Stories, Journalism & Vonnegut Bio Hank Nuwer
Grab a coffee and enjoy the story clearinghouse of Hank Nuwer with photos of Alaska and its wildlife by Malgorzata (Gosia) Nuwer.
You’ll find that I’ve added some finished and partially finished biography-in-progress of Kurt Vonnegut, “The Man in the Hole.”
Hank Nuwer’s Indiana University Press books on hazing. Podcast in The Culture
Podcast of “Weed in the Garden of Academe” with Hank Nuwer
Scroll down for archived Realalaskadaily stories.Thank you for reading. Got a compliment or gripe? Drop a line to Hjnuwer@Alaska.edu. Gosia and I want to keep this site ad-free. Trying to raise funds for last-minute research on my Kurt Vonnegut biography: “Kurt Vonnegut: The Man in the Hole. A Life of Reinvention.” (“Not authorized, but authentic scholarship”). Your donation would be so helpful: Hank Nuwer, PO Box 73446; Fairbanks, AK 99707-3446.
Take me for a ride in your car-car
By Hank Nuwer My wife Gosia’s dream to ride at top speed in a stockcar will come true next month. That’s her birthday gift from me. 10 years ago, I seized my own stockcar opportunity on the Lucas track in Clermont, Ind. “Dear Hank. Congratulations. Drivetech...
Putting on a poopy face at Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park in Cross Creek, Fla.
By Hank Nuwer “You sure put on a poopy face when something doesn’t go your way,” my wife Gosia said to me. I walked with dejection beside her as we headed toward the parking lot of the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park in Cross Creek, Fla. “It’s not a poopy...
The agony of loss: Out-of-control wildfires
By Hank Nuwer In May of 1972 in Northern New Mexico, I earned my fire-fighter card from the Forest Service. The training at Hermit’s Peak mountain was unpaid. The fire fighters worked us trainees hard. I was in good condition, easily completing all tests. I recall the...
An Icy Reception in Fairbanks
I enjoyed Scott Shaffer’s “A Look Back” article last week as he recalled the Randolph County (Indiana) severe blizzard of Jan. 17, 1978. He highlighted the unselfish determination of Union City’s fire chief and crew who partnered with local snowmobilers to haul grub...
Ohio’s recalled license plate
If you watch The Simpsons, you know Homer Simpson’s shout after a flub-beyond-repair is “D’oh.” Well, no doubt you heard that the new Ohio state license plate crashed and burned upon liftoff. True, the new plate was gorgeous, depicting a nice sunny background and an...
Who was worthless as gum on a boot?
By Hank Nuwer Fred Brown fought the law. Guess who won? Today’s story starts in 1887. Richard (Dick) Beers, 14, was known in Greenville for juggling balls with the skill of a circus performer. Dick was worthless as gum on a boot heel. He had a mouth as foul as his...
The Tragic Columbus, Ohio Penitentiary Fire: 322 dead after a candle ignites rags
By Hank Nuwer The Greenville Democrat said James J. (J.J.) Webster looked too dignified to be a criminal. “Rather did he appear as a bank clerk,” the paper said. Tall and dark, Webster wore spectacles and a brown business suit at his trial. The prosecution named him...
What’s in your fenced yard?
When we lived in Union City, our backyard neighbor was a mama opossum. The first time Gosia saw her with hanging babies, she couldn’t believe such a species existed. At our summer cabin in the woods in rural Poland, I equally thrilled to the sight of a mated pair of...
Duck Moose is back and in his good place
Back in mid-September, I interviewed the head of the Kroschel Wildlife Center near Haines, Alaska, as he was trying to locate and lure back a docile moose raised in captivity. Star attraction Duck Moses found a way to escape from the public education facility and...