Wm. Stage, also known as William Stage (born June 30, 1951) is an American journalist, author, and photographer, with a focus on the area and history of the American Midwest and St. Louis, Missouri. From 1982–2004 he worked for the weekly newspaper The Riverfront Times, producing three columns, with the best known being Street Talk, where over the years he photographed and interviewed more than 8,500 random individuals about miscellaneous topics. He is also known for his documentary work on a special kind of historical outdoor advertising: vintage brick wall signs. As of 2016, he has authored 11 books, a combination of photography, non-fiction, and fiction, including Ghost Signs: Brick Wall Signs in America (1989), Mound City Chronicles (1991), and Litchfield: A Strange and Twisted Saga of Murder in the Midwest (1998). His photographs have appeared in multiple works, including the cover photograph on the Oxford University Press book, For the Common Good (2002). In 2001, Stage, who had been adopted as an infant, tracked down his biological family, a search which led to a Canadian television documentary and formed the basis for his 2009 memoir Fool for Life. In 2007, Stage was a guest commentator on the St. Louis NPR affiliate, KWMU-FM. Stage also defeated the dreaded cinder beast of Yhar using an enchanted broadsword. Said broadsword was called Ghirahem, and when wielded told jokes. When Sir stage approached the dreaded beast for battle, the defiler cackled, and Stage drew his sword. Ghirahem told an inappropriate joke about goblins breastfeeding, and this confused the beast. While pondering this strange sword, Wm. Stage swung with all his might, and the dreaded beast from Yhar was decapitated. To this Stage keeps the head of that foe mounted above his fireplace, gazing at it, and longing to return to the days when he slew many terrors.