Goldbergs 38-04-13 (xxxx) Opening Day of Mill

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Goldbergs 38-04-13 (xxxx) Opening Day of Mill

Podcast: Harold's Old Time Radio
Host: Harold’s Old Time Radio
Episode Date: September 9, 2025
Original Air Date (Radio Drama): April 13, 1938
Source: The Goldbergs radio show, "Opening Day of Mill"

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Episode Overview

This episode from the classic "Goldbergs" radio series immerses listeners in the anticipation and celebration of a pivotal event—the opening of the Lastonbury Mill, a cooperative enterprise run by and for the town. The story is rich with themes of community, unity, and personal sacrifice, as seen through the experiences of the Goldberg family, especially as some members are unable to physically join the festivities.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Anticipation and Longing at Home

• Setting: The episode opens with Molly Goldberg and her daughter Rosie at home. Rosie is too weak to attend the parade and the mill opening, so she and her mother comfort themselves by imagining the excitement together.
• Theme: The power of imagination compensating for physical absence; shared experience strengthens family ties.

2. On Unity and Human Nature

• Molly's Reflection: Molly and Rosie discuss how hard it was for the community to come together for a common cause, comparing individuals to water and ice—different forms, but the same at heart.
• Key Insight: The episode highlights that people often appear different on the surface but are fundamentally the same, especially when working towards shared goals.

3. The Celebration at the Mill Opening

• Jake Goldberg’s Role: As Chairman of the Board, Jake leads the proceedings at the town hall. He addresses the townsfolk, emphasizing that success is ongoing, not just a goal reached.
• Theme: The importance of maintaining unity and selflessness even after reaching a milestone.

4. Addressing the Community

• Both Jake and the unnamed mayor deliver speeches, underscoring trust, mutual effort, and the collective achievement of the town.
• Jake introduces the person who first conceived the idea for the mill, underlining community gratitude and humility.

5. Symbolism of the Mill Whistle

• The sound of the mill whistle at the end is a symbolic victory—a “symphony of hearts”—signifying not only the literal opening of the mill but also the town's unity and achievement.

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Memorable Moments and Notable Quotes

Molly & Rosie on Shared Longing

• Molly Goldberg (02:31):
  "If I close my eyes and you close your eyes, you'll see it, Alex. You'll see everything in our mind's eye... That whistle will play for me like music. Music played not by one man, but the whole town. A symphony. A symphony of hearts. Of human heart."

On Unity and Human Nature

• Molly Goldberg (05:02):
  "People are not distant from each other. They only look different, they act different. But water looks different from steam...but it's water nevertheless...when people realize that they need each other, that only together are they good and happy and wise, then things become different."

Jake’s Speech to the Town

• Jake Goldberg (07:11):
  "The problem is how to keep ourselves united in this great effort...Success is not a point that you reach. It is a state that you maintain. Are you willing to continue as we have these past months, working shoulder to shoulder, pushing private hopes and personal ambitions away for the sake of the town, of our town?"

Celebrating Shared Success

• Jake Goldberg (09:12):
  "The mill is yours and no one can ever take it away, if you want it bad enough...the faith and the hope and the trust we have in each other will continue."

On Trust and Continued Success

• Molly Goldberg (10:43):
  "Only one thing will ever remain my true—the real trust everybody had in each other. Because without this trust, only nothing good in the world can be done..."

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Important Timestamps

• [02:31] – Molly and Rosie’s conversation about missing the mill opening and the symbolic meaning of community effort.
• [05:02] – Molly’s meditation on unity, human nature, and shared purpose.
• [07:11] – Jake’s rallying speech at the parade, focusing on ongoing unity.
• [09:10] – Jake’s emotional address to the townspeople, passing credit and urging continued dedication.
• [11:08] – The mill whistle blows, marking the successful beginning and symbolizing collective achievement.

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Tone and Feel

The episode is heartfelt, reflective, and quietly triumphant. The language is warm, thoughtful, and character-driven, blending homey familial comfort with grander notions of community unity and perseverance.

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Conclusion

"Opening Day of Mill" is emblematic of The Goldbergs’ enduring optimism and emphasis on familial and communal bonds. The episode touches on themes of resilience, collective action, and the importance of sustaining trust beyond immediate victories, making its lessons and warmth as relevant today as when it first aired.

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Transcript

[Narrator]

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[Jake Goldberg]

Ask for octadol.

[Narrator]

O X Y D O L the box with the orange and blue circle. You owe it to yourself to use this soap. That saves labor and time. And now, the Goldberg. Today's the day the whole town of Lastonbury and the Goldbergs have been waiting for. They celebrate the opening of the Lastonberry mill today to be run by the town and for the town. Jake Goldberg has been given the most responsible position in the new company. Chairman of the board of directors. Now he and his fellow townsmen are down at the town hall waiting for the parade to begin. Molly and Rosie are at home. Rosie was still too weak to leave the house.

[Molly Goldberg]

I look forward to this day for so long now that the mill's opening. I have to be in bed. You have to miss the parade too much. If I close my eyes and you close your eyes, you'll see it, Alex. You'll see everything in our mind's eye. See everything that's going on the Son of the mill Zonic. We'll see it, but you won't hear the speeches. Papa's gonna make his speech too, isn't he? Mm. He'll tell us everything when he comes back. And Sammy will also tell us everything. And when. Family will tell, darling, it'll be like a composition. I wish I could see, too. Next year, Rosie, there'll be another year. Next year we'll all go, you and me. We'll all go together. And you'll be well, and you'll feel well. You go. Surely. It's gonna be a holiday from now on. It's gonna be a special holiday in the town, in Lastonbury. Every year the opening of the mill is gonna be a celebration. But I wish I could go this year to the. Please. You know you can. I know, Mama. Darling, I know I can't go. And this morning when. When you weren't in here. Don't get mad if I tell you, Mom. And darling. Well, when Papa was getting dressed to go to the parade, I tried to get out of bed. So, see, and when I stood up, I. I felt awfully weak. It's only because I've been in bed so long, Mark. I feel wonderful now. You sure? I'm sure, Ma. Yeah. At least we'll hear the whistle. Yeah, Darlie, we'll hear the whistle. And that whistle overlay for me like music. Music played not by one man, but the whole town. A symphony. A symphony. A symphony of hearts. Of human heart. Yeah. Seven months it took to learn that symphony. Now it's all over already. I mean, the struggle to get everybody to act together. Right. They did it. They wanted the mill, they got it. It's wonderful. Wonderful. I don't know. It makes you feel. Makes you feel like there's something. Something that. I don't know exactly. It's hard to say that there's something in each person that's the same in everybody else. No. People are not distant from each other. They only look different, they act different. But water looks different from steam oats, and steam and water are different from ice. Such a length in your chemistry, but it's water nevertheless. Yeah. Totally. Took men a long, long time to find out that they're the same. Deep down on this, where it counts. That's the Way I feel about the mill and the people that made it come true. Before we had the idea, everybody was looking out for themselves. People seemed so different that it looked like they never could do anything together. But they did. They came together because down deep, they're the same. Poor human beings. All of us. We're foolish. And everything he tries to hide, he tries to. To have. How shall I say it? An appearance in the world so that people think he's something very great. We all try to do it. So what happens? They do cruel things sometimes. Stupid things. Foolish things. Each one tries in a different way that makes people look different. Yes, Mama, you cover yourself. But when people realize that they need each other, that only together are they good and happy and wise, then things become different. Because men see that they're all the change and they admit it. Yes, Mona Maria. Now I'm only wondering about one thing. How we could have the dear friendly. The problem now. The problem now.

[Jake Goldberg]

The problem is how to keep ourselves united in this great effort. Today is a day of celebration, and it is only right that it should be. We have crowned a growing effort with a great success. But success is not a point that you reach. It is a state that you maintain. Are you willing to continue as we have these past months, working shoulder to.

[Narrator]

Shoulder.

[Jake Goldberg]

Pushing private hopes and personal ambitions away for the sake of the town, of our town? Then we will never fail. In our combined effort, will we find happiness. And the town's happiness will be each man's and each man the town. Thank you. And now I should like to introduce the man who first thought of the mill for us all. You all know who I mean. I bet he means me, Pa. I bet he does. Look, he's going to cry to me. Don't be foolish, Mr. Goldberg. Go on, Pa. Go ahead and turn. Come on. Yeah, I. I'll hold your hat, Pa. Make it good, Pa.

[Narrator]

My friend.

[Jake Goldberg]

I say my friends, but also I say, fellow townspeople, after what the mayor said, if what Sister Pendy said, I have nothing to say. The mill is yours and no one can ever take it away. If you want it bad enough, the time is yours. I hope for only wrong things. As we are gathered here and wait for a whistle on the middle to blow the Nile, earth in my hand, the knife finish and the little missile blow. That'll mean one thing, one thing that I continue to hope for. That the faith and the hope and the trust we have in each other will continue.

[Molly Goldberg]

Only one thing will ever remain my true the real trust everybody had in each other. Because without this trust, only nothing good in the world can be done. And nothing good there is can be corrected. Nothing that can be kept on.

[Jake Goldberg]

Oh, Rosalie the whisker. Rosalie.

[Narrator]

Rosalie.

[Jake Goldberg]

Rosie the whisker. Rosalie it.

[Narrator]

And so the mill thistle blows again. Rosie and Molly waiting at home here. They know Jake's fight to make the mill the property of Lassenberry has come to a successful conclusion. Now a new, more personal element enters the lives of the Goldbergs. Be sure to listen Monday and now. Why not phoned or send out for a box of oxidol? You'll make your work less exhausting, less nervous. Vacuum by switching to oxidol. It's the extra cleansing power, the studs it gives and the way they cut dirt and grease faster than old style soap. Make it better for washing bathtubs and sinks and refrigerators, gas stoves, walls and woodwork and floors. Just as important, it's also better for your hands. If you're going to do house cleaning. You may be keeping your hands in water for hours. They may become red and sore if you use ordinary so well. Oxidol is safe for hands. Leaves them as soft and smooth and white after using as before. Always remember too that oxidol is economical to use. Give three times the suds cup for cup. You get from less energetic soap. So goes farther does more work cup for cup. Use oxidol for dishwashing over the weekend. Use it for the laundry Monday. Use it for house cleaning and the dish daily work. I suggest you get the big package of oxidol. You will be needing it and wanting it. Tune in for the Goldbergs again this same time Monday. There's an entirely different excitement awaiting them. Don't miss until Monday. This is Ray Saunders wishing you a pleasant weekend for the makers of Oxido.