Guest Blog: Affleck Boys in Town

On the list of things I wish to never do again: Arrive at 5 p.m. for media check-in and wait almost two hours in nippy, windy, drizzly weather. Man, the things I do for Coda.

On the coldest day in several months, the Affleck boys came to town to screen their new film, Gone Baby Gone. The crime drama, based on the novel by Dennis Lehane (Mystic River), was directed by Ben and stars his younger brother Casey. The screening was part of the Chicago International Film Festival…

Hawthorn Furniture Gallery Opening

On Saturday, October 6th, Carson Pirie Scott and Chicago magazine co-hosted a special furniture event to celebrate the grand opening of Carson’s Hawthorn Furniture Gallery in Vernon Hills. More than 150 attendees learned how to combine different furniture styles through a presentation by Beverly Rivers, former editor of Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications, and Stacy Wallace-Albert, contributing editor of Chicago magazine. Photos by Ken Carl

October 2007 Table of Contents

Features How Your High School Stacks Up by Dennis Rodkin Chicago does a by-the-numbers evaluation of 233 public high schools in the six-county metro area, looking at school spending, as well as teacher experience, test scores, and other academic categories—including an exclusive appraisal of the relationship between money and test scores. PLUS: Educational experts discuss … Read more

Celluloid and Cellulite

Two things everybody around here is talking about: fashion and film. We’re coming upon Fashion Focus Chicago, a week of hoopla surrounding local designers and local retailers. I’ll be blogging the whole thing, camera in tow. It’s also time for the Chicago International Film Fest. And since I can’t possibly be two places at once, I’m thrilled that Chicago‘s web editor, Esther Kang, will be scouting the fest. So for the next few weeks of Coda, you get two bloggers instead of one! Read her scoop on opening night