3/2/2011 Listening Lounge

Cigar Stories (Kitchen Sisters)

Hand rolling cigars can be boring. So in the old days, factory owners hired readers to break up the monotony. In this episode of the Listening Lounge, we learn about El Lector - He Who Reads, a documentary produced by the Kitchen Sisters. From about 1900 to the 1930s, men in panama hats who spoke in loud, beautiful voices read to the workers as they rolled cigars in factories in Tampa and Ybor City. We'll also listen to a poem titled Box of Cigars by Gerald Sterns.