River City is Kansas City (Mo.), which is fast outgrowing its cowtown past and, so everybody will notice, has taken to...

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RIGHT HERE IN RIVER CITY: A Portrait of Kansas City

River City is Kansas City (Mo.), which is fast outgrowing its cowtown past and, so everybody will notice, has taken to blowing its own horn. This is, in effect, the latest and most long-winded blast, twenty chapters of civic pride put forth in straight C of C clichÉ: Speeding from ""the fantastic new Kansas City International Airport. . . a visitor will see evidence of a bustling metropolis where one and one-third million people live, work, and play every day."" There are snippets of history (K.C. ""missed being called Possum Trot by a single vote""); a tour of buildings of assorted interest; notes on streets, parks and fountains; a rundown of local politics; anecdotes of the Trumans back home in Independence; some flack and some facts on leading industries--K.C, is the greeting card (Hallmark) and envelope capital of the country, and the first and largest source of vending machines. Sports is a mania, culture is a social imperative, the weather is uncertain, the K.C. Star isn't what it used to be, and former police chief Clarence Kelley isn't where he used to be. Relatively candid profiles of the outlying communities and the city neighborhoods conclude. For as long as its spot news is new, an ideal Welcome-Wagon handout.

Pub Date: April 2, 1976

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1976

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