Underground Radio Film To Come To Burlington For Screening, Book Signing

BURLINGTON, MA — The Burlington Public Library will host a film screening and book signing next month, showcasing 1960s and 70s underground Boston radio culture with a visit from the Peabody Award-winning Bill Lichtenstein.

The event will feature Lichtenstein’s book and film, “WBCN and The American Revolution: How a Radio Station Defined Politics, Counterculture, and Rock and Roll.” The event is set for Oct. 19 from 6 p.m. to 8 :30 p.m. at the Burlington Public Library at 22 Sears St. in Burlington.

Lichtenstein is a journalist and former announcer for the WBCN radio station. His book and film chronicle the story of WBCN in Boston the late 1960s and 1970s.

Lichtenstein will be on hand after the film screening to answer questions and sign copies of his book.

"We are so thrilled to be hosting Bill Lichtenstein for a night at Burlington Public Library," Library Director Michael Wick said in an event announcement this week. "We encourage community members to join us for what is sure to be a fun, eye-opening and educational event."

Lichtenstein worked at WBCN from 1971 to 1977, starting his time at the station as a teenage volunteer worker.

WBCN flourished in those days as part of the larger underground radio scene, which saw DJs play less well-known artists while speaking freely about topics such as the Vietnam War, women’s rights and the larger counterculture movement, as noted in a 2021 profile by WBUR.

For more information, contact Shelley Sloboder by email at ssloboder@burlingtonpl.org, or by phone at 781-270-1691.

Registration is required using the link here.