by Philip Recchia, BlogTalkRadio

The Charlaine Harris interview begins at about the 25:05 mark
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When Charlaine Harris discusses racial integration in our nation’s public-school system, she knows whence she speaks.

Because during the late ‘60s, at the height of that social experiment, the gothic scribe was a high school student in the tiny town of Tunica, Miss.

Now she reveals on Dr. Blogstein’s Radio Happy Hour that the integration she witnessed serves as a metaphor for the vampires in her bestselling Southern Vampire Mystery series, which  is the basis for the hit HBO series True Blood.

“The scenario of the vampire trying to assimilate into the community – you’ve said in other interviews that, in writing it, you thought of gays and the struggle that they’re going through,” inquires host Dr. Blogstein during the 25- minute interview.

“But, growing up in the South, how much did the Civil Rights movement and the way blacks are treated work its way into the scenario?” he continues.

“To an incredible extent. Because my high school class was the first integrated class in history, in my county,” Charlaine responds.

“It was a very difficult, scary time. I grew up in Mississippi and it was full of change and full of uncertainty.  And yet, long overdue.

“We weren’t sure if there would be violence. We weren’t sure that everything would go peacefully,” continues Charlaine, before telling listeners that she was a senior when the integration got under way.

“They allowed two black kids to – it must’ve been horrible for them – come over and attended school their senior year at our school,” adds Charlaine, whose latest Southern Vampire novel (featuring, as always, heroine Sookie Stackhouse) is titled Dead and Gone.

“And, honestly, I don’t know how they lived through it. Not that anybody threatened them – that I knew of – but it must’ve been so incredibly tense.”

The 57-year-old mom also discusses how she came to master erotic moments in her work.

“The first time I tried it – a full sex scene – was in the first Sookie book, about nine years ago.  And I rewrote it several times because I want ed to catch her awkwardness. This was her first sexual experience and yet I wanted it to be the complete sexual experience,” Charlaine explains.

“I didn’t want to resort to the stereotypical romance novel euphem isms, like ‘pulsating rod’ and stuff like that. And yet I didn’t want to be crude. So it took a lot of thought and it took me a long time.”

To hear Charlaine’s full interview, click here.

The Dr. Blogstein’s Radio Happy Hour YouTube account has been permanently terminated “due to terms of use violation” pertaining to a video titled Islam Porn: Prophet Muhammad’s Virgin Fantasy 72.

The video, showing the controversial Dutch cartoon depiction of the Prophet Muhammad and featuring a skit containing several double entendres, puns and plays on words has been on YouTube for nearly a full year.

The skit debuted on the Radio Happy Hour on June 24th, 2008, the same day the video was uploaded onto YouTube.  Though sexual in nature, the video and skit is clearly parody.  In fact, it opens up with a disclaimer claiming just that.

No official reason was given to the Radio Happy Hour, nor did they recieve any notice of a violation.

YouTomb, a research project of MIT Free Culture with the purpose of  investigating “what kind of videos are subject to takedown notices due to allegations of copyright infringement with particular emphasis on those for which the takedown may be mistaken” has yet to find an explaination for the video’s removal or the name of a complaintant.

Below is the full video in question, still accessible on FunnyOrDie.com:

This week on Dr. Blogstein’s

Radio Happy Hour:

Charlaine Harris is the best selling author of the incredibly Sookie Stackhouse series revolving around a telepathic barmaid in southern Louisiana and her dealings with vampires and werewolves and other creatures of the night.

Her books are the inspiration and basis for HBO’s True Blood.

Harris’ newest book in the series, Dead and Gone, is on sale now.

Become a Radio Happy Hour subscriber

for free !

Blind comedian Brian Fischler returns to the program to update us from Guide Dog Training School.

The one-time Maxim Magazine Comedian of the Month is the Founder/President of Comedians Unite For Sight, a not for profit that produces Laugh For Sight, a yearly comedy benefit that raises money for retinal degenerative eye diseases.

We uncover the music of  “Larry Loeber.”

Who is Larry Loeber, you ask?  That was the stage name our own Justin the Mouthinator went by during the 80’s when he was an international pop performer.

This is something long time listeners wont want to miss!

All that, plus:

• Dangerous Lee co-hosts

• Vinny Bond sits on his Big Leather Couch to chat live with the listeners

• and we’ll take your calls at 646-652-4804

Back in August 2007, the Radio Happy Hour welcomed an eccentric author of an obscure memoir to the show.  Two years later, that obscure memoir has been made into a movie and is generating buzz (though luke warm reviews) after it premiered at Cannes.

On August 7, 2007, author Elliot Tiber was a guest on the Radio Happy Hour to discuss his role in making sure Woodstock actually happened in the Summer of ‘69.   According to his book, Taking Woodstock, had it not been for him the entire event may have been canceled.

Now, a movie by the same title has been screened at the Cannes International Film Festival and is set for theatrical release on August 14th, which just so happens to be the 40th anniversary of the Woodstock Festival.

The film, directed by Ang Lee and stars Demetri Martin , follows the true life story of Elliot Tiber (Demetri Martin), an aspiring Greenwich Village interior designer whose parents owned a small motel in Upstate New York and, at the time, held the only musical festival permit in the entire town of Bethel, New York. Tiber offered both the Catskills motel and the permit to the Woodstock Festival’s organizers.

The Elliot Tiber interview begins at about the 31 minute mark
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Below is the ‘Taking Woodstock’ Official Trailer

Bacon, Vodka or the Radio Happy Hour?  How would YOU rank the three?

Sound ridiculous?  It should, because it is, but the debate, spurred on by a voicemail left on the Blogstein Hotline (201-OVEN BAG), raged on during this week’s Radio Happy Hour:

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“Rock Dog,” who left the ludicrous message, ranked bacon at #1, Radio Happy Hour at #2 and vodka at #3. 

Dangerous Lee and Vinny Bond both agreed and shared that same ranking.   In fact, they each claimed that bacon would still out rank the Radio Happy Hour even if it wern’t Dr. Blogstein’s Radio Happy Hour, rather Dangerous Lee’s or Vinny Bond’s Radio Happy Hour respectively.

How would you rank the three?