L to R: Donn Pall, Ken Smoller, Nancy Faust, Jack McDowell, Matt Flesch, Ron Kittle and Tom Shaer.
It has been about two weeks since the launch event for the “Last Comiskey” book at the Chicago History Museum (CHM) and I am still walking on air. Despite concerns about an empty room, we packed the McCormick Theater with White Sox fans and Chicago history buffs from around the city and across the country. It was a spectacular night in which we celebrated the “Baseball Palace of the World”, which stood for 81 years until its demolition in 1991.
I am extremely grateful for those people who helped make the night a reality. It takes a village to launch a book and “Team Last Comiskey” included a lot of really amazing friends and family who volunteered their time. Also, thank you to the folks who braved the Chicagoland rush hour traffic and filled the hall that night. Lastly, thank you Rick Kaempfer and Dave Stern of Eckhartz Press for agreeing to publish this book.
Author, Ken Smoller, with his wife, Jaime and sons, Charlie and Simon. Charlie is wearing Ken’s old vendor hat from 1991-93 at new Comiskey Park.
Rick Kaempfer of Eckhartz Press, Ken Smoller, Dave Stern of Eckhartz Press and Dr. David Fletcher, Co-Author of “Chili Dog MVP” and "Joe Jackson, Plaintiff, vs Chicago American League Baseball Club, Defendant."
Members of Team “Last Comiskey” including, Jami Brown, Jennifer Barclay, Jaime Smoller and Alison Manzella.
(L) Ken with childhood friend, Adam Becker. Adam was one of Nancy Faust’s roadies that night. (R) Ken with college friend, Jen Kraft. Jen assisted with check-in.
Lisa Rhodes-Powers was present on behalf of sponsor, Soirée brand mocktails. Soirée was co-founded in 2023 by Bravo TV’s Margaret Josephs; Lexi Barbuto of the Real Housewives of New Jersey.
On a personal note, launching my first book at this particular venue was special. I vividly recall taking field trips in elementary school to the institution then known as the Chicago Historical Society. I marveled at the congealed blob of a child’s marbles found in the smoldering ruins after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. I wondered at the diorama of the White City of the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Once my children were old enough, I eagerly brought them to the CHM so that they too could learn the all-important history of the Chicago Hot Dog, see the Lincoln mask, board the ancient L trolleys and more.
Now, decades later, I was thrilled that my book about one of the most important buildings in Chicago and sports history debuted at such a prestigious locale. When my collaborator, documentarian Matt Flesch, suggested the CHM as forum for the book launch, I seized the opportunity. It felt like the ideal choice given that our book specifically furthers the mission of the Chicago History Museum. Seeing the “Last Comiskey” book on display in the museum’s gift shop was a tangible reminder that a decades-long goal had come to fruition.
