It all started with driving music, a sense of adventure, and the fertile mind of 80’s teenager Scott Howard. Cruising the lonely, gritty Great Basin roads, the pulsing, driving electronic music of Tangerine Dream enveloping his senses, Scott imagined a lone, armored hero roaming the post-apocalyptic Earth, his faithful robot companion at his side.
In later years, Scott shared his vision with a few fans of his local electronic music radio show, “Variables,” which aired on Salt Lake City’s local community radio station, KRCL 91 FM. Like lightning, the spark of Scott’s dream arced across the table of the local pizzeria and flashed into the imaginations of a handful of aspiring young writers and musicians. Between them, they realized, lay the talent, equipment, and will to turn Scott’s ideas into a narrative audio production that could be brodcast on Scott’s radio show.
Over the course of many informal basement meetings, characters and settings took shape. Story ideas were brainstormed. Within weeks, a six-episode story, “The Mu-Light Shift,” was completed by Wayne Tyler. Finally, on a chilly weekend in December 1991, while local musician Kendall Jackman tossed off impromptu background music and sound effects, and John Phillips ran the mixer, Scott Howard’s mellifluous voice intoned the first glimpses of his fictional universe onto 1/4-inch open-reel tape. Combined later with interlude music from commercial CD’s at the radio station, the first episode was broadcast on January 5, 1992…
…and “Searcher and Stallion” was born!
The next few months brought more stories and better recording techniques. Each week saw a new thirty-minute episode delivered over the airwaves. The reaction from fans was overwhelming. On any Sunday night that passed without an episode, the station would be flooded with phone calls. The show inspired other creative souls in the audience, and new writers joined the fray. Ideas for movie scripts, claymation films, comic strips, and even other similar narrative audio shows, were all brought to Scott at one time or another. The artistry, philosophy, and sheer entertainment value of “Searcher and Stallion” had tapped the imagination of the listening masses.
All that year, production carried on at a frenetic pace. Even using store-bought background music, it was a chore to record and edit the shows each week. In 1993, Scott hooked up with Larry Holt and Garth Steck, professional recording engineers at KUER FM in Salt Lake City. With their help, a four-episode, full-cast “Searcher and Stallion” audio drama was created. With original music by Kendall Jackman and other local artists instead of unlicensed music, Scott now had material that could be sold commercially.
But the months of ceaseless work had taken their toll. The team members were exhausted. Without an avenue for distribution, and with no income to support the show, production finally ground to a halt.
Fast-forward, one decade later – and the fans still approached Scott, through email and in person, asking whether “Searcher and Stallion” might someday make a comeback. That such latent enthusiasm still existed for the show, even after so long, was astounding. The truth was obvious: “Searcher and Stallion” had a tenacious spirit that refused to die. Nor was Scott Howard himself immune from the allure of those same characters and stories. During the hiatus, new ideas fermented, and the universe of “Searcher and Stallion” became richer. And now, finally, the wishes of die-hard fans are about to be fulfilled:
“Searcher and Stallion” has restarted production!
With more advanced digital production technology, bigger and better action-packed stories, richer and more intriguing characters – the same ones as before, along with new and exciting people that Searcher meets in his journeys – the new “Searcher and Stallion” promises to ignite again the same spirit that made the old series so popular. Scott Howard will once again bring his voice to the mic to tell the story of Searcher as only he can.
Scott Howard, creator and producer of “Searcher and Stallion,” has ties to radio that go back to the 1980’s, and has lent his voice and writing talents not only to “Searcher and Stallion,” but also to community radio shows that bring the much-neglected genre of electronic music to American ears.
Garth Steck, sound designer, has worked for years as an audio engineer for radio and television, as well as using his talents to enliven haunted houses annually for the March of Dimes. Wielding his sound design software almost like an extension of his body, Garth is the man who ensures that professional production values greet your ears with every episode.
Kendall Jackman, musician, strives to find and create music that adds the right emotional impact to every “Searcher and Stallion” story. His efforts, along with Garth’s sounds, give the show a “third dimension” that sets it apart from standard “audio books.”
Mike “Rudeboy” Haymond, Searcher & Stallion super-fan (and part-time web designer), has been a long time fan of the show and was lucky enough to get involved with the creators to help bring the new series to the masses by providing his limited web design skills to build the new “Official” web site for the show.
