“Like a bug”
Andre Parker, former star of the Illinois State Police and one-time contender for the chief of police job in Springfield, has been notified he will lose his current post as chief of the Richmond, Va., police department when mayor-elect Douglas Wilder takes office Jan. 1. Within days of winning a landslide victory, Wilder, the former…
sound patrol 12-9-04
Eminem Encore (Aftermath/Interscope) If you’re curious about how Eminem’s art has evolved during the two-and-a-half years since his last full-length, The Eminem Show, the Encore cover andbooklet tell you everything you need to know. On a fancy stage, in front of a sumptuous velvet curtain, hip-hop’s Elvis takes a graceful bow while hiding a revolver…
movie reviews
Sex, lies, and modern love Closer places modern relationships under a microscope. The result may not be pleasant, but it is most definitely honest. Dan (Jude Law), an obituary writer, spots Alice (Natalie Portman), a self-described waif from New York, at a busy London intersection seconds before she is hit by a taxi. Their trip…
backstage pass 12-9-04
If you’re looking for an alternative to Christmas-show overload, check out the Portuguese Rodeo Clown Company, which features three actors performing improvisations and other comic antics onstage for one night at the Hoogland Center for the Arts. The “clown company” includes Andy Lee and Johnny Molson, co-hosts of a show on WMAY (970 AM), and…
Legacy
Philip and Mary Kathyrn Trutter traveled all over the world — 10 trips to 100 countries — and collected amazing pieces of art, jewelry, and artifacts from the many places they visited. They filled every inch of their home — tabletops, walls, cabinets — with these pieces. And today their memory lives on in the…
Fallen foot soldiers
On Friday, Dec. 3, another of President George W. Bush’s foot soldiers for faux freedom announced his departure: Tommy Thompson was quitting. The secretary of health and human services, who’d called himself the director of “America’s Department of Compassion,” had waged the good fight for four years. Thompson was tapped by Bush four years ago…
Dedication
Clouds and rain gave way to bright sunshine during Saturday’s dedication of the World War II Illinois Veterans Memorial at Oak Ridge Cemetery. More than 3,500 people came to honor the men and women who defeated the Axis powers. Visitors were greeted by 15 volunteers in authentic WWII uniforms handing out souvenir programs. Among the…
now playing 12-9-04
You may not have heard of songwriter Billy Joe Shaver, but is it quite likely you’ve heard his songs. “Honky Tonk Heroes,” “I Been to Georgia on a Fast Train,” “Old Five and Dimers Like Me,” “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’m Going to be a Diamond Someday),” considered jewels in the…
Never-ending story
The dust hasn’t even settled yet from the 2004 campaign, and candidates are already lining up for the 2006 race. You and I may be sick of campaign news, but to these people the game is just beginning. Joe Birkett, the DuPage County state’s attorney who narrowly lost the 2002 attorney general’s race to Democrat…
Merger flu
There’s only one thing I know for sure about this health department debate: it makes my stomach churn and my head hurt. If promises, predictions or statistics could provide an answer, I’d be cured. Both sides offer plenty of all that. But it’s hard to know what’s real and what’s placebo when everything comes packaged…
Protecting plants in winter
The winter storm that hit central Illinois recently played havoc with driving conditions, holiday plans, and area trees and shrubs. The heavy snow that fell the day before Thanksgiving knocked branches and, in some cases, entire trees to the ground. But the snow sure was great for making snowmen. Most winter damage to landscape plants…
earth talk
Dear “Earth Talk”: What environmental and health problems are associated with the use of chlorine by the paper industry? Is chlorine really essential in the production of paper? — Misty Landletter, Tempe, Ariz. To achieve its pearly-white color, most paper goes through a bleaching process that involves the use of chlorine or chemicals derived from…
lend a hand
LEND A HAND Illinois Times invites area nonprofit organizations to submit holiday wish lists. To participate, send a brief description of your organization and a summary of your needs. Fax the information to 217-753-3958 or e-mail editor@illinoistimes.com. There is no charge for this service. Fifth Street Renaissance 518 N. Fifth St., 217-544-5040 Fifth Street Renaissance…
common sense 12-9-04
What is it about ultra-right conservatives who build careers as tongue-clucking scolds? They constantly preach about the moral failings of the rest of us — yet they keep getting caught with their own pants down, morally speaking. I don’t merely mean the Falwells, Swaggarts, and other publicly compromised televangelists — I’m also talking about the…
art seen 12-9-04
In 1966, Bob Waldmire and I were enrolled at Springfield Junior College, and already he was known as an artist whose star was on the rise. And though many artists are destined to follow their stars into the sky, Bob was to follow his onto Route 66 and beyond. During a recent visit to Springfield,…
letters 12-9-04
Letters policy We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address and a daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length and clarity. Send letters to: Letters, Illinois Times. P.O. Box 5256. Springfield, Illinois 62705. Fax: (217) 753-3958. E-mail: editor@illinoistimes.com THE PEOPLE ON THE BUS . . . Again our city’s mass…
Like it hot or not, Cook’s is the place
The folks at Cook’s Spice Rack & Chili believe in adding spice to your life. Not only does this small eatery offer some of the hottest chili in town, it also sells 99 varieties of hot sauce for customers to add their own heat at home. The restaurant, located in a renovated house on North…
Home for the holidays
Most of us have at least one book lover on our holiday shopping lists. This year, get creative and think beyond bestsellers. The following titles were chosen because of their local ties — the ties that bind us to home, the place everyone wants to be for the holidays. Native Trees for North American Landscapes:…
Overdue
The initial dedication of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, back in 2002, set off a few bombshells, as critics questioned why $300,000 of taxpayers’ money was spent on a celebration, complete with fireworks, for an unfinished building. But Linda Kopecky remembers the dedication differently than most who simply cried hubris. She saw big…
Knoepfle 12-9-04
something about love love is like a bowlso when you break itglue it togetherif it won’t hold waterfill it with apples © John Knoepfle 2004
After Roe
Illinois’ leading abortion-rights advocates are gearing up for a fight, despite the state’s recent trend to the political left. Sure, they say, pro-choice Democrats currently operate almost every lever of state government, and polls show that a majority of Illinois voters support a woman’s right to choose. And, yes, voters just elected a progressive Democrat…
music notes 12-9-04
• Prepare yourself, children, for the greatest Christmas event in the history of Western Civilization (well at least in our little world of booze, bars, and party-ons, dude). The annual Festivus Fuddarestuvus goes public this year by sponsoring the ever-exciting and always entertaining Los Straitjackets at 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, in the Grand Ballroom…
Last choice
For many people, George W. Bush’s re-election serves as both a wakeup call and a warning that women’s reproductive rights are in grave danger. The next four years could well see a push to overturn Roe v. Wade; however, before mounting that assault, anti-choice activists are supporting a collection of legislative initiatives designed to chip…
quick takes 12-9-04
FORMOSA CUTS CONTINUE Formosa Plastics Corp. laid off another 24 employees last week, cutting the workforce at what had been Illiopolis’ biggest employer to less than 50. The latest round of layoffs at Formosa is in addition to the 58 workers released in May, several weeks after an explosion at the plant killed five and…
