Articles Archive - Pittsburgh Quarterly

Not everyone in this football-crazy city has to have a football story, but I do. And after 41 years here, maybe the time is right to finally tell it. After all, at this time of year, is anyone in Pittsburgh not thinking about football? My story begins just downriver from Pittsburgh, in a little town …

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Books

A Man Named Branch: A Great-Grandniece Remembers Branch Rickey

by Marjorie Maddox

In 1947, filled with courage, skill and determination, Jackie Robinson changed history by becoming the first African American player in the major leagues. But how did this happen? Who thought of this idea for great social change? The answer comes from a man named Branch Rickey, the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers — and …

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Obituaries People

Walsh, Harris, Mosley, DiSilvio, Wagner, Jonas, Unico, Agras

by PQ Staff

Larry Walsh, 84Larry Walsh was a big man with a big heart and a booming voice and laugh, which rang out often. He was a consummate newspaper reporter, covering City Hall and the County Courts for The Pittsburgh Press, seeming to know everyone in town and eager to help young reporters. He was a 6-foot, …

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Opinion Pittsburgh Tomorrow

All Aboard! The Burgh Train’s on the Move

by Douglas Heuck

After all the success of the NFL Draft, many Pittsburghers wanted to keep the momentum going. And it is. For the past year, Pittsburgh Tomorrow has sought to coalesce a dozen disparate economic development groups, each with its own conference and small pitch competition, into one big conference with the mass and gravity to attract …

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Home & Lifestyle Homes

The Second Time Around

by Marylynn Uricchio

It’s not often that a designer gets to decorate the same home for two different clients, but Randy Snell of Archetype Design Studio had both that opportunity and challenge. The home sits on 100 generous acres with sweeping views in Ligonier. Constructed by the first owners in 2000, it was purchased by the current residents …

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Books

Coming of Age in Sewickley: Girls — Anna Bruno Captures the Search for Truth in Fine Young People

by Fred Shaw

If there were a writing recipe for Anna Bruno’s successful coming-of-age novel, Fine Young People (Algonquin Books, $29), it might go something like this: Start with Sewickley, that quaint, upper-class enclave 12 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, as a backdrop. Next, combine a plucky young protagonist with the keys to finding the answers she’s looking for …

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People Profiles

What Do I Know? Stewart O’Nan

by Jeff Sewald

As a novelist, I’m drawn to characters who are not famous, accomplished, or visible. And yet, two of the books I’ve written — one about F. Scott Fitzgerald and another about a serial killer who sells a story to Stephen King — are one or more of these things. So, I’m all over the place …

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People

The 100th Cinderella Ball – A Milestone Celebration

by Christina Lamport

The Duquesne Club Ballroom hummed as 300 guests in tuxedos and floor-length gowns –families, friends, and past debutantes, Prince Charmings, and Cinderellas — gathered for the 100th Presentation of the Debutantes of the Cinderella Ball. The venue shimmered with flowers on gold pedestals on each table by Jeff Donati of Pete Donati & Sons, and …

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Arts Nonprofits

World-class Creatives Team up Sept. 18 to Celebrate Pittsburgh’s Future

by PQ Staff

An inaugural weeklong Pittsburgh exhibition including the “StartUP PGH” innovation conference and the first-ever Pittsburgh Homecoming crescendos Sept. 18 with an epic, future-themed event: “Pittsburgh Tomorrow, A City on the Rise,” featuring interactive installations by 20 Pittsburgh creatives including Oscar-winner Brendan Burch, world-renowned experiential artist Johannes DeYoung, Attack Theatre founders and artistic directors Michele de …

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Books

Coming of Age in Sewickley: Boys — Former Point Park Professor Looks at How to be a Man

by Fred Shaw

In his debut novel, City of Clans, University of Pittsburgh master of fine arts grad and former Point Park professor Geoff Peck uses Pittsburgh’s 2009 G-20 summit as a tonal backdrop for a millennial coming-of-age tale. We get the first-person scoop from Jeremy “Big Jerm” Starcevic, a recent Sewickley Academy graduate who moves in with …

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Arts

No One Claps For The Critic

by Stuart Sheppard

“We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.” — Lincoln, First Inaugural Address (1861) I have always felt that the sentence most essential to democracy — and to free expression — is the 1906 quote, often attributed to Voltaire, but …

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American Spirit People

What Does America Mean to Me? Pt. IV

by PQ Staff

On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, we asked a group of leading Pittsburghers to consider and answer that question. We thank them for giving their thoughts on this important occasion. Previously in this series: What Does America Mean to Me? Pt. III TIM PARKS, CEO, LIFE’SWORK While …

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Culture Opinion

What Does America Mean to Me? Pt. III

by PQ Staff

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Creative Capital Money Opinion

What’s Ahead in the Second Half for Markets? Pt. III

by PQ Staff

Editor’s note: We asked a group of leading Pittsburgh-area wealth managers to give their answers to this question: “So far, 2026 has been treacherous for investors. What do you expect for the second half and where do you see opportunity?” Previously in this series: What’s Ahead in the Second Half for Markets? Pt. II MATTHEW …

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Arts

Kinetic’s “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” Has All the Clues

by Stuart Sheppard

We could just as well discuss the historical influence of Agatha Christie’s 1926 novel “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” as we could its mechanistic genius as a whodunnit. The British Crime Writer’s Association voted it the best crime novel ever, and it’s been cited by famous writers over the past century for its innovative style; …

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Opinion

In 1918–19 in Zurich, Switzerland, English painter Frank Budgen found himself often drinking wine while enjoying long talks about writing with James Joyce, author of the controversial novel Ulysses. It was during one of those discussions that the self-exiled Irish writer shared his vision on getting the detailed setting of that masterpiece right: “I want …

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Creative Capital Money Opinion

What’s Ahead in the Second Half for Markets?

by PQ Staff

Editor’s note: We asked a group of leading Pittsburgh-area wealth managers to give their answers to this question: “So far, 2026 has been treacherous for investors. What do you expect for the second half and where do you see opportunity?” DAMIAN MCINTYRE, FEDERATED HERMES Investor outlook in 2026 has been shaken repeatedly by conflicts and …

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American Spirit Opinion

What Does America Mean to Me?

by PQ Staff

On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, we asked a group of leading Pittsburghers to consider and answer that question. We thank them for giving their thoughts on this important occasion. MARK WIEDMAN, PRESIDENT, PNC America represents the promise that where you start doesn’t have to define where …

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Arts Culture

Steel Valley Visions: An American Legacy

by Erica Nuckles & Silvia Filippini-Fantoni

Throughout western Pennsylvania’s big steel era, artists captured a compelling visual record of the industry’s rise and fall: grit and glory, power and peril, beauty and brutality. At its height, the region’s three rivers reflected the brightness of fire and molten metal, and thick smoke filled the air. This was a place where muscle met …

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History Regional News

The Future of Pittsburgh History

by Andy Masich

As the nation marks its 250th anniversary this year, the importance of understanding our shared past has never been clearer. Here in Pittsburgh, that moment of reflection is taking shape in a tangible way, as the Senator John Heinz History Center is set to embark on a major expansion that reflects the organization’s remarkable evolution …

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