also available: 2021-2022
2020
AKATHISIA STORIES
In this seventh episode of Akathisia Stories, we hear from Janet Schiel.
In 2016 her husband, Joe, was nearing the end of his 37-year career in the pharmaceutical sales business. But prior to making his own announcement of retirement, his boss had a health scare and retired, and several people at the company were let go, thereby doubling Joe's workload and his regional responsibilities, from half the country to the entire country. Meanwhile, Joe and Janet found their perfect retirement home in the Lake of the Ozarks. But Janet believes the reality of buying and selling homes on top of the workload led Joe to call his doctor. Without talking with him in person, the doctor prescribed the generic version of Lexapro, an antidepressant Joe had briefly been on a decade earlier. When he took the drug then, Janet remembers that he couldn't get a grip on reality.
[Janet Schiel] “We thought he was having a nervous breakdown, and we drove to the hospital and he wouldn’t get out. He said, ‘Just take me home and I’m going to get off all the medicines.’”
In 2016 the adverse effects were significantly worse.
[Janet Schiel] "I watched him change and become depressed and paranoid. And I finally said to him about three weeks into this, ‘What are you taking?’ And I’ve never said that to him in my entire life. And, you know, I don’t even know where the words came from, and he looked at me and he told me and I said, “Don’t you remember what happened the last time?” And obviously he didn’t. And I said, “You can’t take this drug.” I said, “You have got to promise me you’re going to wean off of this. And that’s as much as I knew.”
Janet Schiel is a drug safety advocate who champions policies and practices to stop medication-induced suicide. In 2019, she founded Butterflies for Joe, a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading awareness about the negative adverse effects of SSRIs, which tragically precipitated her husband's death in 2016. Like many others who have lost spouses to prescribed harm, Janet also lost her best friend when Joe died.
Prior to her husband's death, Janet was the founder and president of Guiding Hand Senior Resources, which helps families navigate the financial challenges of long-term elder care. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado with her dogs Buddy and Annie, and enjoys spending as much time as possible with her two adult children, Luke and Blake, and their partners. We spoke late last year in Chicago.
EAGER TO KNOW
Karen Perl and William Dolan are both Chicago artists with much in common. We speak about the wonderful city we live in, its architecture and ghosts from the past. Karen and Bill are having a two-person art exhibit at Hofheimer Gallery in March.
ALWAYS ANDERSONVILLE: THE PODCAST
This week, Laura and Sara are joined by Rabbi Craig Marantz and Leah Jones of Emanuel Congregation. Emanuel Congregation, founded in 1880, is a Jewish Reform synagogue affiliated with the Union for Reform Judaism, and was incorporated in 1898 as "Emanuel Congregation of Chicago." Even after 140 years, Emanuel Congregation continues to grow and emphasize their value of building community. Regardless of what reasons motivate you to pursue your religious beliefs, their goal is to have a place for everyone at 5959 N Sheridan.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. The podcast is also available in the Apple Podcasts directory! Please subscribe.
This time on Gathering Ground, Mary sits down with Salamishah and Scheherazade Tillet, sisters and co-founders of A Long Walk Home, an organization dedicated to empowering young artists and activists to end violence against all girls and women.
Scheherazade, Salamishah, and Mary have a deep conversation about Salamishah's journey into academia, her experiences with sexual violence, and how watching her sister heal catalyzed Scheherazade's first major photo project and, ultimately, A Long Walk Home. They get into the reaction to their work on 'muting' R. Kelly, the #MeToo movement, and the life-changing impact of their organization.
This work is deep, emotional, hard, and victorious. They also discuss where Scheherazade and Salamishah find joy in this work and in their lives. Then, of course, they answer questions from some of Gathering Ground’s listeners!
TRIGGER WARNINGS
In this episode — “The Moral Degeneracy of Donald Trump, and His Political Lynching of President Obama: A Patriotic Conservative Speaks Out” — Jason Hill demonstrates that President Donald Trump’s political career was forged in the crucibles of racial bigotry.
Trump’s promotion of the birther movement against former President Obama, in which he questioned the authenticity of Obama’s citizenship as an American and cast doubt on his religious identity, was an in intrinsic act of racism. This deliberate act on the part of Trump, who admitted that he knew what he was doing and who later accused Obama of being the founder of ISIS, set the stage for the philosophy of Nativism that has come to characterize Trump’s presidency.
As a trained ethicist, and an independent conservative, Hill identifies the characteristics in Trump that mark him as a moral degenerate and a weak narcissist who covets the approval of dictators like Vladimir Putin of Russia and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. And stay tuned till the end for Jason Hill’s prediction of Trump’s fate.
In this sixth episode of “Akathisia Stories,” we hear from two amazing women: Mathy and Caroline Downing. Mathy was Candace Downing's mother and Caroline her sister. Candace died 16 years ago this month. Her older sister, Caroline, is now 30 years old. She's been outspoken about drug education since losing her sister in 2004. Just a child herself at the time, she co-wrote and narrated the documentary "Prescription: Suicide?" Winner of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights Award for her advocacy at just 18, Caroline remains passionate about her sister’s legacy. As a young adult, she knows that knowledge is power and encourages others to learn as much as they can about medications and their health before making any major decisions regarding their health care. Her blog, although mostly focused on style, doesn’t shy away from talking about sensitive issues such as mental health and losing a sibling. Caroline works in D.C. and lives in Maryland and hopes to write a book about her experience of losing a sibling to SSRIs. We spend the first half of this episode listening to her story, recorded late last year via Skype.
Currently Mathy Downing is a nonpublic school teacher working with grades kindergarten through fifth grade, in subjects such as math, reading fluency and comprehension, writing, and counseling. She remains an international child advocate, a position she's had since 2005, the year following Candace's death. Advocacy has played a major part in her life beginning the year Candace died. It began with her testifying in front of the FDA in the summer of 2004, which led to numerous television, magazine and newspaper article appearances. She has spoken internationally about the rights of children with informed consent, drug transparency, and over-medication. She has also been heavily involved in numerous documentaries in which Candace's story has played a key part. Mathy is also now a key member of the Know More About Drugs alliance. KMAD alliance is an informative website for parents so that they can make informed decisions about any drug prescribed for their child. Last year we spoke first by Skype and then, when the Internet connection wasn't ideal, by phone.
2019
ALWAYS ANDERSONVILLE: THE PODCAST
In this special holiday edition of Always Andersonville, hear holiday poems, jokes and singing from the students at Rogers Park Montessori School (1800 W. Balmoral), along with a live reading of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas and the Christmas classic The Night Before Christmas, read by students and Rogers Park Montessori School and Friends of Andersonville co-founder Randy Heite!
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. The podcast is also available in the Apple Podcasts directory! Please subscribe.
On this special episode of “Gathering Ground,” listen in on our first live-recorded episode: a conversation with Diversity, Inc. author Pamela Newkirk at Women and Children First Bookstore.
Pamela and Mary discuss Diversity, Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar Business and the need to explore nuance and data in the conversation of how we have and can continue to move forward in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
Diversity, Inc. addresses the progress of DEI in academia, corporate America, and Hollywood and puts the three worlds up against each other to examine how they all contribute to issues of systemic racism in the United States. Check out this special episode of “Gathering Ground” to hear Mary and Pamela's conversation about drilling down on the numbers and why doing this work is vital to our forward movement.
Following their chat, Pamela and Mary answer questions from their live audience. Don't miss this great interview! [Date posted: December 25, 2019]
This time on “Gathering Ground,” Mary hosts two thought leaders and comrades in community-building and racial justice: Angelique Power (President of The Field Foundation) and Tracie D. Hall (Director of The Joyce Foundation's Culture Program).
Tracie shares with listeners her experience growing up in Los Angeles in the years following the Watts Rebellion, and the inspiration she found in the people and artists breathing life back into its rich community. Angelique speaks to being a child of the "first generation of the Loving Generation"* in Hyde Park, Chicago, her history of work in homelessness, and the complicated relationship many of us native Chicagoans have with the city — one of concurrent love and skepticism.
Mary, Tracie and Angelique go on to discuss Tracie's amazing, moving art Rootwork Gallery, and Enrich Chicago, which Angelique co-founded in 2014 to create pathways and skill-building opportunities for individuals of color to enter arts administration at all levels. The three discuss the state of philanthropy, the emotional labor of being a POC in the nonprofit sector, and much, much more.
Angelique and Tracie will definitely be back for a future episode of “Gathering Ground,” but for now, enjoy this conversation that can only be called magical!
* Angelique's mention of the "Loving Generation" refers to the generation of children born to the first interracial couples who were able to legally marry thanks to 1967's landmark case Loving vs. Virginia. [Date posted: December 25, 2019]
GATHERING GROUND
This time on Gathering Ground, Mary and Ms. Foundation CEO Teresa Younger have some "real talk" about women's funds and philanthropy; Ms. Foundation's new strategic plan (which centers women and girls of color); and current foundation trends and the state of philanthropy for women and girls in the United States. Then, they give listeners some advice, including what to do if you and your supervisor are both burnt out.
This week, Laura and Heather are joined by Winifred Gundeck, owner of Winifred Grace. Winifred Grace is a lifestyle boutique featuring handmade jewelry, apparel, vintage goods and home accessories and has recently just moved south a couple doors to 5632 N. Clark. (This episode was recorded in the space Winifred Grace had occupied until two days before, and just as the new location had opened its doors for the first time.)
In 2003, Winifred Grace was launched as a jewelry line while Winnie was still working in graphic design. She started by showing her work at small events, and then moved on to wholesaling, which she did for 11 years. She quit her graphic design job and embarked on a new career where she participated in trade shows and sold to boutiques. She began making the jewelry herself and eventually grew to work with artisans who created pieces based on her designs. Finding a balance in her life between her business and family, Winnie, an Andersonville resident, decided to open her shop on Clark. She didn’t have any experience opening a business but knew she had to take advantage of having a great street location. After a successful opening weekend, she knew she made the right decision.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. The podcast is also available in the Apple Podcasts directory! Please subscribe. [Date posted: October 2]
This week's guest is Chicago filmmaker, teacher, and artist Lori Felker.
Says host Rick McEachern: "I don't know much about the filmmaking process and I'm very curious about it. I love movies and documentaries, but it always seems like it would be very complicated to create something in this media. Film uses so many different forms of art together: sound, imagery, composition. Lori was nice enough to come on Eager To Know and talk with me. I am very glad she did."
Lori recalls watching a lot of television as a kid and now, in retrospect, realizes that she was "insanely engaged and feeling extreme feelings of empathy at an early age watching 'Who's The Boss' and 'The Golden Girls.' I didn't know that was unique that I was living inside of the television. I was like really feeling it." When she studied literature in college, she experienced similar feelings, "empathetically connecting with art," but felt she did not have "permission to be an artist." "It's not how I was raised," she says.
Eventually, Lori was able to "break free from a lot of what I thought I was and what I had been taught," voicing her own opinions and thoughts and "realizing that there's no shame in wanting to be a part of the thing that moves you. I was very moved by TV and film, and I was like, ‘Well, why shouldn't I also want to make it or do it?’" She talks about her early experiences in college film classes and how she discovered that she could “squeeze all of the things” she was moved by into film, an art form which she came to think of as "Gesamtkunstwerk," a German term that refers to a total work of art. Her recent documentary, "Future Language: The Dimensions of Von LMO," has played film festivals across the U.S. and Canada. Find her online: www.felkercommalori.com. [Date posted: October 2]
In this fourth episode of Akathisia Stories, we hear from Kim Witczak, whose husband, Woody, was having trouble sleeping in the summer of 2003. He paid a visit to his regular doctor and left with a three-week sample pack of Zoloft. Kim was out of the country for the first three weeks Woody was on the drug; when she returned home, she was alarmed to see what was happening to her husband of almost 10 years. Kim Witczak: I will never forget: He came in with his blue dress shirt, which he had an undershirt under, and it was just drenched with sweat; dropped his briefcase at the backdoor; went into a fetal position on our kitchen floor with his hands wrapped around his head like a vice, going: ‘Help me, Kim; help me. I don’t know what’s happening to me. It’s like my head’s outside my body looking in. Help me, Kim. Help me.’ And I remember just looking at him – and I had no idea, but we calmed him down. You know, I’m like, ‘Let’s try breathing; let’s try praying; let’s try yoga. If this job is so stressful, quit.’ You know, I had no idea.”
Kim shares Woody's story — and her own. Her advocacy work has taken her to the nation's capital not only to testify before House and Senate panels but to serve on the FDA Psychopharmacologic Drug Advisory Committee. Kim Witczak: “Being appointed on this committee I think is a success in that I’m not going to be just the rubber stamp, which I see a lot of. So for me, I think it’s a success that I have a seat at the table. But I’m often the only one that votes no.”
Kim Witczak is a leading international drug safety advocate and speaker with over 25 years professional experience in advertising and marketing communications. Kim co-founded Woody Matters, a nonprofit dedicated to advocating for a stronger FDA and drug safety system. She also co-created and organized the international, multi-disciplinary conference Selling Sickness in Washington, D.C. In 2016 Kim was appointed Consumer Representative on the FDA Psychopharmacologic Drug Advisory Committee and is on the Board of Directors of the National Physicians Alliance and MISSD. She is also an active member of the D.C.-based Patient, Consumer, and Public Health Coalition, making sure the voice of non-conflicted patients and consumers is represented in FDA-related legislative issues. And she is a founding alliance member of the Know More About Drugs campaign started by Nancy Cartwright (best known for her work as the voice of Bart Simpson). She recently talked to Andy Miles via Skype from her home in Minneapolis. [Date posted: September 18]
Podcast host Rick McEachern:
I met Pete Barker at the record store right around the corner from my home where he works. He shared with me the music that he writes and we spoke about his relationship to this music. He mentioned his experience with mental illness and how that related to creativity. I thought a discussion about this could be very helpful to people and he agreed to be a guest on Eager To Know.
Pete’s experience with depression, anxiety, and OCD has had an impact on living his life and his creative journey. He shared that he found that music was a way to refocus all of the hard work his mind was actively doing. I was curious about his story and I am very grateful that he sat down with me to talk about it.
Following the interview, Pete performs three songs in studio. [Date posted: September 18]
This week, Laura and Joelle are joined by mother-daughter team Amy and Hannah Amdur of Amdur Productions. For over 30 years, Amdur Productions has organized and directed many of the Midwest’s most esteemed juried art festivals. Andersonville is proud to have Amdur as this year’s festival producer for Andersonville Arts Fest which end-caps Andersonville Arts Week + Fest on September 21 and 22 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., on Clark Street from Winona to Argyle.
Amy developed a passion for art starting early, at the age of five. Amy watched painters at a nearby art school when running errands with her mom and started painting that very summer. It was a skill she carried through her entire childhood and into school at Northwestern University and the School of the Art Institute. Amy’s first fest was downtown Highland Park 36 years ago, with only 40 artists. Amy’s daughter Hannah just graduated last year from the University of Iowa and started working for her mother and Amdur as the Marketing and Events Manager. Her first festival was the Port Clinton Art Festival at 2 weeks old! Andersonville Arts Fest will feature more than 100 juried artists, including a few selected by Andersonville local businesses. In addition to the art, the fest will feature a Youth Art Area, live music, a performance by Gus Giordano Dance School, food, and beer from Urban Renewal Brewery.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. [Date posted: September 18]
Podcast host Rick McEachern:
“Many of the guests I have had on Eager to Know are people well established in their creative careers. Oftentimes we talk about what it was like when they started out, the challenges, and how they got things moving. I decided to speak with people who are currently in the early stages of a creative journey. I wanted to speak to them about what they currently experiencing. My guests on this episode are an actor and a painter, who are starting out.”
The actor is Hannah Ruwe and the painter is Kevin Slattery. They are both based in Chicago.
At one point in the conversation Hannah observes that “as an actor, your work is your own body; you use your body as a canvass,” and asks the two painters at the table, “Is it easier to have someone critique something that’s not physically you, that’s something you can stand away from?” [Date posted: September 9]
This week, Joelle and Sara are joined by Mike Draper and Claire Anderson of RAYGUN, newly opened in Andersonville in June of 2019. A ray gun is a science fiction particle-beam weapon that fires what is usually destructive energy, but RAYGUN Andersonville diffuses destructive energy of societal stereotypes with humor and an abundance of typography. Stop in and check out their wide selection of t-shirts, home goods, paper products, and more at 5207 N. Clark.
In 2004, Mike received a rejection letter for a competitive fellowship to continue his education in Europe, so he had to come up with a Plan B. A friend suggested they partner and sell t-shirts on campus, and Mike agreed. Something clicked, and he decided to keep doing it. Within a year, he had opened his first retail store, then called Smash. Years later, when he was looking to open a store in Chicago, Mike reconnected with fellow Des Moines native and former Smash employee Claire, who suggested Andersonville as the location. She now manages that store.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy of the chamber. [Date posted: September 4]
On Episode 6 Gene talks to Marc Kelly Smith, founder of the world-famous Uptown Poetry Slam. Smith talks about the event's humble beginnings at the now-defunct Get Me High Lounge in Wicker Park. At that time, poetry readings were sparsely attended. "If you had 10 people, you were successful," Smith recalls. But there was another problem: "They were all so very self-indulgent, snobbish, cliquish. Here's this passionate art form and everybody is presenting it very boring, like a professor in class." Inventing the event as he went along, Smith looked for poets "with a natural flair for performing," though, at the time, he says, "poets did not take performance seriously." Smith believes that pairing poetry with performance "created a higher art form." In the summer of 1986, Smith's event moved to its current home, the Green Mill, when the historic Uptown tavern was reopened by Dave Jemilo. There Smith transferred everything he had learned at the Get Me High and watched the poetry slam grow from five people showing up to "nights with 80 people in the audience." In time, the slam became not only a beloved Chicago institution but a worldwide phenomenon, playing to audiences of hundreds in Europe and Asia. Despite having always kept his "private life pretty private," Smith opens up to Gene, relating stories of his "extreme love-hate relationship with the stage" and struggles he’s had with stage fright. He also touches on his time growing up on Chicago's "blue-collar" Southeast Side, where he discovered his "knack for writing" -- despite not having attempted to read a book until the seventh grade. That book, recommended to him by a teacher, changed his life. [Date posted: September 1]
Our guest DJ this month is Tricia Zelazny of The Vintage Lifestyle. [See playlist]
If you're a vintage vixen trapped in a modern world, you can play dress-up every day in styles from your favorite bygone eras by shopping here. Tricia loves vintage-style clothing just as much as the next lady, or gent, and carries a vast assortment of unique items that will make you feel like a classy '20s movie star, a retro '50s pin-up bombshell, or a hippie chick from the free-spirited '70s. If you are in the Chicago area, she can offer you a private styling tour to all of the best vintage stores. If you never have worn vintage but would like a private styling session to explore the possibilities, then Tricia can make it happen! Last, but not least, Tricia offers interior design services.
Says Tricia: “My love of fashion started at a very early age, whilst watching my nana, a Polish stage ballerina, get dressed to go out for an evening dinner. It often involved the most opulent of metallic textiles, sparkly jewels, and mink furs. I would raid her closet and play dress-up with her luxurious clothing. So naturally, with my love of textiles and fashion, I pursued a degree in textiles and, later, a degree in interior design. For me, fashion has always been a vehicle of self-expression. Whether it be my early days in high school as a New Wave romantic-goth or, later on, a bohemian gypsy traveler, I always loved how fashion created an instant mood to start the day. I would often get complimented on the streets about my ensembles.” Find out more at Tricia’s new website. [Date posted: August 27]
Episode 5 finds Gene in a more ruminative place, talking to Studio C's Andy Miles about his mental health struggles, specifically his coming to terms with a bipolar disorder diagnosis after spending a week in a Brooklyn psych ward. That helped motivate his decision to "get the hell out of Brooklyn" and settle for a time in an Ohio farm house. He started writing poems as a way to recover from those tumultuous times and has never stopped writing; at last count he has penned about 2,000 poems, several of which he reads in the episode. "The land my mind lives in is treacherous but friendly," he says in one of them. Gene also tells the story of his bottle cap, zebra and Mr. Nice Guy suits and performs one of his all-time favorite songs, calling it a "flawless work of art." [Date posted: August 19]
Kristina Gehrki pictured in the documentary Netherworld; photo courtesy of Kola Films.
In this third episode of Akathisia Stories, we hear from Kristina Kaiser Gehrki, whose daughter Natalie's prescription drug-induced tragedies began at the age of two and a half, when she was prescribed a powerful cancer drug to combat juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Around the time of her 10th birthday, Natalie was put on Prozac for mild social anxiety. A year and a half later the prescribing doctor advised Natalie to take a medication holiday. Kristina Gehrki: “When the doctor told her to immediately and cold turkey stop Prozac, within two weeks I had to rush Natalie to the hospital. And what I did was this: I came into Natalie’s room and she said, ‘Mom’ – she was very flat – she said, ‘Mom, I can’t stop thinking about killing myself, but I know I can’t so I won’t.’ And I was just shocked. And I rushed her to the hospital because I didn’t know what was happening and I was so concerned. And what we learned is you’re not supposed to stop cold turkey. You’re supposed to taper. And if you do stop cold turkey, it can cause withdrawal akathisia."
Kristina Kaiser Gehrki has more than 20 years of professional experience in communications and education. She's worked for several nonprofits, corporate headquarters and public school districts. Kristina has authored an accredited akathisia course, developed marketing curriculum for the Virginia commonwealth, provided FDA testimony and presented at several national conferences focused on communicating crisis and risk. Kristina was born and raised in Akron, Ohio, and lived with her family in the Washington, D.C. suburbs for more than 20 years. We spoke recently by Skype. [Date posted: August 14]
In this fourth episode of The Gene Pool Show, Gene tells (another part of) his life story to Studio C's Andy Miles, and performs one of his songs. He talks about moving to Chicago in 1983, and to "desolate" Williamsburg, Brooklyn in 1989, at a time when "you could not pay someone to come to a party from Manhattan." While living there, Charles Mingus' daughter connected him to Rolling Stone cover photographer Mark Seliger. Gene colorfully reminisces about the work he did assisting Seliger on photo shoots of Seinfeld's Michael Richards, the singer Beck, and actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Drew Barrymore. Later Gene had a role riding his unicycle as a bald clown in the Seliger-directed Natalie Merchant video "Kind and Generous." He tells the story of how he learned to ride the unicycle he found in the garbage and how he came to be known as the can man, wearing a suit made of beer cans to promote the cause of curbside recycling in New York City. The can suit brought him local fame, landing him in the pages of New York magazines and, once, in police custody; late in the episode, he tells that story.
[Date posted: August 6]
This week Laura and Sara are joined by Kaleb Sullivan of Dearborn Denim. Dearborn Denim offers the most curiously comfortable jeans imaginable at the best price possible. Everything is cut, sewn, and crafted at their factory in Chicago with the best American-made materials and can be custom hemmed to fit at their Andersonville location, 5202 N Clark.
Kaleb was born and raised in Chicago in the Bucktown neighborhood. He even lived near Andersonville, at Lawrence & Ashland, immediately after moving out on his own. He’s never lived outside of Chicago!
Dearborn Denim was formed in 2016. Founder Rob McMillan had set out to make the perfect pair of jeans for his wife after she felt dejected trying to find jeans that were “affordable, ethical, and sustainabley sourced.” He started with only two different cuts, and the company has since expanded greatly.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy of the chamber. [Date posted: August 6]
Episode 3 features Gene’s second interview with Ty Hanson, a drummer and trombonist who played with Frank Sinatra, The Jackson 5, James Brown, and many more. In this conversation (scroll down to Episode 1 for Part 1), Ty reminisces about backing Little Richard, whom he calls "nice enough" but a "hard pill to swallow," contrasting the rock 'n' roll legend's difficult-to-please demeanor with the graciousness of New Orleans legend Dr. John. He relates the story of Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis arguing one night over who was the better rock 'n' roller, taking their heated dispute out to the alley (Hanson declines to say who prevailed). He remembers James Brown's penchant for fining the musicians in his band, reducing their night's pay for on-stage infractions, and how the Godfather of Soul was all "about the business," maintaining a social distance from members of his band. Hanson also reveals the one thing that made him lose respect for Ike Turner. Late in the interview, Gene asks Ty about his decision to retire from the business; music put years on you, Hanson says, until you become "like an old leather jacket." [Date posted: August 5]
Podcast host Rick McEachern:
“Driving to my studio every day, I pass a restaurant with a visible rooftop farm right in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. Every time I drive by it I think, ‘a rooftop farm, what an amazing thing!’ When I finally visited Uncommon Ground, I realized there was even more. Not only is it a successful restaurant with a rooftop farm, but it is also a live music venue, an art space, and an organic brewery. There is just a lot interesting things there.
“My conversation with Helen Cameron, its founder, quickly revealed the character traits guiding the creation of these unique business elements: visualization, eagerness to try new things, willingness to take calculated risks. All of these traits have enabled them to grow ideas, into amazing things.”
[Date posted: August 5]
Podcast host Rick McEachern:
“It was suggested I check out Tony Rossi as a potential guest. I found out he was both an actor and a coach -- a ‘mindset coach.’ I was very intrigued and curious to speak with him.
“I found Tony to be very honest. His honesty enabled me to understand how the job of an actor is much different than I expected. Being a struggling actor activates the thoughts and feelings many people struggle with: self-doubt, not feeling enough, comparison to others. I found our conversation fun, refreshing, and very inspiring.”
[Date posted: July 29]
In this second episode of The Gene Pool Show, Gene (previously known as Bill Harding) tells (part of) his life story to Studio C's Andy Miles, and plays three of his songs. He talks about his recent featured set at the Green Mill's poetry slam, his work producing grass suits and grass cars and how that landed him in newspapers around the world, on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson, the Canadian TV show "Claim to Fame," where he shared billing with the female pig wrestling champion of North America, and a Japanese show watched by 33 million people on New Year's Day 1983. In 1985 he got a call from David Byrne's wife, Adelle Lutz, asking him to come down to Plano, Texas, to grow some grass suits for the film "True Stories," which he made a cameo appearance in and crafted costumes for with David Byrne's dad. During the filming of “True Stories,” Gene met Pops Staples, who had a co-starring role in the movie; he calls that meeting one of the pivotal moments of his life and their ensuing friendship a “very important part of my evolution.”
[Date posted: July 29]
Episode 1 features Gene’s conversation with Ty Hanson, a musician who played with Frank Sinatra, The Jackson 5, James Brown, and many more. Hanson, 76, was a drummer and trombonist, and got his start on the so-called Chitlin Circuit, “a collection of performance venues throughout the eastern, southern, and upper midwest areas of the United States that provided commercial and cultural acceptance for African-American musicians, comedians, and other entertainers during the era of racial segregation in the United States” (source: Wikipedia). He says he played 355 straight days with B.B. King, touring the Jim Crow South on a bus and remembering the blues legend as “quite the gentleman.” Hanson credits his mother, a jazz singer, with inspiring him to take up the drums at age 12, and his wife and best friend, Cheryl, for helping him reach “certain pinnacles of music and life itself,” calling her “a great voice in his success.” (Cheryl was on hand for the interview but remained off mic.)
[Date posted: July 25]
Podcast host Rick McEachern:
“Summerdale is a horror novel taking place in the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago, where I just so happen to live. Once reading it, I was eager speak with its author, David Jay Collins. I was excited to discuss the power of words that formulate a story, characters, and themes. But in speaking with David, I also learned about the power of another set of words: the ones we tell ourselves. And how what we tell ourselves can hold us back, or move us forward. David’s story as an artist and author is about creativity, hard work and sacrifice, but I also think it’s about the impact of the story we all create in our mind about about ourselves.”
[Date posted: July 20]
On this second episode of Akathisia Stories, we hear from Gail Regenbogen. In late 2010 Gail's husband, Howard, went on the antidepressant Cymbalta; in a short period of time he changed from the "very outgoing, happy" man Gail had known him to be through 30 years of marriage, to someone who was "real quiet and withdrawn." "This was three weeks into the course of the Cymbalta,” she recounts. “And my daughter called me up and she said, ‘We were all driving home and we were talking about dad tonight and I think something’s not right.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’ve noticed a change in his personality, as well.’ And my kids were concerned, and I sort of just kind of let it be because I really wasn’t educated on any of the side effects of any of these drugs. You know, all I knew is that these drugs work and they help people."
Gail Regenbogen was born 63 years ago in Detroit, Michigan and raised 14 miles north of Chicago in the village of Wilmette. She attended New Trier High School and went on to study elementary education and history at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, and was an elementary school teacher in the Chicago public school system. She married Howard Regenbogen in 1980; they raised three daughters together. [Date posted: July 15]
Podcast host Rick McEachern: “A few weeks back, a friend of mine invited me to be his guest at a record release party for a band I knew nothing about. I didn’t know what to expect, and as these things happen, I was pleasantly surprised and immediately made a connection with the music. It was a folk-rock duo They Wont Win, and that evening I was able to listen to their songs but also hear them tell the personal experiences that inspired their creation. I wanted to know more, and that night they accepted my invitation to be guest on Eager to Know. I have since been listening to their first full-length album, ‘Lost at Sea.’
“I came into our conversation thinking this was a duo of talented musicians who produced a wonderful album. But after spending time with Greg and Danny, I see these men, and what they created, in an entirely different way.”
[Date posted: July 14]
GATHERING GROUND
This time on Gathering Ground, Mary talks to Rockwood Leadership Institute's Darlene Nipper about how to connect to the work of the Institute and Darlene's journey from trainer to CEO. They end the episode by answering a few of your questions! [Date posted: July 2]
EAGER TO KNOW
Podcast host Rick McEachern: “I have been listening to The Rialto Report podcast in order to prepare for this interview. I absolutely love it; it is very interesting, well done, and I could not be more excited to speak with its co-founder, April Hall. The Rialto Report is an oral history, audio, photo, and documentary archive from the golden age of adult film in New York. We start our conversation by speaking about the variety that is found in the interviews.” [Date posted: July 1]
This week Laura and Joelle are joined by Kirsten Franklin of Akvavit Theatre. Since its beginning, Akvavit has been busy commissioning translations of contemporary Nordic works, staging readings of Nordic plays, and launching fully staged productions. Akvavit Theatre embraces inclusivity and diversity and as an itinerant theater can be found all over the city.
Kirsten was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, and has lived all over since then. She’s been in Minnesota, Kentucky, New York, and Florida, before landing in Chicago nine years ago.
Akvavit Theatre was founded in 2009 by Bergen Anderson and Chad Eric Bergman. They met at a Swedish language camp and were able to get a grant in order to start the theater. Kirsten joined the theater in 2011 when she was cast in their first full production, “Red and Green.”
Akvavit has always wanted to settle down in Andersonville due to the fact that both company and neighborhood have Nordic roots. The theater has seven full time company members, as well as 10 associate company members.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy of the chamber. [Date posted: June 18]
We launch the Akathisia Stories podcast with MISSD founder Wendy Dolin. Over the course of two interviews recorded in the first half of 2019, she talks to host Andy Miles about the 2010 suicide of her husband, Stewart Dolin, the work of the foundation she started in his name, medication-induced suicide and cases of chronic akathisia, her work with and on behalf of veterans, the legal battle she has waged in the courts and the status of her petition to the United States Supreme Court, and more.
Wendy Dolin, MSW, LSW, LCSW, is a certified family therapist with a private practice in the Chicago area and an internationally recognized health and safety advocate. She is also the founder of the Medication-Induced Suicide Prevention and Education Foundation in Memory of Stewart Dolin (MISSD). She started MISSD following the 2010 death of her husband, Stewart, who died after suffering from an adverse drug effect called akathisia. In 2018, the International Society of Ethical Psychiatry and Psychology recognized Wendy with its Humanitarian of the Year award. She holds a Bachelor's in Early Childhood Education from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and a Master's in Social Work from Loyola University Chicago. [Date posted: June 17]
Laura and Joelle are joined by Juan and Susy Lucero of the incredible modern mariachi band, Cielito Lindo. Cielito Lindo is comprised of the Lucero family of nine, with children ages ranging from 6 to 16. They have performed all over the city of Chicago and the Midwest.
The Luceros starting playing music in their home state of New Mexico, where all the children were born. In 2015, the family moved to Chicago and continue to put a spin on modern Mexican music. What drew the Luceros to Chicago was the diversity, the opportunity for advancement in the arts, education opportunities, as well as previous living experience (Susy is originally from Chicago). The idea of starting a family band was in Juan's head before he even had kids. His oldest boys where 4 and 3 when they first performed together, and the band has evolved ever since.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy of the chamber. [Date posted: June 6]
GATHERING GROUND
In Gathering Ground’s fifth episode, Mary talks to Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation's (CAASE) Executive Director Kaethe Morris Hoffer. The two discuss Kaethe's Quaker-rooted road to feminism, her experience in legislative advocacy, the #MeToo Movement, the vital work of CAASE, and of course, they answer a few of your questions! [Date posted: June 2]
ALWAYS ANDERSONVILLE: THE PODCAST
This week Laura and Sara are joined by Michael Roper, owner of Chicago’s Hopleaf Bar. A relaxed neighborhood pub, Hopleaf has been promoting better beers, wines and spirits in Andersonville since 1992. Come experience the Belgian-inspired kitchen featuring their famous mussels and frites in an adults-only setting at 5148 N Clark.
Roper, a native Detroiter who worked in the bar and restaurant industry in Detroit prior to moving to Chicago in 1982, saw an ad in the winter of 1991 for an old Swedish bar for sale in Andersonville. Although his friends encouraged him that it was too far north, he pulled the trigger on the space and got the keys to the former Clark Foster Liquors in February of 1992. The Hopleaf has been an Andersonville institution ever since.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. [Date posted: May 21]
ME, YOU & 26.2
Through her own experience completing over 100 marathons and transforming hundreds of first-timers into many-time marathoners, Coach Denise Sauriol equates training for a marathon to taking a class. “When you sign up for a class, you get a syllabus (training plan), you do your homework (training runs), and then you take your final (run the marathon), right? Training for a marathon is as methodical as taking a class. You just have to add heart!”
This book is all you need for running your first marathon. The chapters are laid out into 26 miles and kick off with a personal story of inspiration from a first-timer that Denise has coached. She has coached runners from 18 to 82 years old, and she can help you too! Within each chapter, or “mile,” she shares her tips, tricks, and lessons learned from competing in over 250 races across six continents. Following these insightful and inspirational miles, you will find your syllabus for Marathoning 101.
The Audible version of Me, You & 26.2 was recorded and edited in Studio C. Additionally, the audio book includes 12 male first-time marathon stories which were voiced by Studio C’s Andy Miles; two of them are available from the player below, along with the retail sample that we prepared for Audible. [Date posted: May 1]
Twentieth century America was shaped as much by its music as anything else. Starting with the African-American influence of ragtime and blues, music morphed into gospel, jazz, swing, bebop, and rhythm & blues. From these genres came rock ‘n’ roll, leading to the distinctive sounds of today’s rap and hip hop.
Michael Frank Miles’ The Music That Defined A Century contains biographical profiles of seventy-five of the most revered singers, instrumentalists, and songwriters of the twentieth century, allowing readers to better understand where it all came from. Go to book site.
In the podcast version of the book, the author’s son, Andy Miles, presents one profile per episode. Here are two profiles that include music (which the podcast version will not). [Date posted: March 25]
Our guest DJ this month is Julia Marchenko, owner of RareJule Vintage, a mostly online, vintage clothing emporium based in Evanston. Her site has hundreds of vintage dresses, coats, lingerie, and accessories from the ‘20s to the ‘90s to help you step outside of the fast-fashion pace and into a playful, creative exploration of how a unique, vintage wardrobe can best help bring out your individual radiance.
Says Julia: “My shop's philosophy: It is the WOMAN who makes the clothes. Understanding that looking good comes from self-knowledge and self-love (not keeping up with appearances) is the driving force behind my business. In between raising my son and daughter, I search for vintage finds that express personal style, not trends or fashions. My home studio is just north of Chicago, in Evanston, where I take clients by appointment. Clothing may also be rented for either a single special night, or for the length of a theater production. Flexible terms are available. I also do personal shopping, styling and am known for pouring tea (and offering books) for those who stop in and share their time.”
SET LIST
1. Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know”
2. Pink Floyd “One of These Days”
3. Jethro Tull “Wond'Ring Aloud”
4. Kate Bush “Night of the Swallow”
5. Cocteau Twins “Otterley”
6. King Krimson “Three of a Perfect Pair”
7. Movement “Lace”
8. Banks “Stick”
9. Gil Scott-Heron “I'll Take Care of You”
10. James Blake “Retrograde”
11. SBTRKT “New Dorp. New York”
12. Dalida and Alain Delon “Paroles Paroles”
13. Blonde Redhead “Spain”
14. Leonard Cohen “Who By Fire”
15. Bjork “Pagan Poetry”
16. The Rolling Stones “Heaven”
17. Sinead O'Connor “I Want Your (Hands of Me)”
18. Fleetwood Mac “Big Love”
19. The Cure “I'm Cold”
20. Talking Heads “Born Under Punches”
[Date posted: March 10]
EAGER TO KNOW
Greg O'Neill is the co-owner of the Pastoral family of businesses. In this episode host Rick McEachern talks to Greg about how the business started (very small) for him and his partner, Ken, the journey so far, and the role of creativity. [Date posted: February 24]
This week Laura is joined by Terry Opalek and Michael Frontier. Terry and Michael founded Terry’s Toffee in 2002 and sold the business in 2015. Currently they co-facilitate a variety of workshops using their many years of life and business experiences to help others connect with their place and purpose on this planet.
Both Terry and Michael are certified Reiki Masters. Both Terry and Michael have put a great deal of work into mental clarity and “centeredness”; they are excited to share their findings, help others learn to trust themselves, connect them to their imaginations, and push them to live with purpose.
Terry and Michael also work on a podcast called Jumping the Fence with their friends Mary Pat and Jen. Every Wednesday they come out with a new episode where they discuss living a healthy lifestyle in every aspect: physical, mental, financial, and so on. The podcast is available on Stitcher and Apple Podcasts.
Always Andersonville: The Podcast is a production of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce. Photo courtesy of the chamber. [Date posted: February 5]
Also check out Depth of Field, an arts interview program hosted by Andy Miles and produced in/by Studio C for Transistor Radio.
We’ve also produced a series of local-business commercials that you can find here.
And a disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed in the audio files available on this page are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of Studio C Chicago and its staff. Studio C Chicago is not responsible and does not verify for accuracy any of the information contained in the audio files on this page.