Shows
Route 66 Podcast51. The Joliet Prison The Joliet Prison, in Joliet IL, is one of the oldest prisons in the United States that housed both criminals and enemies from the Civil War. Popularized by the popular movie, The Blues Brothers, the Joliet Prison permanently closed in 2002 and began drawing national attention about the possibility of being operated as a tourist destination along Route 66. Join Route 66 Podcast host Anthony Arno as he talks with Greg Peerbolte, Chief Executive Officer of the Old Joliet Prison Historic Site. Together, they talk about the entire 144 year operational history of the prison, including the on...
2023-04-011h 18
Anna DavlantesYour Hometown: Explore the rich and diverse history of Joliet at the Joliet Area Historical Museum
Greg Peerbolte, Executive Director, Joliet Area Historical Museum, joins Anna to talk about the great history of Joliet, the museum taking over the operation of the Old Joliet Prison, some of the exhibits at the museum including one that honors former Joliet resident and key proponent of the lunar orbit rendezvous concept Dr. John C. Houbolt, the interactive displays about railroad history and Route 66, and some of the events taking place over the holidays like a craft beer tasting and a “Dark Side of the Yule” Christmas concert.
https://serve.castfire.com/audio/3897177/3897177_2021-11-18-230817.64kmono.mp3
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2021-11-1900 min
2020-01-3025 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 7 - "A Business of Favors"As the 1978 Joliet Herald News series reignited the Molly Zelko story, a newspaper landed on top of a rural Coal City, Illinois bar run by Dennis Enrietta. Enrietta’s immediate fascination with the case led to chance encounter with another alleged eyewitness to Molly’s burial, which established an alternate theory on her whereabouts. Enrietta would go on to spend four decades independently researching the Zelko case, untangling complex webs – “threads” as he calls them – of organized crime, labor, and politics at the local and national levels. These forces appeared to have collided at Molly Zelko’s doorstep, taking our story into its...
2020-01-2034 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 6 - "Come Pleasing to the Eye."The year is 1978, over two decades since Molly's disappearance. A fateful move brings Lynne Lichtenauer and John Whiteside together, and Molly's story back into the headlines. Joliet Herald-News Reporters Whiteside & Cain venture into unorthodox - even paranormal - means to flush out leads. Their chase for answers climaxes in an intense hypnosis session of a witness to a midnight burial on Joliet's Stryker Avenue the night Molly vanished.
2020-01-1132 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 5 - "Aunt Molly"Episode 5: “Aunt Molly.” Though Molly has since become a larger than life folk hero in Joliet, she was a daughter, sister and an aunt to Jim Zelko and Arlene Reivers. Cousins Jim and Arlene share their childhood memories of Molly and the reaction of the Zelko family in the wake of her disappearance. The devastated Zelkos directly appealed directly to FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, who unbeknownst to them, had taken an interest in the case from its earliest hours.
2020-01-0231 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 4 - "Prison-wise, Street-wise, and Other-wise."A bizarre break in the Molly Zelko occurs when it is revealed that Robert F. Kennedy traveled to Joliet to search for her after a confession was made from a syndicate hood named Jimmy Rini, aka “The Green Hornet.” Kennedy was then the chief counsel to the McClellan Committee, which was investigating links between union labor and its leadership under Jimmy Hoffa to organized crime figures in New York and Chicago. Rini recanted his confession, claiming he fabricated the story to gaslight the authorities. Rini was interviewed by Chicago journalist John Conroy years later where he recounted his life of crim...
2019-12-1828 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 3 - "We Knew Them Well"Francis “The Thin Man” Curry was the syndicate’s manager of gambling operations in Joliet and Will County. His path to leadership was a bloody one, and probably by no coincidence was closely aligned with local political forces in Joliet. Curry was documented as having a particularly close relationship with Paul Ricca, the co-chairman of the Chicago syndicate. Curry’s involvement with the outfit was an open secret in Joliet when Molly disappeared, though he appears to have been remembered as a well-respected member of the community.
2019-12-0826 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 2 - "Speculation"Episode 2: “Speculation” Perhaps no one held more influence over Molly Zelko than the Spectator’s owner and her longtime mentor Bill McCabe. Almost a decade before Molly disappeared, McCabe was a powerful political force in Joliet and wielded The Spectator to influence public opinion. He had previously served as an Illinois State Senator, Will County State's Attorney and Mayor of the neighboring Village of Lockport. Giving and taking the hard elbows of Joliet politics, McCabe was not afraid to make enemies - until a fateful night in 1948 in which he was beaten within inches of his life.
2019-12-0529 min
The Spectator: Who Killed Molly ZelkoEpisode 1 - "Hell A' Poppin"On the morning of September 26, 1957, Joliet Newspaper Editor Molly Zelko disappears. All that remains are two black, high-heeled shoes tossed carelessly near her 1955 Chrysler Sedan parked outside of her home. Through her newspaper, the weekly Joliet Spectator, Molly had been aggressively investigating gambling rackets in Joliet, chiefly pinball, which were linked closely to the Chicago syndicate. In the 1950s, Joliet’s proximity to Chicago made it a strategic location where the lines between business, politics, and crime were blurred. During this period, the syndicate was undergoing a leadership change from the Capone-era gangsters Paul Ricca and Tony Accardo to a yo...
2019-11-2828 min
American Road Trip TalkAmerican Road Trip Talk 08 - 02 - 19 Old Joliet Prison And Heritage Corridor ReplayTrip Talk recently hosted an interview with the amiable and informative Greg Peerbolte, executive director of the Joliet Area Historical Museum. Enjoy this "Best Of" episode again and listen for news of American Road Magazine's 2019 "Picture Perfect" photography contest. You could win $500! Visit americanroadmagazine.com for details and entry instructions.
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2019-08-0231 minAmerican Road Trip TalkAmerican Road Trip Talk 07 - 05 - 19 Juliet, IL And The Heritage CorridorThis episode sends you to prison in Joliet but luckily in a good way, with a fascinating survey of local crime and punishment legacy courtesy of Greg Peerbolte, executive director of the Joliet Area Historical Museum. Other attractions along the Heritage Corridor in Illinois also are included.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
2019-07-0527 min