Publishing Portal--June 25, 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 are celebrating birthdays today. Bob Shannon (June 23) wrote the book Turn it Up for us in 2017. Roger Badesch (June 24) contributed The Unplanned Life in 2020. Happy birthday to both!

Last Comiskey

=Ken Smoller is coming back to town this coming weekend. He will be at Blue Island Brewing on June 29 selling and signing his book from 2-4pm, and then he'll be at the Windy City Thunderbolts game that same night at 6:05.

Records Truly Is My Middle Name

=This week in 2017, Eckhartz Press author John Records Landecker was named to the National Radio Hall of Fame. That led to the release of an updated version of his book, Records Truly Is My Middle Name.

=This week in 1978, John Landecker impressed his father for the first time when he appeared on NPR. You can listen to that segment here.

Best Seat in the House

=This week in 2014, Bruce Bohrer held the book launch party for this book Best Seat in the House at Tavern 60 in Mundelein. Here are a few photos from that memorable day. 

Surviving Sue

A new article about Surviving Sue and Writing for Wellness is out --featured in Happiness Between Tails by da-AL -- Writing/Tales + Tails + Culture + Compassion. Read more about that here, and congrats to Vicki Atkinson for the additional exposure.

EveryCubEver

=This week in 2019, author Rick Kaempfer appeared on Garry Meier's show on WLS to promote the book (June 24) and on-stage at the play about the Cubs, Miracle (June 27). Rick was asked to lead the crowd in "Take Me Out to the Ballgame"

=This week in 1984 (June 23), one of the most famous games in Wrigley Field history occurred. The Ryne Sandberg game. Rick was there and told the story in this Just One Bad Century video...

Signature Shoes

=Bob Vorwald is a WGN-TV legend for his many years as the producer of WGN Sports. Bob is celebrating a birthday this week (June 23). He's a big fan of Ryan Trembath's book Signature Shoes. Here's what he said about it...

• “A loose mental inventory has me concluding I’ve owned around 200 pairs of shoes in my life. None will ever stand up to the 1979 white Adidas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hi-tops I had for my last year of high school basketball. I played better (there was nowhere to go but up) knowing that I looked better. Those shoes were sweet and I thank Ryan for this fun project which sparked this memory.”

  Bob Vorwald, Director of Production at WGN-TV. Author of "Cubs Forever," "What It Means to Be a Cub: The North Side's Greatest Players Talk About Cubs Baseball," and "What It Means to Be a White Sox: The South Side's Greatest Players Talk about White Sox Baseball."

We Have Company

=Two big rock stars are celebrating birthdays this week, which means of course, that it's another good time to mention Bobby Skafish's great rock and roll interview book We Have Company. The Clash's Mick Jones (June 26) and indie-rocker Chris Isaak (June 26) both rate their own chapters in Bobby's great book. Both were interviewed by Bobby during his days at WXRT.

Everything I Know I Learned from Rock Stars

=Rocker Mick Fleetwood also has a birthday this week (June 24). Yes, he's in Bobby's book, but he's also featured in a long interview in Bill Paige's book Every I Know I Learned from Rock Stars

Your Dime My Dance Floor

=This week (June 28, 1997) is the anniversary of the infamous Tyson-Holyfield fight in which Mike Tyson bit off a chunk of Evander Holyfield's ear. Chet Coppock wrote a whole chapter about that fight in his book Your Dime My Dance Floor. This week is also the birthday of former Bear Doug Buffone (June 27). Chet and Doug were colleagues and friends. This photo is in the book. (Doug and Chet are the two in the middle)

Ike and Me and My Maggie 

=Rich King has two books available through Eckhartz Press, and former WGN-TV main anchor Mark Suppelsa (June 25 birthday) plays a role in both of them. He is featured in this photo, the night the Cubs finally won the World Series in 2016, in the book Ike and Me (second from left. Rich is on the far right)

=He also provided this endorsement of Rich's first book My Maggie

• I breezed through the pages not only engrossed in the phoenix of Rich’s ‘second life’ with his new bride, but thoroughly enjoyed traversing with him through his memorable career. A truly good man who thankfully for all us chose to tell another good story about his remarkable life.

  Mark Suppelsa, Anchor, WGN-TV News

The Loop Files

=This week in 1988 (June 25), Loop morning man Jonathon Brandmeier set an attendance record at the Poplar Creek music venue. The Chicago Tribune wrote about it at the time. That story is also featured in the book The Loop Files.

Mob Adjacent

=One of the biggest fans of the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent is former Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass, who is celebrating a birthday this week (June 25). Here's what he had to say about the book...

• “I love this book. A fascinating account. You’ve got to read this book before the movie.”

  John Kass, Chicago Tribune

Cubsessions

=The book Cubsessions is a collection of celebrity Chicago Cubs fans telling their personal stories about loving the team, and what the World Series victory meant to them. One of the stars featured in the book is former Parks & Recreation star Nick Offerman. He's celebrating a birthday this week (June 26) 

Inside Melania

=Who would have thought that this book would have a resurgence now that Donald Trump is running for president again? Well, one big fan, Joe Conklin (WIP Radio/Philadelphia) had a pretty good idea. He's celebrating a birthday this week as well (June 26). Here's what he had to say about the book...

• “Clever and hilarious.”

  Joe Conklin, WIP Morning Show

 Behind the Glass 

=For more than twenty years Randy Merkin was a sports radio producer. In that role he met a Who's Who of sports icons, including this week's birthday boy John Elway (June 28). Randy's John Elway story rates an entire chapter in the book. 

Always a Pleasure

=In recent months and years several of the greats mentioned by Chuck Swirsky in his book Always a Pleasure have passed away. One of the first was his broadcasting colleague Craig Sager.  His story lives on in the pages of Chuck's book.

Transatlantic Passage

=This week in 2021 (June 24), Paul Banks appeared on WGN Radio to talk about his book Transatlantic Passage. The book is about the popularity of the English Premier League in America. You can still listen to that interview here

 

Publishing Portal--January 2, 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.

EP News

*The Loop Files publicity tour continues

=Thanks to Pete McMurray and Steve Cochran for having me on WLS last week.

=The Chicago Writes podcast also features The Loop Files this month. 

=Thanks to everyone who bought it over the Christmas season. 

*A Peek Inside: Surviving Sue. Author Victoria Atkinson discusses the feedback she got at a recent book club event. Vicki also co-hosts a podcast called The Heart of the Matter.

*Eckhartz Press author Brent Petersen (Truffle Hunt) is featured in this month's Illinois Entertainer, talking about his podcast Destination Eat Drink.

*One of the questions I got asked quite often during my recent publicity tour: How do you choose the books you publish? We are a Chicago-based publisher, so we are looking for Chicago stories and/or Chicago authors. Our submission guidelines are posted on the website.

This Week in Eckhartz Press history

This week's look back at Eckhartz Press history gives some good examples of the type of stories and authors that we look for...

*In 2022, one of our top selling books was Chili Dog MVP, a look back at the magical 1972 White Sox season that featured the heroics of the great slugger Dick Allen. It was honored at the Book of the Year awards by the Chicago Writers Association that year.

*The Daily Herald featured the book this week in 2022.

*One of the other players featured in the book, the late Bart Johnson, was born this week in 1950.

 

*In 2012 we were a brand new company pushing our very first book. The Living Wills was a collaborative novel written by Brendan Sullivan and Rick Kaempfer using techniques we learned from the world of improv.

*We wrote it at The Catalyst Ranch, and they interviewed us this week in 2012 about our process.

*The Northwest Indiana Times also reviewed the book this week in 2012. 

*This week the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame celebrates its 10th year as a 501c3 Not For Profit. It's a great organization and we're proud to have the president and founder of the CLHOF as part of the Eckhartz Press stable of authors. Donald G. Evans wrote a wonderful collection of short stories called An Off-White Christmas.

*The notorious Chicago gangster Joey "the Clown" Lombardo was born on January 1st. Lombardo is featured in the pages of Mob Adjacent by Jeffrey and Michael Gentile. The Eckhartz Press book was a finalist for CWA Book of the Year in 2020.

 

 

*The former Chicago Daily News arts reporter (and Northwestern University professor) Jack Hafferkamp released his novel Sepsis via Eckhartz Press this week in 2017.

 

*In 2022, Eckhartz Press released Chuck Swirsky's memoir Always a Pleasure. It features some great stories about his life as a sportscaster, and some memorable photos as well. Here he is with this week's birthday boy Lou Holtz. 

*In 2018, Eckhartz Press released the final book from another great Chicago sportscaster, Chet Coppock. Your Dime My Dance Floor is a tour through the history of Chicago sports, told by someone who had a front row seat. This photo from the book features Chet with this week's birthday boy, former White Sox slugger Ron Kittle.

 

*In 2021 we released a book about all the American soccer players who had gone to play professionally in the Premier League. It's called Transatlantic Passage, and was written by Paul Banks. Here's what this week's birthday boy Dave Kerner had to say about it...

• “You’ll love reading about what it’s like to be a soccer (always going to be football to me!) fan from multiple perspectives. Thanks to Paul and this in depth look at the evolution of international soccer in the United States, in some ways negative for the men’s game, and in some ways positive for the women’s game.”

  Dave Kerner, Sports Anchor, WBBM Radio

 

And finally, this time last year I appeared on David W. Berner's podcast to tell him my New Years Resolutions. I vowed to finish a book I was writing about a certain radio station. For once, I lived up to my New Years resolution.

From the Eckhartz Bookshelf: Mob Adjacent

  With over 80 books in our library, this year we're taking some time every week to highlight one of the books on the Eckhartz bookshelf. This week's book is Mob Adjacent, by Jeffrey & Michael Gentile.

• “A fascinating book…a fascinating read. Mob Adjacent will open your eyes. The stories are true and genuine and heartfelt, and there’s a real honesty in this book.”

  Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune

• “This is my kind of Chicago story. You cannot put it down. You want a Netflix series, this is it.”

  Roe Conn, WGN Radio

Summary

Mob Adjacent: A Family Memoir takes an acid trip down memory lane as brothers Jeffrey and Michael Gentile, Jr. discover a parallel world hidden behind a suburban façade. For them, The Wonder Years collides with The Sopranos. Mobsters come to dinner, contract hits come with warning notices, and thieves deliver merchandise and people. How does something like that happen to an ordinary family?

Blame it on the company they keep. Friends and acquaintances include legendary crime boss Sam Giancana, Jackie Cerone; and an assortment of hoodlums, gangsters, bone-breakers, and second-story guys, with cameo appearances by Tony Accardo, Frank Sinatra, Leo Durocher, Jackie Gleason, Art Carney, Joan Collins, Liza Minelli, and Elizabeth Taylor. For the Gentile brothers, life at the intersection of Hoodlum and Gangster yields dividends and teaches lessons. This is their story.

Meet the Eckhartz Press Author--Mike Gentile

Now that we have such a big stable of talented authors, we're going to take some time this year to re-introduce them to you. This week it's Michael Gentile. Michael and his brother Jeffrey wrote the incredible family memoir Mob Adjacent. In 2022, the book was a finalist for Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year.

Michael Gentile Jr.

Michael Gentile was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is a buyer for a produce wholesaler at the South Water Market. Michael lives with his wife Lou Ann in Lisle, Illinois. They have five children, fourteen grandchildren, and two great grandchildren (at this count).

Meet the Eckhartz Press Author--Jeff Gentile

  Now that we have such a big stable of talented authors, we're going to take some time this year to re-introduce them to you. This week we're featuring Jeffrey Gentile. Jeff and his brother Michael are responsbile for the incredibly memorable family memoir, Mob Adjacent. It was nominated for Book of the Year in 2022 by the Chicago Writers Association.

Jeffrey Gentile

Jeffrey Gentile was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is a marketing copywriter for a global firm and the author of two novels, Love and Bullets and Time Travel for Beginners. He has a daughter and a granddaughter and lives with his husband Jeffrey Jordan in Pasadena, California.

Eckhartz Everyday

*On this day in 2018, Eckhartz Press author Alex Burkholder made a presentation at a firehouse in Chicago in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Our Lady of the Angels school fire. This Q&A with Alex gives a good primer of the book's material.

*Today is Joey "Doves" Aiuppa's birthday. The famous mobster is featured in the pages of the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent.

*On this day in 2018, William Mansfield held his launch party for the book The Scar Dance. It was a little dark, which was appropriate for the subject matter of the book.

Eckhartz Everyday

 Looks like a lot of things happened on this day...

*On this day in 2002, John Landecker brought his father's ashes to work for Take Your Parents To Work Day. Comedy ensued.

*On this day in 2014, Father Knows Nothing bonus audio tracks were released. You can still listen to them here.

*On this day in 2021, Eckhartz Press author Jim Baumann appeared on Steve Cochran's podcast.

*Today would have been Art Carney's birthday. Jackie Gleason's sidekick is mentioned in the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent.

*Today is also John Di Domenico's birthday. John is one of the foremost Trump impersonators, and gave this great review to our Melania book...

• “This book is proof that Lauren does her homework with every single aspect of her characters.”

  - John Di Domenico, Emmy Award Nominated Actor, Writer, Comedian, and Impersonator, Conan O’Brien, Trumpcast, Amazon Prime's Fake News: A Trump Story
• 
  
  
  

Eckhartz Everyday

 

*On this day in 2016, Eckhartz Press released the novel The Scar Dance by William Mansfield. It was later named a finalist for Book of the Year by the Chicago Writers Association. William did a Q&A with me the day the book came out.

*On this in 2020, Mob Adjacent co-author Mike Gentile appeared on WGN Radio to talk about his book. You can listen to that interview here.

Eckhartz Everyday

 *Today is Eckhartz Press author Jeffrey Gentile's birthday. He is the co-author of the book Mob Adjacent, another nominee for CWA book of the year.

Eckhartz Everyday

*On this day in 2014 we released I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie by Lori Oster (photo). The book is used as a textbook at Oakton College.

*Dick Biondi is 90 years old today. The Wild Itralian is featured in the pages of Bob Shannon's book Turn it Up.

*Today is also Chicago Tribune columnist/WGN Radio host Rick Kogan's birthday. Rick has been kind enough to blurb a few of our books. Here are a few of his obversations...

• Rollicking and real on so many levels, The Living Wills is a captivating collaboration by two immensely talented writers. I hope this team keeps at it for keeps.

• Records Truly Is My Middle Name is terribly astonishingly honest! A story of a generation.
• You may think you know Roger Badesch if you have listened over the years to his exact and artful news reports on radio, but between the covers of this book (The Unplanned Life) you will find so much more–a man of great depth, many passions and skills. His is a wonderful life that you can now share.
• A fascinating book…a fascinating read. Mob Adjacent will open your eyes. The stories are true and genuine and heartfelt, and there’s a real honesty in this book.

Eckhartz Everyday

*Today is Mike Gentile's birthday (Photo). Mike is the co-author of the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent.

*On this day in 2021, Eckhartz Press author Paul M. Banks appeared on WGN-TV to promote his book Transatlantic Passage.

*On this day in 2014, Eckhartz Press author Bruce Bohrer appeared at Murphy's Bleachers to do a book signing for Best Seat in the House.

*On this day in 2020, Eckhartz Press author Lauren LoGiudice (Inside Melania) got her own podcast on the Radio Misfits podcast network. It's called Reconcile the Aisle.

Eckhartz Everyday

 *Famous Chicago mobster Jackie Cerone was born on this day. He is featured prominently in the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent by the Gentile Brothers.

*White Sox great Bill Melton is also celebrating a birthday today. The second most prominent member of the 1972 White Sox is a big part of the book Chili Dog MVP.

*Radio executive John Gehron's birthday is today too. He is a contributor to Records Truly is My Middle Name, providing some great stories about Landecker from his WLS days.

Eckhartz Everyday

 

*On this day in 2020, Eckhartz Press author Janet Sutherland-Madden was featured in the Daily Herald about her book Nose Over Toes.

*Today would have been Chicago gangster Sam Giancano's birthday. Sam was featured in the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent, written by the Gentile brothers.

*One of the all-time greatest Cubs, Billy Williams, is celebrating a birthday today. Of course, he's featured in the book EveryCubEver.

Eckhartz Everyday

 *Today is WGN Morning News anchor Larry Potash's birthday. He had some nice words to say about the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent: “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.”

*Last year on this day, Dave and I were the Zoom stars of Cocktails and Conversation for the Chicago Writers Association. If you'd like to relive that appearance, it's still out there.

Eckhartz Everyday

*Today would have been Tony Accardo's birthday. The former Chicago Outfit crime boss is metioned a number of times in the Eckhartz Press book Mob Adjacent by the Gentile brothers.

*On this day in 2020, Eckhartz Press author Bill Paige (Everything I know I learned from rock stars) came to Chicago and announced an event. It was called America's Lost Soul, Unpacking Bob Dylan's Murder Most Foul. It was about the 17 minute song Dylan released during the pandemic about the Kennedy assassination.