Features

The Second Annual Big Onion Awards
by Ted Allen
They’re back – a fresh crop of the inept, the irritating, the imprisoned, and the goofy. Our yearly homage to those bureaucrats, politicians, and other public bumblers whose deeds gave off a pungent odor

Fatal Secret
by Annie Gowen
Nobody saw warning signs of the despair that drove two Oak Park teens to take their lives last year.

Mayday on the Lake
by Kathryn L. Martin
When a historic schooner sank in the middle of the night, five sailors found themselves at the mercy of Lake Michigan’s high winds and frigid water.

Homes of the Stars
by Dennis Rodkin
From a meandering $10.5-million Barrington Hills estate to a compact Riverside bungalow, here’s a look at the places prominent Chicagoans call home.

Surfing Chicago
by Mark Jannot
If the future is in cyberspace, here’s your local guide to living online, including E-mail addresses you’ll covet and Web sites to visit.

At Home: More is More
by Christine Newman

In these three downtown apartments, the styles are distinctive, and the art is here, there, and everywhere.

Departments

Letters

Frontlines
Lance Johnson swings into the record bizz; when Figaro forgets his lines; dance lessons at home; a little slice of hell in the ‘burbs; and the band that gave us “Gloria”

The Goods
by Jennifer Epstein
A star search for home accessories and heavenly bodies

Metro
by Greg Hinz
Chicago’s liquor commissioner leaves bar owners shaken – and stirred; sparks fly between the city and ComEd; and Sidney Yates keeps going – and going.

Reporter
by Scott McMurray
Business in Little Village is big for the Hispanic community.

Stage & Screen
by Penelope Mesic
The Bard keeps pace with the times – as usual – at Goodman and Shakespeare Rep.

Modern Times
by Marcia Froelke Coburn
Dealer Lynne Bailey is breaking insider art out of prison.

Prime Time

Hot dates around town this month

Going Places
by Anne Spiselman

A look at the always-evolving shopping and dining scene in Evanston and three nearby suburbs

Dining
by Dennis Ray Wheaton
Beef and more get the royal treatment when renowned chefs take over two convention-crowd kitchens.

Sullivan’s Travels
by Terry Sullivan
You want class? Go to Ascot – or at least Saratoga. We’ll be at Sportsman’s Park.