We hadn’t originally planned on doing a post about The Bachelor premiere, but when one of the twenty-five new bachelorettes said she was from Chicago, we sat up a little straighter on our couch. And when previews showed her making a fool of herself at the inaugural meet-the-bachelor cocktail party, we practically weren’t even slouching anymore. Matt, the new Bachelor from London, seemed like a decent guy, and was eager to get to know the......

Photo by JosephP A bike-rental program may be in the works....[S-T] Police released an audio tape of the Lane Bryant killer's voice. It's tough to hear, but they're hoping someone may recognize his voice. [Trib] Should 17-year-olds be able to vote? State rep Lou Lang thinks so. [ABC 7] Lance Armstrong wants Wisconsin to be the next state to pass a smoking ban. [S-T]......

The clock is ticking for Diann Burns, one of Chicago's top-paid news anchors. WBBM announced yesterday that starting April 21, six months before her $2 million contract is up, they're replacing Burns for the 5pm weekday news with California anchor Anne State. Burns will continue to coanchor the 6pm and 10pm newscasts with Rob Johnson, and State will report for the 10pm broadcast as well. CBS 2 continues to lag far behind ABC 7's......

The FBI finally caught the Kangol Bandit. [Trib] Police released the 911 tape from the Lane Bryant murders. The gunman still hasn't been identified. [ABC 7] Vishv Patel, 7, whose father allegedly set him and his little brother on fire in November, died yesterday. His brother Om, 4, died last month. Their father, Kaushik Patel, has been charged with first-degree murder and arson. [S-T] The Teamsters endorsed Barack Obama today. [Trib] Macy's is opening its......

Tony Rezko's lawyers want him to be under house arrest instead of in jail for the duration of his trial because they say jail conditions are "deplorable." Uh, no joke! It's jail! But yeah, jail conditions are deplorable. "He has to share underwear with people on the floor … it's disgusting," said [Rezko's lawyer], who noted prisoners in the general population get their own underwear. Clothing for prisoners in solitary confinement is laundered but shared.......

Photo by Nick D. (embiggen) Did the president of Medill use made-up quotes in a newsletter? We...barely care. What really bugs us is journalists citing the existence of Facebook group as some kind of indicator of anything--"students and alumni joined the new 'Save Journalism at Medill' group on Facebook. On Tuesday afternoon, there were nearly 90 members ...." There are 650 fulltime students at Medill. Fewer than 90 of them clicked a button. Agh,......

It was pretty much inevitable that discussions about the NIU shooting would turn to gun control. And turn they have. A group of NIU parents are calling for tighter gun control laws, as is Rep Edward Acevedo (D-Chicago). Mayor Daley asked "Why do we love guns in America?," and Neil Steinberg complains that "the prospect of any kind of meaningful gun control in this country is as impossible a dream as perpetual motion." There's a......

Ludwika Szynalik was run over by a CTA bus on New Year's Eve, and now her family is suing the transit authority, saying the bus driver behind the wheel of the 152 was negligent. Szynalik was getting her bike off the bus's front-mounted rack when the driver ran her over. She was dragged for 80 feet before the driver noticed, and she died later that day. The whole thing was caught on CTA surveillance video,......

Last week we were channel surfing and came across "The Harlem Globetrotters: A New Generation" on Channel 50. We watched it for a little bit and were caught up in both the athleticism of the new Globetrotters and the timeless entertainment of their gags. It reminded us of the days when ABC's "Wide World of Sports" would showcase the team seemingly every other month. Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player to be associated......

An unrelated mystery has been solved as police investigate the Tinley Park murders. A con woman, evading police for years, was apprehended this weekend because police tracked down the owners of the cars parked near the Lane Bryant, where the fugitive Esther Reed had left her car, which was registered under an assumed identity. Reed, aka Brooke Henson among other names, disappeared from Washington State in 1999, and over the next eight years went through......

Ugh, Chicago's post office is the worst. No, literally, it's still the worst in America when it comes to in-town deliveries and one-day service. At least we're improving? Mail sent between Chicago ZIP codes arrived the next day 94 percent of the time -- up from 90 percent the first three months of 2007. The Postal Service has added more than 300 new letter carriers, updated its equipment and improved its database since March.......

It certainly felt that way, Kookybites Today's must-read: The Reader's Whet Moser discovers the Chicago Tribune was not such a big Martin Luther King fan back in the day. Chlorine fumes in an Elmhurst hotel's waterpark sent 20 people to the hospital this afternoon. [CBS 2] Incoming CPD superintendent Jody Weis will, according to spokeswoman Monique Bond, be taking a "hard, close look at for further action" at the case of Officer William J.......

Chicago-born chess champion Bobby Fischer died yesterday. He was 64. [AP] Want to buy a hotel? In Chicago, you can officially pay more than $400,000 per room. At least that's what the person who bought the James Hotel paid. And it's not even on Boardwalk. [Crain's] Voter registration is up in Illinois, but slightly down in Cook County. [S-T] Um...did Pet Finder always have video? Because our hearts just exploded. We don't even mind the......

A two-story, 100-year-old church burned down this morning. More than 100 firefighters were dispatched to the Emmanuel Temple, an African Methodist Episcopal Church on the 500 block of North LeClaire, this morning, and while they were able to save the house next door, the church itself is pretty much destroyed. The steeple and bell tower are intact, but the roof and sanctuary are gone. One firefighter injured his shoulder, but everyone else is fine; the......

Photo by Joseph P Oprah is getting her a cable network, OWN ("Oprah Winfrey Network"), which will--gasp--replace the Discovery Health Network. Noooo! We all know what Oprah wants, Oprah gets, but we freaking love the Discovery Health Network. [Trib] Lisa Madigan and 48 other attorneys general--minus just Texas--announced an agreement with MySpace today. They say the resolution will better protect kids from online predators. We say we're still digging through the report. [IL AG's......

French legal authorities are in town this week investigating the murder of Loop dermatologist Dr. David Cornbleet. Hans Peterson, who confessed to the murder, is being held on the French-controlled Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, but French law prohibits his extradition because he's a dual citizen. French prosecutors say they can handle the case, and they're in Chicago interviewing Cornbleet's family and gathering evidence to start criminal proceedings. Peterson has yet to be charged with......

From ABC 7 today, local blood banks have only a one day supply of Rh-negative blood in stock. A safe level would be considered a 5-7 day supply. Although all blood types are encouraged to donate blood, it goes without saying that type Rh negative blood (it can be used in transfusions for both Rh positive and negative patients) is of critical value to the banks right now. You can schedule a time to donate......

Update: The transit bill has landed on Blago's desk! The Senate approved the sales-tax plan, and now all we need is Blagojevich's signature to save 81 bus routes, 2,400 jobs and all of our sanity. [ABC 7, S-T] Another Update: The Governor now says he'll only sign the bill if legislators add free bus and train rides for senior citizens. Whiskey tango foxtrot. In the Gov's press release, he "says," I’m particularly concerned about seniors......

We know it's everywhere, but we can't not include it--it's the awesomest link of the day! Your Star Wars Guide to the Presidential Candidates. We also love "Obi-Ron Paul-obi." But maybe you prefer candidates as video game systems. [via] Congrats, ABC 7 anchor Ravi Baichwal, you've officially reached your meme's peak. When you saw Golden Compass, did you think "I want that hat!"? If you did, and you know how to knit, you're in luck.......

Illinois state legislators are at it again today, after yesterday's close-but-no-cigar attempts to resolve the transit funding crisis. The House passed a sales-tax increase plan yesterday, but it fell one vote sort in the Senate; those so-and-sos are going to give it another go today because three of them abstained (courteously?) yesterday. That bill would raise the sales tax in Cook by a quarter percentage point and by a half-percentage point in the five......

Goose Gossage is the lone Hall of Fame inductee this year. He should also be inducted into the mustache HoF, dudes. [MLB.com] McCormick Place will soon display O'Hare and Midway flight info. [Crain's] President Bush says he backs Chicago's Olympic bid. [CBS 2] After serving 21 years in jail for two murders he didn't commit, Herb Whitlock was finally released today. [Trib] A bunch of puppies (plus some adult dogs) seized from a decrepit trailer......

The clock is winding down for drinkers who enjoy a cigarette with their booze. The Smoke-Free Illinois Act is set to go into effect at midnight on Jan. 1, 2008. Illinois will officially join the list of states that have banned smoking in almost all indoor spaces. Besides bars, Illinoisans will not be allowed to smoke in such cigarette bastions as factory floors, stadiums, casinos, and prisons. However, Chicago residents shouldn't expect John Q. Law......

Behold, Outside the Loop Radio's year in review special, featuring yours truly, Steve Rhodes of The Beachwood Reporter and Dave Schalliol of Gapers Block. The Bulls' interim head coach Jim Boylan is making changes for tonight's game. Ben Gordon will be riding the bench and Chris Duhon will be starting in his place. [Sun-Times] No, the City is not going to dispatch smoking police come 12:01am New Years Day. But put out the cigarette,......

Today's big story--and no doubt one of the biggest stories in a long, long time--is that Benazir Bhutto, opposition leader and former prime minister of Pakistan, was assassinated this morning in a bombing that killed at least 20 other people. International leaders, including President Bush, are condemning the attack. No one claimed responsibility for the killing. But suspicion was likely to fall on resurgent Islamic militants linked to al Qaida and the Taliban who hated......

Get it while you can, all you professors of herbology: Illinois is about to ban salvia divinorum, a mild hallucinogenic. Starting Jan 1, possessing the leafy plant will be a class 1 felony. [Trib] Congratulations to the 72 Chicago-area high school seniors were named Posse scholars last week. The Posse Foundation provides scholarships to low-income students in groups of around 10, which the organization says provides a built-in support system. [S-T, Posse Foundation.] Donald......

An update on yesterday's bizarre car crash: 25-year-old Gerald Richardson of Evanston has been charged with criminal damage to property for crashing a Mazda minivan into ABC 7's studios. Witnesses say Richardson made "four or five U-turns" before plowing through the windows, but the exact cause or reason for the crash still isn't clear. Richardson's sister says he's "going through some emotional times." Whether anchor Ravi Baichwal likes it or not, he's on the......

ABC-7 hasn’t missed a beat in their 10 p.m. broadcast, despite a minivan crashing through their glass-front studio. Their Web site says the news team was startled, and police arrived on the scene shortly after. By the sports segment at 20 minutes past the hour, the crew was joking that it was chilly in the studio like a Bears game. No further details or photos are available yet. Update 10:34 p.m.: Witnesses say someone......

Georgette Watson, the 46-year-old principal of Brentano Math and Science Academy in Logan Square, died yesterday while she was having a root canal. According to reports, she was anesthetized, but it's not clear yet if she was under general or local anesthesia. She stopped breathing 40 minutes into the procedure, and despite efforts to revive her, she died. Her autopsy is scheduled for today, but she appears to have had a heart attack. Watson, who......

Former Chicago Police sergeant John Herman faces a minimum of 24 years in prison after he was convicted of rape this week. Herman had a bench trial rather than a jury trial, and Judge Joseph Claps not only found Herman guilty, he also had some additional harsh words for the rapist. "The defendant's testimony is unreasonable and nothing short of perjury," Claps said. Claps also didn't believe two officers who testified on Herman's behalf, saying......

Last night's 10 o'clock news on Channel 7 led off with the news that former anchor and award-winning journalist John Drury died after battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease). Mr. Drury was 80 years old. The Peoria native was an institution on local airwaves for forty years. His resume included a stint at Channel 2 and two tours of duty at Channel 9, but it was Mr. Drury's time at......