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Big Bill Broonzy (07/22/1953)

July 21, 2023, 11:00 pm

Big Bill Broonzy, c. 1951 (Source: Wikimedia)

Join WFMT as we tune our radios back to July 22, 1953, and the time that Studs Terkel’s guest was the legendary American bluesman, William Lee Conley Broonzy – better known as Big Bill.

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Meet the Host

Studs Terkel (1912-2008) radically redefined the concept of radio interviews. For 45 years starting in 1952, WFMT was his homebase. His daily radio show was a pillar of WFMT’s programming, with its eclectic and astute mix of music and conversation. Studs juxtaposed interviews with the many of the 20th century’s most significant figures with the voices of uncelebrated, working people from Chicago. As a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Studs helped established oral history as a popular and socially ambitious literary genre. Some of his titles include: Division Street, Hard Times, Working, Race and And They All Sang (Adventures of an Eclectic Disc Jockey). Studs was also a recipient of the National Book Award.