Media Curious: Mary Schmich

Published on Sep 22, 2020

Mary Theresa Schmich is a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. She started with the paper as a features writer in 1992. A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize three times, she won the Prize for “her wide range of down-to-earth columns that reflect the character and capture the culture of her famed city” in 2012.

She wrote the comic strip Brenda Starr, Reporter for the last 28 of its 60 year run.

She wrote the 1997 column, a mock graduation speech, commonly called “Wear Sunscreen”, which is often quoted and misattributed. You can read it at https://www.chicagotribune.com/column…

She’s the author of Even the Terrible Things Seem Beautiful to Me Now: On Hope, Loss, and Wearing Sunscreen and Wear Sunscreen: A primer for Real Life.

In addition, she’s a yoga teacher and musician.