Mike Mills was an award-winning hall of fame pitmaster, a restaurateur who became a worldwide ambassador for barbecue, the southern Illinois region and the role that cooking meat slowly over a smoky fire plays in restoring the soul.
Mills, 79, who founded 17th Street Barbecue, turning a century-old building in downtown Murphysboro into an internationally known restaurant with a clientele that included top chefs and former President Bill Clinton, died Tuesday, his daughter and restaurant co-owner Amy Mills said.
Mills had reportedly been in ill health in recent months. No cause of death was given by the family, but Amy Mills said it was not COVID-19 related.