Take a late-night romp through Chicago on Christmas Eve with Ira Glass
The radio host explores the dissonance between Christmas dreams and reality with this humorous spin on the holidays from the WBEZ Archives.
This year, we’re sharing the full audio of some of our past holiday favorites. Click here to listen to a beloved children’s story read-aloud or here to experience a classic Christmas special taped in the home of Chicago mayor Harold Washington in 1986.
The relationship with the holidays can be complex for many people and that’s the theme that threads through this special broadcast of Wild Room. Never heard of Wild Room? This WBEZ show created by Gary Covino and Ira Glass was the blueprint to the long-running radio documentary program This American Life and aired from 1990 to 1995.
In this undated holiday episode, Ira Glass sets out to explore Chicago on Christmas Eve and discovers solidarity in those with less-than-rosy fondness for the season.
Interviews include last-minute shoppers at Toys “R”Us, after-midnight bowlers at Waveland Bowl and Jewish traditions on Christmas Eve. The tape concludes at a stop in the Golden Apple restaurant, a 24-hour diner later featured in an infamous This American Life episode, “24 Hours in the Golden Apple,” from 2000.
More From
WBEZ News
Take a late-night romp through Chicago on Christmas Eve with Ira Glass
The radio host explores the dissonance between Christmas dreams and reality with this humorous spin on the holidays from the WBEZ Archives.
This year, we’re sharing the full audio of some of our past holiday favorites. Click here to listen to a beloved children’s story read-aloud or here to experience a classic Christmas special taped in the home of Chicago mayor Harold Washington in 1986.
The relationship with the holidays can be complex for many people and that’s the theme that threads through this special broadcast of Wild Room. Never heard of Wild Room? This WBEZ show created by Gary Covino and Ira Glass was the blueprint to the long-running radio documentary program This American Life and aired from 1990 to 1995.
In this undated holiday episode, Ira Glass sets out to explore Chicago on Christmas Eve and discovers solidarity in those with less-than-rosy fondness for the season.
Interviews include last-minute shoppers at Toys “R”Us, after-midnight bowlers at Waveland Bowl and Jewish traditions on Christmas Eve. The tape concludes at a stop in the Golden Apple restaurant, a 24-hour diner later featured in an infamous This American Life episode, “24 Hours in the Golden Apple,” from 2000.