Posted November 03, 2021in Feature 2
With Iowa no longer the beef capital, what are our state’s special foods? My aunt and her family visited Iowa from Oregon in the late 1950s. They wanted to eat Iowa beef at every meal. Iowa beef had such a national reputation then that it was revered from New York
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Posted October 06, 2021in Feature 2
A nearly obsessive interest in the intermingled legacies of Marshalltown native Cap Anson and Ohio native Fleetwood Walker. The 19th century realized the highwater mark for the grand theory of “intermingled destinies.” The Civil War inspired the idea. Abraham Lincoln spoke about it often. From the trenches of Shiloh and
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Posted September 01, 2021in Feature 2
Unique finds — and stories — abound. From pristine to cobweb-laden, from tidy to cluttered, from showroom to workshop, area garages run the gamut. But one thing they often have in common is that, somewhere inside — besides a family vehicle — one can find a personal treasure with a
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Posted August 04, 2021in Feature 2
Lineup is loaded with world-class live music The Iowa State Fair offers funnel cakes, butter cows, real cows, carnies, and 1-million-plus people who are watching people who are watching animals who are watching people. But the best place to put your eyeballs this August, and your ears, too, is squarely
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Posted June 30, 2021in Feature 2
This year’s class reinvigorates venerability. All these people and institutions are long overdue for honoring. The idea for the CHOICE awards originated seven years ago and was inspired by Japan’s Living National Treasures. That program honors “preservers of important intangible cultural properties.” In the years after World War II, anxiety
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Posted March 31, 2021in Feature 2
A map of Des Moines outlines the 52 official neighborhood associations chartered by the city. These groups of hard-working volunteers aim at bettering the spaces surrounding their family, friends and anyone who lives nearby. Too often, local headlines are dominated by negativity, but these salt-of-the-earth laborers deserve recognition. We hope
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Posted March 03, 2021in Feature 2
Since 1995, the top 1 percent of American farm subsidy recipients have received 26 percent of subsidy payments, and the top 10 percent have been handed 78 percent of the total. The top 1 percent of wealth earners in the country got 26 percent of those. Fifty members of the
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Posted January 06, 2021in Feature 2
For three consecutive years in the 1970s, four German friends synchronized their vacations to tour America. They would fly into New York City, rent a car and drive to Las Vegas. The only overnight stop would be at my place, usually in the middle of the country. Otherwise, they took
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Posted December 02, 2020in Feature 2
The building that is now known as Buccaneer Arena opened 60 years ago. Back then, the Des Moines Buccaneers didn’t exist. Instead, the venue housed minor league professional franchises, but by the late 1970s, the rink was vacant and struggling to attract another team. At this same time, the 1980
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Posted November 04, 2020in Feature 2
In Blake Edwards’ 1959 film “Operation Petticoat,” a devious junior officer played by Tony Curtis seizes a moment of war panic to acquire some things of value. “In chaos, there is opportunity,” he says, driving off on a looting mission. The food industry has a long history of re-invention during
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