“If you work in the media, you’re going to get fired.” My college Journalism 101 teacher said that to our eager group of 18-year-olds on my first day in his class. Great way to introduce us to his curriculum, and the business, right? He told us it wasn’t meant to be a cautionary statement, merely a pragmatic one. That’s the business. That’s media. Ownership changes, management changes, budgets get cut, formats and directions get shifted, and the people in the trenches are the ones who are usually set loose. You have to have a thick skin, a backup plan, and the ability not to take it... Read More

Today, negotiations are set to continue on another covid stimulus bill. Nancy Pelosi has said, to her credit, that she doesn’t want Congress to adjourn without another one. And, Steven Mnuchin, also to his credit, has seemed eager to likewise get a deal done. And make no doubt about it, there NEEDS to be another deal. And it NEEDS to get done before Congress goes home for a month for the window dressing of campaigning for votes during a time in which they should be earning them by actually doing something for the people whom they claim to represent. Recent numbers show as many as 60 percent... Read More

Throughout this week, we’ve been featuring stories on Quad-Cities band Einstein’s Sister, which is releasing its first record in almost two decades this weekend, during Record Store Day at CoOp Records in Moline. The band – Kerry Tucker, Bill Douglas, Marty Reyhons, Steven Volk, and Andy Brock – is releasing a double-A side single, “Standing Still” and “Begin Again,” on transparent blue vinyl. But that’s one of the only ways in which the band has been completely transparent. Throughout this week, I’ve been scanning the archives and corners of the internet for information on... Read More

There are very few shows you can deem “must see” anymore, although not as much due to their quality, as due to the fact that not many shows can truly be described as being targeted for a wide audience anymore. We live in a world that’s become increasingly fragmented and subdivided, and invariably there are few things upon which the vast majority of the population can agree. Entertainment used to be the great uniter of the people. When television began to rise to prominence in the ‘50s and ‘60s, cultural touchstones were based upon events it showcased. The Beatles on Ed Sullivan. The finale... Read More

Denny and Brett Hitchcock are the most tenacious of entrepreneurs. For over 40 years, their business, Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse, has endured a handful of recessions, booming and barren economic conditions, and, now, a pandemic. It certainly hasn’t been easy. Especially not in 2020. Both father and son have said, without hyperbole, that their business was very much in danger of going under if pandemic and economic conditions continued. However, this week, they re-opened, after several months of stress and uncertainty. They debuted a new show, “Savannah Sipping Society,” a homey comedy that’s... Read More

There’s a scene in Nick Hornby’s “High Fidelity” where the lead character, played by John Cusack, asks whether or not it’s fair to judge people largely on their music tastes. So, is it? What kind of music do you like? Who are your favorite singers? What’s your favorite song? When I was younger, particularly in high school and early college, I was inclined to judge potential friends and girlfriends in large part on their musical and pop-culture tastes. Yes, I was an entertainment snob. Hard to believe, I know. In comparing preferences in music, TV shows, movies, and books, I felt... Read More

Katy Perry didn’t just kiss a girl and liked it, she faked her own death apparently and liked that too. And why the hell not? Everyone needs a hobby. As we thankfully roll into the last quarter of this craptastic year, the conspiracy theories just keep getting weirder and weirder. Some of them are pretty harmless and dumb, like people questioning whether Netflix conspired with China to create the Coronavirus (It was that bitch Carole Baskin, idiots! Geez!), and others are more along the dangerous and irresponsible side, like, ya know, certain print publications running cover stories telling... Read More

Bullying. I revisit this subject, and this column topic, every year around this time, because every year, a new school session starts and invariably the potential for children abusing other children rises. Even this year, and maybe especially this year, due to covid-19 and the inherent pressures and stresses surrounding it, the potential for kids to lash out and hurt others is heightened. A couple years back, The Keaton bullying video went viral. It brought tears to my eyes and broke my heart. As anyone who went to junior high with me knows, I was bullied mercilessly seventh and eighth grade years.... Read More

Ever walk into your house after you’ve been away, or walk into a room and notice a strange smell? That happened this week, after the Midwest hurricane knocked three trees and multiple branches onto my house and around my yard. The power was out, my phone was out, and internet was (and still is) out, and my son and I walked around outside later that evening, after the storm had cleared, to check out the damage in our own yard and around the neighborhood. When we arrived back in the house, before dark, there was a strange smell. “Was that you?” “No, was it you?” Nope on... Read More

Things are not looking good for this fall in regard to covid-19. Numbers are spiking, the government has been pathetically inept in terms of dealing with the crisis, and the economy is once again on the verge of completely tanking. Unemployment is up, some industries are shut down through the end of the year, and others are teetering on the precipice of being shut down, maybe for good. I don’t know about you, but I’m so pessimistic I’m starting to stock up on toilet paper. That’s why it’s more important than ever to shop at your locally-owned small businesses now. Local... Read More