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  Before Colin Kaepernick, There Was Dave Meggysey

  Blog

  In 2016, Colin Kaepernick knelt during the National Anthem to protest the racial injustices that permeate the United States. Almost 50 years before Kaepernick’s protest, St. Louis Cardinals linebacker, Dave Meggysey, had a similar idea. In the above clip, Meggysey explains how he refused to place his hand on his heart to make a statement about the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War. He also passed a petition around to other players calling for the withdrawal of troops from […]

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  Thanksgiving 1933: ‘The First Time That Devil’s Brew Hit My Lips’

  Blog

  Prohibition had just been repealed in Illinois on Thanksgiving 1933. At age 21, Studs Terkel had his first taste of what he calls “the devil’s brew.” His first drink was alongside the residents of the Wells-Grand Hotel, a men’s hotel near Washington Square Park that his mother owned. His mother decided to have Thanksgiving dinner with everyone that year since many of them didn’t have anyone else to celebrate with.  Technically, Prohibition was officially repealed at the federal level on […]

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  Art Jones Hasn’t Changed His Bigoted Platform in Four Decades

  Blog

  Art Jones (of the America First Committee and the American Nazi Party), boldly espouses white supremacy and homophobic policy, and is not afraid to use them as a political platform. He has done so in the past, and continues to do so today. Jones has run for the same Illinois 3rd Congressional District seat six times, beginning in 1992, but was unsuccessful with each attempt. Jones was disavowed by the Republican Party and removed from the ballot in 2016. However, […]

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  Looking Back at the 2016 Election and World Series in ‘Seven Days Overexposed’

  Blog

  In seven short days, Chicagoans saw their greatest joy sour and their country descend into slow-rolling chaos. Shooting for this documentary began in early fall of 2016, to capture, in Guerrilla TV-style, the masses of people that we saw more and more frequently on the streets of Chicago. This clips shows the joy of the Cubs winning the World Series and the anger about Donald Trump winning the election. This quickly became the central conceit of the documentary: A Guerrilla […]

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  Remembering Chicago TV Veteran Warner Saunders (1935 – 2018)

  Blog

  Warner Saunders, news anchor who worked four decades in Chicago television, passed away on October 9. For 29 years he was a sports, then news, anchor on NBC 5. Previously, he was community affairs director and host of Common Ground on WBBM-TV. Saunders won more than 20 Emmys for his TV journalism and retired in May 2009 at 74. Saunders did a memorable series of reports from South Africa in 1990 about Nelson Mandela’s release from prison called, “South Africa: […]

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  Do the Time Warp with Dan Dinello’s ‘Chicago Halloween’

  Blog

  Break out the candy and grab your favorite mask because it’s almost time for Halloween. To celebrate the spooky holiday, we dug into the archive and found some fascinating, and entertaining, Halloween footage from across the years. Dan Dinello’s Chicago Halloween showcases the 1988 celebration of the spooky holiday with a costume contest judged by Freddy Krueger, Rat Girl’s troupe of acrobatic rats, and more. We also found clips of a Halloween wedding, trick-or-treaters with a former First Lady, and even […]

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  10/15/18: Logan Square Lost & Found

  Blog, Events, Lost & Found

  October 2018 marks the 100-year anniversary of the Logan Square Centennial Monument, built to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Illinois statehood. This event will commemorate this crossing into a new century by looking back at forgotten histories of Logan Square and opening discussion about the next 100 years of the neighborhood. A special part of the night will be the presentation of excerpts from August Nights (1980) and Back Porch (1980) by Chuck Kleinhans (1942-2017). These will be introduced by Kartemquin […]

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  10/12/18: Pop up Studs Terkel exhibit at Media Burn

  Blog, Events

  Every October, Media Burn participates in Chicago Open Archives, an event that gives attendees a chance to get a behind-the-scenes look at collections and spaces not normally open to the public. This year, we’re adding something special as part of the tour. We will be converting our back office into “Studs’ Place,” an exhibit that will display tapes, letters, books, and other items we received from Terkel’s home. None of these objects are usually accessible to the public. Whether you’re […]