Cover Story
DINO-MITE!
New attractions join old favorites at the Illinois State Fair this year, kicking off Aug. 11 and running through Aug. 21. Life-size animatronic dinosaurs in Happy Hollow and the Route 66 Experience near Gate 2 are just a couple of the additions to this year’s fair. Our special fair-focused issue also looks at some of…
Pritzker attacks Bailey over abortion, social media posts
The ongoing uproar over Darren Bailey’s 2017 claim that the Holocaust “doesn’t even compare on a shadow” to the lives lost to abortion reminded me of a scene in an old movie called A Bronx Tale. The claim Bailey made on Facebook exploded into view courtesy of a brutal TV ad by Gov. JB Pritzker’s…
Court fight continues over unfit inmates
Gov. JB Pritzker’s July 6 executive order that suspended the statutory 20-day time period for state hospitals to accept jail inmates for court-ordered psychiatric treatment is an illegal overreach of his authority, a Sangamon County judge ruled Aug. 4. Representatives of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office initially said they planned to ask the Illinois Appellate Court…
Former politicos pen memoirs
Roger Eddy, Chuck Hartke, Jim Sacia and Zack Stamp were longtime legislators and lobbyists who became colleagues and friends. All were influenced by their upbringing. They have penned memoirs and are hosting joint book signings Aug. 17 1-5 p.m. at Boone’s and Aug. 18 at D H Brown’s, coinciding with Democrats Day and Republican Day…
Fair times
Here we go again into the wondrous world of the Illinois State Fair. If there’s another singular annual event that impacts Springfield and surrounding areas more, I am at a loss to even venture a guess as to what it could be. From temporary one-way roads to parking in yards, late night action to early…
Sign of the times
An Italian saint who has become a touchstone in the culture wars over abortion will have a massive shrine and education center erected in her honor in Springfield on the grounds of the former Chiara Center. The site at 4875 Laverna Road will be located near what has been the motherhouse of the Hospital Sisters…
Art reception crawl
“Making Our History: Artists Render Lincoln’s Legacies” is the culmination of a yearlong virtual residency project funded by the University of Illinois Presidential Initiative, Expanding the Impact of the Arts and Humanities. Twenty artists, selected from throughout the state, created artworks on Lincoln’s legacies. Their work varies in form, method, concept and perspective, and includes…
summer report
our loons are back again this season vermont tracks all nesting loons 109 pairs last year our lake allotted one pretty noisy in the middle of the night loons migrate to southern maine for the winter figure that one out folks 2 herons stood on the dock yesterday also the white indian pipes are back…
Miniature butter cow display
The butter cow has been an unofficial icon of the fair since the 1920s. The life-size figure is hand-sculpted from 500 pounds of unsalted butter – a process that takes about five days, the same way it’s been done for almost 100 years. But, two years ago that tradition came to a screeching halt when…
Letters to the editor 8/11/22
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to editor@illinoistimes.com. —- IT’S MY MOM The photo of the unknown young Black woman at the dentist office is actually my mom, Carolyn Blackwell, with her godmother, Vivian Bird (“African American History in photos,” Aug. 4). Dr.…
New Dem state party chair a win for governor, speaker
One of the biggest unsung winners in the fight for control of the Democratic Party of Illinois is House Speaker Chris Welch. The new state party chair is Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez, a member of Welch’s leadership team. Hernandez handled the delicate task of overseeing the redistricting effort in her chamber last year. She is quite…
A journalist who did what was right
Who would sacrifice a job they loved to reveal a wrong committed against a child? Very few would. In fact, in my 35 years in journalism, I’ve met only one such person. Just one. In our society we talk a good game about how much we treasure children. But it’s a lie. Kids are violated…
Africa deserves our attention
President Joe Biden announced last month that the United States will host African leaders late this year for a summit focused on food security, climate change and other pressing matters. That’s a positive development. Africa doesn’t get near the attention it deserves. Africa faces many challenges, and there’s a lot the United States can and…
Something old, something new
Life-size animatronic dinosaurs, a selfie gallery and classic Route 66 neon signs are a few of the new attractions at this year’s Illinois State Fair. They will join old favorites during the Aug. 11-21 run of the fair and Grandstand acts that include Demi Lovato (Aug. 13), Brooks & Dunn (Aug. 14), Willie Nelson and…
Reimagining the fairgrounds
Renovating the Illinois State Fairgrounds and putting the facilities to use year-round is one of the goals of The Next 10 planning document released in May 2021 by the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln (CFLL). Now a comprehensive plan is being developed for the fairgrounds. The CFLL consulted with the National Association of…
Death of the Dome Building, 1893-1917
The Dome Building was the focus of the Illinois State Fair for over 20 years before it met its fiery end on Aug. 17, 1917. Originally the Horticulture Building at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, known as the Columbian Exposition, the structure was purchased by the Illinois State Fair board in 1894 for $69,000. It…
State Fair calendar of events
The Illinois State Fair is a year’s worth of music entertainment, livestock shows, competitions, auto races, exhibitions, side shows and food all packed into 11 days. It’s a compact but vibrant bustle of activity from the moment the gates open on Preview Day until the lights go down for the last time. With so much…
Emily is riveting, Summering goes nowhere, I Love My Dad is unique
Plaza captivates as Emily It’s funny what you’ll talk yourself into doing when your back is against the wall. Take Emily, for example. She’s carrying $70,000 in student debt, can’t get a good-paying job due to DUI and assault charges from long ago and is working a dead-end job. So, when an opportunity arises where…
Editors note 8/11/22
The Springfield-based Illinois Innocence Project this week won the full exoneration of Marilyn Mulero, who spent nearly three decades in prison for a 1992 murder she did not commit. She was one of seven victims of corrupt former Chicago Detective Reynaldo Guevara who were exonerated in a Cook County courtroom. It was the largest mass…
A classic comes to the New Salem stage
One of the plays that tends to be revived around the country through the years is the drama Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee based on the famous 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial about a young Tennessee man who taught a high school class about evolution, was fired and faced a trial…
“A very difficult case for all involved”
The family of a Springfield woman wants Loren Letz dead or serving a long prison term after the overdose-related death of Bobbi Brittany Graves in January. But Letz, 40, who admitted to concealing Graves’ body in a Springfield hotel room and then stealing $1,500 from the 36-year-old’s bank account, could be released in about a…
Historic Warsaw needs help
Way out in the far reaches of Forgottonia where the Mississippi River flows, lies the most forgotten little town of all. Tucked away in the wooded hills and hollows of extreme western Illinois, Warsaw, population 1,800, exists barely visible in the mist, like fading memories in an aging mind. As the morning sun burned the…
Third time’s the charm?
The second unsuccessful attempt by a New York-based developer to win zoning approval for a proposed $25 million renovation of Springfield’s Wyndham City Centre hotel into market-rate apartments and hotel rooms doesn’t necessarily mean the project is dead. Mayor Jim Langfelder said the developer, David Mitchell of GoodHomes, submitted a new proposal after the City…
Bottled sunshine
August is a month of overwhelming bounty. Garden plots that seemed to eke along for weeks are finally bursting forth with produce (and weeds!). If you’re lucky enough to be blessed with an overabundance of sun-kissed tomatoes or peppers, putting up a few jars of preserves or jellies is a fun and creative way to…
