Steve Dolinsky

Jun. 10, 2010

Chicago beats Philly twice: Sandwiches and now hockey

Jun. 10, 2010


Al's Italian Beef

Now that we've established our hockey supremacy, it's time to add a little insult to injury. While some will claim that the Philly cheesesteak is one of the best in the country, there really is no comparison to our native Italian beef. Please don't tell me how great Pat's or Geno's is. Those little pieces of frozen steak, heated on a flat top grill then covered in Whiz or provolone? Even the bread is inferior to what we have in Chicago. I've been to both, and any local will tell you that John's Roast Pork rises far above both of them. In fact, if you ever go, you have to try their Pork Italian sandwich with broccoli rabe, but I digress.

…Read Full Entry

Lee Bey

Jun. 10, 2010

Are artists the answer to Pullman's woes?

Jun. 10, 2010


(photo by Lee Bey)

One of the more overlooked preservation stories this year has been the alarm sounded by Landmarks Illinois a few months back.

The statewide preservation group named the entire 10400 and 10500 blocks of Corliss and Maryland avenues to its "most endangered list." The citation is significant and alarming because the blocks compose the northeast portion of the local and nationally-landmarked Pullman Historic District--an almost completely intact former company town‚  that was built in the 1880s to house workers of the long-shuttered Pullman Palace Car factory.

…Read Full Entry

Robert Feder

Jun. 10, 2010

Save the date: Chicago makes Way for Dick Biondi

Jun. 10, 2010

Tuesday, June 29, will be a Red Letter Day for Chicago and for radio. That's when the city will officially dedicate the northwest corner of East Lake Street and North Garland Court as "Dick Biondi Way." I don't know about you, but I wouldn't miss it for the world.

Dick Biondi 

In a ceremony starting at 2 p.m., the honorary street designation will salute the legendary disc jockey and Radio Hall of Famer who recently celebrated the 50th‚ anniversary of his first broadcast on WLS-AM (890).

…Read Full Entry

Jim DeRogatis

Jun. 10, 2010

The state of the concert and live sporting events industries

Jun. 10, 2010

At their core, concert and live sports events still are based on one of the oldest business models in human history: Some talented folks come to your town to perform some amazing feats, and a lot of people pay their money to see them, sitting in the same room, in real time, with no Internet service provider needed. (See also: the Roman gladiators or the traveling troubadours of the Middle Ages.)

But corporate consolidation and technological innovations are changing just about everything else about the live entertainment experience. Very little of this news has been good for consumers -- at least not for those of modest means. But promoters and venue owners? Well, it's been a different story for them.

…Read Full Entry

Robert Feder

Jun. 10, 2010

WGN's Laski covering Blago? It's a criminal offense

Jun. 10, 2010

The last time Jim Laski found himself in a federal courtroom, the former Chicago city clerk was being sentenced to prison following his conviction for bribery.

Today, the ex-con and rookie talk show host will be back in federal court to begin covering the corruption trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich for Tribune Co.-owned news/talk WGN-AM (720).

…Read Full Entry

Mission Amy KR

Jun. 9, 2010

Elevating Music + Imagine Nation = our theme song

Jun. 9, 2010

In honor of one of my favorite missions so far (this week's "Imagine Nation" book idea), here is one of my favorite songs covered by one of my favorite local bands.

"Pure Imagination" (from the movie "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) covered by Chicago's The Smoking Popes.

…Read Full Entry

Robert Feder

Jun. 9, 2010

Another look at the demise of Jim O'Donnell's column

Jun. 9, 2010

Tuesday's post here about the disappearance of Jim O'Donnell's sports media column from the Chicago Sun-Times drew spirited responses from readers -- including Sun-Times sports editor Chris De Luca and O'Donnell himself.

De Luca, whom I'd quoted in the piece citing space limitations and O'Donnell's reassignment to the Bulls beat as reasons for the withdrawal of the weekly column, took issue with my assumption that he'd grown weary of catching flak for some of O'Donnell's incendiary writings.

"For the record, I fielded ZERO complaints about Jim's column," De Luca wrote in an email to me. The rest of what he wrote was off the record, but the gist of it was that I had gotten the story totally wrong.

I pointed out to De Luca that I was aware of a specific meeting he'd had with an executive of CBS Radio sports/talk WSCR-AM (670) --  the target of O'Donnell's harshest attacks --  at which time the subject of his column came up and questions were raised about ongoing projects between the Sun-Times and the Score. De Luca said he "didn't take it seriously" because the Score executive had made his comments "with a laugh."

Laugh or not, immediately after that May 20 meeting, O'Donnell's column suddenly vanished with no explanation to readers. Draw your own conclusion.

…Read Full Entry

Achy Obejas

Jun. 9, 2010

Alex Cuba, not missing Cuba

Jun. 9, 2010

From Alex Cuba's new album, the song Caballo: 02 Caballo

The first time Alex Cuba laid eyes on Lake Michigan was through a plane window, and the water just went on and on and on, filling the frame endlessly.

“I said that’s no lake, it’s a sea! It’s so impressive, whether in summer or winter.”

He may carry his homeland as an artistic surname, but Alex Cuba – real name Alexis Puentes – is from a little inland town on the island called Artemisa, far from the waters. Its biggest claim to fame, besides perhaps Alex himself, is probably the Hotel Campoamor, where a prominent member of the family who owned it used to hold literary salons that attracted, among others, Pablo Neruda and Ernest Hemingway. (A monument to Neruda was unveiled at the hotel just this spring.)

So he’s a Cuban but not a coastal person, not a beach guy.

“I’m not a city person either,” said Alex, who now lives with his Canadian wife and half-Canadian half-Cuban kids in the tiny town of Smithers in BC.

…Read Full Entry

Pages