A trio of acclaimed, art-themed films will be screened free to members of the Figge Art Museum on December 4, with the Davenport venue hosting John Deere Auditorium screenings of 2007's My Kid Could Paint That, 2006's The Rape of Europa, and 2013's The Show That Shook the World.

Gifted artisans who have original works for sale in the Figge Art Museum's Museum Store will be celebrated during the Davenport venue's virtual Explore the Store event on December 3, with participants having to chance to meet (online) Sally Gierke, who fashions woodland creatures of clay while creating in her portable tent known as a yurt.

COVID cases have risen once again in Illinois, and Phase 3 mitigations are in place. It's not exactly a safe time to be doing business, but Ragged, which has kept its best interests in mind as well as those of their patrons, has decided to go ahead with its Black Friday Record Store Day sale. "We had thought about canceling it," says staff member Jon Burns, "but our customers go wild for Record Store Day, so we figured we'd give the people what they want."

On page nine of last week’s federal indictment of four people accused of conspiring to bribe House Speaker Michael Madigan with favors from ComEd is this heading: “Defendants and Relevant Individuals. ”But the first person listed is not one of the defendants. “Public Official A was the Speaker of the House of Representatives,” the list begins.

Delivered by curators Joshua Jackson and Vanessa Sage, a virtual, members-only tour of the new exhibition Haitian Masterworks will be presented on December 3, with participants given insight into the works selected and the history behind them – a collection focusing on prevalent themes in Haitian art including spirituality, transformation, the natural world, everyday life, and Haitian history.

Described by the U.K.'s The Telegraph as “serious-minded, informative, and knowledgeable” in its four-star review, the lauded documentary The Gene: An Intimate History – co-produced by legendary documentarian Ken Burns – will enjoy a special virtual presentation on November 19 courtesy of the Quad Cities' PBS station WQPT, with the event boasting a post-screening discussion and Q&A with the film's Emmy Award-winning director Jack Youngelson.

To download a PDF of the puzzle, click here.

With the announcement by Representative Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) earlier this month that he will not vote to reelect Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan in January, the opposition numbered eight House Democrats, with at least a few more privately leaning their way. They’ll need 13 or 14 Democrats, depending on final general-election results, to deprive Madigan of the speaker’s gavel. So, they may need some help to get over the hump. And there’s one person outside the House who may have enough votes to tip the balance either way.

Another month, another spellbinding long-form ambient album issued from Rock Island composer Terry Skaggs, also known under the lower-case moniker dead lizard grin.