A few years ago, nobody would have paid any attention to Clyde Cleveland. Had he run for Iowa governor in 1998 under the Libertarian banner, he would have been ignored by the media and the other candidates, and the public would have probably seen his name for the first time when they voted.
It was a great idea by the Blackthorn Pub & Eatery. Host local bands on four consecutive Sundays in late summer, record their sets, compile the best performances on CD, and sell it as a benefit for two charities, Gilda’s Club of the Quad Cities and the Mississippi Valley Blues Society’s BlueSKool program.
Zuill Bailey was a rambunctious child. The cello changed him. Bailey's first encounter with the cello was at a symphony concert as a young child. Running through the halls, he "smashed into a girl holding a cello," breaking the instrument, he recalled.
The new exhibit Objects of the Spirit: African Art from the Collection of Janice Simon opens November 30 at the Augustana College Art Gallery & Museum. Some of the pieces date from the 18th Century, but most come from the 20th Century, including masks, figures, beadwork, rugs, shields, and jewelry.
When talking about St. Ambrose University's upcoming spring theatre production, professor and director Corinne Johnson is clear that this will not be a typical performance. "We're going to have to approach this with a lot of sensitivity," she said of the casting process.
Just in time for the holidays, a variety of arts and not-for-profit groups have released new stocking-stuffers. KUNI public radio has just put out its fourth murder novel, Orchestrated Murder: An Iowa Mystery.
Most cities of 400,000 people will have some predictable features: two regional malls, a few strips of big-box retailers, and a downtown that caters to specialty shops. The Quad Cities have two regional malls and strips of big-box retailers on either side of the river.
Adam Zelsdorf and Jason Held aren't your typical high-school seniors. Well, they are in some ways: They throw things at each other and don't try to hide their youthful enthusiasm and itchy feet. But teenage mannerisms aside, Zelsdorf and Held are unusual.
The man who goes by the name Fuzz might not realize just how appropriate his moniker is. In talking about his eight-piece funk band Deep Banana Blackout, Fuzz (née James San Giovanni) pretty much apologizes for every decision he and his cohorts have made over the past year.
Stephen Page is talking about the men who run the United States government, and he's getting irritated. His point is that men are exactly the wrong people to be leading a country through such a difficult time. "I think men are hopeless," he says.

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