Ok, this is getting out of hand! Companies have been adding their name to any and everything associated with sports for more than a decade now. And just when you think there’s nothing left to name other than the players themselves, yet another “naming right” is sold! more ›

From cross-dressing bank robbers to little old ladies, bank robberies are on the rise. The Chicago Tribune reports 206 bank robberies in Chicagoland so far this year. We'll make it to about 280 robberies, past the 2005 record high of 240, if the current rate keeps up. more ›

Chicagoist is a huge fan of our own homegrown media industry. We like the original stuff that comes out of this city and telling our folks things like how we walk through Gotham City on our way to work and visit County General every time we have a boo-boo. So, as always, it was a lot of fun to sit in on last night's taping of "Wait! Wait! Don't Tell Me". Host Peter Sagal informed... more ›

We’ll admit that Chicagoist has been guilty of paying our bills late once or twice. Sometimes the check from the plasma donation center takes a little while to get through the mail, you know? But U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush has taken the act of delinquency and elevated it to an art form. An agency acting on behalf on Bank One is suing Congressman Rush and his wife Carolyn for repayment of a $334,600 home loan... more ›

Bank One officially changes its name to Chase in Illinois on Monday, but they haven't really been sneaky about it. The bank announced that all Bank One consumer operations would be renamed to Chase immediately after the merger with JPMorgan last year, and they've slowly been co-branding the Bank One website, advertising, and credit cards with the Chase logo. Just this week we noticed many Bank One branches had already changed their signage, including the big one atop the bank's headquarters in the Loop. The building formerly known as Bank One Plaza will now be called Chase Tower. more ›

Somehow Chicagoist missed this on Friday and we were so busy over the weekend we didn't catch much news. So we were really surprised last night when we caught up and read that there were FIVE bank robberies in the area on Friday. Three of the robberies were in Chicago and two were in the suburbs. That's a lot of freaking bank robberies.. and especailly for one day! more ›

Some bank robbers prefer masks. Others may choose to don a jaunty ski mask. The two men who attempted a heist on the North Side opted for the clever disguise of ... more ›

While Lollapalooza is casting a big shadow over the other music events this summer, you don’t need to spend $85 (or $100 or $115) to see live music in the city. Metromix has posted dates for the various fests that celebrate local neighborhoods and musical genres this summer. Lineups for the neighborhood fests have yet to be announced but the schedules for the 21st Annual Chicago Gospel Music Festival and the 22nd Annual Chicago Blues Festival are out. Plus, they’re free. more ›

Pfleger thinks the signs and security measures are unjust and disrespectful; a spokesman for Bank One said they wanted to �provide a safe location, so [they] took additional safety measures in this neighborhood because of its high crime rate." Quoth Stella Foster, �I guess this would be called banking while black!� Chicagoist wonders if the branch will keep its �Thank you for not shooting� sign up when it switches to Chase. more ›

No, not the "Save 50% off all Linens" kind. Target Corp., parent of Marshall Field's, has reached an agreement to sell the Chicago retail institution to May Department Stores Co. for $3.24 billion. Field's will join a stable of retail chains that includes Lord & Taylor and Filene's. more ›

Chicagoist is wishing we were in the signage business right about now. Once its merger with JP Morgan Chase is complete, the Bank One name will disappear from the Chicago banking landscape, as well as nationwide. Bank One is the largest bank in the area in terms of branch locations, so there are a going to be a lot of signs to replace. more ›