The Sort of Article That Changes Your Life
Remembering Robert Kurson’s “Heavy,” a profile of Robert Earl Hughes: the Fishhook, Illinois, native enshrined forever in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s fattest man.
Year: 2011
A Wild Ride Winds Down: The Awesome Story Behind Wrigleyville’s The Wild Hare
Everyone has a story, as we writers relish pointing out. But when I stopped by Wrigleyville’s longtime reggae club The Wild Hare last night to interview the owner, Zeleke Gessesse, about why he’s closing the place on May 15th after 25 years, I found myself in the presence of someone with a Story—capital S, plus italics…
Doughnuts @ Letizia's
Doughnuts are on the rise, but @ Letizia’s these lookers fell short. LETIZIA’S: 2144 W DIVISION; 773-342-1011
Mini Cannoli @ Letizia's
@pennypollack: Always searching for bakery nirvana, I tried a few things @ Letizia’s, but the mini cannoli stole the show. LETIZIA’S: 2144 W DIVISION; 773-342-1011
Ravine Dreams
Sensitive design and smart engineering turned a topographically challenged property into a lovely, multilevel landscape
Urban Partnership Bank Chairman David Vitale on ShoreBank, Federal Aid for Banks, and Detroit’s Troubles
WHAT I WAS THINKING: Q & A with the longtime banking executive
Flea Fun
Those of us with an “I brake for yard sales!” bumper sticker on our vehicles (or more likely embedded in our DNA) have reason to rise and shine early this Sunday, April 17…
Five Questions for Richard Babcock
The outgoing Chicago editor answers readers’ questions. Here, his favorite stories, advice for young editors, memorable reader feedback, and more…
A Terrorist's Tale
FROM FEBRUARY 2002: Sixty years ago this June, a German submarine dropped four Nazi agents on a darkened Florida beach.Among them was 22-year-old Herbert Haupt, the son of a German American family living on Chicago’s North Side. Haupt was part of a terrorist team a band of saboteurs with plans to blow up American bridges and factories. When apprehended, Haupt claimed he was just a homesick young man caught up in the maelstrom of war. But a secret military tribunal convicted Haupt and sent him to the electric chair. This startling story from Chicago’s past offers an eerie foreshadowing of today’s issues.
Bound for Glory
More than anything, Leon Forrest wanted to be recognized as a great writer. Now, ravaged by cancer, he raced death to finish his final novel