The latest news from Eckhartz Press, and a chance to peek into some of the great previous offerings from our humble little publishing company.
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The Sun at the End of the Road
=Rick Kogan wrote a wonderful piece last week about the 40th anniversary of Newcity. The last few paragraphs paid tribute to Eckhartz Press author and frequent Newcity contributor, the late Tony Fitzpatrick...
The current issue features on its cover the work of artist/writer Tony Fitzpatrick, whose poetry fills its last page. About him, Hieggelke writes, “(Tony) was part of Newcity’s story in every single decade. … When I started planning this issue, Tony was the first person I thought about getting involved.”
Fitzpatrick died in October and we talked about him for a while. Hieggelke said, “I believe that culture is an essential part of life. It transcends race and class. It gives us a reason to live. I’m gonna miss Tony.”
=Some photos from Jim Elsener's launch party at Kappy's last Thursday night...
=This is an incredible review from Patrick Reardon at Third Coast Reviews.
=The reader reviews have been coming in for the book as well, and they are outstanding. Here are a few examples...
I just spent two days enjoying the nostalgia and recovering the memories of those long-ago days...The book gave me so much pleasure and I also learned a lot. I'm sure Paul would be proud that his boxes of material finally gave birth to a great history/memorial. As I read through everyone's recollections and stories, I found the intervening years almost disappearing and I wanted to travel back in time to those far simpler and more exciting days.
--George Tye
I worked with a lot of the people here, including Dorny and Royko, and the book was a nostalgic treat. I hope it gets all the attention and readership it deserves.
--Dick Longworth
It looks great and reads even better. I hope it gets into many, many hands. It showcases the extraordinary dedication generations of newspeople had to getting it right, as well as the sense of humor they often needed to survive. Such a stark contrast to what's happening to the news business now. I think I've said it before, but Paul would be proud.
--Anne Hennessy
=Mark Wukas was also at the Sirens in the Loop book launch party. His novel The Kiss of Night is the fictional companion to Sirens in the Loop because it follows a City News Bureau reporter through his earliest days on the job.
=This week is a significant one for The Kiss of Night as well. The Kiss referred to in the title is the famous Magikist billboard. The last one of those came down this week (March 28) in 2013.
=The docuseries film project (My Father, Dick Allen) about Dick Allen's life (produced by the authors of Chili Dog MVP), keeps adding more Hall of Famers. This week they interviewed Andre Dawson.
=How long have these guys been at it with the Dick Allen project? This week in 2022 (March 28), Kurt Begland reviewed Chili Dog MVP
=The next day, Chili Dog MVP authors Dr. Fletcher and John Owens appeared at the Orland Park Card show.
=By the way, the artist who created the Chili Dog MVP cover, Todd Radom, also created the poster for the film. He's a big deal in the sports art world.
=This week in 2018 (March 26), the Gentile brothers (Jeffrey & Michael) appeared on Rick Kogan's show on WGN Radio to talk about their book Mob Adjacent. They have since turned their book into a film that will be showing in film festivals across the country in 2026.
=Take a look at this promotional film. It begins with a young Mike Gentile Jr. making an appearance on Oprah's show, and continues to modern day.
=As the two above examples prove, Eckhartz Press authors are becoming multi-media stars. One of our first authors, Brent Petersen, has created an entire foodie media empire since his foodie novel Truffle Hunt was released in 2015. He is the webmaster of the Destination Eat Drink website, hosts the Destination Eat Drink podcast, and has a substack that is constantly pumping out new and compelling material. For instance, check out his most recent piece about a reluctant Pope.
=Look who is holding his very own copy of The Flip Side. That's Rick Wakeman (on the left) from Yes getting a copy of the book from former Flip Side employee Greg Horne.
=Thanks to everyone who came out to the Chicagoland Record Show last year to meet the authors of The Flip Side. It's hard to imagine a more perfect pairing of author and customer.
=This week in 1909 (March 28), one of the most famous authors in Chicago history, Nelson Algren, was born. Doug E. Jones conjures the spirit of Algren in his Eckhartz Press book Take Me Back to Chicago. In fact, he even quotes the legendary author, who gave this memorable assessment of his home town and the location of Doug's excellent novel...
“Loving Chicago is like loving a woman with a broken nose.”
COMING SOON: Beyond the Glass and Slivers
=Next week, one of these two books is going to be available for pre-order (Beyond the Glass by Randy Merkin), and the other will be debuting its book cover (Slivers by Vicki Atkinson). We'll have all the links, photos, and info for you right here in the Publishing Portal. Three additional books are also being readied for publication in the next two months, and a dozen more are in the pipeline. It's going to be a busy year for Eckhartz Press.
This has traditionally been a big week for Eckhartz Press releases. For instance, the following four books were released this week in history...
=This week in 2012, Kim Strickland held the book release party for her second novel Down at the Golden Coin. She actually handed out golden coins to everyone who bought the book. (Yes, they were chocolate.) The event took place at an art gallery owned by Bill Veeck's daughter.
Records Truly Is My Middle Name
=We released John Records Landecker's memoir Records Truly Is My Middle Name on his birthday (March 28) in 2013. John certainly had a memorable birthday that year. He appeared on Johnny B's show on WGN Radio in the morning, then on the WGN-TV Morning show, then on the afternoon show on WBEZ.
=This week in 2014, we also released Randy Richardson's murder mystery, Lost in the Ivy. With Opening Day approaching, it's a good time to revisit this story. It's a snapshot in time, back to pre-gentrified Wrigleyville.
The Music That Defined a Century
=This week in 2023, we released a book by Michael Frank Miles about the great music of the 20th century. Here's how he described it: It’s all here, the glorious music of the 20th century. From Gershwin
How about a couple of basketball stories during March Madness...
=This week is the birthday of Walt "Clyde" Frazier (March 29). Not only a great basketball player for the New York Knicks, but also a pioneer in the world of Signature Shoes. Author Ryan Trembath wrote all about that in his book.
=Chuck Swirsky's biggest fan, NBA star Chris Bosh, is celebrating a birthday this week (March 24). Here's what he said about Chuck for book's back cover...
Basketball is about more than the players on the court or the fans in the stands. It’s also about the voices who add color to the game—play-by-play, night after night. And Chuck Swirsky is one of the legends responsible for the soundtrack of basketball. With passion that is always palpable, Chuck brings excitement every time he picks up a mic. Over the years, millions of fans have hung onto his every word, but what’s even more special about him is who he is when the mic is off. In my years in Toronto with Chuck, I never received a greeting from him that didn’t include an ear-to-ear grin. I feel lucky to have seen him continue to grow as a broadcaster when he and his family moved to Chicago. Chuck showed me that a team is only as strong as the environment surrounding it — a community that extends beyond the clubhouse. So thank you, Chuck—for your enthusiasm on great days and positivity on the rough ones. You made Toronto a great place to be in a great place to play. Oh, and thanks to your kids for always keeping those cookies around. Those were no joke.
Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat. 2021 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. 2 time NBA Champion.
A few notable reviews...
=This week in 2023 (March 24), award-winning author David Berner reviewed Rick Kaempfer's novel, Back in the DDR....
"Matching history with Rudi’s awakening to the times makes Back in the D.D.R. a compelling story, giving the tale deep roots both emotionally and culturally. Rudi’s maturation comes alongside striking events in the world and reminds the reader how global history can impact a singular life, especially that of a 13-year-old boy."
=This week in 2018 Windy City Reviews released their assessment of the book Cubsessions.
"Famous people fascinate all of us. Don’t try to deny it. And there’s no shortage of famous people among the millions who follow the Chicago Cubs. That’s the premise of Cubsessions, a series of interviews with passionate fans who have achieved various levels of fame. The anthology is an obvious labor of love for the co-authors, Becky Sarwate and Randy Richardson. The result is a start-of-the-season gift for every diehard Cubs fan."
A few notable memories...
=One of the great things about Joel Daly's book The Daly News is that he shares several examples of his famous television news commentary. Here's an example of that from this week in 1977, free of charge.
=This week in 2022, Eric Litt appeared on WGN-TV to talk about the slap heard round the world. He has become a well-known movie expert since releasing his first book with Eckhartz Press. In 2024 he followed that up with another excellent movie book, Worth a Second Look.
=One of the contributors to The Loop Files is Jimmy Mac McInerney. Jimmy is celebrating a birthday this week (March 28). This photo (with John "Swany" Swanson) is in the book.
Everything I Know I Learned from Rock Stars
=Bill Paige doesn't only write books about rock stars, he also writes songs. This one was inspired by the COVID pandemic.
It’s taking a long minute to convert these files, BUT . . .
— Roger Badesch (@TeacherRB) March 19, 2026
Wrote, scheduled (with city pull), directed, produced (& voiced) - City Festivals hotline with Harry and Steve in their booth at Wrigley. pic.twitter.com/BVxdOIkylw
=It's opening day this week! Cub Fans, don't forget that the seventh (and possibly final) edition of EveryCubEver is still available. If you bought an earlier edition, you should know that author Rick Kaempfer revised and added more than 500 entries in the 7th edition, and included hundreds of classic photographs. He vows to only revise it again if the Cubs win the World Series. If you haven't bought it yet and you're a Cubs fan, what's wrong with you? You can literally read about every...Cub...ever.
