Backstory with Larry Potash

Larry Potash looks at the backstory of what is for some, more than just a board game, but a way of life. See how the 1980s pop culture phenomenon Dungeons and Dragons is thriving a quarter of the way into the 21st century. 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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 In a world where everything is explained, magic still offers two increasingly rare commodities--wonder and mystery. Larry Potash does a deep dive on the history of magic in this piece for Backstory, including a profile of two Chicago magicians plying the trade today. 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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Ray Bradbury is perhaps the bridge between the early visionaries of science fiction and our currently catalogue of Marvel and Star Wars. And it all started just north of Chicago, in Waukegan, Illinois. Larry Potash unearths the true genius of Ray Bradbury in this piece for 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Science fiction is everywhere in our 21st century culture, from superheroes to spaceships. But there was a time it was an odd subculture. But those in what was an eccentric circle of literary pioneers were visionaries, who gave people a glimpse into the future, and perhaps timeless lessons on how to build a better life. Larry Potash gives us a short history of science fiction in this piece for 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

He’s been called the “Mexican Lindbergh.” In this piece for Backstory, Larry Potash profiles Emilio Carranza, the famous Mexican aviator who was renowned for his long-distance flights and 1928 goodwill mission to the United States, and his tragic final flight. 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 1974, Dan Walker is shot and killed on a desert highway in the Mojave Desert. After nearly four decades, a break in the case leads Dan’s brother Doug to meet a key witness. Has he solved the case? Larry Potash brings us this cold case story for 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Crossing the Atlantic in the 15th century was no easy feat. But the Vikings did it 500 years earlier. Larry Potash unearths this story about a replica ship that took the world by storm at Chicago’s 1893 World’s Fair and is still captivating the imagination to this very day.

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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this piece for Backstory, Larry Potash asks the question, how does journalism survive? 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Chicago Film Archive is on a mission to preserve. Archiving film footage shot in Chicago and all over the Midwest, preserving not just celluloid memories, but saving history. From protests to politics to home movies, Larry Potash profiles this unique organization in this segment for 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Once upon a time in suburban Chicago, there was a fairly ordinary suburb, with an ordinary high school, with an ordinary janitor. But it turns out the janitor’s backstory was quite extraordinary. He maintained a secret, one that would bring about worldwide manhunt to American cities in pursuit of justice. Larry Potash has the story of Oak Park and a man named Reinhold Kulle in this segment for 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.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.