-handed". Justice Fitzgerald also discusses memorable cases decided by the Court during his tenure, including People vs. Beavers and the "Poletown" case, the legislative role of the court, and collegiality amongst the justices.
- Date Created:
- 1990-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- Interviews with Michigan State Supreme Court Justices
- Description:
- Part 1: Mary S. Coleman, the first woman elected to the Michigan Supreme Court and the first to serve as its Chief Justice, talks about her early life in Texas, her family's move to Washington, D.C., her parents, her father's death, her high school years, meeting Oliver Wendall Holmes, dating, attending the University of Maryland and attending law school at George Washington University, where she was often the only female in her classes. She also talks about getting her law degree in 1939, marrying her husband a few days later, starting a job at the USDA, and later moving to her husband's hometown of Marshall, Michigan to support his bid for the Michigan Senate in 1948. Part 2: Mary S. Coleman, the first woman elected to the Michigan Supreme Court and the first to serve as its Chief Justice, talks about her husband Creighton's campaign for the Michigan Senate in 1948, his legal practice, her life as a homemaker, her husband's law firm, and pursuing her own legal career in Michigan. Coleman also discusses dealing with sexism in the judicial system, the respectful way she was treated by judges, her interest in children's issues, foster care, juvenile court and social work, and how she eventually become a court referee and later, in 1960, a Probate Court judge. Coleman calls herself a "conservative" and then describes her support for the Equal Rights Amendment and other women's rights initiatives. She concludes by describing the working environment within the Court, its terrible reputation, the hostility between the justices, the divisions over workers compensation cases, the influence of unions, the Swainson scandal and its impact on the Court and her own role in deciding key cases. Part 3: Mary S. Coleman, the first woman elected to the Michigan Supreme Court and the first to serve as its Chief Justice, concludes her reminisces of her time on the Court. Coleman describes efforts to reorganize the lower court system to bring efficiency and clarity to the system, working with unions, Coleman Young, and others to influence legislation restructuring the courts and breaking with old systems of patronage and favor. Coleman also discusses fighting to get better pay for her court employees while she was a Probate judge, attempts to bring fairness and equity to pay levels across the state, the battle over reapportionment following the 1980 census, her resignation from the Court so that Governor William Milliken could appoint her replacement, various colleagues on the Court and the support from her family which she says she has enjoyed throughout her career.
- Date Created:
- 1991-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- Interviews with Michigan State Supreme Court Justices
- Description:
- In an oral history interview, Michigan Supreme Court Justice and author of the novel "Anatomy of a murder", John D. Voelker, talks about growing up in Ishpeming, MI, and his education and work background, including his time as a district attorney. Voelker also discusses being appointed to the Court in 1957, running against Joseph Moynihan, Jr. for a seat that same year, how decisions are made by the justices, famous cases he heard, including People v. Hildabridle and his eventual resignation from the Court. Justice Voelker talks fondly about writing, and the books he wrote under the pseudonym Robert Traver and reads an excerpt from "Laughing whitefish" which includes a description of the Michigan Supreme Court chambers. Voelker is interviewed by Roger F. Lane.
- Date Created:
- 1990-10-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- Interviews with Michigan State Supreme Court Justices
- Description:
- Sal describes his childhood in Texas as a farm laborer, his Army and National Guard experience, and work in the plant cafeteria before being hired by Fisher in October 1968. He describes factory life, jobs he did, pranks, relations with coworkers and supervisors, and his role in the change to a team based system. Sal talks about his family connections to GM and his active social life in and outside the plant.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Leslie Mitchell remembers REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, as a great place to work, in this interview conducted by historian Shirley Bradley. Mitchell discusses growing up across from the REO plant where both of his parents worked, starting his work life at the General Motors Oldsombile plant and later moving to REO. Mitchell describes a tragic death at the plant during his tenure which led to UAW Local 650 successfully organizing REO workers. Recorded as part of the commemoration of REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-05-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Michigan State University Professor Emeritus of Economics C. Patrick "Lash" Larrowe, talks about his family and childhood in Portland, OR, how his interest in working class issues and unionism grew and why he chose economics as a way of teaching about labor issues. Larrowe describes his early union experiences while in college, joining the Association of Catholic Trade Unionists, his service in World War Two, getting his first professorship at the University of Utah, and finally coming to work at the Labor and Industrial Relations Center at MSU. Larrowe discusses settling in at MSU and the people he worked with including, Jack Stieber, Charles Killingsworth, and MSU President John Hannah. He also explains the tensions between the Labor School and state conservatives and why the MSU faculty grievance system was created in the face of professors being terminated. Larrowe says he left the Labor School and moved to the Economics Department when his research and published material was threatened with censorship. Larrowe is interviewed by John Revitte, MSU professor of Labor and Industrial Relations.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-06-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Michigan State University sophomore James Porter talks about growing up on a farm in Heartland, MI, his family and siblings, and his parent's careers. He talks about the transition from high school to college, says that he is living off campus now and calls dorm life "insane". Porter says that in ten years he expects to be actor, but would be happy to have any job in professional theater. Theater life, he says, does not lend itself to starting a family.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-11-28T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Thomas Morefield talks about his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1960 to 1975. Morefield describes his childhood, joining REO to work with other family members, the various jobs he held, and building military vehicles. Morefield says that moving from the union ranks into management strained many of his relationships in the plant, and that losing his union seniority as a manager was an unnerving experience. The interviewer is Shirley Bradley. Recorded as part of the commemoration of the REO Motor Car Company’s 100th Anniversary.
- Date Issued:
- 2004-05-11T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Elizabeth Byington describes her suburban Detroit family life and tells how her aspirations have changed between high school and her sophomore year at Michigan State University. Byington says she no longer has an immediate interest in marriage and children and has changed her major to something which she finds more satisfying. Byington also discusses her college experiences, the quality of her professors, career possibilities, and her hopes for the future. Byington says she expects to enjoy her future career and although her peers are much too focused on material things, she does not think that they deserve to be labeled the "me generation".
- Date Issued:
- 1988-05-23T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Mabel McQueen talks about her career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, MI, from 1953 to 1975. She describes her youth on the family farm, working at Motor Wheel through the war, her work as a secretary and bookkeeper, her supervisors, and her feelings about the union. McQueen says that many of her family members also worked at REO and that REO itself felt like one big family. She says that the bankruptcy was a terrible time and that it was heartbreaking watching friends and co-workers being fired and losing their pensions. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Hattie describes being hired in April 1953 and working in the Paint Shop. She talks about wages, undesirable jobs, and discrimination. Hattie discusses relations with coworkers, sexual harassment, swing shifts, family life, and day-to-day life in the factory.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-11-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Sue Ellen Houghtalling Brown talks about her life in a REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc. family and her father's career with the company. Brown describes a worker family Christmas party at the elaborate, company owned, REO Clubhouse in Lansing, MI and discusses her father's job as a sales and distribution manager for REO, and his jobs after the REO bankruptcy in 1975. She also gives a detailed, first-hand account of the massive January 1980 fire at the plant and of taking photos of the blaze before police or firefighters had even arrived. She says that she later hid her uncensored photos and negatives because she was afraid they would be confiscated by the authorities. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-03-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Helen Piwkowski and Jeannette Oksa talk about their lives, families, and their work in a cigar factory in Detroit, Michigan. They also discuss being born in Poland and emigrating to the U.S., their education, their union activity, race relations in Detroit neighborhoods and in the workplace, and the Polish community in Detroit.
- Date Issued:
- 1981-02-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Doris Faustman talks about her three periods of employment at the REO Motor Car Company in Lansing, MI. She says that she first worked as a clerk from 1945 to 1947, left to raise children, came back from 1949 to 1951 and returned to REO again in 1967 when her kids were older. She describes her work in the parts department, her coworkers, bosses, and being a grateful member of the union. Faustman talks about the first attempts to computerize REO administrative offices and how foreign and strange all of the equipment seemed to staff. She also sadly recalls being laid off in 1975 when REO closed in bankruptcy. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-06-23T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Mildred Alspaugh, daughter, sister and wife of REO Motor Car/Diamond-Reo Truck, Inc employees, talks about the company and her life in a REO workers family in Lansing, MI. Alspaugh tells of her father bringing home his "piece count pay slips" so that she could tally his earnings, of going to the REO Clubhouse as a child, listening to the REO Band, and watching the company ball teams. Alspaugh says that her husband died at the plant after forty years on the job and that other workers collected money to give to her and her children. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-25T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Willie recounts his youth in Mississippi, his service in the U.S. Army in Korea, and being hired at Fisher in December 1954. He describes the jobs blacks were placed on, discrimination, and being denied an apprenticeship. He comments on millwright work, family, neighborhood, and retirement.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-01-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Vernon Cook recalls working at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc, in Lansing, Mi, between 1944 and 1948. Cook says that much of his family worked at REO, including his future wife and that company culture dominated their lives. He describes factory working conditions, the REO Clubhouse, seeing the "Baby REO" car on display, the 1937 sit-down strike, and listening to WREO, the company radio station. He also talks at length about his job as a stock chaser in the plant and describes how trucks were built, tested and then dismantled for export. Interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- R.T. recalls her family and life in Endicott, NY, coming to Lansing with her new husband in 1972, being laid off from her job and standing in the rain with her sister for six hours to apply at Fisher before being hired in March 1981. She comments on the Trim Shop, coworkers, supervision, liking second shift, and her union activism. R.T. talks about her duties as a committee person and bargaining committee member, grievance handling, and the contract.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-01-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Author Tom Springer credits his mother for developing his passion for reading and explains how he came to writing, calling himself "the least likely person to be standing up here". Springer, who works as chief editor and program manager for the Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan, describes his journey from a below average, blue-collar kid in southwest Michigan to the writing profession. He reads from his collection "Looking for hickories: the forgotten wildness of the rural Midwest", named a 2009 Michigan Notable Book. Springer interjects his observations on life in Michigan and its cultural history, while reading. He concludes by answering questions. Introduced by MSU Librarian Michael Rodriguez. Part of the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2009-04-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Native-American author Heid Erdrich describes a student writing contest she judged earlier in the day and then reads from her first book of poetry. Erdrich also reflects on her family and life as a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibway and describes influences on her writing from classic literature to tabloid headlines. Erdrich reads selections from her work that portray the tension between her Ojibway traditions and her German-American upbringing and concludes by revealing the winners of the writing contest. Erdrich is introduced by MSU Professor of English Gordon Henry. Part of the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2008-04-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Poet Elinor Benedict talks about her book "All that divides us", Christianity in her life and her writings, her family and relatives in China, and her work in process. Benedict is interviewed by librarian Stephanie Mathson for the Michigan State University Libraries' Michigan Writers Series.
- Date Issued:
- 2001-04-20T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Layton Aves, a production worker and UAW organizer at REO Motor Cars/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., claims that in the 1940s only Ku Klux Klan members were allowed to join the union and work at the Lansing, MI plant. Aves says the UAW cooperated with the Klan in order to increase its strength and ability to organize workers and that union-management relations in the plant were often filled with animosity. Aves also talks about his duties at REO, where he worked from 1941 to 1975, life in the plant, his experiences with line speed-ups, piece counts, and time study, and the lives of his grandfather, father and mother, who all worked beside him the the REO factory. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1995-08-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Jane Arnold, humanities collection coordinator at the Michigan State University Libraries, interviews poet Katherine Fishburn on why she chooses to be a poet, her book "The dead are so disappointing", the healing power of writing poems, how she brings in her relationship with her parents, especially her father, into her poems, nature as a theme in her poems, her in-progress works.
- Date Issued:
- 2000-03-31T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Connie talks about being hired in 1972 and working in Sanitation and Trim, being laid-off in June 1973 and quitting to care for her child. She rehired straight into skilled trades in April 1985 with a journeyman's card from her time with the Tennessee Valley Authority. Connie recalls being one of only a few women in the trades, relations with bosses and coworkers, life in the factory, and social time. Connie comments on her family ties to GM and her union activity.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-08-31T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Nineteen year old Lansing Community College freshman Tyler Ford talks about living in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia with his father who worked for an oil company and moving back to the U.S. to live in East Lansing, MI with his mother, and says that he regrets not taking full advantage of living abroad. He also discusses his parent's marriage and divorce and life at LCC saying he has remained focused in college despite the "freshman foolishness" around him. Ford sees extensive travel in his future and says that he doesn't believe that children will fit into that life style.
- Date Issued:
- 1989-04-27T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Sally describes being hired in June 1978 and considered the factory a "scary place." She talks about family issues that influenced her to apply at Fisher. Sally describes various production jobs, her relations with bosses, engineers and coworkers and life in the plant. She recalls being selected as an Ergonomics Rep in 1987 and discusses the frustration of trying to get jobs set up properly.
- Date Issued:
- 2005-12-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Otto Aves talks about his career at REO Motor Car Company/Diamond-Reo Trucks, Inc., in Lansing, MI, from 1944 to 1972. Aves describes growing up on a Delta Township farm and following both of his parents into the plant. He also talks about building military vehicles without heaters and defrosters, trying to run the family farm while working double shifts, a wildcat strike over piece rate pay, conditions on the shop floor, building custom trucks for celebrities, and the tremendous influence of the UAW. He says that REO was much like a family and reminisces about REO picnics, outings at Lake Lansing, the REO Clubhouse, movies, bowling, and the ball teams. As in any family, he says, there were problems and he describes filing a shop grievance against his real-life father-in-law who also worked at REO. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1993-01-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Craig tells of being hired in March 1981 into Fisher where his father was a supervisor. He lists family members that work for GM, describes what it was like to work for his father, jobs he had, and some pranks pulled on him. Craig also talks about his union activity and being elected to the Recreation Committee.
- Date Issued:
- 2006-04-06T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection
- Description:
- Ninety-six-year-old Hilda Smith recalls her career at the REO Motor Car Company, in Lansing, MI, between 1923 and 1964. Smith talks fondly about her family, her job in REO's Human Resources Department, and her retirement after a forty-two year career. She looks through a scrapbook with the interviewers, identifying managers and coworkers and talks about the REO Clubhouse, movies, and caring for her thirteen siblings. The interviewers are Shirley Bradley and Lisa Fine. Recorded as part of the REO Memories oral history project.
- Date Issued:
- 1992-02-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Michigan State University. Libraries
- Collection:
- G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection