Erik Larson, one of the most popular history authors writing today, has picked the sinking of the Lusitania as his next study. The centennial of the Great War began last year, so the examination of the events that drew America into the war is very timely. As is his style,
Read More →In a day and age when it seems like so much music is subjected to autotune, digital enhancement and computer generation, it can be therapeutic to dip back into a simpler time. That is where Ev Nau and the Pride of Iowa Barbershop Chorus come in. The Barbershop Harmony Society
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Posted April 22, 2015in Locker Room
This week marks the 106th annual Drake Relays, and as Drake Relays Director Brian Brown has declared, “The Sky Is The Limit.” Some of the finest athletes in the world will descend upon Des Moines on April 22 and continue through April 26. “Nearly every elite athlete comments on the
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Posted April 22, 2015in Cover Story
Few people can say they have sustained two broken thumbs, a broken ankle, a badly bruised knee and multiple concussions and then finish by saying that they’ve been pretty fortunate in their careers. But bull riders are not like “average” people. They spend most of their lives training every day
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Posted April 22, 2015in Belly Up To...
Cradled by the booming arms of Des Moines, Snusville is a homey town where everyone knows everyone. It’s like when you call a friend to tell him or her about your new promotion on the way home from work, and by the time you arrive, people are already celebrating your
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Posted April 22, 2015in Political Mercury
When Bill Northey reads about California’s historic water-shortage problems he thinks of cows. Not cows for California. But cows for Iowa’s dairy industry. Northey, Iowa’s secretary of agriculture, tells Political Mercury that he’s been having conversations with Iowa ag businesspeople about possible ways the Hawkeye State could take advantage of
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Posted April 22, 2015in Film Review
When you start talking about the disappearance of Johnny Gosch, it can be difficult not to start sounding like a conspiracy theorist. The fact that a young boy could be taken from a street in the middle of West Des Moines and disappear so completely is odd enough. Add in
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Posted April 22, 2015in Food Dude
Chefs complain that Des Moines diners are resistant to change. If a restaurant replaces a dish or alters a recipe, someone will complain. In this environment, any change of ownership at traditional establishments comes with customer anxiety. In the last year-and-a-half, La Pena, Chuck’s, Tally’s, The Radish and the Des
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Posted April 22, 2015in Center Stage
John Viars, in his director’s notes for “Around the World in 80 Days,” says he’s sorry his show doesn’t have a balloon. The balloon was a feature of the 1956 movie, and the Playhouse actually uses one in its ads. Still, I don’t think Viars has to apologize. His choreography
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Iowa’s Straw Poll and Caucus: dream or nightmare?
The Iowa dream of homespun democracy now seems like more of a nightmare of electoral folly. The notion of grassroots selection of presidential candidates — thanks to the Iowa caucuses — is pretty much bankrupt. It has given way to billionaires with more money than they know what to do
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