Simple Pleasures

Herrell’s Ice Cream

Steve Herrell, who turns 70 in April, is taking a year-long sabbatical as he transitions to retirement. He opened his ice cream shop in Thorne’s Market in 1980 after he sold off his original Steve’s Ice Cream that he started in Boston. Since opening, his ice cream...

Musician Sarah Elizabeth Charles

Springfield native Sarah Elizabeth Charles discusses her music, career, and life as a musician in New York City. She will also talk about Rise 2 Shine, an organization in Haiti that Sarah has been working with to develop an early childhood music education program....

Dowton Abbey

WGBH Greater Boston Arts Reporter Jared Bowen discusses the Downton Abbey craze that has PBS viewers riveted to the screen on Sunday nights.  Bowen had the opportunity to interview actors Allen Leech and Lesley Nichol and got their take on season 4 of Downton...

The Beavers Club

The Beavers Club of Western Mass was started in 1946 by a group of local businessmen of French descent because they weren’t being allowed into existing clubs. Members of the club have to be at least 1/4 French descent and undertake work projects for local...

Springfield Museums’ Rare Find

Stored on a shelf for over 100 hundred years, a rare anthropological treasure was recently discovered in the Springfield Science Museum’s permanent collections. Originally cataloged as an “Aleutian hat,” the artifact had been preserved in museum collections for over a...

Academy of Music: 1940s Scandal

A box of letters and documents unearthed from a desk at Northampton’s Academy of Music revealed a mysterious story of scandal, power & politics that played out at the Academy in the early 1940s.  Amazed at what the documents unleashed, the Academy’s Executive...

Encore: Lost Towns of the Quabbin: Boat Ride

This segment is part of our special series about the 75th anniversary of the Quabbin Reservoir. View more segments at the “Lost Towns of the Quabbin” archive. Producer Dave Fraser and videographer Mark Langevin travel by boat across the Quabbin Reservoir...

Encore: Quabbin Photographer Les Campbell

In the late 1940’s, Les’s passion for photography grew out of his first hobby of “birding.” It was his fascination with birds that drew him to the camera as a means of recording and sharing his enjoyment of their beauty. His search for...

Northampton’s First Night Celebration

Penny Burke, Executive Director of the Center for the Arts and the producer of First Night, gives details about Northampton’s 29th First Night. First Night is a 12-hour, family-friendly festival of the arts that includes an astounding array of entertainment presented...
New England Legends: Santa Interview

New England Legends: Santa Interview

It’s that time of year again – have you been naughty or nice? One person’s keeping count, and legend hunter extraordinaire Jeff Belanger talked to him recently. Jeff got Santa’s story straight from the living legend himself! Follow Jeff Belanger on Twitter:...