Inhuman Swill

The folks lucky enough to have squeezed into the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf for our November 5th edition of Tuesday Funk know what a fantastic time was had by all. But if you weren't there, let us break down the awesomeness for you.

We kicked things off with Rosamund Lannin, who took us trick-or-treating in the Castro of San Francisco. John Rich then hauled us up to Michigan's Upper Peninsula to visit a local dive bar. Co-host Andrew Huff brought us topical haiku appropriate to the season. And returning reader J.H. Palmer spirited us to Texas for a guided tour of Lee Harvey Oswald's Dallas.

After a break for beer from Mark at the bar, co-host William Shunn brought us a new poem about trees and clapping or something. Next, Vojislav Pejović took us overseas to Belgrade for a look at a student and a nation rearranging themselves. And finally, Paul McComas and Greg Starrett donned costumes to unravel for us the mystery of Frankenstein's fine suit—a mystery we didn't even know needed solving!

Not only that, but we introduced you to our new co-host, who'll be taking over from Bill in January—the multi-talented Eden Robins. She proved her worth by rising to the challenge of introducing one of our more hard-to-pronounce guests like so:



That's what you missed out on, but never fear! We'll bring you plenty of video excerpts in the weeks to come, and then we'll be back on Tuesday, December 3rd, 2013, for an evening with G.P.A. (Greatest Poet Alive), Jocelyn Geboy, Davis Schneiderman, J. Michael Grey, and—in his final appearance as a Tuesday Funk co-host—William Shunn! Please don't dream of missing it!


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Attention, Funkers! Our longtime co-host William Shunn will be appearing next week in not one but two of Chicago's most thrilling other reading series. They'll be on consecutive nights, no less, so please block out Tuesday and Wednesday evenings on your calendar!

First comes WRITE CLUB, on Tuesday, April 16th, at The Hideout. In this bare-knuckle series, three pairs of writers square off with essays on opposing topics. The audience decides who wins, with all proceeds going to charities of the winners' choice. Bill will be defending GOD over DEVIL, for the One Tail at a Time dog rescue organization. Tickets are $10 cash at the door. Arrive early!

And the following night, Wednesday, April 17th, Bill will be part of CHIRP Radio's THE FIRST TIME at Second City's new UP Comedy Club. This monthly series assembles seven or so writers to reminisce about an important "first" from their lives, backed with specially chosen songs by The First Time Three. For April the topic will be "First Crime." Tickets are $10, and buying in advance is strongly recommended. (And get preferred seating with a dinner reservation!)

To recap...



We hope you'll come out to one or both of these events and help support the amazing and vibrant "live lit" scene in Chicago. And if you run into Bill, say hello and tell him Tuesday Funk sent you!


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Hey, Funkers! Our co-host William Shunn will be appearing tonight with Roosevelt University's Gary K. Wolfe on "Extension 720 with Milt Rosenberg" on WGN Radio 720 AM. They'll be talking about science fiction—particularly today's release of the Library of America's new collection, American Science Fiction: Nine Classic Novels of the 1950s, which Mr. Wolfe edited.

Milt Rosenberg's show has run since 1973, during which time he's talked with an intimidating array of world leaders, prominent academics, and entertainment figures. Tonight's program airs live from 10 p.m. to midnight. You can also listen online, or a podcast of the discussion will be available in a few days. We hope you'll tune in!

(And for more information about the collection, please visit the American Science Fiction companion site, which Gary curated.)


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Happy Monday, Funk buddies! Can you spot one of our elusive co-hosts, approximately nine years younger, in this recently unearthed 2004 segment from the Trio network television series Parking Lot? We'll give you one small hint: not in costume!



But whether or not you can, you can find both our co-hosts plus a bulging roster of great readers tomorrow night, Tuesday, February 7, 2012, at 7:30 pm in the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf, when we'll bring you great readings from Julia Borcherts, Lauryn Allison Lewis, Margie Skelly, Dustin Monk, and Lillian Huang Cummins.

Don't get stuck in the parking lot! Be there early to be sure of a seat.


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Just a quick reminder that your Tuesday Funk co-host William Shunn will be appearing at Essay Fiesta at The Book Cellar in Lincoln Square tonight at 7:00 pm.

This charitable monthly reading series benefits 826CHI, a Chicago non-profit writing and tutoring program. Please bring a bit of money for a donation or for the raffle, and arrive nice and early for a seat. See you there!


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Hey, Funkers, there's still time to bid in the auction we told you about yesterday afternoon. You have a little over eight hours left to get a bid in if you want to be one of the first by far to own a physical copy of my memoir The Accidental Terrorist. Two of the three books have definitely sold so far, and the third could possibly be yours for a minimum bid of just $100!

If you still want to learn more about The Accidental Terrorist, the indefatigable Dave Slusher interviewed me about it way back when for his Reality Break podcast. Take a listen:

Reality Break, Episode 8  (40:42)




Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Tuesday Funk is pleased to announce the announcement by co-host Sara Ross Witt that she and Andrew Witt have welcomed Seamus Arthur Witt into this world. Seamus was born on November 17, and weighed in at 7 lbs 5 oz. All involved are doing well, though Seamus has sent us a note requesting that his mom be excused from hosting duties at Tuesday Funk for the month of December. We think that's fair, and look forward to seeing Sara at the mic again in 2012.

Congratulations to Sara, Andy, and Seamus!


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk

Hi, everyone. My name is William Shunn, and I'm one of the new co-producers of Tuesday Funk. If you're reading this, you've probably already noticed our spiffy new web site. I'd like to tell you about some of the other changes afoot.

Tuesday Funk has been one of the most exciting and unpredictable reading series in Chicago since its founding in early 2008. We've featured wild-eyed poets, lark-tongued troubadours, and more excellent fiction, verse, and essays read live than you could shake a blue pencil at. I'm fortunate enough to have been asked to read for the series four times in the past couple of years myself, and I'm proud to have been considered an adjunct member of the Tuesday Funk family.

Connor Coyne, Reinhardt Suarez and Hallie Palladino of the Gothic Funk Nation have run Tuesday Funk with scary efficiency since 2008. I'm very pleased and more than a little humbled to now be co-producing together with Sara Ross (whose entry into the family was announced in July). Sara and I hope to keep the same great mix of genres and disciplines that has made the series so much fun in the past, while throwing in some curve balls to keep things fresh and interesting. We have some big shoes to fill.

While I never want the series to get away from its roots as a showcase for Chicago writers, I'd love to bring more out-of-towners into the mix too. So if you're a writer (or something similar) and plan to be in Chicago the first week of any given month, please drop us a line and we'll see if we have room for you. We'd love to have you. (Email us at tuesdayfunkchicago@gmail.com.)

Oh, another thing. Chicagoans, please mark your calendars for our next reading on Tuesday, October 5, 7:30 pm, at Hopleaf. We'll have Jackie Adamski and Gothic Funk/Tuesday Funk founder Connor Coyne with us that night, and I'll be batting cleanup with my fifth appearance as a Tuesday Funk reader. But most importantly we need to keep our attendance high so we can continue using Hopleaf's upstairs bar month after month. More reminders will follow, but we hope to see you there.

We also have a new Facebook page. Please drop by and "like" Tuesday Funk. And watch for Sara and me to tell you more about ourselves and our upcoming readers over the next several days.

Finally, thanks to Hallie and Reinhardt and especially Connor for all their hard, often thankless work, for their continued input and advice, and for entrusting us with their baby. For all that things may be changing, and for all that we'll make mistakes along the way, we hope to keep the high quality of the Tuesday Funk the same. Thanks, Gothic Funk Nation, for letting us be citizens.


Crossposted from Tuesday Funk