Chicago Humanities Tapes

Beloved New Yorker writer Adam Gopnik explores and celebrates his love of taking up new skills in midlife including magic, drawing, boxing, and even ballroom dancing with his adult daughter. Slipping in and out of French, he discusses his recent book Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery with Gloria Groom , the chair of Painting and Sculpture of Europe and David and Mary Winton Green Curator at the...

Acclaimed writer Roxane Gay totally called what this week in politics would look like, in a mind-blowingly prescient conversation from November 2023. She's joined by Chicago author Lindsay Hunter for a chat on culture both high and low as represented in her recent book of essays "Opinions: A Decade of Arguments, Criticism, and Minding Other People's Business." Topics range from Biden dropping out...

The inspiring Oscar winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter looks back on her career as depicted in Art of Ruth E. Carter: Costuming Black History and the Afrofuture, from Do the Right Thing to Black Panther in conversation with Jacqueline Stewart , the Director and President of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. This episode originally aired on September 12, 2023. SHOW NOTES: R...

Emmy-nominated design expert Bobby Berk swings by Chicago Humanities, in a program recorded just three weeks before his announcement of leaving the popular Netflix makeover show Queer Eye in October of 2023. He chats with Emmy-nominated host Matthew Rodrigues of NBC Chicago Today in a conversation filled with how to build habits in your home, decorating tips, and some behind-the-scenes Queer Eye d...

This one's for the math nerds, teachers, and forever students. Mathematician Eugenia Cheng, the Scientist in Residence at the Art Institute of Chicago, explores the surprising way that the logical quality of math is revolutionary in a time when humans can struggle to understand other perspectives in this conversation with Golden Apple award-winner Luke Albrecht from 2017. SHOW NOTES: Watch the ful...

King: A Life has just won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in biography, and it was penned by Chicago's own Jonathan Eig. He sits down with the Interview Show's Mark Bazer for an engrossing conversation digging into never before heard information from Martin Luther King's FBI files as well as King's lasting impact on America. This program was recorded live at Chicago Humanities in May 2023. Purchase ticket...

Today's bonus episode brings us Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith in conversation with Parneshia Jones, the Director of Northwestern University Press. Smith, the 22nd Poet Laureate of the United States, shares of the times she looked to her ancestors for guidance - or rather, how they found her. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversation here . Read the podcast transcript . Tracy K. Smith, T...

New York Times investigative reporter and author Max Fisher chats with The Verge editor at large David Pierce about a '50s era female Soviet scientist, her study of foxes, and what they have to do with social media today in our first ever mini episode: one great story from one great program. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversation here . Read the podcast transcript . Max Fisher, The Chaos Machine...

Dr. Todd Boyd aka the Notorious Ph. D. is in the Chicago Humanities Tapes studio today, joining host Alisa Rosenthal for an exclusive conversation on how hip hop influenced everything in American pop culture from the '70s to today, including film, TV, fashion, and politics. SHOW NOTES: Snag tickets to Dr. Todd Boyd live in Chicago here . Read the podcast transcript . PHOTO: Alisa Rosenthal and Dr....

This one's for the theater kids! Lin-Manuel Miranda comes to you live from Chicago's 3,563-seat Civic Opera House in this exhilarating conversation from our archives. He joins Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones to chat Hamilton, songwriting, and all things Puerto Rico. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversation here . Read the podcast transcript . CW: Light profanity. PHOTO: Lin-Manuel Mirand...

Hear MSNBC's Rachel Maddow go deep into the rough and inspiring American past in a conversation with Northwestern University's Professor Kathleen Belew. Topics include Henry Ford, media literacy, and optimism for 2024. SHOW NOTES: Read the podcast transcript . PHOTO: Rachel Maddow and Kathleen Belew on stage at Northwestern University at the Chicago Humanities Fall Festival in October 2023. Rachel...

Acclaimed poet and author Sandra Cisneros graces our ears with a cacophony of creative inspiration, images of Mexico, and poems that glide in and out of Spanish. She chats with author and professor Daisy Hernández live at Northwestern University, in a conversation that will leave you running for your pen. Read the podcast transcript . PHOTO: Sandra Cisneros. Photo credit Alan Goldfarb. Sandra Cisn...

Beloved actor Henry Winkler sits down with his friend and Barry co-star D'Arcy Carden as they chat Happy Days, school survival, fly fishing… and a little bit of shark jumping. Watch the full conversation here . Read the podcast transcript . CW: Profanity. PHOTO: Henry Winkler and D'Arcy Carden on stage at Francis W. Parker School at the Chicago Humanities Fall Festival in 2023. Henry Winkler,  Bei...

Welcome to your dream dinner party guest list, curated from two recent programs: Chef José Andrés interviewed by Mark Bittman, followed by Chef Anna Voloshyna interviewed by Chef Rick Bayless - in two uplifting chats on beans, borscht, and the unifying power of food. SHOW NOTES: Read the podcast transcript . CW: Light profanity   Photo: José Andrés and Mark Bittman at the First United Methodist Ch...

We're giving you a well-rounded comedy education today with talks from two famous/infamous American film directors: Harold Ramis on the AFI 100 Funniest American Movies and John Waters on a career from trashy b-movies to Criterion approved trashy b-movies. SHOW NOTES: Read the  podcast transcript . CW: Language, LANGUAGE   Watch Harold Ramis' full program here . AFI's 100 Years… 100 Laughs Photo:...

We have three tales of intrigue from the dark depths of the Chicago Humanities annals, featuring selections from YouTube's Caitlin Doughty of "Ask a Mortician" about if cats will eat your eyeballs when you die, New School faculty member and author Kristen J. Sollée from her lecture "Witches, Sluts, Feminists," and a section of a short ghost story by Chicago author Amy Giacalone from the compendium...

Actor, environmentalist, and all around mensch Ed Begley Jr. is in the house! We have a Chicago Humanities Tapes first, with our man of the hour joining podcast host Alisa Rosenthal in studio for an exclusive chat about his new memoir To the Temple of Tranquility… and Step On It! Topics include '70s-era electric cars, his friendship with Tom Waits, and the best vegetarian soups. SHOW NOTES: Read t...

Today's episode features a first: two programs from the same speaker at different moments in history - Patti Smith: as interviewed by Jessica Hopper in 2019, and back again in 2022, telling stories and singing live with guitar accompaniment from her son Jackson. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversations from 2019 here and from 2022 here. Read the podcast transcript . CW: Light profanity. Photo: Pat...

Today's episode features two programs from multi-talented Black women on how to capture what it is to be human in two different art forms. We'll hear from best selling author, voting rights advocate, and history making Stacey Abrams in conversation with CNN's Jake Tapper on her latest thriller novel Rogue Justice , followed by the inspiring Oscar winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter as she look...

Join legendary singer/songwriter Joan Baez at Chicago's historic Old Town School of Folk Music for an intimate chat on music, art, activism, and the kind of insider musician stories you can only get from the '60s folk revival scene icon. Interviewed live on stage by Justin Richmond of the music podcast Broken Record . SHOW NOTES: Read the podcast transcript . CW: Profanity PHOTO: Joan Baez author...

Happy Pride Month! YouTube star and transgender activist Gigi Gorgeous chats with her bff Gottmik, the drag performer, makeup artist, and first transgender male to compete on RuPaul's Drag Race, about friendship, sex, and all things trans. Actor and Miss Gay USofA pageant winner Aurora Sexton interviews the two icons with thoughtful humor and plenty of tea. SHOW NOTES: Read the podcast transcript...

Join actress Selma Blair ( Legally Blonde , Cruel Intentions ) and filmmaker Rachel Fleit ( Bama Rush ) for an inspiring and honest conversation about living with multiple sclerosis, crafting your story into a writing, and those funny and defining moments from childhood such as Blair's "Parmesan Cheese Incident." SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversation  here . Read the podcast transcript . CW: Lan...

Learn cooking tips and fresh insight from James Beard Award-winning chef and  Top Chef  judge and contestant  Kwame Onwuachi , interviewed by Chicago comedians  Dario Durham  and  Sara Faddah of the  podcast   77 Flavors of Chicago . Topics also include the history of collard greens, what his mom makes for him when he's home, and the coolest person he's ever cooked for. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full...

Academy Award winning actress Jessica Lange joins Chicago theater critic Chris Jones for a lovely and inspiring chat about her stunning black and white street photography, acting in the golden age of '70s cinema, and that time she was roommates with Grace Jones. SHOW NOTES: Watch the full conversation here . Read the podcast transcript . CW: Gentle profanity (she's a New Yorker) Learn more: Jessic...