Not exactly the pride of Bloomington, Illinois, American Nazi leader George Lincoln Rockwell was born into—of all things—a family of vaudeville performers. A former associate shot him to death on August […]
Throwbacklist Thursday
It’s been awhile since I could legitimately sing, “Give me a head with hair/long, beautiful hair.” But the Cowsills, via America’s tribal love-rock musical, expressed the importance of the streamin’, flaxen, […]
Release Party: Cultural Heritage in Mali in the Neoliberal Era
Up to 2012, Mali was a poster child for African democracy, despite multiple signs of growing dissatisfaction with the democratic experiment. Then disaster struck, bringing many of the nation’s unresolved […]
Bradbury Trivia: Ray and Rod
Ray Bradbury, born on August 22, 1920, is known for his breakthrough novels such as Fahrenheit 451. As Jonathan R. Eller writes in Ray Bradbury Unbound, the author also made an […]
200 Years of Illinois: Hodge Dodge
On August 20, 1956, former state auditor Orville Hodge astonished colleagues in the Republican Party and political observers across the state by pleading guilty to embezzlement. A perennial on listicles […]
Trivia Friday: Writin’ Illini
Answers below. 1. The forty-nine bells on the McFarland Carillon know 500 pre-programmed songs thanks to a computer, or can be played from a keyboard. On September 20, 2008, some […]
Throwbacklist Thursday: Over There
Whenever the Olympic Games convene, we remember that the United States shares the planet with other countries. We also remember that many of the world’s people play team handball. At the University […]
Caster Semenya and Sex Testing
As track and field portion of the Olympic Games gets up to steam, all eyes turn to Caster Semenya, the South African middle distance runner who took the silver in the 800 […]
Sex Testing Is Too Jive
Sex testing. It goes on in sports all the time. But it only makes headlines during the Olympics, when a giant for-profit sports behemoth famous […]
Afternoon of a Centaur
Evolving (?) from fresh-faced wunderkind and secret marketing savant to reviled steroid-using superjock damned for his cleats of clay, Alex Rodriguez was the marquee baseball player of his era, reflecting Major League Baseball’s […]
Throwbacklist Thursday: Seven Ring Circus
Whether you consider the Olympic Games a triumph of human endeavor and achievement, or an appalling cesspool of corruption and drug experimentation, it is that rare mega-event that always grabs the world’s attention. […]
Fannie Barrier Williams celebrated
Progressive Era activist and reformer Fannie Barrier Williams was one of the most prominent educated African American women of her generation. A new effort to honor the woman who was a prominent spokesperson […]