Craig “Wheezy Waiter” Benzine Promotes PBS’ ‘Mercy Street’ With Civil War Web Series

On a channel called The Good Stuff, Craig “Wheezy Waiter” Benzine discusses educational topics across themed playlists. For his latest exploration, Benzine is working in tandem with a new show that plans to bring history to life. He has launched an eight-episode series called The Good Stuff – Time Capsule that applies the Civil War history of the PBS program Mercy Street to modern issues.

The first episode of Time Capsule will hit YouTube on January 15th, the same day as Mercy Street’s PBS premiere. The plan is to release seven additional episodes, with a new one arriving each Friday. The series will talk about Civil War topics, such as news media, government surveillance, and medical technology, and will explain how those topics have evolved across the past 150 years.

Benzine, dressed in a Yankee get-up, discussed Time Capsule in a video he shared on the Good Stuff YouTube channel:

Time Capsule is intended as an educational material that can be used in middle and high school classes. To that end, it will be available on PBS LearningMedia, an on-demand service for educators. Benzine previously came to LearningMedia when he hosted the US Government edition of the Crash Course series.

“As a pivotal moment in U.S. history, the Civil War has been an anchor in our educational curriculum, and with the use of these resources for in-classroom use, students and educators alike can engage in a healthy exchange of ideas they can relate to,” said Alicia Levi, VP of PBS Education, in a press release. “With the use of Good Stuff webisodes, in tandem with watching Mercy Street on air, PBS LearningMedia provides educators a new way to contextualize this subject in a more contemporary manner.”

Benzine first launched The Good Stuff in 2013. He reboot through PBS Digital Studios, which distributes a diverse network of educational programs.