Lorado Taft was at the height of his powers when he created The Eternal Indian, the towering concrete statue that watches over the Rock River in Lowden State Park near Oregon. […]
Throwbacklist Thursday: The Story of the Smiths
Often overlooked in the literature written about American families, the Smiths of Western New York nonetheless have a claim over the Rockefellers and Adamses and all the other subjects of […]
Q&A with Mussolini’s Army in the French Riviera author Emanuele Sica
Emanuele Sica is professor of history at the Royal Military College of Canada. He answered some questions about his book Mussolini’s Army in the French Riviera: Italy’s Occupation of France. Q: Was the […]
RIP James Green
Late last week the eminent labor historian James Green died at age 71. Known most recently for his The Devil Is Here in These Hills, a portrait of West Virginia coal miners that became part […]
Modern Masters of Science Fiction series recognized by Locus
The Locus Science Fiction Foundation announced the winners of the 2016 Locus Awards on Saturday, June 25, 2016 in Seattle WA. Some fantastic books were honored including Letters to Tiptree, edited […]
200 Years of Illinois: Union Forever
In 1862, as the Civil War raged and a Confederate victory seemed quite possible, many of the tensions unleashed by the war found a stage in Pekin. There, on June 25, […]
RIP Ralph Stanley
The pride of Big Spraddle Creek, Virginia, or somewhere close to it, Ralph Stanley was performing at age eleven and still going strong at age 89. “His voice sounds like […]
Throwbacklist Thursday
The month of June brings countless pleasures to the Midwest. Few exceed the overwhelming presence of fresh produce at semi-affordable prices. At last, we can put aside the beyond-tired apples […]
Release Party: Slapstick Modernism
We live in an age when Iggy Pop adorns groovy travel bags and makes the scene at Cannes to support a Jim Jarmusch documentary about his iconic band the Stooges. Punk conquered the […]
Been Lizzie
Lizzie Andrew Borden stood trial in New Bedford, Massachusetts, for the ax murders of her father and stepmother. This first of many American trials of the century began on June 5, […]
Feel the Magic, Sing the Song
Whatever happened to love? If you think there’s not enough of it in this old world, don’t blame Barry Manilow. Born on this day in 1943, he arrived on an […]
Throwbacklist Thursday: The Land Between the Coasts
Ninety-eight years ago, the founders of the University of Illinois Press considered its mission. Academics will disagree, of course. Debates raged. Memos were strongly worded. But it all worked out in […]