Tuesday, August 20, 2024

Publishing Portal--August 20, 2024








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


Happy Birthday!

=Two Eckhartz Press authors have birthdays this week. Happy birthday (August 19) to The Living Wills co-author Brendan Sullivan. The Living Wills was our first book, and Brendan has been it's champion. He also contributed to the book The Loop Files.


=Joel Daly (The Daly News) was also born this week (August 21). Joel passed away at the beginning of the Covid epidemic, but his incredibly interesting life lives on in the pages of The Daly News.

 
 



To the Men I've Loved

=What a great book launch party this past week for To the Men I've Loved. Thanks so much to everyone who came out. It was a great turnout. Here are a few pictures...



=Patricia Motto will also be appearing at the Elmhurst Public Library Local Author Fair this weekend in Elmhurst. She'll be selling and signing copies of her new memoir To the Men I've Loved. Details below...

Date: Saturday, August 24
Time: 10 AM-2 PM
Address: 125 S. Prospect Ave., Elmhurst, IL 60126


Talking Bout My Generation

 =This week in 2022, Will Wagner held a great launch party for his novel Talking 'Bout My Generation at the Mt. Prospect country club. A huge enthusiastic turnout for the author who gave us a truly unique and inventive novel.


 


Last Comiskey

=The Daily Herald wrote about this appearance over the weekend.

=Additional Ken Smoller/Last Comiskey dates below

Thursday, Sept 5

 Crestwood Library 4pm

 

Thursday, Sept 5

 Riverside Library  - 7pm

 

Saturday, Sept 7 

Evergreen Park Library 10:30 am

 

Saturday, Sept 7 

Printer’s Row Lit Fest-- 3-6pm


Monday, Sept 9

ELA Area Public Library

Wednesday, September  11
Lake Villa library 


Surviving Sue

=Mark your calendars. Vicki Atkinson will also be at the Printers Row Lit Fest this year. Details below...



EveryCubEver

=One of the most enthusiastic supporters of EveryCubEver was the late great WXRT morning man Lin Brehmer (Born August 19). Here's what he said about it...

  • From the immortals to the footnotes, they’re all here. Every player has a story. An enduring fascination for any baseball fan with the curiosity to ask, hey, who were those guys?”

     

    Lin Brehmer, WXRT Radio

=Also, this week in 1996 (August 18), EveryCubEver author Rick Kaempfer took his oldest son Tommy to his first ever Cubs game. (Photographic proof below). Tommy has gone to at least one Cubs game every year since then (except the Covid year when no-one was allowed to go). An older lady saw Rick and Tommy that day in 1996 and asked: "Are you going to make him a Cubs fan?" When Rick responded in the affirmative, the old lady said: "That's child abuse." True story.



Safe Inside

=This week in 2017 (August 20), there was an article in the Cap Times about Eckhartz Press author Lee Kingsmill.

=Exactly one year later in 2018 (August 20), Lee made an appearance on WGN Radio with Rick Kogan to talk about his award-winning book Safe Inside. You can still listen to it here.



1001 Train Rides in Chicago

 =This week in 2018 (August 23), Richard Reeder had a book signing in Skokie. Among the luminaries who showed up to honor him was the Mayor of Skokie.




Behind the Glass

=A few notable birthday boys from this week are featured in the pages of Randy Merkin's sports interview book Behind the Glass. Bill Parcells (August 22), Kobe Bryant (August 23) and these guys below. John "Jurko" Jurkovic (foreground with Randy and Henry Winkler and Carmen DeFalco) and Cal Ripken Jr. (August 24)

 



National Radio Day

=August 20 is National Radio Day. We can't remember, have we ever published a book about radio?

  

 
 
 
 
 
 



The Loop Files

=Speaking of The Loop Files, one of the biggest stars in the history of the station is celebrating a birthday this week (August 19). Happy birthday to the newsman/bluesman Buzz Kilman, seen below with Dennis Hopper and Johnny B, with Johnny B, Kevin Matthews, and Danny Bonaduce, and in the old Loop studios shortly after he arrived in Chicago in 1980.




=Another Loop Files contributor, Doug Bensing, is also celebrating a birthday this week (August 18). Doug was a Steve Dahl producer after he shifted to mornings on AM 1000, and tells a truly memorable story about Jay Mariotti. It made the Chicago newspapers at the time. That's Doug below right with Loop Files author Rick Kaempfer and Eckhartz Press publisher David Stern.




Best Seat in the House

=This week in 2014, Bruce Bohrer appeared on Pete McMurray's WGN Radio show to talk about his book Best Seat in the House. 



Life Behind the Camera

=A few of our authors have had brushes with the biggest of the bigshots. That's Life Behind the Camera author Chuck Quinzio with the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton. It's Clinton's birthday this week (August 19)



We Have Company

=Another week, another slew of rock star birthdays. Naturally, We Have Company author Bobby Skafish has featured all of them in his book, Robert Plant (August 20), Joe Strummer (August 21), and Tori Amos (August 22)

 
  



Wicker Park Wishes

=This week in 2021 (August 20), Margaret Larkin's novel Wicker Park Wishes was also released as an e-book. It's still available in that format, of course.



 Cameo

=Carl Amari has a birthday this week (August 20). He was a big fan of Beth Jacobellis' Eckhartz Press novel Cameo. Here's what he said at the time...

  • Beth Jacobellis is a masterful storyteller and her latest work, “Cameo” takes us on an unforgettable journey through a powerful representation of timeless love.

    Carl Amari, Film, TV and Radio Producer



GelStrong

=August 21 is World Fashion Day. Believe it or not, we have an author who was a model, Mark Gelinas. His cancer journey is chronicled in the book GelStrong, and induced support from fellow models, including this one, wearing postcards promoting Mark's book...



Your Dime, My Dance Floor

=This week former Bears wide receiver Dennis McKinnon is celebrating a birthday (August 22). Chet Coppock wrote about Dennis in his book Your Dime My Dance Floor, but he was saving the best Dennis stories for a book he was writing with Dennis. The final draft of that book was turned in to Eckhartz Press the week before Chet died. After Chet's death, Dennis self published the book instead. It's on Amazon, if you're interested.