"Windy City" error of the day, Part II

[Laurence Horn]

>    I guess those thirty letters to the CHICAGO TRIBUNE and NEW YORK
>SUN weren't enough.

Well, he does acknowledge that he was writing fiction...

>Historical killer's allure beckons an author too
>Chicago Tribune; Chicago, Ill.; Feb 27, 2003; David Sharos Special
>to the Tribune;
>
>Sub Title:  [West , DN Edition]
>Start Page:  4
>ISSN:  10856706
>Abstract:
>[Erik Larson] told an audience at Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville
>last week that while researching historical murders several years
>ago, Larson stumbled upon H.H. Holmes, a serial killer who
>masqueraded as a benevolent doctor.
>
>Full Text:
>(Copyright 2003 by the Chicago Tribune)
>
>Best-selling author Erik Larson didn't set out to write about
>mystery, murder and intrigue surrounding the 1893 Chicago World's
>Fair, but that's what he ended up with.
>
>Larson told an audience at Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville last
>week that while researching historical murders several years ago,
>Larson stumbled upon H.H. Holmes, a serial killer who masqueraded as
>a benevolent doctor.
>
>"I discovered Holmes, who I never intended to write about. Then I
>started looking into information about the World's Fair and kept
>finding more and more that I liked," Larson said. "Once I saw that
>this huge event, one that had such an effect on Chicago and the
>world, was taking place within a few blocks of where all of these
>murders were being committed I knew I'd found the engine I needed to
>tell a story."
>
>The result was his fourth non-fiction work, "The Devil in the White
>City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America."
>
>Holmes, along with Daniel H. Burnham, the architect responsible for
>construction of the "White City," are the primary characters. Dr.
>Holmes devised the World's Fair Hotel near the fairgrounds, complete
>with gas chamber and crematorium, and used both the World's Fair and
>his charming personality to lure many of what are believed to be
>dozens to their deaths.
>
>Larson, a former newspaper reporter, had his breakthrough with his
>third book, "Isaac's Storm," which told of natures' wonders.
>
>As he researched his current work, Larson said he uncovered several
>interesting tidbits about everyday items that first appeared during
>the World's Fair, such as Crackerjacks and Shredded Wheat, although
>the latter was derisively referred to as "Shredded Doormat" during
>that era, he said.
>
>Larson also noted that Chicago's nickname, Windy City, was coined at
>this time, but had nothing to do with Midwestern winds.
>
>"There was a lot of bantering back and forth between New York and
>Chicago, who were both vying for the right to hold the Fair at that
>time," Larson said. "An editor from New York eventually accused
>Chicago of being the Windy City because of the all the political
>bombast that was going back and forth."
>
>Larson said he is undecided about his next project.
>
>"I really love doing the research part of these books and prefer
>writing non-fiction," he said. "But one of the problems as a writer
>is having to come up with an idea about what you're going to do
>next."