Studs’s Work Is Carried On
by Joan McGann Morris
One of Chicago’s own, Studs Terkel passed away on October 31, 2008 at the age of 96, but his work will carry on. He was a journalist/ actor / radio host/ historian /writer and activist with a tape recorder. Working Women’s History Project, along with many other groups, owe a great debt to Studs for his example and great body of work, which masterfully used first hand interviews and oral history to chronicle the stories of ordinary people who have made a difference.
Stud’s may not have invented oral history, but certainly raised it to an art form. Studs’s work is well known— Early in his career, in 1953 “Studs Place,”His radio interview shows on WFMT FM and interview based books formed the standard which others follow throughout the country. His interviews later became the basis for an astounding 18 books: starting with “Giants of Jazz” in 1957, “Division Street: America” 1967 “Hard Times” in1970, and his well-known “Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do” in 1974 were only a few which he gave ordinary working people a voice. “His “The Good War,” remembrances of World War II, published in 1985 won the Pulitzer Prize. Whether it was with celebrated, like Mahalia Jackson or the uncelebrated school teacher, or paper boy, I think Chicagoans particularly all felt like Studs was their neighbor and on their side. He continued writing and working his whole life, finishing his last book “Touch and Go: A Memoir in 2008.” *
Working Women’s History Project has a particularly personal connection to Studs. Our founder and current board member, Yolanda (Bobby) Hall and her husband, Chuck Hall knew Studs and his wife, Ida and shared many struggles over the years.“Studs was a big friend of the Chicago Friends of the Lincoln Brigade, of which Chuck was Chairman.” Bobby remembered. Indeed, Working Women History Project is greatly indebted to Studs. As Hall states, “Studs many interviews of working women and union women can be considered an important legacy for our group.”A large part of our Working Women’s History Project’s mission is to record the history of working women throughout Chicago who have fought for labor, civil rights and social justice. We have often used Stud’s method of taping first hand interviews to transcribe their stories in their own words—oral history. These interviews form the basis of articles and plays in which we try to bring the lives and work of these women to life. We, along with many others, will miss Studs greatly, but his work will carry on.
• More on Studs Terkel and a complete list of Terkel’s books can be found on.