Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni.
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Tuesday, April 16
May 1st is becoming synonymous with immigrant rights. The last two years saw massive demonstrations as immigrants and their allies responded to an increasingly hostile political landscape. Tomorrow’s rally will kick off at Union Park, and while no one is expecting the massive crowds of ‘06 or ‘07, the continuing challenge of immigration reform promises to draw a broad coalition.
Our neighbors to the south, in Marion, Indiana need some help. The Marion-Grant County Humane Shelter is closing down at the end of May or early June and all animals need to go to a loving home. Unfortunately, any animals still at the shelter at its time of closing will be euthanized. There are some dogs whose status is urgent and photos and more details on those dogs can be found here. If you're looking to adopt and dog or cat and can find your way down to Marion, Indiana, please consider this an option.
The makers of Red Bull have won a six-figure settlement in a lawsuit against the local nightclub Wet for passing off a generic energy drink as their more famous product in their cocktails. The nightclub's website is strangely unavailable.
Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey, of "Hell's Kitchen" fame, is set to open a restaurant here in Chicago. Will it have yelling and non-yelling sections?
Continuing on the aerial view theme, Chicago from space, by day and night. [via]
Meet Lee Linderman, the Northwestern student currently ranked 150th out of 6 million Guitar Hero III players.
Ben Fry is an expert on data visualization. He recently created a map of all the roads in the United States; this closeup of the Midwest shows just how dense the pavement is around Chicagoland.
On this day 25 years ago, Harold Washington was sworn in as mayor of Chicago, the first African-American to ascend to that seat. ArchPundit has been remembering the man all day today.
IDOT is so overwhelmed by the volume and severity of potholes that it's hiring contractors to help catch up on the repairs. Meanwhile, CTA buses will soon get dedicated lanes, prepay kiosks at busy stops and other upgrades to help reduce congestion downtown.
Tom Cruise will be visiting Harpo Studios May 5, and a group of anti-Scientologists will be waiting for him.
Uptown Update has the lowdown on some of John Dillinger's hangouts in Uptown, including his last stop: the neighborhood funeral home.
Chicago blues icon Buddy Guy gets the tribute treatment when he's honored during the Great Performers of Illinois Festival July 20 at Millennium Park. Grammy winner Jimmie Vaughn will headline the free (yes, FREE) concert as part of the three-day music festival.
What a different creature Taste of Chicago would be if Rick Bayless, Shawn McClain, Art Smith and other top chefs had booths here and not just in DC.
Close to 90 paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago's collection of Impressionist art are heading to Texas, where they'll be displayed at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth. The good news: they'll be back in time for the winter holidays.
The federal government will likely give Chicago a grant to study innovative traffic reduction techniques in the city. Among the options to be considered are increased parking charges in specific locations and congestion pricing, which notably recently went out in a blaze of glory in New York.
Former Trinity United Church of Christ senior pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright continued his media blitz with a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. (in which he slammed Dick Cheney's military credentials, or lack thereof). But a Washington Post columnist offers another perspective on Wright.
After hearing Da Mare, the New York Times, and so many others comment on how difficult the recent shootings in Chicago have been, it was interesting to hear the story of a Chicagoan who knew one of the recent victims.
...horses, one of which escaped from the Noble Horse Theater in Old Town early this morning and wandered the streets for a while. Our new city slogan: "Chicago: Where the Zoo Comes to You."
It's rather vague to me how this all works, but if you want to chase people around for three weeks and 'kill' them with water, then join the Chicago Assassins in their upcoming June bout of secret agents and water guns.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Mars, Inc. (makers of Snickers and M&Ms) and Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett's company) have made a $22 billion bid for the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. (If only we could get them to buy the Cubs along with it.)
Beginning today, taxi drivers will be adding a $1.00 surcharge to cab fares to compensate for rising fuel costs.
The New York Times wrote a profile on Operation Safe Passage, the volunteer group that escorts students to Crane Technical High School each day as a response to the March shooting one block from the school that left a student dead.
The final version of the Pitchfork Festival's lineup was released to the unwashed masses yesterday; the July 18-20 event will feature Spoon, Spiritualized, Dinosaur Jr, Public Enemy (playing It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back in its entirety), and Hold Steady. In related news, Business Week estimated that the Pitchfork site annually yields an estimated $5 million in ad revenue. Good year for the roses!
A semi-truck hit the north stairwell of the Chinatown/Cermak Red Line station around 5:20pm today; reportedly two people have been killed and many more injured. If you're heading that way, take an alternate route, as the area is swarmed with emergency response and the trains are delayed. Very sad.
It wasn’t long ago that the City Clerk could update his website with a copy-and-paste of a previous City Council meeting’s roll call, because everyone simply voted the same way. Now an emerging bloc of aldermen is making his job harder by defying the Mayor with regularity. Dubbing themselves the “Independent Caucus,” they’re championing liberal causes, and testing the limits of their own power and resolve. Progress Illinois looks back on year one.
And, more importantly, show up your siblings, by eschewing the half-wilted, unsustainably harvested bunch of red carnations you always get her, in favor of a beautiful card showcasing Chicago’s community gardens. Your $25 donation to NeighborSpace, a nonprofit urban land trust that protects many of Chicago’s urban oases, gets Mom the card and an invitation to a fall tour of city gardens. Slackers, take note: card orders must be received by Tuesday, May 6, at 10 a.m.
Kids write stories. The Barrel of Monkeys theater group performs these stories for audiences of kids and grown-ups. The group just launched a web site with a searchable story archive... which means you can read stuff like what I'm reading: a poem that begins, "If you ever run into a piece of barbecued chicken, run away as fast as you can to China."
The Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention starts today in Lombard. The Chicago area has an admirable pedigree in the story of pulp fiction, being the birthplace of writers like Edgar Rice Burroughs and magazines like Weird Tales. Gotta love those tawdry covers.
If you read the article in the Red Eye about the remains of the cougar recently shot in Roscoe Village, you only got half the story. The full article (with some rather vivid details) on the Trib's site, walks you through the preparation of the skeleton and hide for study at the Field Museum.
The New York Times has a story on Melrose Park's Stern Pinball, Inc., the last of the coin-op pinball game manufacturers
This week's Drive-Thru feature is about local business Fig Catering, which makes the kind of inventive food you'd expect in a good restaurant.
Teaser for Season 2 of This American Life, which premieres May 4 on Showtime.
After pioneering the "oxidized look" for some of its buildings (most notably the Daley Center), Chicago architects are turning once again to self-weathering metals that purposely rust.
The rise in fuel prices over the last few years may cause the CTA more operating budget pain on top of its recent funding challenges. Sen. Dick Durbin, who is asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate changes in the price of oil, says that the transit agency may be on the hook for an additional $25 million in diesel and other fuels this year.
A ticket to this weekend's Artropolis, the international art show at The Merchandise Mart, is normally $20 for a one-day pass, but if you bike to the event you'll get free admission to Art Chicago, NEXT, The Merchandise Mart International Antiques Fair, The Artist Project and The Intuit Show of Folk and Outsider Art. That's a whole lot of art to look at for free, people! Just park your bike in the racks when you arrive and check in at the South Lobby Concierge Desk to get your ticket.
As the city copes with yet another senseless killing (detailed here in this AP report on YouTube), reports say the murder wave could have another consequence - it could wipe out Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics.
We know that a big portion of you, our dear readers, work in advertising, design and marketing. If you're looking to put your skills to use through volunteer opportunities, consider joining the ranks of the Arts & Business Council or the Taproot Foundation. Help non-profits while expanding your professional network.
Bowl licking, a trip to Second City, and asparagus doesn't keep it up in this week's Top Chef recap over at Drive-Thru.
The next Sound Opinions movie night is coming on Friday, May 9th, and it's a good one: Rock'n'Roll High School, which pits The Ramones against an evil principal played by Mary Woronov. Amazingly, Ms. Woronov will be in attendance at the screening for Q&A about the film (how DID they get that paper airplane in Paul Bartel's ear?). Tickets available at the Chicago Public Radio Website.
Urban planners project that Chicagoland will be home to approximately 2.8 million more people by the year 2040. They'll have live and work somewhere. The agency in charge of deciding how to accommodate this growth wants your input over the next year for the development of their official plan, which will start to be implemented by 2010. 2009 is also the 100th anniversary of Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago.
This week marks the beginning of the annual 2nd Story Festival, wherein writer/performers regale you with tales, accompanied by a DJ. Organizers predict that over the course of the festival, they'll serve 5,000 glasses of wine. Place bets now on how many will be yours.
The GB Book Club is now reading The Grass Dancer by Susan Power for our May meeting. Find out more about the novel by checking out the introduction to the book on our blog. Then read The Grass Dancer and join us on Monday, May 19 at The Book Cellar for our discussion.
A look at the rare Chicago vs. New York City baseball "double-header" we had in town yesterday, from a New York Times perspective.
Catalyst and the Chicago Reporter both focused recently on the effects of incarceration on the families and children of prisoners.
Garrett Kelleher's development group didn't meet property tax filing deadlines in March. Is it a sign of trouble, or is everything moving along just fine?
Roger Ebert's 2008 Film Festival begins tonight in Urbana, IL but the film critic won't be attending this year. He explains in his Sun-Times blog that he decided not to make the journey after recently fracturing his hip. Get well soon, Roger!
The Electronics Visualization Lab at UIC has a YouTube channel with videos of their many computer graphics and video experiments. One in particular is worth checking out: a making-of video from 1977 describing how animator Larry Cuba created those Death Star simulations in Episode IV. (via)
OK, maybe you do -- but not just because you passed by a Chicago Sun-Times box today, and thought that the front page text was backwards. It really was backwards -- an attempt to draw attention to a campaign to stop gun violence against children. "Turning our backs doesn't help," the paper reasoned.
The last neighborhood tavern in Wrigleyville is on the verge of closure. Farewell to the Nisei Lounge.
Two sites have their sights set on Uptown: Uptown Update and the Chicago Uptown Crime Blotter. The former looks at events both positive and negative in the neighborhood (although sadly, it's mostly negative), while the latter acts as a near-realtime tracker of criminal activities, pulled from eye-witness reports and police scanner activity. (Thanks, Amy!)
Chicago is on track to become the first city to have a street sweeper-mounted camera system. As the sweeper moves down the street it will take a take a photo of any illegally-parked vehicle and a second image of the license plate, relaying both automatically to the Department of Revenue. Strictly for traffic flow purposes, you understand.
Don Kalant, an oral surgeon from Naperville, is suing the Chicago Bulls for injuries he suffered at the hands of the team's mascot at a February game. During a spirited high-five with Kalant, Benny the Bull reportedly tripped and hyperextended Kalant's arm, rupturing his biceps muscle.
If you haven't been to the Chicago Stolen Bike Registry in a while, it's worth visiting even if you haven't lost a bike. While you're there, check out the stolen bike statistics and theft map to help you know what to look out for and where to be particularly careful. Given 99.34% of the listed thefts were unrecovered, being careful is probably the way to go.
According to an email sent out to those affiliated with DePaul University, two buildings, Lewis Center and O'Malley Place, were evacuated due to bomb threats. Update: Information is also available on the DePaul website.
There's a lot of talk about what Chicagoans want in this article about Macy's plans to customize store offerings according in some markets -- but most Chicagoans would probably still say they want Marshall Field's back.
I was eating lunch in the Flat Top by Harpo Studios today when a man asked permission ... to break a 2"x4" in the restaurant. It turns out the man, Ron Werstler, is representing Caring Now for Kids and came to Chicago to raise $250,000 for a girl with cystic fibrosis, perhaps by getting on Oprah.
Between 1946 and 1948, Wayne Miller photographed residents of the "small town" of Chicago's black community. Buy the book here. [via]
The News Photographers Association of Canada honored Chicago by giving an award to a photo of Conrad Black during his trial. What's so notable about it? He's flipping someone the bird. What's also notable about it? It would have been so much better had the photographer bumped up the ISO rather than using a flash.
Thanks in no small part to the recent rash of shootings in the city, the CTA is yanking ads for the Grand Theft Auto IV video game from buses and CTA facilities.
What if Frank Lloyd Wright's Mile High Illinois building had actually been built here in Chicago? It might look a little like this.
There's a movement determined to add a recall provision to the Illinois constitution -- primarily so it can be used to oust Governor Blagojevich. They've been fairly successful up to now: it passed the House, but it looks like the bill won't make it out of the Senate.
On April 21, 1878 Chicago firefighter George Reid and his captain David Kenyon invented the firepole, which soon made their Engine Company 21 the first responder to Chicago fires and prompted the fire chief to order poles installed in all Chicago firehouses.
The first real spring weekend of the year saw gun violence all over the city. Police are investigating at least 31 shootings, 6 of them fatalities. Head cop Jody Weis blamed the weather, gangs, and easy access to assault weapons.
The New York Times gave props to Chicago in its Green Issue for its Green Alleys ongoing program to resurface the city’s alleyways with environmentally friendly materials such as permeable asphalt and light-reflecting concrete.
In another tragic car-bicycle accident, 22 year-old Tyler Fabeck was struck and killed early Sunday morning.
Carfree Chicago has launched a new line of L Stop buttons for fashionistas who are interested in displaying neighborhood pride, support for public transit, or both. The buttons' bright, bold colors are perfect for springtime.
No idea how this slipped by our notice, but today is Record Store Day. And with the plethora of great indie record stores in this fine city, you can put down the iTunes gift card for just one day and go crate-digging.
Amtrak says a Chicago-to-Iowa City rail line would carry 187,000 round-trip passengers a year, for a $55 million investment. National security and energy efficiency concerns have made rail lines an increasingly attractive alternative to flight for regional travel.
Ragan Communications gives it a B-. I'm surprised it rates even that high. (Thanks, Terri!)
The buzz is growing over The University of Chicago Law School's recent decision to cut off wireless Internet access in classrooms. Something about students chatting, checking email or playing solitare during class...
Threadless' is on this list of 10 annoyingly brilliant office interiors. [via]
Hey, did you just feel that? There are reports of aftershocks from this morning's 5.2 earthquake coming in from around the area. The latest was a 4.5 magnitude quake that occurred around 10:15am. (Thanks, Dan!)
The president of the Chicago Crime Commission explains how gangs get kids involved in the drug trade.
Movie fans would be wise to get in on Schadenfreude's Summer 2008 Movie Blockbuster Brackets.
Alright, raise your hand if you believe that Chicago really felt tremors from this morning's earthquake in West Salem, IL. More details here.
only this time, they're Oprah's.
http://flickr.com/photos/7231910@N05/
Patrick O'Neil
Did your wallet take a hit this past Tuesday? Soothe your post-Tax Day woes with recipes from this week's Drive-Thru feature, where we eat well at little expense.
On May 12, U.S. Postal Rates will go up - again. Sun-Times critic Kevin Nance sounds off on what this means for the publishing community.
Craigslist tells us that TLC's What Not to Wear, the TV show that gives shame-based makeovers, is accepting nominees from Chicago. The post says, "Do you have a friend/ family member/ sister/ co-worker that is in desperate need of a fashion overhaul?!" No word on whether successful applications must adopt the same frantic tone.
Cat and Girl dissects This American Life, and finds out something that says absolutely nothing about us and the way we live.
Chi-Town Daily News profiles the city's only Republican alderman, Brian Doherty of the 41st Ward.
It's nice out; how 'bout a bike tour?
AREA Chicago is launching a new blog, Report Back, which is "dedicated to documenting events and people's impressions of them throughout Chicago." It's a bare bones site at the moment, but they'd like to change that with reader submissions.
That noise you just heard didn't come from the other side of the world — it's the buzz pop musings of the Chicago band Fake Fictions, and their new album Krakatoa featured this week in Transmission.
Given the overwhelming shortage of Section 8 housing vouchers in Chicago, the CHA's plan to hold an additional lottery is welcome news.
Tasty tailgate parties, cooking with beer, and cocky losers in this week's Top Chef recap over in Drive-Thru.
Let's take a look at Cook County.
As Pope Benedict arrived in the US to a fanfare of presidential welcomes, he should have consulted with a PR agent before his press conference earlier today, where he decried the abuse of children by priests, saying he was "deeply ashamed" by the incidents. Why? He was introduced by Chicago's own Cardinal Francis George, who holds the titles of president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and one of America's Five Worst Cardinals (according to SNAP) for his handling of priest abuse scandals in the city's archdiocese.
According to the U.S. Olympic Committee chief Peter Ueberroth (and he should know, right?), Chicago is "not anywhere near first" when it comes to the bidding for the 2016 Olympics. Think about it: it's possible we're pulling up the rear with Baku, Azerbaijan (whose name, ironically, means "windy city").
Dana Levenson, the former City CFO who helped Mayor Daley auction off the Skyway and Midway Airport, is about to do the same thing in Toronto.
Remember yesterday's blue line snafu? Check out images of the passenger revolt with some additional details via the NYTimes.
The city has put together a helpful web page about where you can recycle/donate your old unused bike (with some helpful suburban locations too) as well as link to a company who's willing to recycle bicycle tires. Since tires aren't supposed to go to a landfill, this is a huge help!
Actor Michael McKean will be coming to Chicago this summer as a castmember of the Tracy Letts-penned Superior Donuts. The play runs June 19-August 17 at Steppenwolf.
Volunteers with the WPB's Community Open Houses asked the people of Wicker Park/Bucktown what they wanted to see in their neighborhood. Their responses were collected in a series of photographs on Flickr: here, here and here. A quick survey indicates a big push for a more bike-friendly area. Oh, and a toy store. Don't feel left out of the process, though, you can submit your thoughts too. [Via]
In July 2006, after the Blue Line derailed and started a small fire near the Clark/Lake stop, 85-year old Elfa Lari suffered major injuries. Today, on the same day that the Blue Line once again had to be evacuated near the Clark/Lake stop, the agency reached an agreement to settle the case for $1.25 million.
Beverly area natives and Matrix creators Andy and Larry Wachowski are bringing their cutting-edge movie special effects post-production gizmos to a vacant Ravenswood building. If they reprise the Matrix series, will we finally see Neo at Neo?
Anthropologist Jeremy Narby, author of The Cosmic Serpent, will speak at LUMA today as part of their spring exhibition, Manifest Destiny/Manifest Responsibility. BYOAyahuasca.
Hope you didn't need it today: there's a train stuck at Clark & Lake, and it's shut down the line. Read a first-person account after the jump.
Shylo Bisnett reports: "My morning commute was cut short just outside Clark and Lake. The stuck-train issue was complicated by anxious passengers, some who waited more than 90 minutes or more, who opened the trains doors and took to the tracks. After a lengthy wait, the conductor of my train finally let us out onto the catwalk. We all emerged, dirty from the handrail, via a Fulton & Jefferson emergency exit. Best quote from the conductor: 'This is what happens when you have 40-year-old trains.'" Time Out has yet more firsthand coverage.
Do you like to rock? We're looking to add to our ranks in Transmission.
Goose Island's Clybourn Brew Pub, which it has occupied since 1988, will close by the end of the year.
If you want to geek out about the Blues Brothers, and I mean really geek out, then check out this site. It has a google map that places all of the filming locations along with a history of what has happened to the site since then. (Don't forget to scroll up and see the scene that was filmed in Milwaukee.)
A loose cougar was found and shot near Roscoe and Hamilton earlier this evening. No word if it's the same cougar that was spotted in Wilmette.
Congratulations to our very own GB Book Club, celebrating three years with tonight's meeting. Stop by if you can!
Get on the phone, code monkeys: Jonathan Coulton is coming to the Lakeshore Theater May 3! Tickets are $20; call 773-472-3492 or hit the online box office.
Dick's Last Resort's plan to move into Marina City and add "garage-style" doors along the river is meeting opposition from residents.
At least that's where I think Pam Anderson is living. Hat tip to Anne Elizabeth Moore for sending the link, and writing the book.
A 2006 fire destroyed the landmark Pilgrim Baptist Church in Bronzeville. That year, Gov. Blagojevich pledged $1,000,000 of state funds to aid in the rebuilding. The recipient of that money, however, wound up being the Loop Lab School on Michigan Ave. Our Auditor General may investigate the matter.
The Modern Mechanix blog revisits the August 1931 issue, which announced the creation of the largest post office in the world. No mention is made of the building's suitability for condo conversion.
Everyone's all kerfuffle about the recent cougar sightings (no, not that kind) in North Chicago. Yesterday, Wilmette residents spotted the big cat near the Metra station.
Revolution Brewing, a new brewpub that is working on opening in Logan Square, has a neat description of how to move a brewpub from Michigan to Chicago in three days or less.
There's apparently a lot of interest in those multi-million-dollar condos in the Chicago Spire -- in Malaysia.
Would any other fan write poetry about their losing baseball team? I doubt the White Sox have inspired verse, but the Cubs apparently have.
CTA announced that digital screens that announce real-time arrival information for trains will soon be added to more stations; the signs will also display advertisements, which the CTA expects could earn millions in revenue for their coffers.
The Berwyn Spindle, a bargain at $50,000 (shipping costs $100,000). The Sun-Times reports that the Spindle is still coming down to make way for a new Walgreens, so it's either going to a good home or being taken down by the current owners, who will then "take a look at our options" to see what they can do with the sculpture.
New York Tims film critic A.O. Scott presents an appreciation of Roger Ebert's career as a film critic. (via)
In a post about "supercuts," Waxy.org points out Chicago artist Chuck Jones's collection "Isolation Studies." (The rest of his site is worth exploring, too.
If you're planning to buy tickets for the May 14 Flight of the Conchords performance at the Chicago Theater, you're out of luck: tickets went on sale today, and sold out in less than one hour.
As if being forced to cancel hundreds of flights weren't enough of a headache for American Airlines, the company's pilots have planned a day-long protest next Tuesday in nine cities (including Chicago) over the company's "poor performance and service".
It’s been a funny week for Da Mare. Yesterday, he mused about changing
the city’s motto to “City of Children.” Passionate about ‘em. More
hilariously, on Wednesday, amid calls for a boycott, he said the
Olympics are “not political.” Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha — what a kidder.
2020 isn't all that far away now, so the clock has been reset to go to 2040. More about it in the Business Ledger.
CDOT is looking at reconfiguring the accident-prone Damen-Elston-Fullerton intersection with a new Damen-Fullerton intersection that Elston would wiggle around.
This week's Drive-Thru feature updates us on what the Neighbors Project is doing to promote healthy eating at the many corner stores in the city.
Swing by A/C to check out this week's double interviews with muralist Augustina Droze and Carrie Hanson, choreographer of Monument, which is currently running at Ruth Page Center for the Arts.
Jessi is solving 99 problems this year. She's five down. [via]
Legendary Southern California-based food franchise Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles has, um, persuaded the Bronzeville-based Rosscoe's Chicken and Waffles (note the extra "s") to change their name after a court battle.
Rationally, there's no reason these two businesses can't coexist.
Chicago's Head of Femur has been on a roller coaster of a career ride. They've been praised by critics, asked to tour with superstars, and then had their label fold, leaving them in the dust. But now they've got a brand-new album, and they're once again garnering loads of lauds. Read the whole story in Transmission.
Visits from Ming Tsai, earthy carpaccio and free trips to Italy courtesy of bacon in this week's Drive-Thru recap of "Top Chef."
While the Olympic torch was in San Francisco yesterday, the Tibetan community in Chicago was active with a protest of their own.
A suburban couple ran "a-fowl" of the law when they tried to provided sustenance for their fine feathered friends. One of the offenders compared the situation unfavorably to Communist Russia.
The 15th Annual Dining Out for Life fundraising event is April 24.
The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, owners of U.S. Cellular Field, recently unveiled their new eco-friendly parking lot, located at the ballpark. The bricks used allow for fast absorption of water back into the earth. Now if we could just wrap our heads around the concept of thousands of gas-guzzling cars being driven to an environmentally-friendly parking lot.
Dig out your party dress: Yelp is throwing a prom this Saturday, April 12, and you have till tomorrow to RSVP. You need to be a Yelp member, but it's otherwise free.
WFMT critic and interviewer Andrew Patner has a blog covering the arts, classical music, and occasional forays into local politics--all in his inimitable Patnervian style.
Popular Mechanics listed the Circle Interchange and O'Hare as two of the "10 pieces of U.S. infrastructure we must fix right now." Not sure how you'd fix the Circle, but Daley's right on top of it with O'Hare... right?
When presented with 236 depictions of natural scenes and the like, our neighbors to the west would like us to think the following: "What the heck is this place, Wisconsin? Minnesota? Heaven?" "No," they will answer, "Iowa."
The discussion questions for the GB Book Club's April selection, Middlesex, are now posted over at the Book Club page. We look forward not only to discussing this rich epic with all of you, but also to celebrating three years of Book Club! Come enjoy treats with us and wish us a happy third anniversary on Monday, April 14, at the Book Cellar at 7:30pm.
Have you seen an elaborate demon mask in a styrofoam cooler? It belongs to Miss Monster, and it's gone missing after her landlord threw a bunch of her stuff in the alley.
That's right, Zombie Pub Crawl. April 26 in Andersonville. $10 in advance. Be there or be eaten.
You know you're gonna get a new bike this Spring anyway, so give that old one away to someone who can use it. Working Bikes Cooperative will accept and refurbish your old bike at several events this month and in May at various sites around the city. Money from bikes that are sold goes toward shipping bikes and bike parts to developing countries.
Ellen DeGeneres is bringing her show to Chicago May 3, and the suggestions of what she should do while she's here are, so far, pretty suburban. Cheesecake Factory!? Give her some better ideas, somebody. (Thanks, Veronica!)
New Zealand's former fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy folk duo Flight of the Conchords is coming to the Chicago Theater on Wednesday, May 14; tickets go on sale this Friday.
Starbucks is offering a free cup of its new Pike Place Roast starting at 11am today. Hopefully the lines won't be as long as they were this morning at the Jamba Juice giveaway.
Google has teamed up with the CTA to make planning your trip a whole lot easier.
Chicago is set to be a pilot city in a new USPS electronics recycling program.
The 2008 Pulitzer Prizes were announced
today. The staff of the Chicago Tribune shared the
award
in the Investigative Reporting category with the
New York Times, for its “Hidden Hazards” series on failed regulation of toy
manufacturing. Steppenwolf ensemble member Tracy Letts took the Drama
category for his
original play, August: Osage County. The AP has the full list of
winners.
Pitchfork.TV is up and running, currently featuring a live recording of "Bangers and Mash" by Radiohead. Check it now, before the music videos are replaced by crappy reality programming.
Some of the greatest minds of our future have been given funds to tackle the pressing problem of zombie attacks, thanks to the University of Chicago's UnCommon Fund, a program designed to provided funding for, um, unique student projects. Other proposals that received modest grants include a clothing-optional Halloween Party. OK, to be fair, other approved projects are a bit more serious.
Photographer Carey Primeau documents some of the city's decaying gems.
Not that anyone wants to think about winter after this glorious weekend, but the Swallow Cliff toboggan slides (also known as "Terror Hill") in Palos Township are in danger of demolition. The mayor of Palos Park and other concerned south suburban citizens want to preserve the slides. Those with happy childhood memories of sliding down the slope at 65 mph under the constant threat of contusions, concussion, and broken bones are invited to contact the Forest Preserve District of Cook County and protest.
Today begins the CTA Bus Tracker program for a handful of routes, with more to be added in May.
Seattle columnist David Brewster gives Washingtonians a Cliffs-notes version of Chicago politics.
The Lollapalooza 2008 lineup will be released this Monday, but the leaked list has been on Jim DeRogatis' blog for a few days (which has apparently brought Perry Farrell much irritation). While the offerings are varied, it's familiar territory: the festival seems to have culled its lineup from past Lollas and past Pitchfork/Intonation Festivals. Nine Inch Nails, Radiohead, Wilco, Rage Against the Machine, and Kanye West are among the headliners, with Girl Talk, Go! Team, Cat Power, Gnarls Barkley, and Broken Social Scene bringing up the rear. Tickets are on sale now.
Actor Charlton Heston, an Evanston native and New Trier and Northwestern alum, has died at age 84 from unspecified causes.
This week saw the Chicago Tribune — er, Rep. Jack Franks
and the state House advance a bill that would allow voters
to conduct recall referenda on statewide elected officials. While
it has long odds — the Senate is unlikely to take it up — that
hasn’t deterred the Trib’s editorial board from championing the cause. Illinois currently has a constitutional
mechanism for removing politicians from office, in the form of
impeachment.
Watching family home movies can be duller than dirt, but there's something beautifully captivating about this slice of Chicago Americana—scenes from a wedding at St. Benedict's on Irving Park—from the 40s... in color no less. Man, people dressed so much better back then.
Schlitz is coming back to Chicago next week. Can't bear the wait? Kill time with these classic ads.
The CTA purchased a Big Belly solar-powered compacting trash can as part of its green initiatives -- and then installed it in the Red Line station at State and Lake, 30 feet underground. (Thanks, Tamara!)
The real Sarah Marshall wants the world to know that she doesn't suck.
If you're out on the town and don't have a web-enabled phone, you can still access the Internet via a service that doesn't require calling that friend who's always online. ChaCha is a new human search service you can text with any question. So if you're wondering when the Chicago Diner closes or curious about the middle name of your alderman, they'll text the answer back to you. Also, if you don't already know, you can text GOOGL (46645) for business addresses and phone numbers.
He could have taken his civil rights campaign anywhere, but Dr. Martin Luther King came to Chicago in 1966. He and his family lived in a small, 2 bedroom apartment at 1550 S. Hamlin Ave. He worked on making housing available to all, something that plagues the community to this day. King was assassinated in Memphis 40 years ago today, at a time when he was expanding his critique of the U.S. to include the war. A West Side march in memorial is planned for today.
Colorful, controversial and highly successful lawyer and judge R. Eugene Pincham is remembered by friends and foes alike.
The Art Institute has an impressive collection of oral histories from Chicago architects. [via]
The Catholic University of America claims that the first fictional representation of a black person receiving a major party nomination for president was in a 1964 issue of their comic book, Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact.
Reviews of new contenders in the ice cream, yogurt, custard and everything like it business in this week's Drive-Thru feature.
The Chicago Children's Museum has submitted the zoning change application in hopes it can move to the
Daley Bicentennial Plaza in Grant Park.
The Chicago Cultural Center will be showing the premiere of Movin' On Up, a documentary about Chicago native and music icon Curtis Mayfield Friday and Saturday night at 7pm. Never before seen footage, past performances are featured in the film and on Friday, a post-movie Q&A with director David Peck and surviving Impressions members Fred Cash and Sam Gooden follows the screening. The event is free.
Psst! We've got some free tickets for you over at Transmission.
Mother Jones magazine interviews Chicago spoken word icon Malik Yusef on music, the state of hip hop and the trouble in the streets.
Because you're not flying ATA today. Or ever again.
Did you know the Sun-Times has a blog dedicated entirely to Oprah? It's true. It's called The 'O' Blog. And today, they liveblogged an episode in which Oprah spoke to a pregnant man (he was born a female).
How does your zip code compare to the others around you? Here's 60660, 60657, 60622, 60621 and 60615.
The theme for Chicago's newest swanky-sounding cocktail lounge: Cincinnati, Ohio. I'm officially inspired to open a Buffalo, New York-themed martini bar. [via]
If you've ever seen flyers promoting a show by the Scotland Yard Gospel Choir, your first thoughts were probably way off base. The band is neither related to the famous British investigative unit, nor are they a robe-wearing religious singing troupe. What they are, in fact, are rising stars in the Chicago indie music scene, and they're about to make Schubas their home for the month of April.
Maybe we should be eating out more often, but not at Greek Islands.
"The idea wasn't to have him bowl, the idea was to have him go to a bowling alley," explained Obama campaign chief David Axelrod regarding the senator's piteous outing last weekend in Pennsylvania (he scored an 80). Apparently Obama dominates the boards, so expect to see his athletic coordination on display soon (which is important for us to know when picking a president).
Movies, intact digits and tapioca caviar...all in this week's Top Chef recap in Drive-Thru.
At least he doesn't appear to be, as we reported back in December. He's apparently alive and well in Berkeley/Oakland.
The Landmarks Preservation Council announced its annual 10 most endangered buildings in Illinois, and this year it goes to 11: Wrigley Field joins the others due to the renovations and proposal by Tribune Co. to "relax" city landmark status to let some major changes slide.
If the latest news that the Lake Michigan perch population may be on the rebound has got you considering casting a line, you should take a walk thru a few great online resources first. Try iFishIllinois for official information on seasons and permits and don't forget the power of the local fishing community at ChicagolandFishing.com.
The SEED Conference is back. Get tickets now.
Almost five years later, Moises Alou comes clean. He couldn't have caught the ball anyway.
Don't trust the City's blue bag program? Recycle confidently with Resource Center Chicago, which has three drop-off spots on the North Side. (Via Mike in Fuel.)
Osvaldo Golijov, composer-in-residence at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, brushes off the controversy about his unconventional works. "I love it when music brings people to fistfights," he tells The Guardian.
Political analyst Ted Rall thinks Chicago may erupt into riots if Clinton gets the nomination instead of Obama. Seriously?
Every so often, new phone books arrive, yet this guy noticed that not everyone seems to want them. (Thanks, Jimmy!)
The Trib earned a national shout-out for its April Fool's Day prank.
Seems there's a little punctuation missing from the brand-new Ernie Banks statue at Wrigley Field.
Roger Ebert still needs further surgery to permit him to speak, but still plans to continue reviewing movies. He's taking a break right now, but will resume reviews after his annual film fest on April 23-27.
Bulls' star Ben Gordon, along with teammate Luol Deng, have been tapped by the Brits to play for their national team in the Eurobasket qualifying tournament, a springboard to 2012 Olympic Games. Why Gordon and Deng? Well, Deng moved to London to escape conflict in his native Sudan while Gordon was born in London but moved to the U.S. shortly afterwards.
Spatulatta, an award-winning webcast by Channel 2 reporter Vince Gerasole's daughters, features a couple April Fools recipes in case you want to have fun with dinner tonight. How about cake for dinner, with grilled cheese for dessert?
You've lounged in the sun, you've lunged for that volleyball -- now show local beaches how much you truly appreciate them. The Alliance for the Great Lakes offers training in how you can join their Adopt-a-Beach volunteer program, starting April 19th.
If you've been exploring the new design, you may have spotted a new blog: Tailgate, our freshly minted sports blog. We're looking for writers, so if you're into sports (or know someone who is), get in touch. Conversely, if you're into arts & culture, we're looking for a few bright folks for A/C, too.
Local filmmaker Darryl Roberts screens his latest work, America The Beautiful, concerning the country's apparent obsession with beauty, tonight, 7:30pm, at the latest installment of the Midwest Indepent Film Festival. In an interview, Roberts talks about what prompted the examination.
The Rezko trial resumed yesterday after a week off, with the state's star witness confessing to all manner and means of illicit intoxication: and that was under direct examination! Levine's tales of binges in Lincolnwood, the Hancock, and Springfield were a dirty-laundry airing designed to get ahead of the defense's attempt to tear down his credibility. Now, someone get Stu some B-12 and orange slices.
The CTA permanently added two cars to all brown line trains yesterday, though no one seems to have noticed yet. Sounds like you might score a seat if you head for the ends of the platform.
Just under 10% of WBBM's staff has been cut, including anchor Diann Burns, other prominent on-air personalities and support staff members.
If you haven't noticed, or the site looks a bit screwy (which is not the intention, mind you), we redesigned. You'll want to refresh your browser, clear your cache and remove any sticky remainders of the last redesign so you can see this one all fresh. Undoubtedly, there will be small kinks and details here and there. We're working on them. For now, enjoy.
