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Win a Pair of Rodney Carrington Tickets!
Win a pair of tickets to see Rodney Carrington at Sangamon Auditorium Saturday, June 2! (Click image to enter)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
One of Springfield’s most successful capitalists traveled to the nation’s capital earlier this month to weigh in on the nation’s opioid crisis. It was not a convincing performance. J. Christopher Smith, erstwhile president and chief executive officer of H.D. Smith, didn’t appear happy to testify under oath on May 8 along with executives from three…
Good politics isn’t always good government
Last week’s press conference announcing his latest amendatory veto was, without a doubt, the best press Gov. Bruce Rauner has had since he fired his top staff last July and brought in that Illinois Policy Institute crowd (which he also fired). The governor developed an unexpected and dramatic message and then stayed relentlessly on message…
Letters to the Editor 5/24/18
DRAIN THE SWAMPThank you for the article on Sam McCann (“Disrupter for governor,” by David Blanchette, Illinois Times, May 17). I am a staunch Republican, and my friend Kevin is a staunch Democrat. What do a staunch Republican and a staunch Democrat have in common? We are both voting for Sam McCann. Drain the Illinois…
Supreme Court victimizes kids via sports gambling
On May 14 the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Murphy v. NCAA, a case brought by the State of New Jersey to overturn the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) — ironically sponsored by former New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley, a professional basketball legend, to protect the integrity of U.S.…
MUSIC | A comedic piano concert
Mark Gifford and Damien Kaplan’s popular Dual Piano show returns to the Hoogland Center for the Arts May 25-27 at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday. While Mark and Damien are very different musicians, this dynamic duo has found a place together by playing, singing and inviting others to have…
Summerguide calendar
May Pressure Canner TestingMay 24, 8am-4pm Thu. Sign-up to have your pressure canner gauge(s) tested to ensure safety during the home canning process. University of Illinois Extension, 700 S. Airport Dr., 782-4617. Art ExhibitionMay 24-27, 30, Jun 1-3, 6-10, 13-17, 20-24, 10am-3pm Wed-Sun. Artworks on display by Felicia Olin, Renee Baldwin-Sisk, Katherine Pippin Pauley, George…
Bicentennial buddies: Union County and Illinois
Union County was born the same year as Illinois – and just happens to have some spectacular spots for a 200th birthday party. A popular state park, a giant cross, a significant Lincoln site and an old school turned into a bed and breakfast await visitors to this scenic area deep in southern Illinois. The…
Destination Danville, a city reclaiming its treasures
Just two hours east of Springfield with plenty of highlights that can be enjoyed in a few hours, Danville is a pleasant daytrip – and a city claiming a progressive new status. A strong foundationDanville considers itself at the corner of progress and history. Its water tower says so. That history is based on hard…
A Decatur writing professor’s novel about a writing prof
Iced is an engaging novel. It’s set in a fictionalized but recognizable central Illinois town that is known for the strong odor of its grain-processing facilities that some optimistically call “the smell of money.” The events of the novel are set against a backdrop of a town struggling with a protracted union strike, vanishing industry,…
Stained glass, a Springfield tour
Springfield is home to gorgeous stained glass installations in churches, historic sites and other public spaces. Architect Ralls Melotte, co-founder of Melotte Morse Stained Glass and Melotte Morse Leonatti Parker, Ltd. Architects, spent 21 years restoring, repairing and fabricating much of it. Here, Melotte presents several examples of Springfield’s wide range of transcendent light. “For…
Playing around
Fittingly for a theater situated within a village once called home by the future 16th U.S. president, New Salem’s Theatre in the Park kicks off its summer season with The Last of Mrs. Lincoln (June 7-10), taking a dramatic look at the former Mary Todd’s life in the years following her husband’s 1865 assassination. As…
Sizzling summer of sound
So many summer concerts, so little time. From big festivals to tiny venues and from hard rock to bro-country and from new wave to hardcore to hip-hop, here’s an overview of some of the best music heading for the area. SpringfieldThe award-winning Boondocks continues its winning streak this summer with rising Delaware-bred, African-American country star…
The fight to reform child care
Protesters gathered outside the Capitol May 16 to press for legislation to reform home care and child care services across Illinois. Organized by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare Illinois and Indiana, home care workers, child care providers, seniors and lawmakers took part in the rally. A joint bill introduced in the House and…
Sports betting bills bolstered by Supreme Court ruling
The Supreme Court’s recent ruling allowing state-authorized sports gambling may strengthen legislation to legalize sports betting in Illinois. On May 14, the court ruled 6-3 that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, passed by Congress in 1992 to prohibit statewide sports gambling, violated states’ rights. The decision coincides with three current measures introduced in…
Big money
The nonprofit foundation that says it might have to sell artifacts related to Abraham Lincoln has taken in more than $40 million since 2007, when the group borrowed $23 million to purchase relics held, but not owned, by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation says that it still…
ENOS PARK ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE
Albuquerque-based artist Allyson Packer, Nick Wylie of Seattle and Illinois State University student Zack Buckley have been chosen as this summer’s artists-in-residence by the Enos Park Residency program, a partnership between the Springfield Art Association, the Enos Park Neighborhood Improvement Association and the City of Springfield. The program offers four-week to 12-month residency awards to visual artists. Wylie will use…
TAKE THAT, HOTELS
If nothing else, Airbnb isn’t shy. In a missive sent this week, the company accused hotels of gouging during commencement exercises, squeezing proud families of graduates even more than they’ve already been squeezed by tuition, educational loans, Domino’s pizza tabs and the like. And the number of Airbnb guests in college towns including Evanston, Wheaton…
Solo: A rollicking, entertaining entry in storied franchise
Everything old is new again in Ron Howard’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, and that’s just fine. When we first see the titular hero, he’s got himself into a jam, relying on a bit of charm, a dash of derring-do, and a whole lotta’ luck to get out of it. This situation plays itself out…
Memorable Memorial Day weekend
Believe it or not, here we are already at the Memorial Day weekend mark of 2018. Generally considered the “official” start of the summer season, the entertainment lineup is certainly geared for a fine kickoff of hot times in the city. On Thursday night The Curve Inn hosts an event called “The Upside Down” as…
Stuart Smith
Hailing from the west central Illinois town of Winchester, Mr. Smith’s been performing in Springfield for some time now, and the gifted singer, songwriter and versatile guitarist recently expanded his solo-acoustic gig reach (he also plays with Smashtag) to include St. Louis, southern Illinois and other regional spots. Stuart just recorded a full-length album (titled…
All the asparagus
I dearly love asparagus – but I only allow myself to enjoy it in the spring and early summer, when local asparagus becomes available. After a winter of trying to come up with interesting and varied ways to prepare cabbages and root vegetables, those first fresh green shoots are the official prelude to the new…
freedom poem #3
freedom poem #3 I don’t know if she’s over the moonyet but the helium-bloated bovineballoon with “Holy Cow! AnotherBirthday!” blazoned on her flank(a recent gift) slipped her halter aswe were handing her to a downblockkid to have the thrill of holding herwe watched bossy ruefully as, lodgedfar up in a maple tree, she worked herway…
