This October marks the 104th anniversary of the debut of a pop culture titan. Born of woman, raised by apes, Tarzan swung into American consciousness via the pen of underemployed […]
Category: Illinois / regional
In search of good cornbread
Tonight Cynthia Clampitt continues her barnstorming book tour of the Midwest with a reading a book signing in Winfield, Illinois. (Seven p.m. at the Public Library.) To celebrate, the blog […]
200 Years of Illinois: Grange’s Ghost Story
On October 18, 1924, a streak of fire and breath of flame named Harold “Red” Grange had a game for the ages, scoring six touchdowns against a University of Michigan defense […]
200 Years of Illinois: White Squirrel Roundup
This weekend, citizens in Olney will begin the annual census of the town’s famous albino squirrel population, to see just how the white varmints have fared over the past year. […]
200 Years of Illinois: Mies van der Rohe in the House
On October 7, 2004, the National Register of Historic Places added the Farnsworth House, located near Plano, to its list of significant locales. Beautiful, yet a challenge to human habitation, […]
200 Years of Illinois: Moses in No Man’s Land
On October 4, 1923, Charlton Heston floated down Lake Michigan in a reed basket and bumped ashore at No Man’s Land, Illinois. A proverbial land of milk and honey—well, booze and […]
200 Years of Illinois: Lead Is Galena and Galena Is Lead
On September 30, 1822, the federal government gave the first lease to mine lead in the Galena region to Richard M. Johnson. They also provided armed soldiers as guards to […]
Trivia Friday
1. University of Illinois scientists have long endeavored to create a base for chewing gum that uses zein, a protein found in corn. In 2005, researcher Graciela Padua announced that […]
Throwbacklist Thursday: Photos of America
Though UIP published photography on the beauty of the Midwest and the University of Illinois campus, we also venture out of these expected subjected areas. This week we present a […]
200 Years of Illinois: Danville and the Trail of Death
The President does not know the truth. He, like me, has been imposed upon. He does not know that you made my young chiefs drunk and got their consent and […]
200 Years of Illinois: This one goes out to Johnsburg
September 13, 1983, saw the release of the song “Johnsburg, Illinois,” by Tom Waits, an artist fated to become the most beloved acquired taste in American music. Dubiously referred to […]
Trivia Friday: Red Grange, John Belushi, and a gorilla
1. Red Grange’s six-touchdown game against Michigan in 1924 inspired poetry and cemented Grange’s legend. His performance featured four TDs in the first quarter alone, but which detail about the […]