A Flea Market Documentary

"Sebak produces, writes and narrates some of the most clever and lighthearted documentaries around."
The New York Daily News

"Serving as his own narrator, Sebak is an enthusiastic, affectionate collector of American eccentricities."
USA Today

"As usual, it's virtually impossible to find fault with Sebak's work, which has his signature stamps of warmth and enthusiastic discovery."
The Pittsburgh Press

Rick Sebak produces, writes and narrates unusual documentaries for public television. Whether he's looking at diners in Pennsylvania, ice cream places across the country, or some of the wonderful neighborhoods in his hometown of Pittsburgh, his work is celebratory in nature.

He is a friendly guide to various aspects of American culture, reminding viewers of people and places in their neighborhoods, explaining the history and charms of things we take for granted, and inevitably finding good things to eat along the way. A Flea Market Documentary is a sort of travelogue and an extended conversation with people across the country about the joys of shopping in open-air markets.

Rick's national works, A Hot Dog Program (June 1999) and Great Old Amusement Parks (July 1999), were received with both critical and popular acclaim. They carried on the style established in Rick's earlier PBS programs, An Ice Cream Program (May 1996) and Shore Things (July 1996). Now PBS stations around the country continue to rebroadcast these programs because over and over again audiences respond so favorably to the quirky blend of Americana, places and personalities. Rick's love for his various topics can be contagious, and his enthusiasm is often reflected in the smiling responses he gets from the people he interviews.

In addition to his several national programs, Rick has also created some fourteen documentaries about his hometown of Pittsburgh. Known collectively as the Pittsburgh History Series, these "local" programs have also often found national audiences. Rick's program titled The Strip Show, about Pittsburgh's wholesale market district known as "the Strip," aired nationally on PBS in November 1997. His North Side Story also received surprisingly good ratings in cities around the country when it aired on PBS in October 1998.

Rick's other Pittsburgh works include a portrait of the city's second center, titled Something About Oakland (December 2000), Houses Around Here (December 1994), a documentary about some old and fascinating places where people live in Southwestern Pennsylvania, and Stuff That's Gone, a "sort of sequel" to his 1990 program Things That Aren't There Anymore, which has become a model for similar programs across the country.

His 1993 special titled Pennsylvania Diners and Other Roadside Restaurants, a 90-minute documentary about some of the most charming and idiosyncratic restaurants in the state, aired nationally on PBS on October 5, 1994. The Washington Post called the program "a tasty documentary."

Rick likes to call his programs "scrapbook documentaries," incorporating lots of old films, home movies, postcards, old photos and memorabilia of all sorts. Rick does not appear on-camera in these programs, but audiences have learned to recognize his voice and distinctive narrative style.

In 1990, Rick converted one of his local specials into a national program for PBS: Our Neighbor Fred Rogers. A documentary about the life and work of Mister Rogers, narrated by David Hartman, this program won a 1991 CINE Golden Eagle.

In 1988, he produced and narrated a program titled Kennywood Memories about the Pittsburgh amusement park that's been recognized as a National Historic Landmark. The program won many awards, including the Ed King Memorial Award for Outstanding Broadcast Journalism and the Golden Quill for Best Documentary. Although local in origin, it has been shown in over 100 markets on PBS stations.

Before coming to WQED, Rick worked for 11 years at the South Carolina Educational Television Network in Columbia, South Carolina. His work there included the award-winning documentaries SHAG, about the official state dance of South Carolina, and The Slightly Wacky Aussie Doco, a travelogue about Australia.

Many of Rick's programs are available on Shop WQED.