
Avi Wolfman-Arent is an on-air host at WHYY. He joined the station in December 2014. Before shifting to hosting, he was an education reporter for Keystone Crossroads. Avi graduated from Haverford College and grew up in the D.C. area. Despite the latter he’s a lifelong Philadelphia sports fan, devoting an unhealthy portion of his conscious thought to the Sixers, Phillies, and Eagles. He lives in South Philadelphia.
More from the Contributor
Inventor Henry Heyl and Philly’s role in early moving picture technology
When the phasmatrope was first demonstrated at the Academy of Music, local papers hailed it as the first of its kind.
2 weeks ago
The Whitman Park story: How 20th century Philadelphia failed on public housing
Local authorities proposed building 2,500 units in mostly white neighborhoods. Racism kept it from happening.
3 weeks ago
The oldest photo in the United States was taken in Philadelphia
A government employee and inventor named Joseph Saxton captured the image, which shows Central High School and the Pa. Arsenal.
1 month ago
It took place annually from 1971 through 1998, when it folded because it had inspired so many copycats.
2 months ago
The Philly ‘heiress’ who died from an illegal abortion, sending a saloon manager to jail
The 1955 case of Doris Jean Ostreicher became a media sensation, and ended up sending a saloon manager and his wife to jail.
2 months ago
She was the first Black woman in Pennsylvania history to hold a cabinet position, and is remembered for much more.
2 months ago
125 years ago, a cross-country murder case gave new meaning to the term ‘death by chocolate’
Delaware couple John and Mary Dunning did not have a happy marriage.
3 months ago
The fight to admit girls to Philly’s Central High School
It took two court battles, including a Supreme Court case, to change the status quo at what was considered a bastion of academic excellence.
3 months ago
When the Beatles were smuggled into Philadelphia… with the help of Frank Rizzo
The Fab Four rode into town on the back of a fish truck, per famed Philly DJ Hy Lit.
3 months ago
The story of how bubble gum was invented by a Philadelphia candy accountant
He worked for the Fleer Corporation, which had great luck with Chiclets and was also known for trading cards.
4 months ago
The Telstar satellite broadcast: How a Phillies second baseman made telecommunications history
Sixty-one years ago, a routine fly ball hit by Phillies second baseman Tony Taylor made telecommunications history.
4 months ago
The real-life horror story of Pennhurst, an asylum so terrible it forced changes in disability law
When it comes to the treatment of Americans with intellectual disabilities, one Chester County facility is among the most notorious to ever exist.
5 months ago