OF THE TOWNS talk

by bill beggs jr.

The Metro

Hyundai and Kia car owners aren’t exactly fans of TikTok right now—and not just because the original song they recorded months ago hasn’t started trending. Imagine the shock and dismay you’d feel looking out from your bedroom window one morning to see that your new Kia Soul is no longer in your driveway. A similar scenario has played out hundreds more times than usual over the last year or so, such that the theft rate

Delmar Loop

Joe? You’re not retiring, are you? Say it ain’t so, Joe! The Lou needs you! It’s definitely not so, according to Delmar Loop entrepreneur and city booster Joe Edwards. Ownership of entertainment destinations such as Pin-Up Bowl may have changed hands recently, but Edwards says it will be business as usual, with more fun to be had by summer when Magic Mini Golf opens across from the Pageant concert hall. Wash. U. has purchased nine properties—several buildings and two parking lots—both to the east and west of Skinker Boulevard, roughly the dividing line between the U. City and StL sections of the popular dining and attraction district. Both parties are holding purchase prices close to the vest. Edwards and wife Linda famously resurrected The Loop in 1972 when they opened Blueberry Hill, still going gangbusters after its 50th anniversary. Edwards and his urban-renewal spirit have steadily marched to the east—as far as Forest Park, if you count the on-again, off-again Loop Trolley—reviving the historic Tivoli Theatre, then building into the 21st century with The Pageant and Delmar Hall concert venues. Edwards says about half of Wash. U.’s acquisitions are in St. Louis, the other half in the U. City portion of The Loop. He’s confident the well-endowed private university will make wise decisions with the properties based on the moves already made. “This is a wonderful transaction for the future,” Edwards says. “It will be for long after I’m gone!” He’s sure they’ll fill the vacant second stories of some buildings, such as the one directly across from the Pageant that once housed President Barack Obama’s favorite pizza joint, Pi. He doesn’t anticipate anything will change substantially for Peacock Diner, a space he rents from Wash. U. It features one of the many bodacious splashes of neon throughout The Loop, beginning with Blueberry Hill and continuing through to the Tivoli marquee, Pin-Up Bowl and The Pageant. Speaking of neon, Edwards notes that we ain’t seen nothing yet. The curved neon sign at Magic Mini Golf, 6160 Delmar Blvd., will be 20 feet tall, featuring two golfers. “It will knock your socks off,” says Edwards, a tad modestly. So, wear golf socks before you come out to go in, because some footies, we muse, may even have been designed to withstand hurricanes.

for the South Korean-made vehicles soared over 1,000% and some owners haven’t been able to find reasonably priced auto insurance. It all started with a TikTok video that went viral showing would-be thieves how to exploit anti-theft devices in the cars, making them easier to swipe. About 8 million cars, 3.8 million Hyundai, 4.5 million Kia, are vulnerable. Most of the affected models were made between 2015 and 2019 and use mechanical keys. Meanwhile, some relief is coming from across the Pacific Ocean: A fix for the computer glitch is being made available to dealers, and it takes little more than an hour in a service bay. Heavens to Betsy—auto thievery has changed a whole lot since the days when PSAs ran on TV reminding scatterbrained drivers that nincompoops lurk in the shadows, just waiting to pounce. “Don’t let a good kid go bad,” the voiceover went. “Lock your car. Take your keys.” Back in the day, as any Boomer will tell you, was also when juvenile delinquents could siphon gas out of your tank. And cars didn’t have computers. Or seat belts.

BILL BEGGS JR. HAS WORN MANY HATS AT NEWSPAPERS, MAGAZINES AND IN MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS SINCE BEFORE THE ERA OF THE FLOPPY DISC. NOW HE JUST WEARS A HAT TO KEEP HIS BALD SPOT FROM GETTING SUNBURNT. YOU CAN REACH HIM AT WRTRS.BLCK@GMAIL.COM