Tag Archives: Smokestacks and Skyscrapers: An Anthology of Chicago Writing

Simon Pokagon: Problems of a Middleman

Posted on January 30, 2016 by Richard Guzman

Simon Pokogan (1830-1899) was born in Berrien County, Michigan, the son of Leopold Pokogan, chief of the Potawatomies for more than 40 years.  In 1832 Leopold, some believe, actually sold the land some of early Chicago was built on.  Simon … Continue reading →

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Regie Gibson: “the blooz man is i”

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Richard Guzman

Perhaps the most electric slam poet in America, Regie Gibson (b. 1966) has, among many honors, won the 1997 money slam and the 1998 individual slam title.  He and his work have been featured in the Theodore Witcher film love … Continue reading →

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Nelson Algren’s City on the Make

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Richard Guzman

The Video Below presents a performance by David Starkey and me of a passage from “Nobody Knows Where O’Connor Went,” the last chapter of Nelson Algren’s great prose poem Chicago: City on the Make. Shortly after Loyola Press/Wild Onion published our book Smokestacks … Continue reading →

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