Lee Bey

Mar. 25, 2010

Mies and the FBI or "How an Edward G. Robinson movie almost got Mies in trouble."

Mar. 25, 2010

The weekend (March 27th) brings the‚ 124th anniversary of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's birth. And we mark it with one of the more‚ obscure chapters in the great architect's life:‚  the time when a suburban business woman with an overactive imagination, an Edward G. Robinson movie, and the hand of fate put Mies under FBI watch for being a suspected Nazi.

Mies was no Nazi, of course. Indeed, it was the Nazis who shut down the Bauhaus and hounded him out of Germany--and to Chicago--in 1938. But‚ that didn't stop the FBI from spending‚ 7 months tracking Mies and‚ developing an FBI file that I've had in my collection since the late 1990s. The file isn't juicy, but it is slightly comical.‚ It begins with a September 1939 letter from a‚ Glencoe businesswoman to a federal judge in Chicago:

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Steve Dolinsky

Mar. 25, 2010

Spring has sprung! A conversation With Province Chef Randy Zweiban

Mar. 25, 2010

 

Province Chef Randy Zweiban

Randy Zweiban has always been one of those guys you see early in the morning, t-shirt and jeans, cup of Intelligentsia in one hand, finagling the best produce he can from the vendors at the Green City Market. Like his colleagues‚ Rob Levitt, Paul Kahan and Bruce Sherman, Zweiban does more than just say he supports local farmers on his menu; he actually hits the markets as often as he can.

 

This fanaticism began when he ran the kitchen at Nacional 27 in River North. The enthusiasm for local, seasonal produce paralleled Adam Seger's ambitious cocktail program.

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Robert Feder

Mar. 25, 2010

Will Melissa and Jeanne become 'You & Me' team?

Mar. 25, 2010

Melissa Forman

Good news for all you Melissa Forman fans out there: The veteran Chicago radio personality may be wrapping up her fill-in stint for Jeanne Sparrow on WCIU-Channel 26's morning show this week, but don't be surprised if you see them both on together soon.

Sparrow has been out since Feb. 25 when she had seven fibroids -- non-cancerous tumors -- removed from her uterine wall. "The good news is everything went very well, I'm on the mend, and I will be coming back to 'You & Me This Morning' soon," Sparrow wrote last week on the show's website. "But I still need to be out for a few weeks to recuperate and get my stamina back." Filling in for her next week will be Angela Miles, anchor of Weigel Broadcasting's syndicated "First Business" financial news show.

Forman, best known as the former morning and afternoon host on Clear Channel Radio adult contemporary WLIT-FM (93.9), earned high marks from Weigel Broadcasting bosses for the four weeks she's been guest-hosting "You & Me This Morning."

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Mission Amy KR

Mar. 24, 2010

Elevating Music: how's this for our anthem?

Mar. 24, 2010

Saw Secret Agent 23 Skidoo perform at Lollapalooza Kids' Stage this summer and he had EVERYONE rocking out to this infectious song:

So whatever else you gotta do on this Wednesday, you know what you gotta be...

miss amy k.r.

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Lee Bey

Mar. 24, 2010

Cool Building Wednesday: 235 Van Buren

Mar. 24, 2010


(photo by Lee Bey) 

The south/southwest Loop has gotten a few sharp-looking buildings as of late. My favorite of the bunch is the new 235 Van Buren, a condo tower near the mouth of the Eisenhower Expressway, designed by Ralph Johnson of Perkins & Will.

That just might be the best-looking roofline in the city.

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Steve Dolinsky

Mar. 24, 2010

Oy, Gefilte Fish? Happy Passover

Mar. 24, 2010


Gefilte fish from Fox & Obel (photo by Steve Dolinsky)

One of the most frequent questions I'm asked is, "is there anything you don't eat?" ‚ It used to be beets, because my parents drank/ate that purplish Manischewitz borscht product, but then I fell in love with the roasted, slightly sweet candy stripes and chioggias, and all was forgotten.

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Robert Feder

Mar. 24, 2010

CBS 2 paying Ed Curran to stay home and do nothing

Mar. 24, 2010

Ed Curran

For more than 30 years, Ed Curran has been one of Chicago's most versatile, talented and likeable broadcasters. The guy can do it all. So why is WBBM-Channel 2 about to yank him off the air?

In one of those strange corporate maneuvers that make no sense to anyone outside of television, Curran is expected to be relieved of his duties as meteorologist, technology reporter and all-around utility player at the CBS-owned station --  but still be paid for the remaining 14 months of his contract.

Although no official announcement has been made, Friday could be Curran's last day on the air, sources said. After that, he'll join the ranks of Bob Sirott, Steve Dahl and other high-profile Chicago broadcast personalities who are getting big bucks to stay home and do absolutely nothing.

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Lee Bey

Mar. 23, 2010

Modernist Standard Bank saved? Well, no...and yes

Mar. 23, 2010

When this blog began in January chronicling the demolition of postwar-mod Standard Bank at 95th and Western, the one bit of information I wish‚ had then--but could not find--was the‚ name of the architect who designed the‚ building.

Then a few weeks after the building had been turned to rubble, I got my answer:‚  John L. Bartolomeo.‚ The architect's son, Louis, told me when he left a comment thanking me for my post. He also said:

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