Two of Kansas City’s legendary barbecue restaurants, Gates and Arthur Bryant’s, trace their style to one man: pitmaster and entrepreneur Henry Perry, known as the barbecue king of Kansas City. In the early 1920s, Perry started barbecuing in an outdoor pit, serving up slabs of meat wrapped in newspaper.

In a June 18^th edition of KMBC 9 Chronicle called Up in Smoke, Emmy-nominated anchor Jamie Weiss explores the history of Kansas City barbecue. At the Library, Weiss will reveal the special sauce behind the storytelling and moderate a conversation about this smoked culinary tradition.

She’ll be joined by Michael Wells, special collections librarian, Bernetta McKindra, Henry Perry’s granddaughter, and Ardie Davis, founder of the American Royal International BBQ Sauce, Rub, & Baste Contest and author of 11 books on grilling and smoking. Davis was inducted into the Barbecue Hall of Fame in 2016.