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Don Chambers is a graphic artist
at WILL. He works on Patterns magazine and other print
pieces, and produces many of our on-air graphics for TV.
In his spare time, he is a cartoonist (and he's
recommending some of his own work!)
 If you wish to
visit over 230 towns, universities, and parks in
Illinois and western Indiana (nearly all of the WILL
listening area) but don't want to spend the gasoline
money, read Mannequins at Home in Illinois and
Western Indiana, by Don Chambers. The Mannequins
comic strip has been running continuously for nearly 10
years in the Arthur-Graphic Clarion newspaper,
with occasional appearances in other newspapers and
magazines. The comic strip utilizes images from the area
behind the comic strip characters for additional
interest and appeal. The book also features additional
photographs of most every town within approximately 75
miles or so of Champaign-Urbana.
"There amidst the rows of corn, the hundred-mile
skies, the feed store boys and the ag students, Chambers
is doing this curious thing with a comic strip that
looks like it came from another planet. It's "Oklahoma!"
with a cast from Jupiter."
—from
the introduction by Jim Borgman, the Pulitzer
Prize-winning editorial cartoonist for the Cincinnati
Enquirer and co-creator of the comic strip "Zits."
A second Mannequins collection is also
available in stores now, featuring an introduction by
Beetle Bailey cartoonist Mort Walker.
Also by Chambers is Recipes from the Soybean Farm,
a soy recipe book featuring over 100 talented
individuals from a variety of professions posing with
soybeans. Want to see what Dame Judi Dench, Gene Hackman,
a winner of the Indianapolis 500, the Nobel Prize, or
the original "Vampirella" look like posing with
soybeans? This will be your only chance!
All books available in Pages for All Ages Bookstore
in Champaign, The Raggedy Ann Museum in Arcola, and
Yoder's Country Kitchen in Arthur, Illinois.
Danda Beard is the director of
major gifts at WILL. She recommends a book with a PBS
connection.
Blue Hearts by Jim Lehrer. Lehrer
explains that a Blue Heart (rather than a Purple Heart)
is awarded to undercover agents who are wounded while
serving their country; the PBS anchor tells the tale of
two ex-spies who come out of retirement to battle each
other and an old foe in the Virginia countryside.
 Andy Seifert is a news intern at WILL whose main
duties are to ask reporters Tom Rogers and Jeff Bossert
every half-hour if they want coffee or an aspirin.
Musical suggestion: Illinois by Sufjan Stevens.
The second installment in Sufjan's highly ambitious "The
50 States" project is a little 73-minute diddy with
songs about the wonders of our state (the greatest
state!). The epic-folk album touches on many well-known
towns, familiar Illinoisans, and has a song called "Come
on! Feel the Illinoise!"
Book suggestion: Killing Yourself to Live by
Chuck Klosterman. At face value, Killing Yourself to
Live is about Klosterman visiting the death sites of
famous rock stars and asking if those artists' death
actually furthered their career. This accounts for about
20 pages. The other 216 pages mostly centers around
choosing between the three lovers in his life and
consuming copious amounts of illegal drugs. Highly
entertaining and littered with obscure pop culture
references.
 As
she readies for her retirement (on July 31!), Debbie
Day, WILL's director of development, is sure to find
time to read a bit more.
I’ve read all of Elizabeth
George’s mysteries, and recommend them to anyone who
enjoys that genre. Because she continues the story of
various characters from book to book, reading them in
order is a good idea, although not absolutely necessary.
She’s introduced completely different characters in her
recent World War I trilogy.
Carl Caldwell, WILL-TV's station manager, is a
history buff, so it's no surprise that his reading
suggestion focuses on the past.
I recommend Team of
Rivals, Doris Kearns Goodwin's book on Abraham
Lincoln and his relationship with three prominent
members of his presidential cabinet. Goodwin profiles
Lincoln, William Henry Seward, Salmon P. Chase, and
Edward Bates, and she describes their relationship
before and during the Civil War. The book is a multiple
biography of all four men, and it provides valuable
insights into their personalities, their political
backgrounds, and their contributions to the Union war
effort.
WILL's outreach coordinator Kimberlie Kranich
does more than what the title says
--she
runs the award-winning
Youth Media Workshop, coordinates partnership
opportunities and plans special events. Here's her book
recommendation:
Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison
Bechdel.
Bechdel is a cartoonist famous for chronicling lesbian
life and culture for decades in her syndicated comic
strip "Dykes to Watch Out For." Fun Home is her
seven-years-in-the-making memoir, written as a comic
strip, of growing up in an artist family of two
brothers, a mother and a closeted gay father. An
entertaining yet profound treatment of family pathology
and dynamics, father-daughter relationships,
internalized homophobia and grief.
 Music
to edit by
Videoworks editor Jeff Cunningham
suggests The Essential Earth, Wind and Fire,
particularly the tracks "Shining Star" and "Boogie
Wonderland." Jeff has formerly hosted Prairie Fire,
produced Talking Point and produced documentaries
on Illinois folk culture and natural history.
 John Paul is the senior producer for
VideoWorks, WILL's
video production service. Before coming to WILL, he was
former news director at WCIA-TV, Champaign, where he
worked as a reporter, weekend anchor, assistant news
director, and news director for 23 years. John also
teaches broadcast journalism in the UI College of
Communications. His music picks:
The Eagles. I've always been a big fan of 70's
classic rock and the country feel of the Eagles tunes
always takes me back to those years, especially "Hotel
California" and "New Kid in Town."
Jackson Browne is straight out of the Eagles
mold. In fact, I think I read that he hung with the
Eagles and frequently consulted with them on music,
songs.
The Who is a group I didn't really respect at the
time of their popularity, but have gained great respect
for in recent years. Great music to listen to as you
drive, with the windows down.
I was introduced to Honeybrowne music recently by
a friend. Good guitars and harmony with strong lyrics.
Hard to find the group's CDs in local stores. I usually
have to download it or order a CD on line.
Reading
I'm a big non-fiction fan.
Game of Shadows suits my affection for baseball
and non-fiction, plus I'm a bit of a Giants fan.
Team of Rivals is excellent Abe Lincoln
material. How can you live in central Illinois and not
quench your thirst to learn more about Abe?!?!?!
 David
Thiel is WILL-TV's program director. He's also a
science fiction fan and movie soundtrack lover (who
knew?). Here's his book and music soundtrack
suggestions:
Book: The Radioactive Redhead, by
John Zakour and Lawrence Ganem
Zachary Nixon Johnson is the last private eye on
mid-21st Century Earth, at least that's how he markets
himself. Accompanied at all times by a supercomputer
named HARV who has been implanted directly into his
eyeball, Zachary inevitably finds himself hired by
outrageously wealthy, frighteningly beautiful women for
cases involving deadly androids and powerful psionics.
In this third book of a series which includes The
Plutonium Blonde and The Doomsday Brunette,
Zach is hired by a teen pop star to protect her from a
terrorist group that wants to assassinate her because of
her lack of talent. Meanwhile, a network TV executive
has forced him to star in a new realtiy series, "Let's
Kill Zach." It's all lighthearted, two-fisted action
with a lot of humor, an affectionate pulp noir swipe
which doesn't descend into outright parody.
Music: Diamonds are Forever Original Motion Picture
Soundtrack, composed by John Barry
Approximately 98 percent of my music collection consists
of movie soundtracks, and I recently learned that a
couple of years back, EMI/Capitol Records remastered all
of the early James Bond scores. Diamonds are Forever
was Sean Connery's last appearance in the official Bond
movie series, and it's still one of my favorite entries.
The plot, such as it is, involves archenemy Blofeld--the
original, cat-stroking megalomaniac--in a sinister plan
to ransom the world with a diamond-encrusted, laser
satellite. (A regular laser satellite simply won't do.)
Shirley Bassey of Goldfinger fame belts out the
title tune, and John Barry's orchestrations are jazzy,
suave and action packed.
 When
you call with a question about how to find a TV program
that you missed the night before, or if you're trying to
remember information about a program that you saw on
WILL-TV, more than likely you'll speak to Anita Stein,
WILL-TV services manager. Her book pick:
I highly
recommend the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in
the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. The story in itself
is very interesting as told by the main character who
has autism. He has been falsely accused of killing the
neighbor’s dog and he sets out to prove he is innocent.
Having a family member who has autism, I must say what
really impresses me about this book is the author’s
ability to tap into the mind process of a person with
autism. This book is definitely a must read for anyone
wanting to get an inside view into the world of autism
and enjoy a good mystery at the same time!
 Denise
Perry is "Special Projects Manager" for WILL Radio:
she hosts Weekend Edition Sunday and All
Things Considered weekdays on AM 580,
is traffic
manager for AM 580 and is assistant to the AM program
director and station manager. When she gets to rest, she is hot on
Clay Aiken's trail as he tours around the country.
Denise has provided some musical suggestions (and
they include more than Clay's music!): I'm listening
to downloads from Clay Aiken's Jukebox Tour in
anticipation of his new CD.
Also, I'm a "Greatest Hits" junkie. I regularly listen
to Van Halen's The Best of Both Worlds, 2-CD set
covering both the David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar eras.
Also Greatest Hits CDs from Aerosmith, Alice in
Chains, Foreigner, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Tom
Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Who, and ZZ Top.
For a full range of styles, I recommend The Best of
Randy Newman, covering "Mama Told Me Not To Come"
(1970) to "I Miss You" (1999), and including "Dixie
Flyer" (Car Talk uses its instrumental as fill
music).
And my piece-de-resistance -- Guy Pearce: Music from
the film "A Slipping Down Life." He's the anti-Clay.
I get a sort of yin yang experience out of playing Clay
and Guy back to back.
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 Steve
Drake is a producer/videographer for WILL-TV local
production and the station's VideoWorks video production
services unit. Steve writes, films, and edits segments
for television, DVD, and web productions for both WILL
and VideoWorks. Book Suggestion:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by
Mark Haddon
(Vintage, Reprint 2004)
This touching and often hilarious 'who done it?' is told
from the perspective of a 15-year-old autistic boy who
is mathematically gifted but socially hopeless. An
instant classic, the debut novel is as imaginative as it
is endearing, and will give you not only a new
understanding of life with autism, but also hours of
entertaining, innovative and just plain fun reading.
Music Suggestion:
Jack Johnson - On and On
(Umvd Labels, 2003)
This 2003 release by surfer-turned-singer/songwriter
Jack Johnson melds soothing acoustic rhythms with
insightful lyrics about everyday life. Every song on the
album is great and it's as enjoyable three years later
as it was the first time I ever heard it. It's one of
the most "listenable" albums you're ever likely to find. |
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When she's not editing Patterns magazine or putting
things up on the Web, Maeve Reilly, Patterns
magazine editor, is compiling lists of what she's going
to read next. Here are a couple of suggestions:
A few years ago I happened on the #1 Ladies Detective
Agency series, by Alexander McCall Smith. They are
charming books that take you deep into life in Botswana,
which is slower paced, yet full of action.
I also
picked up a book in one of McCall Smith's newest series,
The Sunday Philosophy Club. A totally different
setting, Scotland, with yet another interesting cast of
characters--I'm planning on reading more of those soon!
David Inge interviewed Alexander McCall Smith on
Focus 580 in 2003. You can
listen to their discussion. |
Nancy and Dean Olson
(pictured left with a friend) are Friends
of WILL. Their book selection reflects their interest in
Alaska, where they recently vacationed: