Kup's Assistant Gets Her Own 'Sun-Times' Column

By: Mark Fitzgerald After serving for decades as the assistant and then co-writer with Irv Kupcinet of "Kup's Column," Stella Foster began her own column in the Chicago Sun-Times Tuesday morning.

In the first "Stella's Column," Foster said she would write in the spirit of Kup, whose column ran for 60 years until his death Nov. 10 at age 91. "Kup may physically be gone, but spiritually he lives in my heart and in the heart of the city, for he was 'Mr. Chicago,'" Foster wrote in her first column.

Foster, an African American, said her column will be "multi-generational, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and, most importantly, a column you can enjoy over a cup of coffee in the morning or while relaxing in your easy chair after a hard day at the office."

Her first column was a mix of new and old bold-faced celebrities: Singers Beyonce Knowles and Jay Z followed by retired Illinois Gov. James Thompson, an item from the Chicago Jewish Historical Society and a comment on Michael Jackson ("a pitiful, pitiful sight to behold"). In another long Kup tradition, she gave a shout-out to her boss, noting in one item that new Sun-Times Publisher John Cruickshank would be speaking Wednesday at the City Club of Chicago.

In its first outing, Foster's column, which will run Tuesdays and Thursdays, managed to do something Kup could not for the past 15 years -- get moved farther up front in the newspaper. While "Kup's Column" faced the business section -- the last stop in the tabloid before obituaries and classified ads --"Stella's Column" Tuesday ran opposite the Commentary page.