Then on Halloween, Studs Terkel passed away at the age of 96. I was driving up to John and Jill's when Kim texted me with the news. I have to say, I started crying while I was driving. I knew this was going to happen sooner or later, but I was (am) such a fan of his writing and humor. And I feel like there really isn't anyone stepping into his shoes as far as being a listener to common folks.
I saw him give a reading at Women and Children First in his home-town of Chicago and was just so impressed at his humor, his wit and the sense that he was just a regular guy with a good heart. I've been enjoying going back to some of his writing and look forward to doing more in 2009.And most recently, of course, the death of Odetta. If you have a chance to watch this video from the NY Times, I highly recommend it. It makes you realize how many songs you know because of her, even if you never realized it was her. I think what made me most sad about this news is that she was hoping to sing at the Obama inauguration. It would have been so cool to have the same woman who sang at the March on Washington sing again in that city to honor our first black president.
All of these are great losses to the story of America. Each of them held a piece of history in their own way, and they will all be missed.
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