The latest news from Eckhartz Press, and a chance to peek into some of the great previous offerings from our humble little publishing company.
Rest in Peace
=Eckhartz Press author Alex Burkholder passed away this weekend at the age of 84. Alex wrote the incredibly well researched book Death of the Angels, which was about the famous Our Lady of the Angels fire in 1958. At our first meeting, Alex arrived with a box of cassettes filled with interviews of dozens of people who were there the day of the fire. It was really a life-long passion of his to get to the bottom of that tragedy. He finally did it with the publication of his book in 2018, on the 60th anniversary of the fire.
=Alex Burkholder was born and raised in Chicago. He received a Master Degree in Journalism from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. During his younger years Alex rode on Chicago Fire Department apparatus and helped fight fires. Alex began his forty-six-year career in journalism with Chicago’s Lerner Newspapers in 1962. Next he moved to WGN Radio and Television News for twenty-one years. That experience was followed by twenty-four years at ABC7 Chicago mainly as an investigative producer and recipient of an Emmy Award. He was a founding member of the Fire Museum of Greater Chicago. He was also a heck of a guy. Alex will be missed.
Happy Birthday!
=Four Eckhartz Press authors are celebrating birthdays this week. Happy birthday to We Have Company author Bobby Skafish (September 17), Life Behind The Camera author Chuck Quinzio (September 17), Behind the Glass author Randy Merkin (September 17) and Patty & The Stump co-author Tim Clue (September 20).
=The book launch party for our latest book (To Nudge the World by Jim Slusher) is coming soon. Mark it on your calendar. Jim will be there signing books, schmoozing with the fans, and doing a reading from the book. If you are a Daily Herald reader, you know Jim's name. If you are a Daily Herald fan, you just might run into a Who's Who from the newspaper. Plus, they have great food and drinks at Mrs. P & Me. Worth your while if you have the time...
=The Chicago Tribune had a nice mention of Ken Smoller's book this past weekend.
=Co-author Randy Richardson keeping abreast of Cubbie World...
Back in the Game
=This week in 2014 (September 15), Rich King staged a launch party for his second book, Back in the Game. It was a star-studded party at Volare in Chicago. The book is no longer in print (because Rich has a newer one out now--Ike & Me), but it had a good run. Do you recognize any of the attendees below? (Mark Suppelsa, Jackie Bange, Jerry Reinsdorf, Johnny Morris are a few of them)
Records Truly Is My Middle Name
=This week in 2013, legendary WLS morning man Don Wade passed away. Don was a kind contributor to Records Truly Is My Middle Name. He told some stories about John Landecker, and Landecker in turn, told some stories about Don. Those are presented here as a free excerpt from the book. Below is a photo of Don (on the right) during his days at WIBG-Philadelphia.
=Five different people who rate a full chapter in Randy Merkin's book Behind the Glass are celebrating birthdays this week. Former Bulls coach Phil Jackson (September 17), college baskeball coach Rick Pitino (September 18), movie star/television star Bill Murray (September 21), former Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville (September 15, photo below), and baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg (September 18, photo below).
=This week in 2019 (September 15), Eckhartz Press was out in force for the Brain Aneurysm 5K. It's a yearly event to support brain aneurysm research. Considering that a portion of the proceeds from Janet Sutherland's book went to the same cause, and that Janet was deeply involved in the organization, and that Janet's book was about her own recovery from a ruptured brain aneurysm, it seemed like a no-brainer.
=Helmut Schoen was the coach of the West German men's national team that won the World Cup in 1974. The following year he visited a touring group of Green White Soccer Club players barnstorming through West Germany. The photo of that meeting is part of the great history of the club, and is obviously included in the book...and below. Helmut was born this week (September 15) in 1915.
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=As long as we're talking about soccer, America's best soccer player Christian Pulisic is featured in Paul Banks' book Transatlantic Passage. Paul even got close enough to snap this picture of this week's birthday boy (September 18)
I have known Chet for nearly forty years going back to my rookie season with the Bears in 1980. He is truly a great guy, whose sports knowledge is just amazing. You will love this book! Chet Coppock is a great friend and one heck of a great person.
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Ken Korber
=This is a photo of Eckhartz Press author Ken Korber (center) along with Eckhartz Press publishers Rick Kaempfer (left) and David Stern (right). Each are holding a cover of one of Ken's seasonal books. Notice the one they aren't holding. Kind of ironic considering the first day of Fall is this week (September 21)
=The book is primarily about White Sox great Dick Allen, but because the book chronicles the entire 1972 White Sox season, it also includes at least a passing mention of every single player who played for the Sox that year. Including these two...Lee "Bebe" Richard (born September 18) and Rich Morales (born September 20). Richard sadly passed away a few weeks ago (August 6, 2024).
Close Encounters of a Chicago Kind
“Call Vicki Quade the anti-quotidian. There is nothing ‘everyday’ about her experiences, her interactions and especially her keen, well reported observations. She is an oddity magnet. More odd things unfurl before her on almost every outing than happen to most of us in a season–funny things, sad things, sometimes even dangerous things, or just plain odd things. That’s in part because she is a hyper-curious buttinsky, often launching conversations with strangers our mothers warned us against, emerging with priceless stories and anecdotes. You will find yourself amazed, amused or just drop your jaw but it’s all true. I swear it is.”
