Author: WBEZ Chicago

What makes a diner nowadays? Is it the cheap eats? Is it the interior? What’s your go-to spot in or around Chicago? Reset digs into what makes a quintessential Chicago diner with Maggie Hennessy, WBEZ contributor and food writer. We also hear from listeners about their favorites .For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

Studs Terkel’s 1967 book Division Street: America was an oral history chronicling Chicago life at the time, with a cross-section of residents sharing their thoughts, feelings, dreams and fears. A new seven-part podcast series now revisits Terkel’s Division Street, to answer the question: “What happened to those people and their hopes and dreams?” Through interviews with the descendants of some of the 71 Chicagoans Terkel highlighted, Division Street, Revisited picks up the baton of Terkel’s audio storytelling legacy. Reset sits down with the creators of the podcast Mary Schmich and Melissa Harris to find out more. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

One Curious City listener wrote in and asked, “Why are there so many birds in O'Hare?” So, the Curious City team took to the airport to find out. Reset checks in with Erin Allen, host and reporter, WBEZ’s Curious City. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

The Last Days of Cabrini-Green tells the story of seven-year-old Dantrell Davis and his mother Annette Freeman. Davis was shot and killed while he and his mother walked to his school on Oct. 13, 1992. His killing sparked raids and overpolicing in the neighborhood. Reset sits down with the creators of the podcast – journalist Ben Austen and writer Harrison Rivers – to learn more about their stories and history. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

From savory waffles made from stuffing to pie for breakfast to soul food egg rolls, the possibilities for Thanksgiving leftovers are endless. Reset gets tips from parenting blogger Jenny LeFlore and Monica Eng, Chicago reporter for Axios and host of the Chewing podcast. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

Thanksgiving is all about the blessings of home, but thousands of Chicagoans don’t have shelter this holiday. As temperatures drop, we’ll hear what services exist to help the unhoused find relief with Christine Haley, chief homelessness officer for the state of Illinois and Doug Fraser, executive director of The Chicago Help Initiative. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

Reset sits down with a bookish panel to hear about their favorite escapist and happily-ever-after fiction. The panel includes Sonali Dev, author of “The Vibrant Years,” Bryn Donovan, author of “Her Knight At The Museum,” and Jen Prokop, co-host of the Fated Mates podcast. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

NBC’s hit show “Parks and Recreation” ran from 2009 to 2015 and is now living a second life in streaming. A comfort show for many, it follows the staff of the parks department in the fictional Midwest town of Pawnee, Indiana. The show stars actors Amy Poehler, Rob Lowe, Nick Offerman and Chicagoan Jim O’Heir. Reset checks in with O’Heir as he releases his new book “Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendships, Waffles and Parks and Recreation.” For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.