- Playing
- Advertising for Love in Old New York
- From
- Emma Jacobs
It’s always tough to meet people. It used to be even tougher. Emma Jacobs talks with a woman who’s reading the personals—from the nineteenth century. Pam Epstein talks about how the country was changing in the 19th century and the measures new urbanites went to to find someone new.
More from Emma Jacobs
Binghamton-area Student Reflects on Regional Economic Change
(00:03:45)
From: Emma Jacobs
High school student, Christine Dodd explains the changes she's seen happen to local businesses. Produced for The Innovation Trail local journalism collaborative.
Making Music with Solar Power
(00:04:09)
From: Emma Jacobs
Chris Cerrito and Mike Rosenthal build small, musical instruments powered by the sun.
New York's City Reliquary
(00:08:42)
From: Emma Jacobs
The founders of the City Reliquary hope their museum will help change the way New Yorkers think about the city.
Before Stonewall: History of a West Village Landmark
(00:06:50)
From: Emma Jacobs
Amateur Greenwich Village historian, Tom Bernardin traces the history of Julius', a fixture of gay life in the West Village--and of the West Village itself--from its founding ...
A Well Read Book Fair
(00:04:17)
From: Emma Jacobs
Dealers of Americana talk about the allure of old books.
Learning from Dakar's School of the Road
(00:06:43)
From: Emma Jacobs
Amayatou Mbaye, unable to read or write French until age 14, has led a school for nearly 30 years to bring education to the street
Fouta-Toro, Senegal: An Audio Postcard
(00:04:12)
From: Emma Jacobs
A report on daily village life from Northern Senegal.
Related Pieces
Piece Description
It’s always tough to meet people. It used to be even tougher. Emma Jacobs talks with a woman who’s reading the personals—from the nineteenth century. Pam Epstein talks about how the country was changing in the 19th century and the measures new urbanites went to to find someone new.
Transcript
Pam Epstein was a graduate student in History looking for a topic for her doctoral thesis when a friend mentioned the classifieds. She had just seen a pair of skies offered in exchange for an engagement ring.
[Clip: Pam: These become stories.]
Pam was curious, and she started reading older classified ads, from the nineteenth century. Soon, she found the personal ads.
[Clip: Pam: Sometimes you have a lot of matrimonial ads on one page and they do all pop up together. But they are, I mean they’re surrounded by other ads, for clairvoyants, for prosthetic feet. You know, right next to an ad for someone who wants to get married.]
A lot changed in the nineteenth century. People were moving to cities, starting new jobs. Pretty soon, Espstein saw all this in the personal ads when she found one advertisement from 1864.
[Clip: Pam: Where this young guy goes on and on about how he just wants...
Read the full transcript
Timing and Cues
Ends with 1 minute of music.
Intro and Outro
INTRO:It’s always tough to meet people. It used to be even tougher. Emma Jacobs talks with a woman who’s reading the personals—from the nineteenth century.
OUTRO:You can read more of Pam Epstein's personals collection at advertisingforlove.com.
Musical Works
| Title | Artist | Album | Label | Year | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Postcards From Hell | The Wood Brothers | Loaded. | Blue Note Records | 2008 | 01:05 |
| Georgiana | Jean-Yves Thibaudet | Pride & Prejudice. | Decca | 2005 | 00:45 |
| Credits | Jean-Yves Thibaudet | Pride & Prejudice. | Decca | 2005 | 00:45 |
Additional Credits
Ads voiced by Glover Wright and Morgan Whitcomb.
Related Website
Of 2 purchasers of this piece...
- 2 also bought:
- 2 also bought:
A Family Yarn (00:07:03) - 2 also bought:
The Gathering - A Modern Thanksgiving Story (00:29:00) - 2 also bought:
Gut Reaction (00:58:55) - 2 also bought:
Cafe Rebeldia (00:08:16)
