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It's “That Guy… Who Was in That Thing” meets "WTF" but with people even less well known! Sure it's fun to interview the crazy famous and ask them about the difficult years, but that's been done. Memories are plastic - we're getting the real dirt from people still crawling through it. Laura Scruggs is the playwright and Jake Scruggs is the technical guy who listens to a lot of “This American Life” and thinks that qualifies him to interview people.

Jun 11, 2018

This episode was recorded live at the fabulous Berger Park Mansion on June 8th, 2018. Curator/Creative producer Laura Scruggs made it all happen and Jake Scruggs hosted and told some comedy jokes. If you like what you hear, the show is presented the 2nd Friday of every month except January.

Video of the event is here: https://youtu.be/WUZT5xC0EtM

Jake Scruggs - Jokes about being married to Laura
Jake grew up in Lansing, IL the son of a sculptor and a writer and spent his pre 30s getting 2 degrees in education and teaching for the better part of a decade. In 2004 he turned an apprenticeship into a career as a software developer. Executive producing his wife’s documentary “Uncle Fun: You’re the One” has involved mostly sound editing, tech support, and funding. He also co-hosts and produces the podcast “Are You Famous, Yet?” (also with his wife Laura Force Scruggs). Jake took a stand up class 5 years ago and this will be his second performance ever.

Writer Amy Crider (special thanks for filling in for an artist who had to cancel)
Amy is a Chicago playwright whose work will be in the Chicago One Minute Play Festival June 26 and 27 and also has a play reading at the Jarvis Square Pottery on June 27.

Slide Guitar Master Jon Spiegel
Jon Spiegel has been fascinated with music and storytelling since he was a small boy. His mother was a great musician, and his Pop was a confirmed long-form joke teller. Jon grew up telling all kinds of stories from the stage as a musician (his primary career). He moved to Chicago from the East Coast after graduating from Harvard thirty years ago and has worked with The Old Town School, the Goodman Theatre, Blue Man Group, the Lyric Opera, the Northlight and many other others. He is a songwriter and a playwright and most recently rediscovered storytelling. He has told stories in Chicago at Story Jam, Do Not Submit, Illinois Storytellers, TenX9, and Cabaret On The Lake!

Storyteller W.C. Williams, accompanied by Ramblin' Rose
W.C. Williams, known professionally as Afram Bill Williams, is a native of the Mississippi delta, and is a playwright, poet and short story writer. He has appeared with Steppenwolf Theatre in such productions as Balm In Gilead, Tracers, Curse Of The Starving Class, Of Mice And Men, and One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. He helped to adapt and appeared in Remains Theater's production of Moby Dick, and has appeared on Broadway, The Kennedy Center, The Royal Shakespeare Theater in London, as well as on stage in Los Angeles. His film credits include Flatliners, The Fugitive, and Chain Reaction. Mr Williams resides in the Englewood community of Chicago, with his wife, Lydia Bledsoe Williams.
Ramblin’ Rose is a Blues Singer, Composer, Musician, Goodman Theater GeNarrations Storyteller, Line-dancer & Fashion Designer. Her band, Ramblin’ Rose & The 290 East Ramblers, just finished an 8 concert series with Chicago Park District (Night Out In The Parks). She has performed as one of the “Chicago Women In The Blues” for many years, as well as the 2010 Blues Festival in Grant Park.
Rose will also be performing at 3 Chicago Park District Concerts: Shedd Park, July 3rd; Welles Park, July 10th; Brown Memorial Park, August 18th and Willie Dixon Blues Heaven, August 2nd.


Timelord band vocalist and guitarist Ronen Kohn
Raised in upstate New York by a pack of wild folk musicians, Ronen later graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in theatre. Fae went on to appear in shows with The Right Brain Project, The Living Canvas, and The Runaways Lab. Faer solo singer/songwriter album, Cracks, was released in 2013, and fae fronts the trock band Time Crash, which has released a full album, Regeneration (2014) and an EP, The Empty (2016). For more information, visit masshysteriamusic.com.

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Intro Music: "Are You Famous, Yet?" - Laura Scruggs. Outro Music: "AYFY 1" - Christopher Kriz