Cover Story

A Harvest of Color
edited by Geoffrey Johnson
Six Midwest destinations—all within easy reach in Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois—for blazing a path through our most glorious season

Sammy Agonistes
by Shane Tritsch
After reigning for years as a Chicago Cubs superstar, Sammy Sosa is an outcast in the city that idolized him. In a rare interview, he sounds off on his stunning fall—and the bitter feelings that remain.

Mayor Daley’s Bucket List
by James Ylisela Jr.
With all his clout and limited opposition, Mayor Daley occupies a unique political position. We offer ten suggestions for how he could best make use of it before leaving office.

Reversal of Fortune
by Beth Wilson
The sudden rise, the bizarre fall, and the improbable return of Jim Wetzel and Lance Lawson, whose late boutique empire Jake burned bright.

Departments

ARTS & CULTURE The Chicago Symphony Orchestra funks it up with the new composer-in-residence Mason Bates, a.k.a. DJ Masonic; “Pocket Guide” feeds Muti fever with a free concert; a first-time filmmaker lands the elusive Bill Murray; Laura Caldwell’s new book; Mavis Staples discovers lost songs with the Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy; an international art project inspired, in part, by that beloved modernist landmark, Farnsworth House WHAT I WAS THINKING J. B. Pritzker on being the 220th richest American and a Midwest technology investor—not an oxymoron THE ESCAPE ARTIST What was the Mississippi River like in Mark Twain’s time? An Iowa cruise aboard the Twilight will take you back. STYLE Just in time for fall, our expert team gives one South Loop couple a head-to-toe makeover. Plus: Back-to-school must-haves

Table
The Gage folks go French next door; steak goes feminine; Chicago goes bonkers for gelato; five great suburban breweries

Cheers
by Amalie Drury
Rummaging through a new speakeasy; summertime holdouts

Top 40
by Cassie Walker
Counting down to the magazine’s 40th anniversary, we pick Chicago’s 40 most important artistic breakthroughs.

Reporter
by Jan Parr
One couple digs deep to renovate a head-ache of a historic house from the Century of Progress world’s fair.

Deal Estate®
by Dennis Rodkin
An immense Lincoln Park house fits right into its neighborhood.

Outer Drive
by Jeff Ruby
I eat Nutraloaf, the food for misbehaving Cook County Jail inmates

Chicago Guide®
What’s on tap for September: gemütlichkeit, rocket ships, and Ramsey Lewis’s 75th

Restaurants
Amelia’s Bar & Grill breaks into the listings; Seasons drops down a peg.

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