Shaping Our State: Ohio geology, Letterman and MythBusters

Craig’s notes

The label said Shaping Our State. I was expecting some kind of Ohio program, but the tape opened on JFK, stopped at the Bonus Army, then gave us Robin Williams on Letterman. I meant to keep moving and wound up watching Letterman anyway. After MythBusters and Travis Pastrana, we finally got to the rocks. This tape took the scenic route to its own label.

Once the WVIZ programs started, I wanted another one every time an episode ended. We got sandstone, a little glacier demonstration and a Fossil Fuels title card before I stopped for the night. I came back because I had enjoyed the geology lesson, and Big Muskie turned out to be even better when the show gave it some scale. There's a truck next to that machine that looks tiny. I like this show a lot.

Parks and Recreation sent us around Ohio, and Ohio Today had Cedar Point footage and a song about the state. I was hoping there might be one more episode after that. I let the tape run and it ended instead. At least I got to finish the program I originally thought I was putting on.

Content inventory

Shows and segments (playback order)

1. American Experience: JFK, Part 2: WOSU recording sampled and fast-forwarded. Its date is not the recording date for the other blocks.
2. American Experience underwriting: Liberty Mutual: Funding credit during the PBS program, not a separate ad break.
3. The March of the Bonus Army: A WOSU documentary begins after its promo; Craig samples it, then fast-forwards. This program was omitted from the brief canonical Stream Notes.
4. Late Show with David Letterman: Robin Williams: Craig watched the guest and the Know Your Staff segment despite intending to move along. An episode date was discussed on stream, but not established as the whole-tape date.
5. MythBusters: Barrel of Bricks / Peeing on the Third Rail: Discovery Channel material sampled after Letterman.
6. Discovery Zone: More Than Human, Travis Pastrana: Short Discovery presentation before the geology programs.
7. Shaping Our State: rock cutting: Sandstone slabs, limestone, gypsum and salt; Ohio educational-TV material.
8. Shaping Our State: Sand, Gravel and Clay: Includes a small glacier demonstration. Craig later published an excerpt from this tape.
9. Shaping Our State: Fossil Fuels: Started June 16 and resumed July 12. Reuben Silver and Laura Dingle present Ohio coal, natural gas, Big Muskie, a Lima refinery and petroleum products.
10. Shaping Our State: Parks and Recreation: Frisbee, different kinds of parks, the W. P. Snyder Jr. steamboat and winter fishing on Lake Erie.
11. Shaping Our State: Ohio Today: Fossils, settlers, canals, railroads, satellite imagery and Cedar Point footage. Ends with a song about Ohio.

Commercial inventory

WOSU interval between JFK and Bonus Army

1. State Auto: Central Ohio insurance spot, observed between WOSU programs.

Letterman recording block

1. Atonement: Film trailer.
2. GM OnStar with Jimmy Fallon: OnStar spot with Jimmy Fallon.
3. TurboTax: Tax-filing software spot.
4. The Ginn Academy: School spot.
5. Starving Artist Art Sale: Sale advertised at the Columbus Rapids water park; venue name follows the playback log.
6. Franklin University: University advertisement.
7. Pace Picante: Peppers slogan.
8. Esurance: Erin: Animated True Romance spot.
9. Viva Viagra: Candles in a pool.
10. The Great Debaters: Film trailer.
11. Allstate Accident Forgiveness: Insurance rate protection.
12. GNC Mega Men Sport: Sports multivitamin spot; performer identification not established.
13. Glade PlugIn Fan: Plug-in scented oil fan.
14. Lasik Vision Institute: Vision correction advertisement.

MythBusters recording block

1. Microsoft Office LiveMeeting: Online meeting service.
2. Fairfield: Older man fights at a gas station in this spot.
3. Lands’ End: Clothing advertisement.
4. 10-10-987: Telephone service spot.
5. Porsche Cayenne Turbo: Driver shows exhaust to a friend by phone.
6. Holland America: Cruise advertisement.
7. YellowBook or the Other Book: Telephone-directory brand uncertain in playback notes.

Station and show promos

WOSU / American Experience block

1. Pioneers of Television: Smothers Brothers: Program promo.
2. American Experience: The Lobotomist: Program promo.
3. Landmarks of Columbus: Local program promo.

WOSU interval between JFK and Bonus Army

1. The March of the Bonus Army: Program promo, followed later by a sample of the actual documentary.
2. NOVA: Absolute Zero: Program promo about ultracold physics.
3. Frontline: Cheney’s Law: WOSU-TV 34 program promo.

Letterman recording block

1. People’s Choice Awards: Awards-show promo.
2. Comanche Moon: Program promo.

MythBusters recording block

1. We Built This City: Promo; the playback log does not identify its full program title.
2. Coming up: Brief Discovery channel bumper.

Tape details

Archive ID

VHS-2026-098

Format

VHS

Recording type

Layered TV recording (WOSU, Discovery Channel and WVIZ material)

Recording date

Different recording blocks; no verified whole-tape date. “9/13” is a label claim, not a confirmed broadcast date.

Viewed

June 16, 2026 (partial); July 12, 2026 (returned and reached the recorded end)

Viewing extent

JFK was fast-forwarded; Letterman and later geology installments were watched or sampled at differing lengths. July 12 reached the end.

On the label

Handwritten “9/13 Shaping Our State (?)” and “2 hr”; both are label evidence, not verified recording dates or runtime.

On the label

• Handwritten spine: “9/13 Shaping Our State (?)” and “2 hr” are transcribed from the spine; neither establishes a full recording date or measured runtime.
• Kodak T-120 shell: Kodak T-120 identifies the physical blank tape, not the program publisher.

Watch

Watch Shaping Our State: Sand, Gravel and Clay (excerpt from this tape). This is not the whole tape.