Daywatch: Thousands gather to mourn fallen Chicago firefighter
Good morning, Chicago.
Every year, the Chicago Fire Department holds a voluntary fitness challenge in October, and each time, Andrew Price completed it in costume.
Last month, the firefighter ran, stretched and did situps dressed like the Joker, of the Batman franchise, said Fire Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt, speaking to a crowd who came to Navy Pier to mourn Price on Monday afternoon.
“If you knew Drew you knew he was the ultimate jokester of the firehouse,” firefighter Dustin Jeffers told the crowd afterward.
In a packed ballroom, family members and fellow firefighters remembered Price as warm, adventurous and a frequent prankster, someone who showed an excited toddler around the firehouse and hid under the beds of his colleagues to jump out and scare them.
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Asylum-seekers cleared from once-crowded Chicago police station as city begins to enact new policies
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration cleared all asylum-seekers from the one of the city’s most crowded police stations over the weekend, a significant move that symbolizes his ongoing pivot on how to handle the humanitarian crisis as winter approaches.
Northwestern’s Ryan Field gets OK on rebuilding project and concerts from Evanston City Council
Evanston City Council voted Monday to permit Northwestern University to rebuild Ryan Field and to allow six concerts a year there. The approval of the concerts came after a decadeslong battle between the city and university over the use of the stadium.
President Joe Biden issues disaster declaration for September rains
President Joe Biden issued a disaster declaration ordering federal assistance for communities affected by heavy flooding on Sept. 17 and Sept. 18.
The announcement comes after Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Gov. J.B. Pritzker made similar disaster proclamations Oct. 4 and Oct. 26, which unlocked state funds to assist residents in their recovery efforts. Pritzker’s proclamation also included waiving penalties for taxpayers who need more time to file their state taxes.
Former Cook County judge accused of taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from elderly man faces theft, money laundering charges
A former Cook County judge accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the bank accounts of an elderly former Tuskegee Airman to purchase cryptocurrency has been indicted on seven felony counts of theft, money laundering and financial exploitation of an elderly person.
Former Field Museum director tells jury about Ald. Ed Burke reading her the riot act
Deborah Bekken, a onetime Field Museum director, was calling powerful Chicago Ald. Edward Burke to ask for his support for the museum’s proposal for a fee increase in September 2017 when he caught her off guard with an immediately chilly demeanor.
The tense exchange formed the backbone of allegations in the Burke indictment that the then-powerful alderman threatened to block the Field Museum’s $2-per-person admission fee increase because it had dropped the ball on an internship recommendation, which was for the daughter of Burke’s longtime friend, former Ald. Terry Gabinski, 32nd.
There’s only one cranberry farm in Minnesota, and it’s run by a 21-year-old woman and her brother
Harvest season at Minnesota Cranberry Co., near Aitkin, looks like a crimson-colored carpet spread over a pond. The tiny floating berries, corralled in the corner of a flooded bog, are nearly a foot deep — practically begging to be scooped up, swirled, or dived into.
It’s nature’s version of a ball pit. Or a chic Instagram backdrop.
But for Shannon Forster and her family, cranberry harvest is a job that doubles as a CrossFit-grade workout.
4 things we heard from Bears coach Matt Eberflus, including ‘accountability’ for coaches and players
Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus spoke with reporters at Halas Hall to review his team’s 31-26 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday at Ford Field.
Here are four things we heard during that session.
No more waiting list — for now — as Cubs make season tickets available for immediate purchase
The Cubs released season tickets to the public Monday, including a new 20-game plan with seats available in the field box outfield, upper box infield, upper box midfield and upper box outfield sections. Fans also can purchase a 40-game plan or full season tickets.
Are there any secrets left in Chicago? Author Lauren Viera says there are 500 of them
A handsome book about Chicago is divided into 10 sections devoted to food, drink, kids’ stuff, shopping, and other topics and activities. Each of those is further divided into such categories as gardens, boutiques, secondhand stores, day spas, picnic spots, out of town visits, lobby bars, music venues, and on and on.
Review: ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ at the Paramount has lots of chocolate, now it just needs to warm up
Going large — and festive — is something the Paramount Theatre in Aurora loves to do with its remarkable homegrown musical productions, one of the most positive developments of the last decade in Chicago theater, writes theater critic Chris Jones.
But even by those standards, this year’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” is an epic, family-friendly adventure, filled with wacky machinery, pneumatic tubes, video explosions, flying props and enough stuff on the stage to make the M&Ms emporium in Times Square look subtle. All that and plenty of weird Oompa Loompas to doompety doo.
‘Fargo’ Season 5 review: Juno Temple has the skills of MacGyver vs. Jon Hamm’s dangerous Marlboro Man
Creator Noah Hawley’s TV adaptation of the 1996 crime comedy has been hit-and-miss for critic Nina Metz’s taste. But at its best, it’s a deep dive into the violence, corruption and resentment that burns hot beneath a chilly landscape and neighborly “Minnesota nice” facade.
