AUTHOR STUDS TERKEL, WHO DIED AT 96, lived through the Great Depression and said the lessons to be learned were: Don’t blame yourself; turn to others; take part in the community; and the big boys are not that bright. Terkel wrote Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression.

WITHOUT HOPE YOU CANNOT MAKE IT. And so long as we have that hope, we’ll be OK. Once you become active helping others, you feel alive. You don’t feel, “it’s my fault.” You become a different person. And others are changed, too. Hope died last, insisted Studs.

CLOSE FRIEND AND AUTHOR ALEX KOTLOWITZ, who penned There Are No Children Here and Never A City So Real: A Walk in Chicago, wrote an article about Studs for the AARP magazine and shared Terkel’s comments, “the spirited wisdom of a man who’s lived through national crisis and witnessed the upside.”

“The Great Depression. I WAS ABOUT 17 YEARS OLD. Hoover was still president. People had been living high off the hog. And then, boom, comes the crash. It was so sudden. Guys jumped out of windows. They didn’t know what to do. The wise men ran around, and then they cried out after Roosevelt for the government to help them out. Regulation. They asked for it. They cried for it. The wise men were lost, just as they are today. The free market fell on its fanny. We learned nothing. It’s exactly the same today,” claimed Studs.

“THOSE GUYS WHO RETIRED, suddenly their pensions are gone. … They didn’t know what the hell to do,” recalled Terkel. “They drank more ... there were fights ... they had nothing to do. They were furious. Who do you blame? ... They blamed themselves ... Who do you hit? You hit each other ... That was sort of a metaphor for what happened to the country.” During the Depression, maintained Studs, “people believed the man behind the desk was a better man. ... He knows more than I do. We have less of that kind of thinking now because so many of us have been through the civil rights movement and the ’60s. In the Depression they didn’t have that as a preface. We do. That’s the big change. We’ve seen what activism does. We’re at a crossroads. In a strange way, I’m hopeful.”

WE MUST REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED IN THE PAST and remember there was a way out. La esperanza muere ultima. Hope dies last.

Gossip, gossip, gossip

A WORD OF WARNING: Who is the fashionista who broke her leg when she tripped on a stair while wearing sexy but lethal 5-inch heels? She was out of commission for the holiday parties.

CINDERELLA, ANYONE? The Glass Slipper Project is a nonprofit organization that collects new and almost-new formal dresses and accessories and provides them free of charge to young women who are unable to purchase their own formal attire. To date, the plan has dressed 10,000 for proms, graduations and the inauguration. If you have gowns, purses, shoes, gloves or dressy outerwear you wish to donate, contact glassslipperproject.org. Share the glam, my sisters.

HER CAREER IS IN HIGH GEAR. Remember when Jane Pauley was a co-anchor on the WMAQ-TV news in 1975 and ’76? She endeared herself to Chicago and we have all followed her path since those years. Jane, 48, is anchoring Dateline NBC with Stone Phillips as well as appearing on MSNBC’s Time and Again. She’s been married to cartoonist Garry Trudeau since 1980, and they have three kids: twins Rachel and Ross, 15, and Tom, 12. When Jane was 25 she was on camera at NBC’s Today Show with Tom Brokaw and Bryant Gumbel. With her family, husband and children Jane has it all and obviously handles the demands of TV and a personal life with smarts and grace. No, we haven’t read anything wild about her in the tacky tabloids. Amen.

A CHECK FOR $100,000 was presented to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago by its dynamic women’s board at a Casino Club luncheon. President Carrie Grant officiated with CEO Dr. Joanne Smith, who accepted the portion of the $850,000 raised each year. Members chatted about the success of the Willis Tower SkyRise Climb where board members gleaned funds for hiking up the tallest building in North America. The climbers included Robin Armour, Keith Goldstein, Jennifer Tengelsen, Britt Taner and Carrie Grant. Waiting at the top were King Harris and Jude Reyes.

THE REHAB INSTITUTE has been named the No. 1 such hospital in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report every year since 1991, always recognized for its high standard of innovative research and discovery, particularly in the areas of bionic medicine, robotics, neural regeneration and pain care. Women’s board members include Sophie Bross, Mrs. Charles Smead, Kristin Smith, Kathleen Boege, Cynthia Strong, Katherine Berry, Pat Booth, Amanda Brown, Nancy Burke, Marisa Bryce, Patsy Callahan, Connie Coolidge, Patricia Cox, Paula Fasseas, Caryn Harris, Pat Lear, Mrs. Cary Malkin, Julia Pesek, Mrs. Charles Pollock, Gerri Shute, Mrs. William Hokin, Mrs. Michael Moore, DeAnn Rogers, Marilynn Thoma, Catharine Hamilton, Mrs. Robert Crown, Mrs. Kevin Brown, Janet Thompson, Kristen Van Dyke and a slew of other hard-working charitables.

FUTURE RESIDENTS OF 850 LAKE SHORE DRIVE, the luxury senior living community, met at a Ritz Carlton party. Vice president of sales Kathleen Ullo revealed plans for the 128 one- and two-bedroom independent residences, plus 11 apartments on a special floor for assisted living. Jodi and Charles Cerney of the Near North Side were among impressed guests.

LOVE ME, LOVE MY DOG. Who are the attractive young professionals who broke up (she moved out) because he preferred sleeping with his dog to sleeping with her?

A POPULAR GIFT THIS SEASON was the handsome PAWS calendar with photos of pampered pets. You can still get them at www.pawschicago.org, but even more interesting is word that the 2011 desktop calendar is in the works and you can get a photo of your cat or dog included. Starting at $300, your pet’s photo will be seen in pet boutiques, vet clinics and more, and you know what an ego your special pooch or kitty has. Give the diva her due. Contact Lisa Nowak at [email protected]

MAKING IMPORTANT STRIDES in the lives of those with developmental disabilities are the leaders of Glenkirk, which now offers classes in yoga, cooking, job training, socializing, wellness and more. Barbara Siegan of Illinois Tool Works is chairman of the board, which includes: Roger Baron, Arthur Fess, Dr. Bruce Bennin, Fred Batliner, Don Blasing, Louise Miller, William D. Smikth, Diane Thompson, Angelene Youngman, Bill Fisher and Vanessa Robles. Larry Menaker is trustees chairman.

THERE’S A PLAYFUL, NONAGGRESSIVE WAY to teach your dog good behavior, and the Humane Society of the United States approves it. In her book, The Loved Dog, Tamar Geller teaches her cruelty-free methods. Tamar was an Israeli intelligence officer who witnessed the horrors of military dog training and went on to observe wolves educating their young in the wild. She discovered that wolves educate and socialize their cubs with games, bonding and body language -- not punishment. She devised ways to teach dogs, with part wolflike and part toddlerlike treatment. Her clients have included Oprah Winfrey, Ben Affleck, the Osbournes and Courtney Cox.

MONTANA ALLOWS DOCTOR-ASSISTED SUICIDE. The Montana Supreme Court ruled that there is nothing in the state law that prevents patients from seeking physician-assisted suicide. A lower court had ruled that constitutional rights to privacy and dignity protect the right to die. Now mentally competent, terminally ill patients can get drugs from doctors without fear of prosecution. Every state should follow their lead.

BIG DADDY OF POLO, Bill Ylvisaker, 85, who transplanted Chicago’s sport of kings to Wellington, Fla., is being mourned. He once headed defense contractor Gould Inc.

TALENTED JEWELRY DESIGNER Tracy Mallon, in the Andersonville Galleria, is the daughter of actor James Mallen in The Informer, showing Feb. 26 through April 18 at the Prop Theater.

FAMOUS PLASTIC SURGEON Dr. Gregory Brown, founder of expensive-but-rewarding ReVive skin care, will be at Neiman Marcus on Feb. 25 to consult clients seeking more youthful skin without surgery.

“AGATHA CHRISTIE HAS GIVEN MORE PLEASURE IN BED than any other woman.” — Nancy Banks-Smith

Mail news and photos to 5036 Fairview Lane, Skokie, IL 60077 or call 847-677-2232 or e-mail [email protected]

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By anthony feldman
Posted: 02/23/2010 6:47 PM

I just read the part regarding Jane Pauley, Ms. Gerber..Jane Pauley and Stone Phillips have not worked for NBC news for years..Ms Pauley is not 48 and her children are in or out of college. Her personal life has been touched with depression . She wrote a book detailing this a few years ago..time to do your research a little better....