“Hey, have you ever heard the one . . .” And that’s how it would usually begin. With a mischievous grin, a conspiratorial wink, and then that little aside, voiced down as if imparting some ribald secret, which, let’s face it, he usually was. That’s how Ed “Jonesy” Jones would greet me pretty much every time I walked in to Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse in downtown Rock Island. Jonesy shuffled off to that spotlight in the sky on Tuesday, at age 92. He’d been retired from Circa for a few years, since 2014, although he was sorely missed. Jonesy was always one of my favorite elements... Read More

And here you have them, the TOP TEN stories of the year, 2019. There were obviously a lot of big stories this year, but, these are the ten that we picked to have the biggest impact and resonance. Why did we pick these stories? A couple of them involved incredible achievements by local groups of people, achievements that are rarely accomplished by groups on the local level. Some of those involved achievements by groups of kids, which make them even more impressive, and also leave the possibility for even greater resonance later on down the line as those children grow and mature and work towards... Read More

Welcome to our countdown of the top entertainment, sports and features stories of 2019! All year and every year, we at QuadCities.com strive to give you the best in free, fun, local entertainment, features and sports, and this year was no different! Every day we put out the best in articles, podcasts and video shows for you without any paywalls, pop-ups, surveys or anything else but info and fun, and that’s going to rock on into 2020. So, how was the year for you? For us here at QuadCities.com it was a fantastic 365, and for the local entertainment scene, it was certainly one of strange characters,... Read More

With the doldrums of winter weather upon us, there’s a need now more than ever for some journalistic sunshine in our lives, and you’ve come to the right place! Every month we look at some of the great positive news going on around the Quad-Cities, and, in partnership with KWQC-TV6’s “Paula Sands Live,” we shine the spotlight on the GOOD news in the area! Let’s get started!   Like, OMG Becky, We HAVE To Go To This Fest! Crafted QC will be hosting its sixth indie arts festival, OMG Beckyfest, Friday, December 6, 6-9 PM and Saturday, December 7, 10 AM-4 PM,  in the Great Hall of... Read More

The Midwest Monster Fest is returning from the not-so-dead! The event dedicated to horror films, shows and pop culture will be offering a Monstrous good time Sept. 5-6 2020 at a new venue — The Rust Belt, 533 12th Avenue, East Moline! The Midwest Monster Fest is a predominantly horror, but also some general pop culture, convention. QuadCities.com is proud to be a sponsor of the event! For more info see Midwest Monster Fest  Read More

The latest Illinois Youth Soccer rankings just came out today, and the EMSSC Spartans U12 team has leapt into the top ten, at the number 9 ranking! The team is 16-3 and has only lost to teams ranked in the top three from Illinois and Missouri. Last weekend, they finished second at the Peoria Oktoberfest after a thrilling 4-3 loss to Peoria, which was ranked #1 last year and is in the top three this year, but the road to the championship game included wins against three teams ranked in the top 15 and two in the top 10. The team includes Lawson Zulu, Connor Wehr, Baylor Smith, Elijah Nache, Xavier... Read More

In March 2018, national film writer Connie Corcoran Wilson had the opportunity to interview former Quad-Cities filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods for her blog, http://www.weeklywilson.com. Connie currently regularly contributes to QuadCities.com and has offered us the chance to run her interview with them here. Two Q-C natives, Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, won over the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, this weekend as the film they wrote, “A Quiet Place,” opened the festival and wowed audiences. The duo began making films as teenagers in Bettendorf, moved on to create a number of short films... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Four score and seven scones ago… an area breakfast consumer’s lemon poppy seed loaf has been discovered to look remarkably like the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. Honest! The sweet treat, emancipating one fortunate breakfast seeker from hunger this morning, was spared mid-nosh by the imbiber, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of enormous jealousy on the part of anyone whose breakfast did not resemble one of the greatest leaders this country has ever known. “It’s a good thing,” the unidentified area man said, “I was... Read More

Zipping around the track in a savage ballet, following intuitive patterns as their bodies crash into each other, the women engage, again and again. Muscles sore, sweat dripping from their skin, they push hard, ever forward, a tangle of arms and legs, as through the cacophony, two lithe figures weave between the jigsaw of effort, until they reach an open space, and they sprint, faster, faster, on four wheels driven by long legs, luscious machines of fury. This, is roller derby. This, Quad Cities Rollers Roller Derby, will open its thirteenth season this weekend with a tough opening bout that... 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