Brian Barnes of Ohio Republican Party honors Judge Sara Harper

Brian Barnes, co-director of African American Initiatives for the Ohio Republican Party, spoke at a ceremony to honor Judge Sara Parker in Cleveland at the Outhwaite Community Center which is in the public housing where she (and Carl and Lou Stokes and others) grew up.

Cleveland African-Americans

Laverne Jones-Gore honors Judge Sara Harper

Judge Sara Harper was honored in a ceremony by the Republican National Committee and others in the Outhwaite Community Center which is in the public housing where she (and Carl and Lou Stokes and others) grew up.  That is also where the Judge Sara Harper library is housed for residents of Outhwaite Public Housing.

Judge Hamper was a pioneer including being the first the first black woman to graduate from Case Western Reserve University Law School. The event marked the end of the 2016 Black History Month and included a tour of the Sara J. Harper Children’s Library, a reception for area Republicans and the Outhwaite community and an awards ceremony for the evening’s honoree Judge Harper.

Laverne Jones-Gore told how Judge Harper was her hero and inspiration.

Cleveland African-Americans

Cleveland TV Tales Volume 2

Cleveland TV Tales Volume 2  by Mike Olszewski and Janice Olszewski is the follow-up to the popular 2014 book Cleveland TV Tales: Stories from the Golden Age of Local Television

If you are a Clevelander, you probably have heard of Mike Olszewski who has been in Cleveland radio and TV for years. He is also the curator and archivist of the Ohio Broadcast Archive and Museum.

If you are not a Clevelander, you will recognize some very famous names (Dorothy Fuldheim, Mayor Carl Stokes, Al Roker, Ernie Anderson, etc.) that are featured in stories.

And if you are interested in this era (1970's-90's) of TV you will find trends (big hair, happy news, 'Exchanges', etc.) that port well to any major TV market. But the most fun will be for someone from Northeast Ohio who lived through these times and recognizes the names.

As a Clevelander, I recognized most of the people and knew some of the stories but the book filled in a lot of interesting gaps. For example, the tragic case of the Joel Rose suicide, the progression of characters from Ernie Anderson's Ghoulardi (The Ghoul, Son of Ghoul - even SuperHost), the last years of Dorothy Fuldheim, Al Roker's time in Cleveland and so on.

I never knew that weatherman Mark Koontz was the victim of such pranks or that Ralph Tarsitano and Bill McKay interviewed Danny Greene just hours before his car was blown up.

Stories like that keep you turning the pages.

Reviewed by Dan Hanson