- Born
- Died
- Height6′ 2″ (1.88 m)
- Oscar Brand was born on February 7, 1920 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He was an actor and composer, known for The Fox (1967), Blue Chips (1994) and 8 X 8: A Chess Sonata in 8 Movements (1955). He was married to Karen Lynn Grossman and Antonia Rubyan Saber. He died on September 30, 2016 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- SpousesKaren Lynn Grossman(June 14, 1970 - September 30, 2016) (his death, 1 child)Antonia Rubyan Saber(May 10, 1955 - ?) (divorced, 3 children)
- His father, I. Z. Brand, was an interpreter to the Indians for the Hudson's Bay Company at Portage La Prairie, Manitoba.
- For his work in films, books, and recordings, he won many awards, including the Valley Forge Memorial Award, the Golden Reel Award, the Scholastic Award, the awards of the Edinburgh and Venice film festivals, the New York Critics Award, the National Council of Christians and Jews award, the Peabody citation, Brooklyn College's Community Service Award, and the Thomas Alva Edison Award for the best children's program.
- Graduated from Brooklyn College in 1942 with B.A. in abnormal psychology.
- Hired as coordinator of folk music for New York City's municipal radio station, WNYC, in 1945. His half-hour Sunday evening broadcast, Folksong Festival, was hugely popular. He later specialized in the songs of American servicemen, of which he recorded several albums, including "G.I.: American Army Songs" (Riverside), "Every Inch a Sailor" (Elektra), "Tell it to the Marines" (Elektra), and "The Wild Blue Yonder" (Elektra).
- Oscar Brand continues to broadcast his program, "Folksong Festival" on Radio Station WNYC every week. Now it is heard on Saturday Nights at 10:00 PM instead of on Sunday Nights. It has the distinction of being the longest continuously broadcast program on radio, worldwide. It is so noted in the Guinness Book of World Records. It was originally supposed to be a temporary program but here it is 71 years later still being broadcast and featuring folk singers of today and yesterday. His last show was September 24, 2016.
- If you're carrying a guitar, you can feel safe anywhere in the world.
- Since I first learned that words had meaning and that they could be communicated via the printed page, I have wanted to be a writer. I've also had a love affair with the stage -- since the day in 1924 when I was admitted free into the Pantages Theatre in Winnipeg.
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