Stay Connected***No longer adding new episodes*** On The Record was co-hosted by Sheilah Kast and Ashley Sterner. Sheilah and shared conversations with audacious artists, intrepid scientists, community leaders and more. And of course, tales from the beloved Stoop Storytelling Series.
On The Record was produced by Melissa Gerr. Jon Ehrens created the theme music. Louis Umerlik designed the logo.
Copyright: © 2024 WYPR Baltimore
When André De Shields won a Tony award for creating the agile, elegant messenger-god Hermes in the Broadway musical Hadestown, he said he was making good on a decades-old promise to be a native son Baltimore could be proud of.
De Shields was born 75 years ago into a large family, to a mother who yearned to be a dancer and a father who would have loved to be a singer:
“What I believe is that I’m the lucky number 9th of 11 children who represents the manifestation of their deferred dreams.”
He graduated from Baltimore City College before striking out for fame and genius onstage. De Shields is coming back to his hometown to perform his life story alongside the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
Links: Tickets and information for An Evening with André De Shields and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Pumpkin spice latte, roasting turkey, butter-drenched stuffing! Holiday smells conjure memories. But for people experiencing side effects of Covid-19, a sense of smell can suddenly be non-existent, or even repulsive.
Dr. Danielle Reed of the Monell Chemical Senses Center describes how smell works, why it affects taste and what can go awry.
Then we meet Kim Minton and Cristen Scifo. They’ve been coping with loss or distortion of smell and taste for more than a year. Its effects can be frustrating, depressing and confounding. Cristen says:
“The cravings for food don’t go away. I crave Chinese food like once or twice a week. Can I have it? No absolutely not. Because I take one smell of it, and it’s repulsive. And that’s something I used to love.”
Links: Monell Chemical Senses Center, Anosmia recipes. AJ+ video describing loss of smell.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Here’s a Stoop Story from Gregory Hartzler about searching for the way to deal with a special kind of hunger.
There’s a live Stoop show coming up! The theme is ‘Bah, Humbug!: Stories about making mistakes, making amends, and making merry.’ It happens Wednesday, December 8, at 7 p.m. on the set of “A Christmas Carol” at Chesapeake Shakespeare Company in downtown Baltimore. Musical Guest is Charm City Bronze.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes are fine but … save room for dessert! Because we are talkin’ about pie today, with Allie Smith, owner of Bramble Baking Company, who describes the fine art of playing on the nostalgia of holiday pie flavors, with a twist.
And Kara Mae Harris, creator of the blog ‘Old Line Plate,’ reveals a surprising history of a Thanksgiving crowd pleaser:
“I found this screed in The Baltimore Sun in 1904 referring to pumpkin pie as just a vehicle for spices, calling it a foreigner that’s accepted but not beloved in Maryland and saying that true Marylanders should find pumpkin pie contemptible.”
Links: Old Line Plate blog, Bramble Baking company, Pie Dough 101, recipe for Maryland White Potato pie.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Americans are buying so many physical things--like stuff for their homes or holiday gifts--it’s swamping how goods are made and moved. When will supply-chain snags ease up? University of Maryland professor Martin Dresner says as the pandemic recedes, some spending on goods will shift to travel and entertainment, and shortages should abate.The Maryland expert President Biden tapped to fix problems at ports, John Porcari, contends it won’t be enough to go back to how things used to be, "There were gaps and issues with the supply chain before the heightened buying of the pandemic. And the pandemic laid bare this underlying reality that we have under-invested in this private sector supply chain.”
Read more:
Biden highlights infrastructure bill at Port of Baltimore
Yeah, The Supply Chain Situation Isn't Looking Great For The Holidays
With the holidays ahead, supply chain issues will get worse before they get better
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Most of the country is short of nurses; Maryland is no exception. It needs thousands.
Charlotte Wood, president of the Maryland Nurses Association, describes the complicated causes of the shortfall and creative ways -- like forgiving student loans--to attract more to the field.
Then Kathleen Wisser, dean of Nursing at Notre Dame of Maryland University, says its 15-month accelerated program draws people looking to pivot their profession:
“Sometimes their career wasn’t as fulfilling and enriching as they thought. Sometimes it’s a personal experience, either with COVID or a family member who has had some type of chronic or terminal illness.”
And Stephania Long, a senior in the school’s traditional nursing course, reflects on gaining clinical experience during the pandemic.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
110,000 Marylanders have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. More than twice that many care for them. And both numbers are growing. In June, the FDA approved the first new drug in 17 years to treat Alzheimer’s. University of Maryland neurologist Dr. Paul Fishman says sophisticated new scans can detect in the brains of more people the abnormal proteins that mark Alzheimer's.
Fishman and other experts will speak this week at a conference organized for Maryland by the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.
Also speaking on Thursday will be Morris Klein, an elder-law and special-needs attorney. He’ll discuss legal issues faced by many people with Alzheimer’s, including eligibility for Medicaid, special-needs planning, guardianships and drafting essential documents like powers of attorney and healthcare advance directives.
Also on Thursday, Margueritte Mertz, a certified senior advisor, will offer tips on how someone facing Alzheimer’s disease can put a healthcare team together - including strategies for caregivers to expand their skills.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
When millions of African Americans moved from the rural south to northern cities, exclusionary zoning and restrictive covenants worked to constrain their space. Over time, these practices evolved into lending discrimination and then into urban renewal projects that displaced Black communities.Georgetown law professor Sheryll Cashin argues that geography is central to the American residential caste system. Her latest book "White Space, Black Hood," and she'll be speaking about it on Thursday at an event hosted by the Enoch Pratt Free Library and OSI-Baltimore.Links:It’s Time to Dismantle America’s Residential Caste SystemHow Larry Hogan Kept Blacks in Baltimore Segregated and Poor
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Growing up in west Baltimore, R. Eric Thomas often felt like an outsider. He was a Black student at a mostly white private school; he was gay in a Baptist family.
Thomas’ memoir, Here For It, or How to Save Your Soul in America, follows humorous and heartfelt detours in his journey of self-acceptance.
"And when I threw off the shackles of trying to be enough of who I implicitly am, it became much easier for me to build a bridge of community.”
We hear how code-switching helped him hone his writing … and why his family’s lexicon included an opera from Mister Rogers neighborhood.
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
Here’s a Stoop Story from Jabari Lyles about existing in the world the way you want to … and need to. You can hear his story and others at Stoopstorytelling.com !
Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472
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