Franz Owen “Frank” Armbruster was the most colorful guest that host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart ever interviewed. Literally. 

Joining Dean in his Denver radio studio in 2013, Armbruster, an extraordinary inventor, came dressed in a furry pimp hat braided with a floral lei, tie-dyed suit, matching rainbow-colored shoes, candy-striped socks, and a bushy, all-white Santa Claus beard.

83-years-young, Frank invented or created 96 products, including the Guiness record-holding bestselling game, Instant Insanity.

Frank had a stroke and passed less than a month after his interview. But each April, in honor of Frank’s birthday, Dean fondly recalls Frank’s infectious can-do entrepreneurial spirit and insights.

Photo: Frank Armbruster, Inventor
Originally Posted: February 25, 2013
Best of Monday Morning Radio Update: April 26, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 37:15

Some people call it the “Quarantine 15,” others the “Covid 19.” Regardless of how they refer to it, they’re talking about the weight gain that 61% of Americans say they put on since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Well before coronavirus, inventor Paul Francis figured out a way that anyone, anywhere can easily get fit, even on the International Space Station.

Paul’s OYO Personal Gym uses resistance — not weights — to build muscle and shed those pesky pounds. 

Not every talented inventor can also build a successful business. When host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart caught up with Paul in January 2017, the fitness CEO shared the routines he uses to stay physically and fiscally fit.

Photo: Paul Francis, OYO Fitness
Originally Posted: January 2017
Best of Monday Morning Radio Update: April 19, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 35:01

Coming in August 2021 from TJFR Press: September Twelfth: Ground Zero on 9/11 with The Wall Street Journal by Monday Morning Radio Host Dean Rotbart.

On September 11, 2001, The Wall Street Journal's main newsroom, located just across West Street from the World Trade Center - was obliterated by falling debris and flaming smoke.

This is the true story of how the traumatized men and women of the Journal and Dow Jones - journalists, graphic designers, technicians, administrative assistants, compositors, and delivery truck drivers - overcame their personal anguish and confusion to publish a Pulitzer Prize-winning edition on September 12th.

To reserve your autographed copy, email Dean @ MondayMorningRadio . com with your name, mailing address, and daytime phone number.

Lovers of great literature will love this week’s reminiscence with Bel Kaufman, the granddaughter of Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem, best known for his many stories about life in the shtetl, including one that was adapted as the musical Fiddler on the Roof.

Aleichem died in 1916 and Bel died in 2014. But Monday Morning Radio Host Dean Rotbart and his son, Maxwell, interviewed Bel, then 102 years old, in late 2013 for a Jewish-oriented radio show the father-son duo hosted. 

Bel not only shares her recollections of her famous grandfather, she also talks about her own career, having penned the 1965 bestseller, “Up the Down Staircase.”

Caution: Bel is a bit difficult to understand, as was her right as a centenarian. But you’ll want to listen closely anyway, so you don’t miss any of her pearls of wisdom.

Photo: Bel Kaufman and her grandfather, Sholem Aleichem
Originally Posted: January 19, 2014
Best of Monday Morning Radio Adaptation: April 12, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 23:14

Does the name Beth Harmon sound familiar? The fictional Beth, an orphan, is a chess prodigy who captures the hearts of viewers and earns the world chess championship crown in the incredibly popular 2020 Netflix miniseries, “The Queen’s Gambit.”

Elliott Neff is a real-life Chess Federation National Master, who helps others, especially young and disadvantaged people, discover valuable life lessons through the game of chess.

In October 2018, two years before America fell in love with Beth Harmon, Elliott schooled host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart on the ways in which chess teaches sportsmanship, good decision-making, patience, planning, and how to learn from mistakes. Listening to this week’s Best of Monday Morning Radio episode is a smart opening move for any entrepreneur who aims to checkmate the competition.

Photo: Elliott Neff, Chess4Life
Originally Posted: October 15, 2018
Best of Monday Morning Radio Update: April 5, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 50:18

Coming in August 2021 from TJFR Press: September Twelfth: Ground Zero on 9/11 with The Wall Street Journal by Monday Morning Radio Host Dean Rotbart.

On September 11, 2001, The Wall Street Journal's main newsroom, located just across West Street from the World Trade Center - was obliterated by falling debris and flaming smoke.

This is the true story of how the traumatized men and women of the Journal and Dow Jones - journalists, graphic designers, technicians, administrative assistants, compositors, and delivery truck drivers - overcame their personal anguish and confusion to publish a Pulitzer Prize-winning edition on September 12th.

To reserve your autographed copy, email Dean @ MondayMorningRadio . com with your name, mailing address, and daytime phone number.