Fridays at 11:00 pm
Archival gems from historian Studs Terkel’s longstanding WFMT interview program
For 45 years (1952-1997), WFMT was home to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Studs Terkel. Over the years, the guests on his daily radio show ranged from ordinary Chicagoans to international figures: political leaders, writers, performers, social activists, and labor organizers. Studs was remarkable in his depth of knowledge and in his ability to get others to share in spirited and insightful discussion.
Learn more about the Studs Terkel Radio Archive by visiting its website.
This Train, Part 2 (c. 1963)
This episode of the Best of Studs Terkel is devoted to the second and final part of the award-winning documentary called “This Train.” Studs wove this sound-scape commemoration of the 1963 March on Washington from voices he recorded on a train bound for Washington, and at the event itself.
Studs Terkel Presents An Hour of Music (09/04/1980)
“Without music, everybody’d be downhearted.” So said a plumber Studs Terkel once interviewed. Tonight’s Best of Studs Terkel dates from 1980 and is one of those times Studs brought out his favorite vinyl LPs for an hour of recorded music.
Mahalia Jackson in Concert (09/20/1957)
Tonight on the Best of Studs Terkel we bring you an archive favorite, and one of the programs that Studs loved best. This broadcast took place in 1957 at the old Hotel Morrison on the Near west side of Chicago. We’re in the ballroom, which is filled to capacity. Studs is in his element as he hosts this live concert featuring his friend, ...
Inti-Illimani (04/14/1980)
In 1980, Studs Terkel welcomed the distinguished Chilean musical group, Inti-Illimani, to WFMT’s studios. Back then, during the time of the dictatorship of Pinochet in Chile, the group was still in exile. In this broadcast, the members of Inti-Illimani perform Latin American folk music, and speak with Studs about their music, their culture, and their country.
Aaron Copland (03/10/1961)
Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1900, Aaron Copland devoted his creative life to creating and fostering distinctive American music. Studs Terkel spoke with the eminent twentieth-century composer in the WFMT studios in 1961.
George Nakashima (10/10/1977)
Born in Spokane, Washington, George Nakashima (1905-1990) was a master craftsman and M.I.T.-trained architect who created some of the most iconically beautiful and organic wood furniture of the twentieth century. He also survived an internment camp in Idaho where Japanese Americans were forced to live during World War II. Nakashima spoke with Studs Terkel in 1977.
Corky Siegel (08/06/1976)
In honor of Corky Siegel’s 80th birthday and the 60 years he’s devoted to the harmonic convergence of blues and classical music, here is his 1976 conversation with Studs Terkel. The ebullient harmonica virtuoso and composer was born in Chicago on October 24, 1943, and we wish him many happy returns of the day.
André Watts (01/22/1986)
André Watts (1946-2023), the pioneering piano virtuoso and one of the first Black superstars in classical music, was Studs Terkel’s guest on WFMT in 1986. Watts died in July 2023, and we remember him with this archive broadcast.
