WINNETKA is a ten-episode memoir created and produced by award-winning actress Jessica Harper, with original music. The podcast features the voices of the Harper family, who share in the telling of their remarkable story.
WINNETKA tells of six Harper kids coming of age in Eisenhower’s post-war America, in a Chicago suburb called Winnetka. The siblings are buffeted by the rages of a father with PTSD, challenged by life in a big family, rocked by social change in the; sixties, and ultimately stunned by a long held family secret.
ABOUT JESSICA HARPER:
Actor
Jessica co-starred in Stardust Memories with Woody Allen, Pennies From Heaven with Steve Martin, My Favorite Year with Peter O’Toole, Minority Report with Tom Cruise and cult favorites Phantom of the Paradise and Suspiria. Her numerous TV appearances include an award-winning role in It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, and the role of Jo in NBC’S Little Women. Her stage experience ranges from Hair on Broadway to co-starring with Al Pacino in regional theater.
Next for Jessica is Luca Guardagnino’s upcoming remake of Suspiria.
Songwriter
Jessica has written songs for Bette Midler, among others. After she became a mom in 1989, Jessica wrote and produced seven albums of music for children, which have earned multiple awards and critical acclaim. Of Harper’s 2002 release, Inside Out, Lynne Heffley of the LA Times said, “Children’s music doesn’t get better than this.”
Author
Jessica has written eleven books for children, including the best-selling Nora’s Room, published by HarperCollins. Her latest book is for adults, however. From Workman Publishing, The Crabby Cook Cookbook, is a collection of humor and recipes for home cooks who do not always experience the joy of cooking. Ruth Reichl says, “This book is too much fun! You stand in the kitchen laughing when you should be cooking!”