Larry, thanks for providing an overview of the development of the Chicago new jazz scene.
I am not a fan of Vandermark either, and share your reservations about his playing (to be fair, I have not heard anything he recorded in the last 15 years), but I also strongly object to the "charlatan" label. He is not a self-promoter that you would expect a charlatan to be, he seems to be a very unassuming guy, and, as you noted, his generosity and organizational skills helped the scene tremendously (I assume he financed the Brötzmann Tentet, for example). It is not his fault that he was (and I am not sure whether he still is) considered by many to be the leading light in the new music. Are we to expect everybody who is not a top-tier player to stop playing / performing? The guy enjoys what he's doing, he plays with good people (and gives them ample opportunity to get a worldwide exposure), there is nothing about it that would make him a "charlatan". A lot of people of modest talent get over-hyped for various, often not related to the music, reasons. William Parker, anyone? Or Rahsaan Roland Kirk?