Not to be outdone by Ravinia, the Grant Park Music Festival has released their 2006 summer schedule. Bringing a nice mix of classical standards, contemporary orchestral favorites, and pop goodness to Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavilion, the festival offers thrills comparable to their Highland Park cousins at much lower cost. The lawn and most pavilion seats are free. Make a reasonable donation to ensure that we cheapskates can continue to freeload, and the best seats are... more ›

Before a certain sports team and its star player made international headlines, most outsiders associated Chicago with tales of mythic gangland figures like Al Capone or Terrible Johnny Torrio. Chicagoist saw proof of this many years ago on a family vacation to San Francisco when we encountered a street performer dressed as a clown. While making a balloon animal, the clown asked us where we were from. When we said Chicago, he said “Oh? Gangsters,... more ›