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From The Archives

Tony Schwartz, National Treasure

Tony Schwartz

Renowned sound documentarian and audio-visual pioneer Tony Schwartz believes people should use tape recorders as much as cameras to capture meaningful events. Over the years he has recorded more than 30,000 sound portraits of New York City life, like the keeper at Central Park Zoo telling how he feeds lions, a Macy's elevator operator calling out floors and merchandise, children singing nursery rhymes, taxi drivers gabbing about their fares, musicians, politicians, and everyone in between, all without ever leaving his postal district.

Renowned sound documentarian and audio-visual pioneer Tony Schwartz (August 19, 1923 – June 15, 2008) believed people should use tape recorders as much as cameras to capture meaningful events. Over the years he recorded more than 30,000 sound portraits of New York City life, like the keeper at Central Park Zoo telling how he feeds lions, a Macy's elevator operator calling out floors and merchandise, children singing nursery rhymes, taxi drivers gabbing about their fares, musicians, politicians, and everyone in between, all without ever leaving his postal district.

Because he suffered from agoraphobia, a fear of crowds and public places, luminaries such as Woody Guthrie, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jimmy Carter would go to Schwartz's house to be recorded by the great sound man. He produced some 20,000 commercials from there, including the first nationwide anti-smoking campaign and the famous "Daisy" television spot for Lyndon Johnson’s presidential run, both of which helped earn him a national reputation.

For over 30 years Schwartz also produced a weekly program on WNYC called Adventures in Sound. Recently, The Library of Congress has generously given over one hundred Adventures in Sound episodes to the WNYC Archives to publish online for the first time.

A Talk with Tony

In 1989 WNYC's David Garland went to Tony Schwartz's studio on the West Side of Manhattan and spoke to him about his work and the power of shame in the making of social change.

David also talked with Tony about his work at WNYC.