The latest news from Eckhartz Press, and a chance to peek into some of the great previous offerings from our humble little publishing company.
=Ken Smoller is coming back into town TONIGHT (November 17) and he's bringing a box of his award winning book Last Comiskey along with him. Come out, buy one, and get it autographed! He'll be at Kaiser Tiger (1415 W. Randolph in Chicago), from 6-8pm.
=Jim Slusher is making another library presentation tomorrow night (November 18) at Vernon Area Public Library. (More info here) His speech is entitled, "News Media Truth and Trust", and it couldn't be more timely. Of course, he'll also be signing and selling his book To Nudge the World which has been named a finalist this year for CWA Book of the Year.
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Ken Korber
=Coming soon, another Eckhartz Press-related film (our 5th!). Ken Korber sent us this little tidbit this week...VERY excited to share that my children's book characters, Grace & Friends, are now part of a 2026 film adaptation project… Stay Tuned (literally). More to share soon.
= All of Ken's Grace & Friends books are available at Eckhartz Press. For instance, the E-Street Band guitarist Little Steven Van Zandt collaborated with Eckhartz Press and Ken Korber to put out Grace's Rockin' Roll Adventure. Here's what the subject of the book, who happens to be celebrating a birthday this week (Nov 22), had to say about it...
“We’ve reached hundreds of thousands of students with our free online curriculum, but we know there are kids without devices or good wifi, and that even if they have both, that remote learning is hardest on the youngest students. That’s why we’re doing this book the old-fashioned way, on paper!”
=Speaking of movies, this week in 2021 (November 17), Chili Dog MVP writers John Owens and Dr. David Fletcher got some great news about their book. Robert Feder reported the news in the Daily Herald...
A new book about the late Chicago White Sox legend Dick Allen has just been optioned for a documentary film. Chili Dog MVP: Dick Allen, The 1972 White Sox and a Transforming Chicago, soon to be published by Chicago-based Eckhartz Press, was written by John Owens and Dr. David Fletcher and edited by veteran sportswriter, baseball historian and author George Castle. (Here is the link to order.) “We look back at this unique time in Chicago history, when the arrival of a controversial slugger lifted the Sox out of a daunting hole and united a fractious fan base during a time when Chicago was going through tremendous changes,” said Owens, a longtime producer and president of the Chicago/Midwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
=That film is currently in post-production, and is going to be released in 2026, along with a new and updated Hall of Fame edition of Chili Dog MVP. This is the trailer for the movie.
=Last week Nick Digilio appeared on the Minutia Men Celebrity Interview podcast to talk about his book. You can listen to that here.
=He also had his first event where he was signing and selling the book, at the Lake Theater in Oak Park. Thanks to everyone who came out to meet Nick and see the movie he picked out to show everyone, Body Double, by Brian DePalma. Nick signed copies of his book before and after the film. Here are a few photos.
=Your chance to meet Jeff Reiter is coming up. He'll be at Faith Lutheran Church in Glen Ellyn on Sunday November 23rd. Copies of the book The Best of Words on Birds are available at the church office there, but he will be signing and selling them at the forum he is hosting that day entitled Consider the Birds of the Air.
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=Rick Kaempfer, author of The Loop Files, finally went to the Museum of Broadcast Communications exhibit he curated about the Loop. The exbibit runs until the end of January. The Loop Files is available for sale in the gift shop there. Eight other Loop-related books are on display as well, including books by Mitch Michaels, Bobby Skafish, Chet Coppock, Tony Fitzpatrick, John Records Landecker, Larry & Carl Rosenbaum, Dan McNeil, and Chuck Swirsky.
=One of the biggest stars in Loop history, Steve Dahl, is celebrating a birthday this week (November 20). Happy birthday to the Radio Hall of Famer. Here's a few bonus pictures of Steve (with Jim Belushi and John Belushi) that didn't make it into the book. (Photos by Paul Natkin)
=Bob Conlon has been out there hustling, promoting his new book. This coming weekend he will be at the Irish Books Arts & Music Festival at the Irish American Heritage Center, 4626 N. Knox Avenue in Chicago.
=In a few weeks, he'll be making an appearance on Fox-32 television in Chicago. Tune in on December 1st at 10:20AM.
=The reviews keep coming in. People love this story. This one comes from a reader named Herm...
"An exquisite masterpiece in my opinion. My grandfather closely mirrored Tim's journey (minus the bars, booze, and brothels--I think). He came here from Italy in 1906 at 16 years old with $5 in his pocket, started a trucking company with horses and had 10 kids during the depression. Even before reading the book, I always regretted not digging more into my grandfather's story like Bob did. I thoroughly enjoyed Celtic Knot."
=One of the major plot points of the Doug E. Jones novel Take Me Back to Chicago revolves around the difficulty in obtaining tickets to see the Bozo show. (It takes place in 1974). Turns out the Bozo show is also featured currently at the Museum of Broadcast Communications. You can even play the Grand Prize Game...
=Doug will be in town on December 6th and will be hosting his own book signing at Sketchbook Brewing Company in Skokie, Illinois at 5pm.
Happy Birthday!
=Randy Richardson has written three books for Eckhartz Press, Cheeseland, Lost in the Ivy, and Cubsessions. This week is his birthday (November 21). Have a great one, Randy!
=Fellow author Robert Walker is also celebrating a birthday this week (November 17). Here's what Walker had to say about Randy's novel Cheeseland...
Cheeseland’ is a novel that touches the reader; a novel about life, death, and how we choose to live our lives…how we want the dash between the dates on our tombstone to resonate.
=There are also two Flip Side related celebrations this week. Tommy Shaw did an in-store appearance at The Flip Side this week in history (November 19), but more importantly, Flip Side's Mr. Cheap, Jeff Schwartz has a birthday this week (November 23)
Close Encounters of a Chicago Kind
=Vicki Quade sent us a note this week about her latest upcoming show...I'm performing my hit comedy, Christmas Bingo: It's a Ho-Ho-Holy Night!, at the Irish American Heritage Center in Chicago for one night only, December 18. It's part of my new Nuns4Fun, Late Nite Catechism series rebranding. To order tickets, go online to: https://irish-american.org/event/christmas-bingo-its-a-ho-ho-holy-night You can also call the Nuns4Fun office at (773) 388-0730.
=This week in 2022 (November 22), Rick Kogan wrote a wonderful piece in the Tribune about Vicki Quade and her Eckhartz Press book Close Encounters of a Chicago Kind. You can read it here. (Photo: Rick Kogan and Vicki Quade)
=Truffle Hunt has gone international. Author Brent Petersen explains...
=This week in 2021 (November 18), Randy Merkin had his book launch party as well. In his case it was a Who's Who of Sports Radio that attended. Here's a sampling of them...Jonathan Hood, Tom Waddle, Marc Silverman (with Eckhartz Press co-publisher Rick Kaempfer).
=Dan McNeil had a nice moment a year ago this week when he finally got to hold that first copy of his book in his hand.
=This week last year was Eric Litt's book launch party in Skokie. Great crowd. Enthusiastic support for a fun book about movies you might have missed the first time around. (Photo: Eric and Eckhartz Press co-publisher David Stern)
=Eric also joined Minutia Men to discuss his book. Fun interview is here.
=Are you part of a book club? Remember that most Eckhartz Press authors are happy to come to your book club if it can fit into their schedules. For instance, To the Men I've Loved author Pat Motto did a book club recently. There's nothing like getting a chance to speak to the author directly.
=One of the men mentioned in Patricia Motto's book To the Men I've Loved is former White Sox (and later Cub) player Jay Johnstone. (Jay was born this week-- November 20, 1945). This photo of Pat with Jay and Wilbur Wood is in the book. Note the autograph from Jay...
Staying Alive is a Lot of Work
=Last year author Pat Camalliere was interviewed by David W. Berner for his podcast The Writer's Shed. Pat has transcribed the conversation here on her blog.
=This week in 2013 (November 18), Chuck Quinzio had the book launch party for his book Life Behind the Camera. A Who's Who of Chicago television news attended the function in Mount Prospect. Here's a sampling of them...Dane Placko, Dick Kay, Joanie Lum, Paul Meinke, Phil Rodgers.
=Chuck also gets a shout out from Deborah Norville on this week's episode of Minutia Men Celebrity Interview (posts on Wednesday)
=This week in 2016, Bobby Skafish was on the road promoting his book We Have Company. He made an appearance on the Northwest Side of Chicago (November 17), and also traveled to his home state of Indiana (November 19).
=This week in 2015 (November 23), Pat Colander had a book signing at her friend Bruce Elliot's great bar, Old Town Ale House. If you've never been, you owe yourself a visit. The artwork on the walls is all original work by Bruce himself. You can see a sampling of it behind Lois Berger, Pat Colander, and Bruce Elliot in the photo below...
=This week (November 18), Cubs radio announcer (and former Cub) Ron Coomer is celebrating a birthday. A few years ago he was kind enough to invite Eckhartz Press authors Rick Kaempfer and Bobby Skafish into the booth during a game. This photo is now in the book, EveryCubEver...
=This week in 2017 (November 19), Mitch Michaels appeared at the Chicagoland Record Show to promote his book Doin' The Cruise. Who did he run into there? Fellow author, rock star Jim Peterik. Jim is actually mentioned in Mitch's book. Small world.
=This week in 2019, Larry Potash from Channel 9 did an entire feature about Mob Adjacent authors Michael & Jeff Gentile for his show Back Story. You can still see it here.
“Normally we can experience organized crime from a safe distance, from the page or screen – for the Gentile brothers, the action was right before their childhood eyes.”
=The best quarterback in Chicago history, Sid Luckman, was born this week (November 21) in 1916. He was a frequent guest on Chet Coppock's radio show, so naturally when it came time for Chet to write a book, Sid was one of the featured athletes.
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=This week in 2011 (November 22), Robert Feder wrote a piece in Time Out Chicago about our first book ever, The Living Wills. This is what he wrote...
“Two former Chicago radio producers, Rick Kaempfer and Brendan Sullivan, have co-written The Living Wills, a novel about “a split-second decision made 30 years ago and the ripple effects it caused.” Harnessing the power of collaborative creativity, the two improvised the book’s three interweaving story lines. Set for release December 1 by Eckhartz Press, it’s available online at eckhartzpress.com. Kaempfer, whose previous novel, $everance, was a brilliant satire about the radio business, also writes an impressive series of blogs, including the Chicago Radio Spotlight.”
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=Illinois Congressman Sean Casten is celebrating a birthday this week (November 23). Sean has met with Eckhartz Press author Janet Sutherland to talk about her support of Brain Aneurysm research. Casten even gave Janet an award at last year's Brain Aneurysm walk.
=This week in 2022 (November 23), The Northwest Indiana Times featured Chuck Swirsky and his Eckhartz Press book, Always a Pleasure. You can read it here.
Records Truly Is My Middle Name
=Every Baby Boomer can tell you exactly where they were and what they were doing on November 22, 1963, the day that John F. Kennedy was assassinated. John Landecker is no different. He tells the story in his book Records Truly Is My Middle Name. Here's the free excerpt from the book.
