Jan Biles
CJOnline
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Past articles by Jan:
At Home: 6 Topeka demonstrations gardens to explore
Demonstration gardens come in various shapes, sizes and descriptions, but all have a theme and a purpose to demonstrate and teach various gardening styles and techniques. → Read More
New effort to restore Jayhawk Theatre takes flight
Businessman E.H. Crosby was looking toward the future 90 years ago when he invested his money into building the Jayhawk Theatre in downtown Topeka. → Read More
Jayhawk Theatre: From grandeur to closing to rebirth
It’s been 90 years since the Jayhawk Theatre first turned on its stage lights and movie projector. Here’s a chronological look at the theater’s history. → Read More
Jayhawk Theatre holds bountiful memories for area residents
When you mention “Jayhawk Theatre,” fond memories return for many older Topekans and former residents. Here are some of those memories; other accounts can be read at cjonline.com. → Read More
Topeka goes Hollywood in 1949 for movie world premiere
The memory of actor Randolph Scott riding a sorrel horse in a downtown Topeka parade is clear in Keith Ramsey’s mind, even after 68 years. → Read More
Restored theaters see success, but continue to face challenges
The Stiefel Theatre in Salina has a lot in common with the Jayhawk in Topeka. → Read More
Before burlesque, Gypsy Rose Lee performed at Jayhawk Theatre
A young entertainer’s split from her domineering stage mother after a performance at the Jayhawk Theatre set in motion one of the most famous burlesque acts in America. → Read More
Topeka-area shoppers know what they want in a vehicle
Kevin Hasenkamp, general manager at John Hoffer Chrysler Jeep, says Topeka-area consumers know what they want when they’re shopping for new vehicles: safety features and the latest technology. → Read More
1966 tornado commemoration, VIP reception tickets on sale at Capital-Journal
Tickets for Twist of Fate, The Topeka Capital-Journal’s 50th anniversary commemoration of the Topeka tornado, are now available for purchase at the front desk at The Topeka Capital-Journal, as well as by phone, mail order and online.Legendary television journalist and Washburn University School of Law graduate Bill Kurtis will be the featured speaker at the June 4 event. → Read More
Tickets for 1966 tornado commemorative program, VIP reception on sale
Tickets now are on sale for Twist of Fate, The Topeka Capital-Journal's 50th anniversary commemoration of the Topeka tornado. Native Kansan and legendary television journalist Bill Kurtis will be the featured speaker at the June 4 event. → Read More
Freedom's Struggle: History parallels happenings in today's world
Journalist Lucile Bluford knew racial injustice when she saw it. And she seldom let it sneak by without calling it by its rightful name.Born in 1911 in North Carolina, the daughter of a science teacher who later taught at the all-black Lincoln High School in Kansas City, Mo., she was well aware of the fallacies of the separate-but-equal rule in education. → Read More
Paul Rudd: A star is born
In early July, actor Paul Rudd was on his knees, posing for the paparazzi near his newly installed star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles. → Read More
Surviving segregation
Author and historian Sonny Gibson learned early about the line separating blacks and whites. Gibson spent part of his childhood in Calvert, Texas, a segregated town where blacks lived west of the main street and whites lived to its east. → Read More
C-J publisher plans to build on legacy, create new opportunities
Since arriving in Topeka on Oct. 19, Zach Ahrens, the new president and publisher of The Topeka Capital-Journal, has been busy meeting with community leaders, connecting with readers and getting to know staff. → Read More
Freedom's Frontier: Union betrayal leads to war atrocity
FREDONIA - Opothleyahola, speaker for the Muskogee Indians, urged all of the Midwestern tribes to convene for a council meeting in late 1859-early 1860 to signal their loyalty to the Union. It was a hard sell. → Read More
Next-to-New sale raises money for senior center
The rooms, basement and storage units at the Rice Community Center are overflowing with items that have been donated to the fourth annual Next-to-New Sale, which raises money to support the services provided by the East Topeka Senior Center. → Read More
Program honors 101 Riley Co. soldiers killed in WWII
A program commemorating the 101 soldiers from Riley County who lost their lives in World War II is being planned in Manhattan. "The 60th Diamond Jubilee Celebration: Remembering the 101" will be presented at 4 p.m. → Read More
Artist expands mural depicting Oakland history
When Topeka artist Andy Valdivia finished his “Our History” mural at the Marlo Cuevas-Balandran Activity Center in September 2012, he thought he had done a pretty good job of telling the story of the Mexican-Hispanic heritage of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Church parish and the Oakland community.The mural, which measured 8 feet by 14 feet, 4 inches, was painted with acrylics on the west wall of… → Read More
Secret network in Kansas helped blacks escape slavery
Escaped slave Ann Clarke hunkered down in the dead of night in a ravine near Lecompton. → Read More
Rare dinosaur skull being prepared for exhibition
A Kansas fossil hunter says a skull recovered in 2012 from a field in South Dakota is thought to be a new species and genus of ceratopsian, a family of dinosaur that lived mostly during the Cretaceous Period and includes the triceratops. → Read More