Drinkin' With Lincoln: Recent Episodes
Clint Cargile
Drinkin’ with Lincoln is a podcast from WNIJ that looks at Abraham Lincoln’s life, land and legacy through the eyes of the people who know him best: Lincoln presenters (commonly known as Lincoln impersonators, a term many Lincoln presenters avoid). Each episode, a Lincoln presenter joins host Clint Cargile as he explores sites significant (and sometimes not-so-significant) to Abraham Lincoln’s life in Illinois. Then Clint and his guest Lincoln find the nearest brewpub or brewery to quaff a beer (sometimes two) so we can get to know the man behind the beard: where he comes from, why he does what he does, what makes him Lincoln.
Join us for a special one-hour Lincoln celebration marking his 213th birthday. Clint Cargile, host of the Drinkin' with Lincoln Podcast shares stories both fun and inspirational that bring new life to our nation's most popular president.
I refuse to just grow a mustache and say, “Well, my time is done for a while,” and wait for something to happen. –Lincoln Presenter Michael Krebs
On this episode, we feature Navy veteran Rick Otey, who took up the mantle of Lincoln at age 67 and uses Lincoln to help those around him (especially veterans). Join host Clint Cargile as he travels to Rick’s hometown of Tremont, Illinois, a town rich with Lincoln history.
On this episode of Drinkin’ with Lincoln, we’re not drinkin’ with Lincoln at all. Host Clint Cargile marks the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote with a special spinoff episode we’re calling Sippin’ with Suffragists. To celebrate the occasion, he travels to Galena, Illinois, to interview one of the most famous suffragists of all: Susan B. Anthony.
Drinkin’ with Lincoln continues. This episode’s guest is not the 16th president, but someone very close to him. Join host Clint Cargile as he interviews Mary Lincoln presenter Laura Keyes. Laura has portrayed Mary Lincoln for over a decade. She also portrays several other strong historical women: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Irene Adler, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
Drinkin’ with Lincoln returns! For our season 2 premiere, we visit with Abe and Mary Lincoln presenters Max and Donna Daniels, also known as Abe & the Babe. Max and Donna’s career has spanned three decades and they are known in the Lincoln community for their humor, their generosity, and for mentoring a new generation of Lincoln presenters.
For our Season One finale, we celebrate the unveiling of a new Abraham Lincoln statue in Naperville, Illinois. It is the world's only statue depicting young Lincoln laughing.* And it wouldn't be a proper Lincoln statue unveiling without a proper Lincoln presenter: stage actor and 25-year Lincoln veteran Michael Krebs.
For our third episode, we head down to Charleston, Illinois, a city bursting with Lincoln history, where we meet up with Joe Woodard, a veteran Lincoln presenter who also happens to be beardless. A beardless Lincoln? How is that possible? But Lincoln didn't grow his beard until the 1860 election, so anyone portraying Lincoln's career as a prairie lawyer in Illinois should, for authenticity's sake, be clean shaven. Woodard's tonsured chops have defined his Lincoln career, giving him opportunities not available to his bewhiskered colleagues.
For our premiere episode, we are joined in DeKalb, Illinois, by full-time Lincoln presenter Kevin Wood. Kevin is also a running Lincoln. He runs races. In his Lincoln getup. Hat and all. And he is a multilingual Lincoln. He gives presentations in English and Spanish and translates Lincoln documents into French and German. He can recite the Gettysburg Address in all four languages.