Studs Terkel, Author
“Who are the best historians? Who are the storytellers? Who lived through the Great Depression of the ’30s, World War II that changed the whole psyche and map of the world, a Cold War, Joe McCarthy, Vietnam, the ’60s, that’s so often put down today and I think was an exhilarating and hopeful period, and, of course, the computer and technology. Who are the best ones to tell the story? Those who’ve borne witness to it. And they’re our storytellers.” Thus were the sentiments of the exceptional author Studs Terkel who passed away in Chicago today. He was 96 years old.
Terkel was a Pulitzer Prize winning author, activist and radio host who explored the lives of ordinary people who made America what it is, in good times and in bad. An inciteful man, Terkel grew up in Chicago where his parents ran a hotel. Terkel spent his youth watching the many people that came in and out of the hotel and once said “That hotel was far more of an education to me than the University of Chicago was.”
Studs Terkel made celebrities out of the un-celebrities and explored the lives of everyday people. His writing as well as his charm will be missed.
Conversations with America
A collection of interviews Studs Terkel gave during his writing career
Works by Studs Terkel
The Good War: An Oral History of World War II (Pulitzer Prize Winner)
Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do
Hard Times: an oral History of the Great Depression
Coming of Age: Growing Up in the Twentieth Century
Tags: celebrity obituary, online memorial, studs terkel memorial
October 31st, 2008 at 8:36 pm
Farewell Studs - you contributed mightily to America the beautiful, painting a beguiling picture of a big, brash and fascinating country, whether your respondents were famous or obscure, struggling or dilettante. You were one with the heartbeat, always right there - the rhythm of your work and the pulse of the people were as one.
Peace Studs, and here’s to the coming good times.
Nick (a long time admirer)