Leslie Goddard, Ph.D., is an award-winning historian, author, actress and lecturer who has been presenting on topics in American history and women’s history for twenty years. Born in Illinois, Leslie is known nationally for her work bringing women’s history alive. Her repertoire of famous women includes television personality and cook Julia Child, first ladies Eleanor Roosevelt and Jackie Kennedy and more. Her acclaimed portrayal of art collector and Chicago socialite Bertha Honore Palmer won the Philip A. Danielson Award from Westerners International.
Have you ever slept in a wigwam? Or taken a selfie with Paul Bunyan? Ever stepped inside an alligator’s mouth? Since Americans took to the highways for long-distance travel in the 1920s, entrepreneurs have been dreaming up unusual structures to attract passing motorists. Although the heyday passed with the arrival of interstate highways, thousands of quirky roadside attractions remain. Join pop culture historian Leslie Goddard, Ph.D. to explore these unique structures and what they tell us about the history of road travel.
John LeGear is a retired marketing communications specialist who dedicated 40 years to building and promoting national not-for-profit organizations in the fields of education, healthcare, and athletics. Schooled in Journalism and broadcast communications with a bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. John is a regular presenter at libraries throughout northern Illinois.
Whether you appreciate the genuine creative genius of Hollywood’s most popular performers, composers and lyricists, or simply can’t get enough of the most sensational songs and dances from the past 100 years, please join us as narrator and film buff John LeGear presents Movie Music Romance II.
Josee is an enrolled member of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation (Three Affiliated Tribes) of North Dakota, and also represents the Omaha Nation of Nebraska and Wiikwemkoong First Nation from Ontario, Canada. She grew up in the greater Chicago American Indian Community, learning her culture and traditional values. She has worked as an independent artist, and her background is in Cultural Education. She has been with the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian since December 2019.
Indigenous people have always lived in this area since time immemorial and were vital to the formation of Chicagoland as we know it. Join Josee Starr (Arikara, Omaha, Odawa) to learn about the Indigenous tribes, leaders, and cultures that influenced not only Chicago's founding, but also make up the
thriving Native American community today.