Carbondale After Dark And Other Stories: Expanded Edition

From panty raids to riots Carbondale After Dark is a profusely illustrated anthology of history essays and short stories that chronicles how a sleepy little college town in the Midwest became a hippie haven and radical outpost during the 1960s and 70s. Some call that Carbondales golden age while others say it was the citys hippie phase. Either way it left a mark on the town and those who went through those tumultuous times and it remains a period of interest to those who came after.First published in 1982 the book has become a touchstone for those who were there and a revelation for those who were not. Author H.B. Koplowitz provides a blow-by-blow account of the political and cultural upheavals that led to the May 1970 riots in Carbondale and how protests evolved into street parties and a massive Halloween celebration.The first third of the book focuses on the notorious downtown strip during the 1960s and 70s when Carbondale was invaded by hippies freaks massive protests and even more massive street parties. It also chronicles streakers bands bars hangouts protest movements and street people and efforts by city and school officials to control the madness. In other words all the things that get left out of official histories and Chamber of Commerce brochures.Amply illustrated with historic photos and graphics the anthology also includes period essays and short stories with such titles as Kidnapped by Jesus Freaks and Kid Clyde: An Existentualists Horror Story; rants on such subjects as womens lib and afrophobia; and a poem of teenage angst The Horny Blues.The expanded third edition adds three new stories: Carbondale Before Dark describes growing up in Carbondale in the 1950s and early 60s. Buckys Dome is about living in futurist Buckminster Fullers dome home in the early 1980s. Ghosts of Carbondale Past is a reflection on a 2017 reunion concert of 1970s Carbondale bands.Chocked full of history and memories Carbondale After Dark makes a great gift for anyone who has lived in Carbondale or gone to SIU.