Studs Terkel

Studs Terkel hosted a radio program for forty years. He is the author of more than fifteen books. In 1985, Mr. Terkel was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his The “Good War,” an oral history of the Second World War. Here are some of his other works:

Mr. Terkel also worked as an actor. His groundbreaking The Studs Terkel Show is considered a key contribution to what is often called “The Chicago School” of television, and Mr. Terkel had roles in several films, including John Sayles’ Eight Men Out, and a film adaptation of Harriet Arnow’s The Doll Maker.

Born to Live, a radio feature Mr. Terkel co-produced with Jim Unrath, received the Prix Italia, a prestigious international award given to honor inventive radio programs. This Train, Studs Terkel’s documentary about the Great March on Washington for Civil Rights, is rebroadcast each year.

Many of Mr. Terkel’s radio programs, selected from more than five thousand hours of interviews and special programming, are now available online via the Studs Terkel Archive. During the course of his remarkable career as broadcaster and radio artist, Mr. Terkel talked with people from all walks of life, both the famous and the uncelebrated. He is renowned for the level of preparation he brought to his interviews. We encourage you to visit that treasure trove. It is surely one of the most various and significant collections of recorded materials in the world. As Mr. Terkel would say approvingly of a person, he “covered the waterfront.”

Mr. Terkel passed away in 2008, at the age of 96. His thoughtful books, writing and interview skills, and exciting life, will be remembered for years. He is a great role model for the 6th grade during the Parker Works project because of the way he brought out the stories and voices of the people who were not being heard at the time. We hope that we can do the same type of work that he did and, in the process, learn more about the people who contribute to the Parker community.