In the first half of the show, vocal expert Stewart Pearce discussed the human voice, and how it is much more than simply a way to communicate. "Our voices are really at the very core of our being," he explained. "We formulate so much of our identity through them." The ancients referred to this as persona (which means through sound), Pearce continued, noting that when we comment on someone's personality, we are actually talking about his or her voice.
According to Pearce, while accent no longer matters as much as it did in the past, the voice does contribute to a person's success. High-level executives and CEOs shape their voices to suit their particular environments, he said. In addition, the voice is a reflection of a person's soul. When someone feels disempowered by his circumstances, the physiology is affected, and, in turn, the voice, he noted.
Pearce assessed the vocal styles of President Barack Obama, former President John F. Kennedy and German dictator Adolf Hitler, as well as demonstrated how a person can manage the way he is perceived by shifting the energy of his voice. He also spoke about finding one's "signature note," the importance of breath, evolutionary changes in voice, and the role physical circumstances play in the conditioning of regional dialects.
Scary Stories & Kimball Tribute
During Open Lines, George offered a special "Scared" hotline. Steve in Iowa related a frightening incident that happened to him when he was about eight years old. According to Steve, he was bathing unsupervised upstairs when he saw a pale boney arm with curled fingers reach in from the open doorway. At the sight of it Steve said he let out a scream, his parents bolted upstairs, and the arm instantly pulled away. Steve said his father later confessed to him that, judging from his reaction, what he saw may have been real.
John from Anaheim, California recounted a UFO experience he and a group of twelve people, in their late teens and early twenties, had in 1996 in the Anaheim Hills/Irvine Ranch area. Robert in Houston, Texas, told George about a mysterious woman he has seen several times over the course of his fifty years. Robert described the woman as tall and skinny, wearing tight blue jeans, knee-high moccasins, a rainbow-striped poncho, flop hat, and white-rimmed glasses. Other people have also reported seeing her, Robert said, noting that he wondered if anyone in the Coast audience had ever come across her.
The last half-hour featured a special tribute to the late Glenn Kimball from 6/4/08, when he discussed the ancient civilization known as Mu.