While the kids are back in school, the Rock Island Public Library has some great options to help keep adults of all ages keep learning their whole lives. Among other options, adults can learn about the Army history of the World War II battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The free talk is presented by a historian with the Army Sustainment Command (ACS) at 2:00 pm on Wednesday, August 14 at the Rock Island Downtown Library, 401 19th Street. Also on Wednesday, August 14, the library’s genealogy series for online research continues with a video presentation by genealogist James Tanner on “Making... Read More

Chris Schlichting returns to our program to regale us with yet another hilariously embarrassing true tale of his life and misadventures. Got a funny story you want to tell? E-mail me at Sean@QuadCities.com and you too can spin your epic amusement for area ears… #Chris Schlichting, #Sean Leary Other Episodes May 17, 2019 Well… It’s a... Read More

Marvin Franzen, the genial chap in the farmer’s hat and overalls who has charmed visitors to Codfish Hollow Barnstormers while trolleying them from the parking lot to the barn on his tractor, is recovering after being involved in an accident at the barn Saturday night. The crashing of his vehicle caused Franzen to suffer two broken arms and a broken pelvis. He’s currently recovering in the hospital and is expected to be out of action for up to two months. A Go Fund Me page has been set up to help with expenses, and an outpouring of well-wishers has flocked to social media to wish the charming... Read More

The Young Emerging Writers (YEW) Summer Internship Program will host a two-part launch party for the latest issue of the Program’s literary magazine THE ATLAS on Thursday, August 15th in downtown Rock Island. The event will start at 5:00 p.m. with a Family and Friends Reception at the Rock Island Public Library Community Room. The interns will give a brief reading of their work, and the Tim Curry Outstanding Intern award will be presented to one of the interns. Then, at 8:00 p.m. the party will move down the street to Rozz-Tox, where the interns will read different selections from the magazine,... Read More

The longest-running non-musical in theater history, “Shear Madness,” is playing at Circa ’21 through September. So will your kids like it as much as you will? Sean and Jackson checked out the show and they talk about it from the different perspectives of parent and 11-year-old. #Eventures, #Shear Madness Other Episodes January 2, 2020 ... Read More

In January 2013, Tripmaster Monkey — drummer Marty Reyhons, bassist Wes Haas, guitarist Jamie Toal and singer Chris Bernat — performed at the Rock Island Brewing Company as part of the Bertual Reality Benefit, a gig to raise funds for local producer Rob Cimmarusti, who was battling pancreatic cancer and whose production and performance expertise were crucial to the creative evolution of a plethora of area acts, including the eclectic Tripmaster foursome. Cimmarusti passed away the following year, but still lives on in the memories of local musicians and people who were touched by his... Read More

Has Catfish Guy met his Mr. Glass? A buck-naked Bettendorf man, Tobias Hartsfield, 43, was busted by cops Sunday night after he was spotted engaging in dastardly activity — untying ropes on a barge near the new Interstate 74 bridge construction on the Mississippi River, according to police and media reports. According to reports on KWQC-TV6 and in the Quad City Times, eyewitnesses saw the man, naked as the day he was born, presuming that he wasn’t born in a tuxedo or leisure suit, sauntering along the barge around 7:50 p.m. as he was untying ropes and gesturing wildly in a strange, ritualistic... Read More

Back in 1994, the local band Tripmaster Monkey toured the UK to support their debut EP, “Faster Than Dwight,” playing at various locations in support of the disc, released overseas on Che Records. The footage below captures the band in performance at TJ’s, Newport, UK, and includes tracks from “Dwight” as well as the group’s then-upcoming record, “Goodbye Race.” Footage of the show can be seen on YouTube, where you can check it out here:  Read More

Pet owners love to dress their dogs up for all occasions — Halloween, Christmas, formal events, you name it. To celebrate the end of summer, area pups have the chance to compete in a doggy swimsuit competition during the Dog Dayz of Summer Beach Pawty & Dog Wash, presented by K9 Kindness Rescue, Inc.! The event will be held in the parking lot of the Davenport’s Merrill Lynch building, 4550 E. 53rd St., from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, August 10. Pups can be treated to $5-$20 dog washes depending on the size of the dog, $20 microchipping, $5 nail trims and doggy photography. The event... Read More

The Black Box Theatre opens the multiple Tony Award-winning musical Assassins. With a book by John Weideman and Stephen Sondheim’s music and lyrics the “panoramic story of our nation’s culture of celebrity and the violent means some will use to obtain it, embodied by America’s four successful and five would-be presidential assassins. Bold, original, disturbing and alarmingly funny, Assassins is perhaps the most controversial musical ever written.” Assassins presents the lives of nine people who assassinated or tried to assassinate the President of the United States. From John... Read More