
Ken Nordine, Chicago creator of ‘word jazz’, dies at 98 - brudgers
https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-ken-nordine-dead-0217-story.html
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codewritinfool
I introduced a friend of mine to WordJazz in 1983 or 1984 and he liked it so
much that he kept in touch with Ken. His number wasn't hard to find, and if
you called it and heard the "Hello?", you were instantly certain that you
hadn't misdialed.

He called Ken every once in awhile and they mostly talked about the Blackhawks
/ Blues rivalry. The last time he spoke to Ken (around August of 2018) he
called me afterwards. He said, "Ken seemed confused a bit and didn't really
want to be on the phone".

My friend called me at midnight the other night and said, "Ken is dead."

That's all he had to say and I knew who he was talking about. I know he'll be
missed around here.

~~~
PunksATawnyFill
The article didn't mention Nordine's most-famous work (at least from a
national standpoint), which was probably a long series of Levi's commercials
in the '80s and the commercials for the first big wine cooler: California
Cooler.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNuCJu-
pTQQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNuCJu-pTQQ)

His trademark production flourish was a statement that would be followed by an
echo of it in a whisper or "telephone" quality.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TRgokZLIwA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TRgokZLIwA)

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celias
Sad news. [http://www.wordjazz.com](http://www.wordjazz.com)
[https://vimeo.com/3088569](https://vimeo.com/3088569)

I remember accidentally finding the local NPR station on the radio in the
70's. Word Jazz and NPR Playhouse were my favorite programs. "Here we are with
something imaginary in the trembling air." You can listen to the 30 minute NPR
episodes on the internet archive here
[https://archive.org/details/WordJazzRadio15#](https://archive.org/details/WordJazzRadio15#)

~~~
W-Stool
Thank you for the archive.org link. Those episodes on NPR were fantastic. I
encourage everyone who hasn't heard them to try a couple. Ken was incredible,
RIP Mr. Nordine.

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general8bitso
Also, the narrator for the Video Toaster ‘Revolution’ demo video from circa
1992 (along with Lords of Acid)...

[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nb3TYQ3TcYA](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nb3TYQ3TcYA)

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zach
Ken Nordine also lent his unique narrative stylings to a game from the
LaserDisc era of arcade video games, in 1983.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKyWNEGh_yk&t=30s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKyWNEGh_yk&t=30s)

It's hard to describe exactly, but the technological "rules" about what
experiences a video game could provide were not at all clear at that time, and
there was still a mystique about the potential of every new video game.

Cube Quest had cutting-edge computer-generated animation (on video) and vector
graphics, but to have Ken Nordine's amazing narration specifically recorded
for the game was a new level in game production.

Ultimately, the spatial world inside the game (a tube shooter) was
disappointing after all of the very cool presentation it was wrapped in. But
before you went to wait in line for Atari's Star Wars, you would want to stick
around again for the introduction.

NB: The on-screen instructions for Cube Quest may be the first documented use
of the phrase "game play" for a video game.

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chromaton
I was introduced to Mr. Nordine's work in the early 2000s when some of it was
played on WRAS radio in Atlanta. They played his "Colors" series as part of
their regular rotation of music. Each one is a spoken word piece personifying
a particular color. These were apparently done originally as commercials for a
paint company, but they stand on their own. I know at least a few of these are
on YouTube.

I was surprised to find out that he was still quite active creating computer
art and working on his website even into his 80s and 90s. The current
wordjazz.com website doesn't have everything, so I suggest you check out the
Internet Archive version:
[https://web.archive.org/web/20030424220940/http://wordjazz.c...](https://web.archive.org/web/20030424220940/http://wordjazz.com/)

~~~
jacquesm
save you a search:

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPrfn8WwLqA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPrfn8WwLqA)

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hyuibg
Very sad. I remember discovering Ken Nordine in c. 2004 via free tracks on
music promotion site betterpropaganda (sadly no more it seems). One song I
found in 2008 focused on something near my hometown in England and so I
dropped him a line via his wordjazz.com website and he replied:

“It's true. I did do a series many years ago called Incredibile But True,
stories clipped from old newspapers by a sax player by the name of Dean
Shaeffer. Dean had hopes of getting rich quick, but early TV took the
spotlight away from radio. Strangely every now and then someone puts one of
the Incredible But True shows on YouTube. If you search my name, you will find
14 things I have put of YouTube myself. Give a look.

Ken Nordine”

Simpler, better times! Down the Drain is still my favourite of his tracks. RIP

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bartwe
Found his work through 'DJ Food - The Aging Young Rebel (feat. Ken Nordine)'
originally and especially Colors really got me in.

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solarkraft
> Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in most European
> countries. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options
> that support our full range of digital offerings to the EU market. We
> continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all
> readers with our award-winning journalism.

What a wonderful article.

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markusInChicago
I listened to Word Jazz during late night studying in Chicago. RIP Mr.
Nordine.

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cameldrv
Ken Nordine had unquestionably the coolest voice in radio. RIP.

~~~
officemonkey
Chicago was extremely fortunate to also have Dick Buckley, who had great pipes
and an encyclopedic knowledge of traditional jazz.

The likes of these men will never be seen again.

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epaga
"Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in most European
countries."

Still amazed and deeply saddened that this is the state of the Internet, 2019.

~~~
eponeponepon
Buckle up - it's only worsening. I'd bet on there being plural internets by
2030 at this rate.

