Comments on: RIP Studs Terkel

RIP Studs Terkel

me3dia — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:31:22 -0800

Studs Terkel has passed. Author, actor, oral historian, storyteller.

By: Bummus

Bummus — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:32:51 -0800

By: jlowen

jlowen — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:34:15 -0800

By: strangeleftydoublethink

strangeleftydoublethink — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:35:56 -0800

By: gompa

gompa — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:38:33 -0800

. No call for sadness, the man lived the hell out of every one of his 96 years. And "The Good War" (quotes his) remains one of the most illuminating studies of the nature of war I've ever read. Unless you lived it, you don't really know what World War II was actually like until you've read it.

By: ferdydurke

ferdydurke — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:40:35 -0800

Take it easy . . . . but take it.

By: notclosed

notclosed — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:43:18 -0800

By: felix betachat

felix betachat — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:43:44 -0800

Ah shit. I just read this the other day and thought to myself how wonderful it will be for Studs to see a black president elected in his lifetime. God has a strange sense of humor.

By: garlic

garlic — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:44:57 -0800

A recent interview with Studs.

By: batmonkey

batmonkey — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:45:14 -0800

Never think you don't have enough time to accomplish something. That's what I learned from Mr. Terkel. .

By: scody

scody — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:46:54 -0800

"Hope Dies Last" We'll keep it alive for you, Studs.

By: eclectist

eclectist — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:47:33 -0800

By: lukemeister

lukemeister — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:48:43 -0800

Damn, I wish he'd lived to see Barack Obama elected President.

By: garlic

garlic — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:48:48 -0800

jinx, felix!

By: rtha

rtha — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:48:49 -0800

By: By The Grace of God

By The Grace of God — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:49:25 -0800

Studs Terkel is up there in heaven with Kurt Vonnegut having one hell of a conversation. .

By: shmegegge

shmegegge — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:49:30 -0800

My favorite memory of him is watching him play Hugh Fullerton, counting the suspicious plays in 8 Men Out. Sad to see him go.

By: lekvar

lekvar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:49:59 -0800

Well goddamn. Safe travels, Studs.

By: fiercecupcake

fiercecupcake — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:51:46 -0800

Holy crap. I was just thinking about him this morning. Thank you, Studs, for your legacy. Damn, but that was a life well lived. .

By: cusack

cusack — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:52:44 -0800

By: Westringia F.

Westringia F. — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:55:12 -0800

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:57:19 -0800

Aww, Studs was one of the last 20 or so people who I really admire. His interviews almost hurt to read, because they're so good and so deft.

By: mandal

mandal — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:58:01 -0800

By: ardgedee

ardgedee — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:59:11 -0800

Shit

By: sfts2

sfts2 — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:03:46 -0800

Sad Halloween.

By: Freen

Freen — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:04:51 -0800

By: interrupt

interrupt — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:08:16 -0800

By: ardgedee

ardgedee — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:09:13 -0800

Studs is at the Pearly Gates and sees St. Peter: "Hey, St. Pete! how do you like this gig? Ah, I figure I know that one already, but what's your take on it? Does it get harder when you have to deal with a damned soul, when he might have just been in a bind? When you have just that one moment to say, 'You're in!' or 'You're thataway!' ..."

By: John of Michigan

John of Michigan — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:09:35 -0800

Damn. Oh, goddamnit. That man was a real, true (no sarcasm) national treasure. I saw him eating breakfast once in a diner in Chicago, another time on a Chicago bus. I was too intimidated (and, yes, starstruck) to say something to him. Shit. Oh, and: .

By: Joey Michaels

Joey Michaels — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:11:14 -0800

Just to add to the chorus of praise, everyone who studied theatre in my generation - especially playwrighting - read Terkel extensively. If you want to know how real human beings talk - or, even better, talked ten, twenty, thirty (etc) years ago - you're not going to find a better source than Terkel's writing. Terkel's work not only ensures that his influence will extend long beyond his lifetime, but that the voices of hundreds and hundreds of other people will last long beyond their lifetimes as well. That is an amazing legacy.

By: RakDaddy

RakDaddy — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:12:23 -0800

! No quiet mourning for Studs from me. Not for a life like that. !

By: seawallrunner

seawallrunner — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:14:08 -0800

By: schyler523

schyler523 — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:14:16 -0800

By: droplet

droplet — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:22:41 -0800

He was amazing, wasn't he? .

By: the cuban

the cuban — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:23:32 -0800

By: sleepy pete

sleepy pete — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:24:23 -0800

Man, what a life. RIP, dear sir. The world owes you a lot for your work.

By: Postroad

Postroad — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:24:36 -0800

A true lefty to the end and he opened the way for the importance of oral history, now so big a part of university programs and in other places. He also told folks how to do interviews when doing oral history.

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:25:40 -0800

He was in that living room last year when he said with zest that when he "checked out"-- as a "hotel kid" he rarely used the word "dying," preferring the euphemism "checking out" and its variants--he wanted to be cremated. He wanted his ashes mixed with those of his wife, which sat in an urn in the living room of his house, near the bed in which he slept and dreamed. "My epitaph? My epitaph will be 'Curiosity did not kill this cat,'" he said. He then said that he wanted his and Ida's ashes to be scattered in Bughouse Square, that patch of green park that so informed his first years in his adopted city. "Scatter us there," he said, a gleeful grin on his face. "It's against the law. Let 'em sue us." ☺

By: Bighappyfunhouse

Bighappyfunhouse — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:27:07 -0800

Conversation with future Nobel Prize winner Doris Lessing in 1969: Lessing: "You do still have gangsters [in Chicago], don't you?" Terkel: "Yes, but these days they're mostly in business, or politics." .

By: ericb

ericb — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:28:45 -0800

By: Solon and Thanks

Solon and Thanks — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:29:41 -0800

By: applemeat

applemeat — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:43:15 -0800

By: Iridic

Iridic — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:43:43 -0800

By: gcbv

gcbv — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:44:09 -0800

. awesome human.

By: OolooKitty

OolooKitty — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:45:48 -0800

By: MikeMc

MikeMc — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:02:25 -0800

By: sonascope

sonascope — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:03:10 -0800

By: klausness

klausness — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:03:30 -0800

By: telstar

telstar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:05:11 -0800

Sorry, I can't mourn. Terkel's abject support of one of the most regressive and repressive regimes left on the planet, the Catholic Church, was most unfortunate.

By: nax

nax — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:06:49 -0800

Not only a literary great, Studs also, to the end of his life, was one of those people who used his prominence to encourage young artists from so many fields. He would bring onto his radio program anyone who interested him. He never limited his interest to the "arrived," but also sought out and supported young talent. He was important to the careers of so many young Chicago artists, musicians, writers, researchers, historians, and more, at the start of their careers, my husband being one of them. He had a long and wonderful life, and his passing saddens me hugely. Chicago and the world will miss him.

By: exlotuseater

exlotuseater — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:08:28 -0800

By: mikelieman

mikelieman — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:09:22 -0800

By: cogneuro

cogneuro — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:13:44 -0800

The radio programs on WFMT were great. He talked to everyone: I remember one show where he had some teenaged kid as guest, and he treated the kid seriously, asking him about the new music (I think it was the Beatles era), why it was important. There must be a lot of recordings of those shows around: any of them ever collected into an LP/CD/MP3?

By: Countess Elena

Countess Elena — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:18:06 -0800

By: Dee Xtrovert

Dee Xtrovert — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:21:37 -0800

I met him in Chicago soon after I arrived in this country; he noticed my accent and bad English. He had me laugh more than I had for a long while, and he told me a couple of stories about other immigrants and made me feel like I was really a part of an exciting American tradition of new arrivals. I never saw him again. But I became a real fan, I read his books and listened to him on the radio. I don't know about his "abject support" of the Catholic Church, or even if I should really care, because I'm sure of one thing: he gave much more to the rest of humanity than he ever could have taken from it. He made me feel special when I needed to feel noticed, and it's clear he touched many more lives than just mine. I feel sad knowing he is no longer with us.

By: robotico

robotico — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:22:19 -0800

I sat in front of him on a bus in Chicago once. I was too shy to schmooze since I hadn't read his books. Two or three other people recognized him and I eavesdropped. As pleased as they were to speak with him, he was clearly just as pleased to speak with them as he asked where they lived and what they did. Thank you Studs - you are the best of Chicago.

By: readery

readery — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:23:15 -0800

I bet he already voted, carrying on the Chicago tradition of the dead being able to vote. An all around great guy - he was on regular voice on Chicago radio, always unafraid to be a proud LIBERAL. Recently his hearing has not been good, making it hard for him to communicate, which he was put on earth to do. He will be missed, but we will carry on his tradition of speaking our minds and letting all voices be heard. .

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:29:03 -0800

"Sorry, I can't mourn. Terkel's abject support of one of the most regressive and repressive regimes left on the planet, the Catholic Church, was most unfortunate." Boy, you got him there. You know what else I hate? The Sistine Chapel. It'd be great art if it weren't at the Vatican, but I'm too far up my own ass to see that.

By: box

box — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:33:48 -0800

By: tetranz

tetranz — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:39:02 -0800

I first saw him on TV a few years ago and I wanted hear more so I listened to the interviews at www.studsterkel.org. I found him quite captivating to listen to. I haven't really seen or heard anything of him since then but when I turned the key in my car tonight, the radio came on and I heard "he loved to talk and his interviews flowed like jazz". I immediately guessed who they were talking about. I agree there's no reason to be sad but still ... :(

By: jonmc

jonmc — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:40:55 -0800

Studs Terkel taught me a bunch of things as a writer and as a person: that everybody's got a story even if they don't know it, and that if you want to be a writer, listening is as important as talking, and that the world is filled with a huge variety of people. RIP, Studs.

By: RavinDave

RavinDave — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:42:53 -0800

Aw, damn-damn-damn. I especially loved it when he did "Prairie Home Companion"; always gave the acting company a run for their money.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:45:06 -0800

One of my few remaining heroes. I miss him already. No call for sadness Yeah, actually there is, because he sure would have enjoyed seeing Obama elected. Sorry, I can't mourn. Terkel's abject support of one of the most regressive and repressive regimes left on the planet, the Catholic Church, was most unfortunate. Thanks for dropping by to show off your childish, self-absorbed inability to see anything but your own personal hobbyhorse. And I'll bet you complain about people who vote for candidates who oppose abortion, regardless of any other issues.

By: markkraft

markkraft — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:53:10 -0800

One of my longtime LJ friends worked for Mr. Terkel as a videographer and was a subject in his latest book "Hope Dies Last". Studs helped fund his documentary, as well. I've been a fan of his work for a long time now. He's been a big influence on me as far as how I blog... when a big story comes about, I try to tell it by concentrating on the firsthand accounts of bloggers out there who are personally involved in living through it, rather than caring quite so much about what some media org says that some politician is saying about what some general is saying about what his commanders are saying about what the soldiers or civilians might be saying about some problem somewhere. Stud's life has been a constant reminder that the best, most compelling, most true stories have always been at ground level.

By: sciurus

sciurus — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:56:37 -0800

I just finished reading Giants of Jazz when I was in Chicago earlier this month. .

By: hortense

hortense — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:09:43 -0800

Here is a link to a 2003 interview that was almost a fpp.

By: markkraft

markkraft — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:11:55 -0800

From an interview last year: AMY GOODMAN: What do you want them to think of when someone says “Studs Terkel”? STUDS TERKEL: I want them to think of somebody who remembers them, to be remembered, whether it be me or anyone else. They want Studs Terkel, maybe as somebody—I’m romanticizing myself now—somebody who gave me hope. One of my books is Hope Dies Last. Without hope, forget it. It’s hope and thought . . . That’s what it’s about. That’s what I hope I’m about. AMY GOODMAN: Last words to young people today? STUDS TERKEL: Last words? Oh, I always say my epitaph. I know that. Can I try, Amy? My epitaph is, curiosity did not kill this cat.

By: Pope Guilty

Pope Guilty — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:15:47 -0800

By: futility closet

futility closet — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:15:53 -0800

By: markkraft

markkraft — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:20:28 -0800

From an interview just five days ago at HuffPo: Studs for Obama: I asked Studs, if he were to interview Obama, what would he ask him? "I'd ask Obama, do you plan to follow up on the program of the New Deal of FDR? I'd tell him, 'don't fool around on a few issues, such as health care. We've got bigger work to do! Read FDR's second inaugural address!' The free market has to be regulated. And the New Deal did that and they provided jobs. The government has to. The WPA provided jobs. We have got to get back to that. We need more reg-u-la-tion. . . Community organizers like Obama know what's going on. If they remember. The important thing is memory. You know in this country, we all have Alzheimer's. Obama has got to remember his days as an organizer. It all comes back to the neighborhood. Well I hope the election is a landslide for Obama. . . . He's got to remember where he comes from! Obama, he has got to be pushed!"

By: scody

scody — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:30:13 -0800

Lovely remembrance from Roger Ebert, who calls Studs the greatest Chicagoan: "For me, he represented the joyous, scrappy, liberal, generous, wise-cracking heart of this city. If you met him, he was your friend." That's the honest, sterling truth. I met him once; we shared the podium at an anti-death penalty rally in downtown Chicago in the mid-'90s. It never occured to me to be nervous to get up in front of that crowd to give a speech, but when faced with the legend that was Studs, I was too shy to say much more than offer my hand and squeak, "Mr. Terkel, it's an honor."

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:36:26 -0800

By: lester's sock puppet

lester's sock puppet — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:43:10 -0800

By: lester's sock puppet

lester's sock puppet — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:45:44 -0800

i remember a few years ago when my wife and i were hitchhiking in maine after a boating accident. when the driver that picked us up found out that we were from Chicago, he started talking abut Studs. My wife then told him that she had seen Studs once or twice on a bus on Michigan Avenue. "Studs on a bus! Wow that must have been pretty cool." It was all he could talk about for the rest of the ride.

By: Kiablokirk

Kiablokirk — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:48:10 -0800

When I was in college, I read his book Coming of Age, where he interviewed people that were over seventy about how America had changed over the course of their lifetime. It was one of the most enlightening and empowering books I ever read. It gave a personal touch to a lot of events that I only had vague knowledge of, and featured a lot of wisdom, but more than that, it showed that there was never a point where you couldn't give more or do more if that was your goal. One interview was with a teacher whose main goal was to teach peace to elementary school kids - to not scold them, to not send them to the principle, but to treat them with respect and to try to get them to understand that they had to treat everyone else with respect. It turned out that he did a lot to help those kids, especially compared to other stricter teachers. And he was still doing it, at the age of 70. Little stories like that - of a human being just trying to be kind to other people - they are just about the only thing that makes me tear up. The idea that Studs would seek out someone like that, and try to get their stories known, tells you a lot about him. And who else would interview both Kurt Vonnegut and a Crip gang member for the same book? About the only other writer whose work has even come close to me as being so inspirational has been Jonathan Kozol.

By: a_green_man

a_green_man — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:51:44 -0800

One of my Heroes. What a scrappy old coot he was!

By: talos

talos — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:01:12 -0800

By: jeanmari

jeanmari — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:02:17 -0800

Ah damn. Seriously. Damn. .

By: ardgedee

ardgedee — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:35:46 -0800

> It was all he could talk about for the rest of the ride. That's my new catchphrase when witnessing anything remarkable. "Hey, the Cubs won the World Series!" "Studs on a bus!" "Hey, a black man became President!" "Studs on a bus!" "They're giving away your favorite beer at the brewpub!" "Studs on a bus!"

By: genehack

genehack — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:45:26 -0800

By: kozad

kozad — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:57:12 -0800

. in so many ways .

By: Divine_Wino

Divine_Wino — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:03:41 -0800

I've spoken to him on the phone in the course of my job... what a charmer, Studsey, what an intellect. What a good man, an exemplary American, an excellent human being, what a giant, what a tremendous soul. I'll never forget you sir, thank you for all you did and all you stood for and all you taught me.

By: sacre_bleu

sacre_bleu — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:26:21 -0800

. Crack an Old Style with Royko, man.

By: fourcheesemac

fourcheesemac — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:30:25 -0800

. Wow. His work shaped me so profoundly. Now that was a pro-American.

By: Herodios

Herodios — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:30:36 -0800

S'long, Studs. Thanks for everything. .

By: Wolof

Wolof — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:35:20 -0800

Loved your work, man. .

By: WCityMike

WCityMike — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:37:48 -0800

No doubt he and Royko are finally grabbing a long-delayed beer at the Heaven branch of the Billy Goat, run by "Billy Goat" Sianis himself.

By: Divine_Wino

Divine_Wino — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:49:40 -0800

Sorry, I can't mourn. Terkel's abject support of one of the most regressive and repressive regimes left on the planet, the Catholic Church, was most unfortunate. You should call your cable company and tell them you're only getting the John Birch Society channel, you can probably get a credit on your account. Also you've got about fifty years of TV watching to catch up on, hold tight because shit gets real nutty right around 1963.

By: stet

stet — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:23:09 -0800

Huh. I knew Studs' name prior to this thread but never really anything about him or his work. Having read this thread, his memorial will be me reading his work for the first time. .

By: Divine_Wino

Divine_Wino — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:24:25 -0800

A man comes from New York. He says, "These petitions, your name is on all of them: anti-poll tax, anti-lynching, friendship with the Soviet Union.... don't you know the communists were behind them?" And he said, "Look, you can get out of this pretty easy. All you got to do is say the communists duped you. You were dumb. You didn't mean it." I said, "But I did mean it!" To this day people say, "Oh, Studs, you were so heroic." Heroic? I was scared shitless! But my ego was at stake. My vanity. "Whaddya mean, I'm dumb?"

By: louche mustachio

louche mustachio — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:33:08 -0800

Studs Terkel spent his life gathering the story of the people of this country. If you want to know what America is and who Americans really are, read his books. He had an extrordinary gift for drawing people out, and getting them to tell their stories, because he was truly interested in them and listened to what they had to say - even people who nobody else listened to. .

By: Smedleyman

Smedleyman — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:57:29 -0800

By: LobsterMitten

LobsterMitten — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:57:01 -0800

By: librarina

librarina — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 22:01:43 -0800

By: YoBananaBoy

YoBananaBoy — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 22:31:19 -0800

By: edgeways

edgeways — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 23:34:42 -0800

By: agress

agress — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 23:48:31 -0800

I kinda feel bad that I had absolutely no idea who this guy was. Still don't, really, but I do grasp that he meant a lot to a lot of people... In any case, always a . worthy moment when someone dies, so .

By: brujita

brujita — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 00:14:37 -0800

. I discovered him with this documentary. Missed my chance to see him in real life about 10 years ago; he was supposed to be on a panel in LA but canceled because his wife was ill. "Studs" for Studs Lonigan.

By: orthogonality

orthogonality — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 02:19:52 -0800

Damn.

By: Outlawyr

Outlawyr — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 04:54:02 -0800

A great man. .

By: madamjujujive

madamjujujive — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 05:18:34 -0800

If you don't yet know him - or even if you if do - spend an hour with this most wonderful man (2004)

By: pilgrim

pilgrim — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 06:05:44 -0800

By: bustmakeupleave

bustmakeupleave — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 08:33:56 -0800

I saw him speak at the Chicago Public Library in 2001, he was incredible and interesting. .

By: scottymac

scottymac — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 12:03:11 -0800

By: Smart Dalek

Smart Dalek — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 13:46:07 -0800

By: flapjax at midnite

flapjax at midnite — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 19:55:06 -0800

Highway 61 Radio, with some Terkel videos and links, as relate to Terkel's love of the blues. RIP, Studs Terkel. .

By: Snyder

Snyder — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 23:49:18 -0800

By: Capt Jingo

Capt Jingo — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:34:14 -0800