Backstory with Larry Potash

Latest Episodes:

Chicago's Starring Role in the Rise of Golf Sep 15, 2025

Show notes

Where and how did the game of golf get its start? And how pivotal was Chicago in the game’s rise in popularity? Larry Potash has the Backstory.

Backstory with Larry Potash airs Sunday nights at 11 on WGN-TV and on smart TVs on the free WGN+ app. For more, download the Backstory podcast wherever you get your podcasts, go to WGNtv.com/backstory, or follow Larry Potash on your favorite social media. Click here to see how to download the free WGN+ app.

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Larry Potash Uncovers his Family Tree Sep 08, 2025

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In this segment for Backstory, Larry Potash digs into his own family tree and ancestral DNA. What did he learn?

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An Army Doctor's Career Threatening Secret Sep 08, 2025

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Secrets and wartime are common pairings. But what happens when the secret could end a career and alter lives? In this segment for Backstory, Larry Potash profiles a U.S. Army psychologist caught between two worlds.

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The Woman Who Legally Kidnapped Over 5,000 Children Oct 28, 2024

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5,000 children wrongfully removed from their homes, sent to live with total strangers. And the worst part? It was all completely legal. In this Backstory piece, Larry Potash looks at the life and terrible legacy of one Georgia Tann, and some of the descendants that she left in her wake.

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The World’s First Super Spy Oct 28, 2024

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Before Bond. Before Bourne. There was a real-life man named Thomas Miller Beach, AKA Major Henri Le Caron. His claim to fame? Arguably, he was the world’s first super spy, caught in a four-nation conflict in the 19th century. Larry Potash has the fascinating Backstory on the man who led a ragtag band of ex-soldiers to invade no less than the dominion of Canada.

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How Iconic Chicago Sports Statues Came to Life Oct 28, 2024

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The Michael Jordan Statue. Some argue this sculpture of the G.O.A.T., unveiled in 1994, ushered in a golden era of monuments to our heroes on the field. Larry Potash has the backstory on it, as well as other Chicago sports legends immortalized in bronze, and asks the question, what if statues aren’t history, but archaeology?

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The Backstory of the Guitar Oct 21, 2024

Show notes

The guitar has always seemed like the “lead instrument” on stage. Its power chords pushed it to the front and center of radio airwaves. And yet, it seems to come and go from popular music. The one constant has been when it comes to making a guitar, nobody does it better than America. In this piece for Backstory, Larry Potash goes deep on six stringed instruments, those who make them and those who play them.

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Billy Caldwell: A new look at a Chicago pioneer’s legacy Oct 21, 2024

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A stroll through a neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago leads a local woman to come across a stone that’s a part of history. Behind the stone? A story of one man caught in two worlds, pursuing peace and history. The man? Billy Caldwell. In this piece for Backstory, Larry Potash looks at his legacy through a modern-day lens.

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The Rise of the Tattoo Oct 14, 2024

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About one in three Americans now has a tattoo somewhere on their body. In this piece for Backstory, Larry Potash looks at the psychology at play inside of those who get tattooed. And asks, why are Americans in particular so eager to ink?

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The Origin & Legacy of Sherlock Holmes Oct 14, 2024

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Sherlock Holmes started out as a character in a British magazine in the late 19th century. Thus began over a century of pop culture fame, but, more importantly, it began a new way of looking at crime…and justice, as Larry Potash reports in this piece for Backstory.

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