In the summer of 1820, as he led an army expedition across the territory that became Iowa, Capt. Stephen Kearney spotted “a large drove of Buffaloe … probably 5 thousand.” Of course, the animals weren’t buffalo. The big, shaggy beasts were bison. It doesn’t feel quite so pedantic to make that distinction now that Iowans […]
Paul Brennan
Posted inCommunity/News
Caitlin Clark will play on the Carver court again for an Indiana Fever preseason game in May
The Indiana Fever announced on Thursday the team will play a preseason game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Caitlin Clark and her teammates will face the Brazilian National Team in the game schedule for May 4. “We couldn’t be more excited to play at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and we know Iowa fans will deliver an unforgettable homecoming for […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Woman faces hate crime charges in vandalism spree that defaced two Muscatine restaurants with swastikas
The Muscatine Police Department (MPD) has arrested a person for the acts of vandalism last weekend that included spraypainting swastikas on Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant and Jibaro, a restaurant specializing in authentic Puerto Rican cuisine. In addition to swastikas, Jibaro was also defaced with the spraypainted message, “We don’t want you here.” In its statement on […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Two candidates, two different approaches to Iowa City issues featured at Monday’s forum
The withdrawal of Sharon DeGraw from the race for Iowa City Council last week leaves two active candidates in the primary on Feb. 4, and then again in the special election to fill the District C seat on March 4. (Early voting was already underway when DeGraw withdrew, so the primary will be held even […]
Posted inCommunity/News
RAGBRAI riders will follow a 400-mile path across northern Iowa this summer
RAGBRAI LII will take cyclists across northern Iowa in July, from southeastern Sioux County to the banks of the Mississippi in Clayton County. This year’s route, and the overnight town riders will be stopping in, was announced at the RAGBRAI Route Announcement Party in Waukee on Saturday. “This will be our second shortest route and […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Vandals deface two Muscatine restaurants with swastikas; owners stand firm: ‘We do not know fear’
Buildings in Muscatine were vandalized on Sunday, with swastikas spray-painted onto their exterior walls, according to the Muscatine Police Department (MPD). Two restaurants — Jibaro, which specializes in authentic Puerto Rican cuisine, and Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant — were targeted by the vandals. In addition to defacing both buildings with swastikas, the vandals also wrote “We […]
Posted inEastern Iowa
Sharon DeGraw withdraws from Iowa City special election, leaving two candidates for council
Sharon DeGraw announced on Friday afternoon that she was dropping out of the race for the open Iowa City Council seat in District C. DeGraw attributed her decision to “a personal matter,” and said she was “requesting privacy from the press and the public.” DeGraw’s unexpected last-minute entry in the race brought the number of […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Wahlburgers loses its biggest franchisee as Hy-Vee quits the celebrity burger business
Hy-Vee announced this week that it is getting rid of all the Wahlburgers still operating in its stores. Hy-Vee Market Grilles will take the place of the celebrity-adjascent burger joints. Interestingly, Hy-Vee’s news release about the change never mentions Wahlburgers. The West Des Moines-based supermarket chain simply said it will “transition all its in-store restaurant […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Peak Iowa: Poet John Berryman’s brief, troubled time in Iowa City
Content warning: Suicide The poet John Berryman’s chance to have a quiet, uneventful life ended early one morning in 1926 when he was 11. It ended when his father walked into the backyard with a gun and committed suicide. John was in his bedroom when it happened. The bedroom’s windows faced the backyard. It wasn’t […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Trump’s blanket J6 pardons include 10 Iowans, some who chased, assaulted officers
Ten Iowans are included in President Trump’s mass clemency for the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of his supporters. The attack, which was intended to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, injured more than 140 police officers. Property damage to the Capitol from […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: A fading celebrity challenges a criminal president in ICCT’s finely tuned ‘Frost/Nixon’
Iowa City Community Theater (ICCT) premiered its production of Frost/Nixon on Friday night at The James Theater. The play by Peter Morgan – a British playwright probably best-known to Americans as the creator of The Crown – was first staged in London in 2006.
Posted inCommunity/News
New program will help an Iowa City-Cedar Rapids area nonprofit produce a video telling its story
It’s easy to focus on the grim at the moment with the new session of the legislature starting in Des Moines, a new (yet old) administration looming in Washington D.C. and the weather preparing to turn frigid again, but there are still good things happening in Iowa. The state has numerous nonprofits doing important work […]
