WFMT And The Studs Terkel Radio Archive To Launch New Podcast BUGHOUSE SQUARE WITH EVE EWING

WFMT and The Studs Terkel Radio Archive invite audiences into the history books with the new podcast Bughouse Square with Eve Ewing. Inspired by the legacy of the inimitable 20th century broadcaster and oral historian Studs Terkel, and supported by hours and hours of tape from the Studs Terkel Radio Archive, the podcast revisits historical figures and events once explored by Terkel-now unpacked for the 21st century. And there is no better guide to lead audiences through decades of American letters and culture than series host Eve Ewing, the prolific writer, scholar, and cultural organizer.

Each episode revolves around a particular theme that ties Studs and Eve together, drawing parallels between the past and the present. Compelling guest commentary and host insights bring to life the most provocative and compelling topics from Terkel's day and ours, and the series includes recorded conversations with such seminal figures as James Baldwin, Shel Silverstein, and Lorraine Hansberry, plus new exchanges with professors, authors, and cultural critics.

Episode One, James Baldwin & Darnell Moore, launches on October 5 with new episodes premiering on a monthly basis thereafter. In the opener, Eve refers back, with audio clips from the Archive, to a 1962 conversation between Studs and the legendary writer James Baldwin in which they discussed his book Another Country, a recent trip to Africa, and Baldwin's fight for civil rights for all. Eve then talks with contemporary writer and activist Darnell Moore. Moore is writer-in-residence at the Center on African American Religion, Sexual Politics and Social Justice at Columbia University and author of the forthcoming book No Ashes in the Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America. Eve and Moore break down the monolith of Black writers and explain why Black literature is so often expected to be hopeful.

Episode Two, Shel Silverstein & Adam Mansbach (November 2), features excerpts from a Studs interview with Shel Silverstein from the early 1960s, and Eve in conversation with Adam Mansbach, New York Times bestselling author, screenwriter, and cultural critic.

Episode Three, Lorraine Hansberry & Imani Perry (December 7) features excerpts from a 1971 interview that Studs conducted with playwright Lorraine Hansberry, and Eve in conversation with Dr. Imani Perry, Hughes-Rogers Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University.

Episode Four, Younghill Kang & Min Jin Lee (January 4, 2019), features portions of a conversation between Studs and early Asian American writer Younghill Kang, and Eve's discussion with Min Jin Lee, New York Times bestselling author of Pachinko, and a 2018 Dayton Literary Peace Prize finalist.

Episode Five (February 1, 2019), Description TBD

BUGHOUSE SQUARE WITH EVE EWING is produced by Katie Klocksin, with music by Ayanna Woods. Archival audio was digitized by the Library of Congress, Division of Recorded Sound. The series is made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities - Exploring the Human Endeavor.

About Eve Ewing

Dr. Eve L. Ewing is a sociologist of education and a writer from Chicago. She is the author of Electric Arches, which received awards from the American Library Association and the Poetry Society of America and was named one of the year's best books by NPR and the Chicago Tribune. She is also author of Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago's South Side and the co-author (with Nate Marshall) of the play No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks. She also writes the Ironheart series for Marvel Comics. Ewing is an assistant professor at the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, and many other venues. (Image: Nolis Anderson)

About Studs Terkel

Louis Studs Terkel was born in New York on May 16, 1912, and over his 96 years became an author-radio host-actor-activist and Chicago symbol. He worked in several New Deal and Works Progress Administration projects focused on the arts, leading to a career in radio soap operas, stage plays, DJing, and sportscasting. He wrote his first best-selling book at age 55, and often spent time in Bughouse Square, the park across the street from the Newberry library that was at the time home to all manner of soapbox orators. Studs wrote, "[I] doubt whether I learned very much at the park. One thing I know: I delighted in it. Perhaps none of it made any sense, save one kind: a sense of life." (Adapted from an obituary by Rick Kogan. Image: Chicago History Museum, ICHi-065439; Stephen Deutch, photographer)

About Katie Klocksin

Katie Klocksin is an independent radio and podcast producer based in Chicago. In addition to Bughouse Square, Katie produces PoetryNow -- a short-form, non-narrated series in which poets share a poem and offer insights into its creation. Katie's work has also aired on 99% Invisible, WBEZ's Curious City, Re:Sound, and the Transom Podcast, among other outlets. She is also an amateur photographer, the owner of two orange brother-cats, and a proud graduate of the Transom Story Workshop. To see more of Katie's work, visit her website at KatieKlocksin.com.

About WFMT

WFMT, founded in 1951, is one of the nation's most respected classical music radio stations, available on-air at 98.7WFMT, online at wfmt.com/listen, and via app on Apple and Android mobile devices. WFMT showcases superlative programs, concerts, and live events - broadcasts from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Grant Park Music Festival, the Metropolitan Opera, Ravinia Festival, and many more. WFMT is also a leading producer and syndicator of a diverse selection of outstanding musical series, including Exploring Music with Bill McGlaughlin, the Beethoven Network, and the Jazz Network. Connect with WFMT on Facebook and Twitter.

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