Studs Terkel:
Chicago's "Everyman"

Upon graduation from the University of Chicago, Studs worked as an actor on stage and in the radio soap operas of the era. With the emergence of television in the 1950s, Chicago was quickly becoming known for quality programming due to such early television personalities as Dave Garroway (who would later become nationally known as the first host of NBC's "Today Show") and Kukla, Fran and Ollie. Terkel created a program titled “Studs’ Place.” The program allowed Terkel to tap into a quality that would endear him to fans – his ability to listen. Studs didn’t just interview. He became engaged in a conversation allowing his subject to become completely at ease during the process.