Reading @ Large wins Telly Award

RCTV’s “Reading@Large” program has been selected to receive two Telly Awards for outstanding programming. The two programs being honored are the June 2006 edition from the first season and the November 2006 edition from the second season.

Telly Awards, founded in 1978, are presented annually to honor local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as video and film productions.

The local programs were selected from more than 13,000 entries. The entries do not compete against each other. They compete against a high standard of excellence. Each year the judges consist of a group of highly qualified advertising, production and other creative professionals.

“We have had a tremendous response from our viewers who enjoy watching Reading@Large,” said RCTV executive director Philip Rushworth, “so it is really nice to know that the popular local program has been recognized on a national level.”

The show is produced for RCTV by Dick Curtis, who created the first edition in October 2005. The program is now in its second season. “I had no idea that this program would be so well received,” said Curtis. “Apparently it has hit a chord not only with local people but also on a national level.”

The June edition was filmed at Jordan’s Furniture and discussed the present development as well as the history of the site. It also included a story about the Reading Garden Club’s Adopt-an-Island program, the story about the decoration of veterans’ graves for Memorial Day, and a preview of a local “Night Before the Fourth” event.

The November edition was filmed at the Reading Public Library and discussed the various groups that support the library. It also contained some background on Horace Wadlin, an important architect in Reading and the designer of the library building. Other items included a story about the new signpost on Reading Common and a review of the sites of former Town Meetings.

These two award-winning programs will be featured on RCTV this week. They are scheduled for Thursday at 7 p.m. and will be rerun at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. The shows will also appear throughout the weekend.

The new April edition of “Reading@Large” will not be shown until the following Thursday, April 19.