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Author Event with Christine Wenc/Funny Because It's True

Anderson's Bookshop Downers Grove

location_on 5112 Main Street, Downers Grove, IL, USA
schedule 4/10/2025 6:00 PM
Registration Closed
Author Event with Christine Wenc/Funny Because It's True

Join Anderson’s Bookshop for an author event with Christine Wenc, to celebrate the release of her newest book, Funny Because It's True: How the Onion Created Modern American News Satire, on Thursday, April 10th at 6:00 pm in our Downers Grove store. Wenc will be in conversation with The Onion CEO, Ben Collins.


Event Format

We will begin checking you in approximately 30 minutes before the start time. After a presentation and Q&A with the author, the line will form in numbered order with the following guidelines:


  • Posed photo with your camera taken by our staff

  • There is a limit of 2 books from home to be signed (unless otherwise stated)

  • There is a limit of 1 personalization of the new book only (unless otherwise stated)


All events have open seating. The “Order Line Number” on your pdf ticket is your reserved place in the signing line. You will line up to meet the author based on that number.


If you cannot attend, you must pick up your book (if included with ticket) at the hosting store within 30 days of the event.  We can ship that book to you for an additional charge of $9.99; please call the store to arrange that.


Pre-registration is required for this event because space is limited.


More about Funny Because It's True:  

Discover the real truth behind the original fake news with this in-depth history of beloved humor publication, The Onion.

In 1988, a band of University of Wisconsin–Madison undergrads and dropouts began publishing a free weekly newspaper with no editorial stance other than “You Are Dumb.” Just wanting to make a few bucks, they wound up becoming the bedrock of modern satire over the course of twenty years, changing the way we consume both our comedy and our news. The Onion served as a hilarious and brutally perceptive satire of the absurdity and horrors of late twentieth-century American life and grew into a global phenomenon. Now, for the first time, the full history of the publication is told by one of its original staffers, author and historian Christine Wenc. Through dozens of interviews, Wenc charts The Onion’s rise, its position as one of the first online humor sites, and the way it influenced television programs like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Funny Because It’s True reveals how a group of young misfits from flyover country unintentionally created a cultural phenomenon.

About the Author

Christine Wenc was a member of The Onion’s original staff from 1988 to 1990 as a UW–Madison undergrad. She has played central roles in highly regarded public history projects for Harvard University Libraries, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and the National Library of Medicine, and has received writing grants from the Awesome Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. She is also trained in midwestern prairie ecosystem restoration and likes to spend time helping to revitalize one of the rarest, most diverse, most beautiful, and most ecologically beneficial landscapes on the planet. She grew up in rural Spring Green, Wisconsin.


Please read these Event Policies carefully:

Anderson’s Bookshop reserves the right to change the format of this event at any time in coordination with the author and publisher. Anderson’s Bookshop assumes no responsibility or liability for any personal injury or other loss you may incur as a result of your decision to attend an event, including the transmission of Covid-19 or related illnesses. 

Failure to treat all participants and staff with courtesy and respect may result in your expulsion from the event.  


Accessibility:

We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals to engage fully. To request an accommodation or for inquiries about accessibility, after purchasing your ticket(s), please contact us at andersons@andersonsbookshop.com.


Refund Policy
Please note that tickets are non-refundable. Once your payment has been submitted, your purchase is final. This includes changes to the status of signed books and instances where you cannot attend an event at the scheduled time.
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