Tonight, WQLZ and Danenberger Family Vineyards are teaming up once again to present a great show for a great cause. Velvet Chains, Dead Sugar and The Haunt are this year’s Rock the Pink lineup. Proceeds from this show will benefit the American Cancer Society. Doors open at 6 p.m. with the music beginning at 7 […]
Arts & Culture
Posted inBooks
Teach children citizenship
“A well-informed citizenry is the backbone of a healthy democracy,” writes Lindsey Cormack in her 2024 book How to Raise a Citizen (And Why It’s Up to You to Do It). She contends that raising engaged and informed citizens is an often-overlooked aspect of parenting. Cormack persuasively argues that parents have an essential role in […]
Posted inPoetry
Portland Response To “Shimmy”
How can anyone be blamed for dancing the “Shimmy” when even a cockroach can’t resist it in the face of jazzy music? Dr. Helen Clark, head of psychology department here, is authority for the statement: “The Shimmy is fast becoming the popular indoor sport for cockroaches.” She has proved to her students that soft, tuneful […]
Posted inFilm
New Predator film full of twists, Son addresses issues of faith
Badlands features a more human predator A savage, alien hunter with daddy issues? A sci-fi adventure with shades of Don Quixote? Believe or not, that’s what you get with Predator: Badlands, the seventh entry in the surprisingly resilient franchise that contains one pleasant surprise after another. Credit must be given to writer/director Dan Trachtenberg who […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
AI and you
Research all you may about the origins of AI. Acknowledge the contributions made to this concept by the many mythologists and mathematicians, philosophers, physicians, psychologists, sociologists and scientists who have made their personal contributions to this explorative and even invasive system of information gathering, developing and implementation upon and within the various realms of human […]
Posted inFilm
Frankenstein a masterpiece, Nuremberg serves as cautionary tale
Del Toro cobbles together ambitious, magnificent Frankenstein Referred to as “my Everest,” director Guillermo del Toro has longed to put his distinctive stamp on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Stating recently that each movie he’s made has been in preparation for this undertaking, he was able to secure a $120 million budget and a generous six-month shooting […]
Posted inIT Picks
Pumpkin Smash
HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS | Event combines fun, pumpkin disposal Halloween is over … and what to do with all of those carved pumpkins? Well, Springfield’s Office of Public Works has invited the community to “smash – don’t trash – those jack-o’-lanterns” at this fifth annual event. It’s an environmentally friendly and fun way to dispose of […]
Posted inPoetry
Shimmy
From an old newspaper clipping: Indianapolis authorities went on record against the “Shimmy,” “Camel Walk” and the “Bunny Hug.” The Board ordered superintendents to ban these dances from city parks and community houses. “Some form of modern dances, such as the Toddle, Shimmy, Camel Walk, Bunny Hug, and Cheek to Cheek dances are coarse, vulgar, […]
Posted inArts Features
The Laramie Project at UIS
Ten actors playing more than 60 characters will tell the real-life story of how the community of Laramie, Wyoming, reacted to the brutal murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student, in 1998. The Laramie Project, a play by Moisés Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project, opens Nov. 7 at University of Illinois Springfield. “It […]
Posted inArts Features
A horror-comedy for your ears
Springfield native Matthew Brookens has written, produced, directed and starred in “Illinois Hell Hole,” a project he describes as a “two-hour, fully scored horror-comedy audio drama.” This oddball extravaganza aired on NPR Illinois (91.9 FM) in three parts Oct. 28-30 as a uniquely flavored Halloween treat, with spooky humor and voice performers ranging from narrator […]
Posted inFilm
Christy Martin keeps punching
On her way to breaking through barriers and becoming the pre-eminent female boxer of her era, Christy Martin had to possess a specific kind of courage whenever she stepped in the ring. Today, she’s displaying a different kind of moxie in allowing her deeply personal story to be told on the big screen. David Michod’s […]
Posted inCommunity & Lifestyle
Of life, purpose and Jane Goodall
Recently I came across a video clip of Dr. Jane Goodall, filmed near the end of her long, beautiful life on this planet. She spoke, of course, about the fact that we cannot separate ourselves from nature but also spoke movingly about each of us having a purpose and how our actions make a difference. […]
