C O N T E N T S
I was a full-time journalist for 10,000 afternoons. That's 27 years, but I take its measure by the clock, because it's the afternoons, with their looming deadlines, that come back to me now when I think of that life.
Breathing Like
HOUDINI
A M E M O I R
'Sinking with a metallic,
rattling scrape into
one of the folding
chairs around the
seance table,
I realize I’m
breathing
like him.
Which is to say
not breathing
at all.
'“Let’s bring him
back today,”
someone
says.
'“Yes,” I say.
“Let’s."'
search engine
A cop's relentless pursuit of the missing
Tours of the author's house draw their power
from the view that inspired Moby-Dick
CEOs must now overcome COVID inertia
A town's fears shift from grizzlies to terrorists
Roadside inns still have a place - for now
The peculiar Sadness of Overtime
A dying coach shows his team one more tomorrow
A Memorial Day story
Why work in the mines with a college degree?
A haunted artist, the woman he loved, and a city that misplaced a three-ton sculpture
rite honors things
found in loss
The death of a college student unites Chicago in grief
school shootings steal rural innocence
What happened in West Paducah
BlackDog A B l o g
Black Dog
A BLOG
Black Dog
A BLOG
C O N T E N T S
What was this man
thinking?
The enduring mystery of Picasso's Chicago sculpture.
PARTNERS IN PERIL
A story in four parts
NIGHT AT THE OLD MOTEL
Roadside inns of past still have place in America
HAUNTED BY HERMAN MELVILLE
Tours of the author's home draw their greatest power from the view that inspired Moby-Dick
REVOLUTION, REVELRY, AND RAGS
In Chicago, interest in Vietnam War fades, but memories linger
LOSING ESTELLE
A haunted artist, the woman he loved, and a city that misplaced a three-ton sculpture
HIS BLOOD RUNS COAL
Even with a college degree, Phil Walker prefers his black-collar job in the mines
THE RETURN OF PRIVATE LYNCH
A war hero comes home
AU REVOIR, RENOIR
In which the artist paints a picture of Chicago
A VACANCY, AND A VOID, ON MAIN STREET
The death of Woolworth's
BLAZING A TRAIL THROUGH LOST CHICAGO
Bearing Witness, Saying Goodbye
Angel Won’t Let Slain Boy be Forgotten
After 25 Years in U.S., Hmong Still Isolated
Back in the Air after 9/11
Chicago’s Picasso Hits the Big Three-Oh
City of New Orleans Rolls on Despite Tragedy
Taking America’s Pulse in Sears Tower
Confederate Flag Still Can Draw Blood
God’s Soldier Works Gang Battlefield
High-Speed Train Passes Rail Test
Killings Steal Rural Innocence
This Good, Black Earth
Mullen Faces Man Who Shot, Paralyzed Him
Mystery Gone, But Not Disbelief
Neighbors Relieved Gacy Dig Is Over
No Family But Many Tears for Stillborn
On Frigid Dawn, a Baby Found Frozen at Church
Pressures of college life can be deadly
The Sweaty Sociologist
Town Waits, Prays for a Lost Marine
Town’s Focus on Ball, Not September 11
Tiny Town Resists Stamping Out Post Office
Train Wreck Still Haunts Survivor
Undercurrent of Unease on the Mississippi
Veterans Breathe Life into War Tales
‘We are not free’
With Big John, Rock Not a Hard Place
Reward Dispute Keeps Tragedy Alive
Rites Honor Something Found in Death
Sad, Short, Perplexing Life of a Whiz Kid
Sailors Recall WWII Nightmare
School Tries to Soften World’s Hard Edges
September 11 Emotions Pour Out Anew
Shifting Away from Summer, Back into Grind
Statue Still Closed to Visitors
Stylish Woman Goes in Style
Reward Dispute Keeps Tragedy Alive
Teen Girl’s Slaying Entangled in Politics
A Dirty Job, But They Do It
City Pumps Up Crews Down Under
A Hero Cop’s Final Hours
Chicago’s Cops Learn Fast During Slow Times
For Coal Workers, Rewards Come with Risks
For Down-Home Voter Appeal, Find a Nickname
For Mullen, It’s Peace at Last
God Was this Con-Artist’s Cover
God’s Soldier Works Gang Battlefield
Where Horror And Heroism Prevailed
Heavy Workload, Heavy Heart
Kentucky, Too, Deserves Reds
Channeling Outrage
Cool Stuff
Soul of a Structure
The Last Song of Jimmy Dean
Officer Gathered Cash, Then His Thoughts
The Undertaker and Sergeant McDonald
The Secrets Safe-Deposit Boxes Keep
To the
Potmobile!
'Gateweed' Galbraith saves the day
