Monday, October 26, 2026

Publishing Portal--October 26, 2026








The latest news from Eckhartz Press, and a chance to peek into some of the great previous offerings from our humble little publishing company.


Three chances to meet an Eckhartz Press author this week...


*Monday, October 26

=Maria Pappas will be at Three Top Lounge (above the Salt Shed), 1357 N. Elston in Chicago, for an appearance  & book signing of Maria the Pappas – at 7 PM. Doors open at 6. 

  


*Wednesday, October 28

=Nick Digilio will be at the Pickwick Theater (5 S. Prospect, Park Ridge) presenting the film "Poltergeist" at 7pm, and signing and selling his book 40 Years, 40 Horror Films

=Check out the ABC-TV/Chicago morning show in Chicago that day. Nick will be on the show promoting the Poltergeist showing and his book.

=He was also on Fox-32 late last week...


*Friday, October 30

=Nick Digilio will also be at Kaiser Tiger restaurant near the United Center (1415 W. Randolph) from 6-8pm on Friday night, signing and selling his new book 40 Years, 40 Horror Films. 




Eckhartz in the News


National First Responders Day

=October 28 is National First Responders Day. Our late author Alex Burkholder was passionate about the work of first responders. His book Death of the Angels was about the famous 1958 fire at Our Lady of the Angels school, and the firefighters who were there that day were his heroes. When the book was released, on the 60th anniversary of the fire, we released it at a Chicago firehouse. 



40 Years, 40 Horror Films

=Nick Digilio got a great endorsement this week for his book 40 Years, 40 Horror Films. Recognize this fellow?

=He also got some nice coverage on WBBM News Radio. Listen here.


International Authors Day

=November 1 is International Authors Day. You'd think that a boutique Chicago press like Eckhartz Press wouldn't have any international authors. You would be wrong. Brent Petersen (Truffle Hunt) lives in Portugal right now. Rick Kaempfer (Back in the DDR) and Felitzitas Sudendorf (A Reluctant Immigrant) grew up in Germany. Bob Boone (City U) was a teacher in Germany. Ann Wilson (In Small Boxes) grew up in Hong Kong. Chuck Swirsky (Always a Pleasure) is a citizen of Canada. Leonid Osseny, the illustrator of 1001 Train Rides in Chicago, grew up in Russia, and Everything I Know I Learned from Rock Stars author Bill Paige lives in Thailand.



The Front Page

=The right guy was in the audience for the latest production of the Ben Hecht/Charles MacArthur classic, The Front Page: The man who wrote Sirens in the Loop about the history of the City News Bureau, Jim Elsener.  The City News Bureau plays a big part in the plot of the play.



Perspectives in Black and White

=This week the Trump Justice Department announced an investigation into the Evanston Reparations Fund, which was passed by Evanston City Council on a 8-1 vote in 2019. Seven years later, the DOJ now says it is: “odious to a free people whose institutions are founded upon the doctrine of equality.”

=Believe it or not, we have a whole book about the Evanston Reparations Fund and the reason it exists in the first place. Notably, the book strongly disagrees with the view of the DOJ. It was written by Michael Frank Miles, and it's called Perspectives in Black and White.


Slivers now available as e-book on Amazon

=The spooky novel by Vicki Atkinson is now also available on Amazon as an e-book. Do we have the link? Why yes we do. Click here.

=She also posted a free excerpt of Slivers on her blog this week. You can read it here.



Celtic Knot

=Great coverage of Robert Conlon's historical novel this week in the Irish American News. You can read all about it here.



Eckhartz Press birthdays...



*Jim Elsener  (October 29)
=Happy birthday Jim! Elsener is the co-author of Sirens in the Loop. He began his career at the legendary City News Bureau of Chicago in the early 1970s. He later became a reporter with the Chicago Tribune, managed a national newspaper trade association, and founded and owned a regional business publication. Jim served with the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. He and his wife, Patricia, a former journalist, live in suburban Chicago.

*Eckhartz Press (November 1)

=We're also celebrating our 15th birthday! Eckhartz Press was founded this week (November 1) in 2011. The name is a mashup of the first names of our co-publisher's fathers, Eckhard Kaempfer and Fritz Stern. The logo is a laughing E to remind us never to take ourselves too seriously. Since our first book The Living Wills came out in November of 2011, we've published over 150 books, including 15 Book of the Year finalists. Five of our books have been sold for movie rights, another was sold to an international publisher, and we've been featured by The Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun Times, the Daily Herald, dozens of magazines, nearly every Chicago radio and television station, hundreds of podcasts and countless blogs, websites, and on-line publications. We never would have believed it when we started this little boutique Chicago publishing company fifteen years ago. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to our success (especially our gifted authors!), but most of all, thank you to the readers who continue to buy Eckhartz Press books. We greatly appreciate you.




*Other Notable Eckhartz-Related Birthdays...


*Jack Mabley (October 26, 1915) 

=The famed Chicago newspaper columnist, and alum of the City News Bureau is featured in Sirens in the Loop.



*Ralph Kiner (October 27, 1922)

=The Cubs Hall of Famer is featured in EveryCubEver. Here's his entry in the book...


Ralph Kiner 1922–2014 (Cubs 1953-1954)
He was one of the most feared sluggers in the league when he played for the Pirates, but by the time the Cubs got him (1953), he was not the same player. He led the league in home runs all seven seasons with the Pirates, and though he did have a decent power season with the Cubs in 1953 (making the All-Star team), he was so slow by then, he could barely field his position. Combined with the equally slow Hank Sauer in the other corner, the Cubs outfield during those two seasons might have been the worst fielding outfield the Cubs ever had. Kiner joked that both he and Sauer used to scream “You got it, Frankie” every time the ball was hit in the air. Frankie Baumholtz was the center fielder on that team. After the 1954 season Kiner was traded to the Indians for Sam Jones, who went on to pitch a no-hitter for the Cubs in 1955. Ralph Kiner is a proud member of baseball’s Hall of Fame, but when you look at his plaque, don’t expect to see him wearing a Cubs hat.
Historical note: On the day that John F. Kennedy married Jackie (1953), Kiner slammed a homer off fellow Hall of Famer Hoyt Wilhelm to win the game for the Cubs.

*Dennis Franz (October 28)

=The famous Chicago-born actor shared his Cubs love in the book Cubsessions (written by Becky Sarwate and Randy Richardson). 



*Vesna Plakinis (October 29)

=Vesna is one of the enthusiastic supporters of Brent Petersen's foodie novel Truffle Hunt.  Here's what she had to say about it...

  • “Truffle Hunt” serves up a five-star gourmet feast of murder, hidden historical gems, deep family pride, a dash of humor and romance, topped with delicate slices of heavenly, golden truffles and a glass of nectar from the deepest Eastern European wine cellars. As a gourmand, mushroom hunter, animal lover and world traveler, I ate the delicious book up in just a couple of sittings. Now, all I need is a truffle hunting dog, a simian bartender, and I can I can bring the pages of this book to life in my kitchen!

    Vesna Plakanis, Owner, A Walk in the Woods, Nature Guide Service



*Henry Winkler (October 30)
=Yes, most of the people featured in Randy Merkin's book about Sports Radio (Behind the Glass) are sports heroes. There are however, a few exceptions who rate their own chapter in the book. One of them is Henry Winkler. In the photo, L-R, John Jurkovic, Henry, Randy, and Carmen DeFalco.


*Ronnie Woo Woo Vickers (October 31)

=The man who has personally met seemingly every person to step foot in Chicago, Ronnie Woo Woo Vickers (October 31) is featured in Cubsessions. Ronnie even came out to a few of the Cubsessions book signings. His health hasn't been great lately. Our thoughts and prayers are with Ronnie.



*Fred McGriff (October 31)

=The Cubs Hall of Famer is featured in EveryCubEver. Here's his entry in the book...

Fred McGriff 1963-- (Cubs 2001-2002)

He was nicknamed the Crime Dog because of his last name’s similarity to the “actual” crime dog McGruff. Our crime dog, it’s safe to say, was at best a reluctant Cub. He refused to be traded to the Cubs at first, and then when he finally agreed to the trade, he seemed to be a bad luck charm as the surging Cubs faded out of contention shortly after he arrived in 2001. He had a great season in 2002 (30 HR, 103 RBI), but that team was headed nowhere. He played two more seasons after he left Chicago and ended his career with 493 home runs. During his big-league career he was one of the premier sluggers in the game. That’s why he was elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 2022.



More events coming in November


Sunday, November 8

=Maria Pappas at the G-Man Tavern, 3740 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60613, Matinee, Interview and reading by Maria and book signing. We're calling this one the official launch party. 1-4pm.


Monday, November 9

=Richard Reeder is doing a book talk and signing at the Mather Senior Community in Evanston (425 Davis Street) at 2pm. His novel Sarasota will be the topic of discussion

 

Saturday, November 14

=Book launch party for Russ Fahrner for his book Face Your Monster. It will be at Salerno's Pizza on Grand Avenue in Chicago from 1-3 PM. Russ will do a brief presentation before signing and selling his book. Pizza and snacks will be available there.



Sunday, November 15

=Maria Pappas and her co-author Mark Eleveld will be at the Green Mill Jazz Lounge, 4802 N Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640. There will be a 30-minute program starring Maria on the famous jazz stage, followed by a book signing – 3 – 5:30 PM.


Wednesday, November 18 & 

Thursday, November 19

=A tribute to Tony Fitzpatrick (The Sun at the End of the Road). Tony's friends Rick Kogan and Jon Langford (and a host of others) will be paying tribute to the gifted artist, actor, and writer at Constellation Chicago (3111 N. Western Avenue) for two consecutive nights doing a show they called "Something beautiful: Words, songs, and Poems of Tony Fitzpatrick." Tickets are available here (18th) and here (19th).

 =No promises that it doesn't end like this memorial parade for Tony in New Orleans last year. What a moment.



 Thursday, November 19

=Maria Pappas will also be at The Book Cellar, 4736 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60625, doing a reading and signing, at 7PM.




Notable Anniversaries


=It turns out that this week in history has been a popular one for Eckhartz Press book releases.


+In 2013 (October 30), we released Chuck Quinzio's Life Behind the Camera. (Read former WGN-TV reporter Nancy Loo's article about the book)

 +In 2015 (October 31), we released Pat Colander's Hugh Hefner's First Funeral. (Check out photos from the book release party) That one was named Book of the Year by the CWA.

+In 2016 (October 27), we released The Scar Dance by William Mansfield. (Here's a Q&A with the author). That was one of the three finalists for Book of the Year by the CWA.

+This week in 2017 (October 28), Safe Inside author Lee Kingsmill appeared at a book club in Northwest Indiana to read and promote his book. 

+In 2019, Rick Kaempfer appeared on WGN Radio with Andrea Darlas and CBS-2's Brad Edwards to talk about his book EveryCubEver

+In 2020 (October 27),  Mob Adjacent co-author Mike Gentile appeared on WGN Radio with John Landecker. You can still hear that interview here. 

 

+In 2020 (October 28), we released William Mansfield's follow up book, his memoir The Most Beautiful Place in Hell.

+In 2022 (November 1), Back in the DDR by Rick Kaempfer was initially offered up for pre-order.

+In 2024 (November 1), we released our book about the Bears,  I Bear Witness by Dan McNeil. 

+In 2024 Eckhartz Press publishers Rick and Dave ran into the co-author of Chili Dog MVP, Dr. David Fletcher. It wasn't a chance meeting. Doc was kind enough to score these seats. It was Rick's first Illini game in 40 years. That Illini Dad shirt Dave is wearing was once the property of Rick's dad Eckhard. 

+In 2025 (October 30), we released Gloria Golec's South Side Memories.

     
    

And...

The Loop Files

=The Loop Exhibit at Museum of Broadcast Communications was unveiled to the public this week in 2025. Dean Richards did a great tour of it in this segment on the WGN-TV Morning News.

=Dane Placko did a report on the entire museum for WFLD-Channel 32. Here's a peek at it. NBC-5 was there as well.  So was Axios Chicago. We also like this Facebook reel of WLS Radio's Cara Carriveau discovering live on camera that she was in the display.

=An enlarged framed photo of The Loop Files cover autographed by dozens of Loop stars from over the years is displayed. The book is even for sale there at the museum gift shop.

    


And from the way, way-back machine...


November 1, 2004, Bill Zwecker interviewed Rick Kaempfer and John "Swany" Swanson in the Chicago Sun Times. You can still read that interview here.  


=Despite the fact that he's been out of radio for 20 years, Rick's radio coaching techniques were also featured this week last year in Barrett's Media. You can read that piece here.  Thanks to writer Kevin Robinson for the profile. 


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