MOLINE, ILLINOIS (August 6, 2019) — The Midwest MonsterFest, the Quad Cities premier horror convention, will take place on September 14t and 15 at the Spotlight Event Center in Moline, Illinois. 

The event coincides with the 45th Anniversary of the classic horror film, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and will feature celebrity guests Ed Neal, John Dugan, and Teri McMinn, all of whom appeared in the film.

IOWA CITY, IOWA (August 6, 2019) — The Iowa Poetry Association will soon release its 74th edition of "Lyrical Iowa," the annual anthology comprised of poems by Iowa writers of all ages. According to Editor Marilyn Baszczynski, this year's volume contains 381 poems chosen from 1,845 entries in their contest held earlier this year. Entries came from 77 of Iowa's 99 counties, sent by persons ranging in age from kindergartners to near-centenarians in well over one hundred cities and towns.

GENEVA, ILLINOIS (August 6, 2019) — In a series filled with low-scoring affairs, the Quad Cities River Bandits shut out the Kane County Cougars 1-0 on Tuesday afternoon at Northwestern Medicine Field to salvage a game in the set. The victor in all four games finished with a total of three runs or less. The shutout was the 18th of the season for the River Bandits, moving into a tie with Montgomery for the most in Minor League Baseball.

MONMOUTH, ILLINOIS (August 6, 2019) — The voice and writings of Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison are more vital than ever.

That's the assessment of Monmouth College English professor Marlo Belschner, who wrote her master's degree thesis on Morrison.

Morrison died Monday at the age of 88.