Publishing Portal--May 28, 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!

One of the key members of the team that brought you Chili Dog MVP is editor George Castle. George is ironically best known as the author of several excellent Cubs books, but he is also the man who introduced Chili Dog MVP authors David Fletcher and John Owens to Eckhartz Press. That book is an ode to White Sox great Dick Allen. It's George's birthday this week (May 27). Happy birthday George!

Righteous Might

=This week in 2020, Keith Conrad's novel Righteous Might was released. The science fiction thriller about time travel and the attack on Pearl Harbor is still available at Eckhartz Press. In fact, exactly one year later the audio book of Righteous Might was released as well.

Wicker Park Wishes

=This week in 2021, Wicker Park Wishes author Margaret Larkin sat down for this Q&A about her recently released book. (http://rickkaempfer.blogspot.com/2021/05/wicker-park-wishes_26.html)

Records Truly Is My Middle Name & Everything I Know I Learned from Rock Stars

=Steve Nicks celebrates a birthday this week (May 26), and she is featured in two Eckhartz Press books. John Landecker hung out with her one night at the Playboy Mansion on State Parkway in Chicago (photo below), and Bill Paige interviewed her for Illinois Entertainer, which is featured in his book of interviews, Everything I Know I Learned from Rock Stars.

The Daly News

=When Joel Daly passed away in 2020, WGN Radio posted a few of the interviews he did on their airwaves over the years. One of them was with Steve & Johnnie from this week in 2005 (May 26). You can still listen to it here. 

The Unplanned Life

=This week in 2020, Roger Badesch was making the rounds promoting his new memoir. Among his media stops, Matt Bubala's show on WGN Radio (May 26). 

Cubsessions

=A few key Cubsessions birthdays this week. Cubs announcer Pat Hughes (May 27) rates an entire chapter in the book with his account of what it was like to announce the World Series winning moment. In addition, two Cubs greats made appearances at Cubsessions book signings, Carlos Zambrano (June 1) and Randy Hundley (June 1). Both are shown in photos with Cubsessions co-author Randy Richardson below.

Life Behind the Camera

=Who wouldn't want this endorsement? It happened to Life Behind the Camera author Chuck Quinzio this week (May 27) in 2014. Yes, that is Sting.

We Have Company

=It's a big week for rock star birthdays for some reason, which means it's a big week for Bobby Skafish's book We Have Company. Three rock stars celebrating birthdays this week get the full chapter treatment in Bobby's book. Crowded House's Neil Finn (May 27), guitarist Gary Brooker (May 29), and Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood (June 1). That's Ronnie on the left, and Skafish in the middle of the photo. Bernard Fowler is on the right.

Your Dime My Dance Floor

=Chet Coppock attended every Chicago Bears opening day game for 68 years in a row. Naturally he became acquainted with the great Bears running back Gale Sayers. He writes a whole chapter about him in his book Your Dime My Dance Floor. Gale was born this week in 1943.

Always a Pleasure

=Sad news over the weekend. RIP Bill Walton.

RIP. I can’t believe I’m actually writing this on social media. I’ve known Bill for years and he was so kind and gracious to me. He invited me over to his house in the San Diego area , we talked for hours . He loved talking about John Wooden and his days at UCLA. I am so sad pic.twitter.com/2ACf8m5wkK

— chuck swirsky (@ctsbulls) May 27, 2024

=Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan obviously deals with Chicago Bulls radio play-by-play man Chuck Swirsky on a regular basis. It wasn't a big surprise that Billy also appeared in Chuck's book Always a Pleasure. It's Billy's birthday this week (May 30)

The Write City Review, Volume 1

=This week in 2018 (May 31), the Chicago Writers Association came to us and asked us to publish their literary journal. Little did we know this would just be the beginning. Since then they have asked us to publish three more! Volume 4 just came out recently.

Signature Shoes

=One of the pioneers in the world of Signature Shoes was New York Jets star quarterback Joe Namath, who is celebrating a birthday this week (May 31). He is featured prominently in Ryan Trembath's book about the celebrity shoe craze.

Monkey in the Middle

=Dobie Maxwell's incredible book about a real-life bank robbery has gotten praise from across the spectrum. One of the biggest fans is Toronto radio personality Jerry Agar (May 31 birthday boy). Here's what he said about the book...

• “It is a sad fact of the human condition that we are entertained by the misfortune of others. That is why Dobie Maxwell calls himself “Mr. Lucky.” He takes the body blows that life has dealt him and makes them into stories for your amusement. None is better than the story told here of two life-long friends – guys who counted on one another – gone wrong with bank robberies, the FBI, police lineups and all the intrigue of crime story fiction which became all too real for Maxwell. If your best friend’s actions had you in the crosshairs of the FBI, what would you do? Read the story, for Dobie’s answer.”

  Jerry Agar/Talk show host/News Talk 1010—CFRB Toronto

Truffle Hunt

=This week in 2015 (June 1), Brent Petersen made a recipe featured in his foodie novel Truffle Hunt at the farmer's market in Austin Texas...

EveryCubEver

=This week in 2021, Rick Kaempfer appeared on John Landecker's show on WGN Radio talking about the update of his book EveryCubEver. He even recites a poem he wrote for the book. Worth a listen. Of course, Rick and John go waaaay back. Here's a photo of the two them doing a live radio show together on WJMK more than thirty years ago.

Publishing Portal--April 23, 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.

Last Comiskey

=Our newest book got a teaser in the Chicago Sun Times last week. Thanks to Jeff Agrest for this mention...First-time author Ken Smoller’s “Last Comiskey,” an adaptation of Matt Flesch’s 2023 documentary, will be released in May. It serves as a companion piece, combining Smoller’s photographs from the 1990 Sox season, content from the film and new material.

=So, who is author Ken Smoller, you may ask. 

    Ken Smoller (aka “Stadium Vagabond”) is a photographer and writer based in Brookline Massachusetts, with childhood roots in Chicagoland. In over three decades of extensive traveling, he has photographed more than 2,350 stadiums in 48 states and 24 countries. His mantra is that one of the best ways to understand the culture and fabric of a place is through its sporting arenas and stadiums. Today, Ken runs the “Stadium Vagabond” blog (www.stadiumvagabond.com and on social media @stadiumvagabond) to share his photographs and stories from years of sporting adventures around the globe. When he is not at the ballpark, Ken works as a commercial real estate attorney and lives with his wife, Jaime, and two sons, Simon and Charlie. He received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan. Smoller also spent his college summers back in Chicago as a vendor at new Comiskey Park during its first three seasons, and on Sox off-days at Wrigley Field and Soldier Field. Despite living in the Boston area, his sporting loves remain the White Sox, Bears, Bulls and Blackhawks.

=This week he appeared on WCIU, The U, with Kenny McReynolds.

EveryCubEver

=April (Opening Day), May (Mother's Day), June (Father's Day) and December (Christmas) are the four busy seasons every year for EveryCubEver. Two of those are coming up soon. If Mom and/or Dad are Cub fans, the all-new 6th edition is out now!

=This week in 2019, Rick Kaempfer appeared at the Orland Park Sports Card show to sign and sell the book. Randy Richardson was also there signing and selling his book Cubsessions. That's former Cubs catching great Randy Hundley in the photo with him below.

=This week in 2023, Rick Kaempfer appeared on the Andrea Darlas podcast to talk about it.

=This week's birthday boy (April 25), former Chicago Bull Dave Corzine, has a copy of the book.

=Two other significant birthdays this week are featured in the book, Hall of Famers Hack Wilson and Rogers Hornsby. They were teammates on the Cubs and hated each other. Rick's blog will feature their book write-ups on Thursday.

=Here's one more bonus Cubs feature. A home movie from this week in 1938. 

Monkey in the Middle

=Dobie Maxell was in the news this week in 2016. The Milwaukee Journal reviewed his book Monkey in the Middle and had this to say...

    There has been talk of turning "Monkey in the Middle" into a movie. The book opens with Maxwell sharing his rough start in life, which included having a drug addict mother who abandoned him and his siblings, and a father who was in a motorcycle gang. Maxwell was separated from his siblings — they have since reunited — and raised from age 5 months by his grandparents near 20th and Hampton.
    Maxwell calls himself a dented can and, sarcastically, Mr. Lucky. But he has made a life working on the radio in Milwaukee, Chicago, Reno and Los Angeles, and in stand-up comedy, now mostly as a regular at Zanies clubs in the Chicago area. He also teaches comedy.
    Maxwell's humorous approach to life comes through often in the book, even in his exchanges with federal agents and prosecutors. "I realize you're a comedian, but this is damn serious," one of them warns him.

=Just a year later, this week in 2017, Dobie threw out the first pitch at a Brewers game in Milwaukee.

 The Loop Files

=Two events coming up. May 1, from 7-8pm at the ELA library in Lake Zurich. Reserve your slot here. Here’s what the program says…

    Author Rick Kaempfer transports you to the good ole days of radio, the 1970s and 1980s, when “The LOOP”  reigned supreme, shaking up the airwaves and grabbing listeners with a unique brand of programming unlike anything heard before. Kaempfer shares stories from his book told through the eyes of those who were actually there.

=Also, May 11 at the Pollyanna Brewing Company in Roselle. I’ll be there along with fellow ex-Loopers (like WGN-TV’s Jeff Hoover) from 3-7pm signing and selling books. If you don’t have a copy of the book yet, or you’d like your copy signed, that will be a great opportunity. We haven’t had an event in that area yet.

=Two of the contributors to the Loop Files are celebrating birthdays this week. Happy birthday to Vince Argento (April 21) and Kathy Voltmer (April 27). Both contributed stories to the oral history. In the first picture, that's Vince on the far right. He and his wife Liz are among the couples who met at the Loop and later got married, just like Rick and Bridget Kaempfer (also in the photo)

=A frequent guest on the Loop, Mayor Richard M. Daley, is also celebrating a birthday this week (April 24). That's Hizzoner in a photo with Loopers Carol Harmon, Catherine Beckman, Colleen Colleton, and Sandy Stahl.

=One last Looper from this week. Former Loop program director Bill Klaproth's birthday is April 27. That's Bill in a photo with fellow Loopers Matt Bisbee and Rick Kaempfer.

Records Truly Is My Middle Name

=This week in 1954, Joseph Nye Welch appeared at the McCarthy hearings and famously declared, "At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" That wasn't just a crucial moment in American history, it was a crucial moment in John Landecker's life. Joseph Nye Welch is the grandfather of his first wife. He tells that story in this free excerpt from Records Truly Is My Middle Name. 

 

 

Cameo

=This week in 2018, while Rick Kaempfer was down in New Orleans making Cameo available in jewelry stores that sell cameos, author Beth Jacobellis was on the Patti Vasquez show on WGN Radio talking about the book.

Always a Pleasure

=Three of the people featured in Chuck Swirsky's book are celebrating birthdays this week. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver (April 25), the late Blackhawks great Tony Esposito (April 25), and Chuck's partner on Bulls broadcasts, Bill Wenningon (April 26)

The Balding Handbook

=This week in 2013, David Stern appeared on the Mancow television show on WPWR-TV. Who did he meet there? Chicago sportscaster Mike North, shown here taunting Dave with his full head of hair.

Brandwidth

=This week in 2018, Kipper McGee appeared on the Brandstorm podcast to talk about his book Brandwidth. 

 Inside Melania

=This week is the real Melania Trump's birthday (April 26). The fake one, Melania impersonator Lauren LoGiudice was in town recently. She does the world's best Melania impersonation, and wrote a whole book about it for Eckhartz Press.

 Best Seat in the House

=This week in 2015, Bruce Bohrer made the trek into enemy territory to promote his Cubs book about his years as a Wrigley Field usher. Penny Golden interviewed him on-stage at the Beverly Arts Center.

Turn it Up

=Bob Shannon's great book about radio personalities features an entire chapter about this week's birthday boy, the late Casey Kasem. Casey also makes an appearance in the Rick Kaempfer spy thriller set in 1976, Back in the DDR.

We Have Company

=Peter Frampton (born April 22) gets the full-chapter treatment in Bobby Skafish's great memoir about his rock and roll interviews...

Hospital, Heal Thyself!

=Congratulations to author Mark Taylor. We signed him to a deal at Eckhartz Press a few months ago, and his book was selling very well on our site. So well, in fact, that it caught the eye of a big publisher. When we sign our authors they maintain the copyright to their work, and we agree in advance that we won't hold them back if they get a better opportunity. That's what happened with Mark. He was very grateful for all we did for him...

“I was feeling pretty destitute when a friend referred me to Chicago’s Eckhartz Press in 2023. My first and only book, “Hospital, Heal Thyself,” had been rejected for several years by scores of publishers and book agents. They said it didn’t neatly fit into a marketing niche. Admittedly, it was a tough sell: part biography of Eugene Litvak, a math genius and Soviet émigré-turned- healthcare innovator, part jeremiad railing against a broken healthcare delivery system. But the very qualities that other publishers shied away from, Eckhartz Publisher David Stern embraced. He and his talented professional staff helped me to get my book into better shape and published it in early 2024.  

By mutual agreement, I maintained ownership of the copyright to my book. So when a large international publisher expressed interest in producing “Hospital, Heal Thyself” for a wider national audience, Eckhartz and Stern could not have been more supportive. He was kind, generous and totally helpful, a writer’s dream!  A few weeks later John Wiley & Sons, a publisher with deep contacts in business, academia and foreign language markets, agreed to publish my book. That never would have happened without Eckhartz’ help. I’m so grateful to David Stern and the Eckhartz staff for their support and assistance.”

 =Mark Taylor, April 2024    

Publishing Portal--January 16, 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!

=Eckhartz Press author Bob Boone is celebrating a birthday this week. Bob wrote the wonderful collection of short stories known as City U. Fellow author Richard Reeder captured Boone's talent this way... “Bob Boone has the unique knack of finding the uncommon in so-called common people. The dialogue of his characters always rings true, never mincing words. Boone is a master of twists and turns in his stories, always keeping his readers thoroughly engaged.”

 *Joe Jackson vs. Chicago American League Baseball Club

=Great article this week in The Daily Herald about our recent book. The book is the long-lost transcript of the Shoeless Joe trial from 100 years ago. Thanks so much to writer Steve Zalusky for highlighting it. 

*The Loop Files

=Come on out this weekend! Details below...

*Hugh Hefner's First Funeral and Other Tales of Life and Death in Chicago

=This week in 2017, the Chicago Writers Association named Pat Colander's Eckhartz Press book as the CWA Book of the Year.  This is a photo of Pat the night she accepted the award.

=That same week the Chicago Tribune gave the book an incredibly positive review.

=We are so happy she got to experience that. Less than a year later Pat passed away.

 

*Out the Door!

=This week in 2018, Eckhartz Press author M.L Collins also accepted her award for CWA Book of the year for the zany/off-beat novel Out the Door! Eckhartz Press publishers Rick and Dave were on hand to help her celebrate. 

*Chili Dog MVP

=In 2022, Chili Dog MVP was also honored by the Chicago Writers Association. The book is about the 1972 White Sox and two of them are celebrating their birthdays this week.

*EveryCubEver

 =In 2019, the Eckhartz Press book EveryCubEver was also a finalist for CWA Book of the year. People always ask me to guide them to some of the more interesting entries in this voluminous book. There are two Cubs born this week in history that certainly lived memorable lives. Check out the entries for Hank Gornicki and Dizzy Dean. 

*The Daly News

 =Martin Luther King Jr. was born this week in history. One of our authors not only knew King, he got the opportunity to interview him on television. Joel Daly tells that story in the pages of The Daly News.

*Surviving Sue

=Vicki Atkinson is teaching a course at Harper College, inspired by the experience of writing Surviving Sue. Details are here.

=Don't forget about Vicki Atkinson's upcoming free workshop...

*Always A Pleasure

=This week last year Chuck Swirsky made an appearance at The Windy City Bulls, and signed copies of his book Always a Pleasure. Two of the many basketball legends who appear in the book are celebrating birthdays this week, former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau and Bulls player Dwayne Wade

 *The Living Wills

 =This week in 2012 the authors of our first book The Living Wills made an appearance on the WGN-TV Midday News. It was the first of many TV appearances by Eckhartz Press authors. 

*1001 Train Rides in Chicago

=Rarely has an interviewer and interviewee hit it off as quickly as Eckhartz Press author Richard Reeder and TV personality Rabbi Doug. This interview is from this week in 2019.

*Close Encounters of a Chicago Kind

=Vicki Quade is famous in Chicago for her theater work, but she also penned a witty Eckhartz Press book Close Encounters of a Chicago Kind about her everyday encounters with Chicagoans. I love the way she organized the stories by location. For instance, an entire chapter is about her experiences in the post office. This might be good week to read that chapter. The first U.S Postmaster, Benjamin Franklin, was born on January 17.

 *Behind The Glass

=Another Eckhartz Press TV appearance happened this week in 2022. Randy Merkin appeared on ABC-7 in Chicago to talk about his book Behind the Glass.

*Ike and Me

=This week in 2016, TV sportscaster (and Eckhartz Press author) Rich King announced his retirement from television. At the time he had already written two books for Eckhartz Press (My Maggie, Back in the Game). His retirement allowed him to write one more. Ike and Me was a finalist for CWA Book of the Year in 2022.

*Transatlantic Passage

 =We have two books about soccer in the Eckhartz Press library. One is called Grun Weiss Vor! and the other is Transatlantic Passage. That second book is about the Premier League in England. Author Paul Banks was lucky enough to get to speak to some legends, including this week's birthday boy Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.

*Back in the DDR

=The coming of age novel was hot off the presses when the news about David Crosby's death hit the wires. Because Crosby was one of the people referred to in the book, I published an excerpt of the book (about Crosby) this week last year

 *Cubsessions

 =Cubsesessions is a book about celebrity and die-hard Cub fans, and what Cubdom means to them. One of the featured fans was the Bleacher Preacher Jerry Pritikin, seen below at the book launch party with Eckhartz Press publisher David Stern. His birthday is this week.

=Another contributor to the book was Pat Brickhouse, widow of Hall of Fame broadcaster Jack. She not only contributed to the book, she contributed to our website justonebadcentury.com. Unfortunately Pat passed away this week in 2022.

 *Safe Inside

 =This week in 2017, Dave and I had breakfast with Lee Kingsmill and made the deal to publish his outstanding novel/memoir Safe Inside. Our faith in Lee was rewarded when the book was named as a finalist for CWA Book of the Year in 2018.