The St. Valentine's Day Massacre, long considered to be the incident where Al Capone consolidated his power, happened on this day in 1929. more ›

Are you an Al Capone aficionado and have at least $80,000 in loose change laying around? You can own a .38 Special that was once the Devil's Right Hand for one Alphonse Gabriel Capone. more ›

We assume most Chicagoans seldom set foot in the McCormick Place after the Auto Show. The nation’s largest convention center is also a microcosm of how the city and state does business. It’s a political playpen where politicians and unions exert their influence on the ingenuous outside businesses. more ›

Former mobster turned informant Frank Calabrese, Jr. has had two book signings canceled due to threats received by Borders locations. Calabrese, who recently released the book Operation Family Secrets: How a Mobster's Son and the FBI Brought Down Chicago's Murderous Crime Family, and Oak Brook police chief Thomas Sheahan confirmed that a threat against Calabrese was phoned in to the Borders Oak Brook location. "No rats can sign books here," was what the male caller said. more ›

Headlines of bootlegging and shootouts amongst the outfit have long faded, but the Chicago mob is still around and one of their lead enforcers begins trial on Monday. Michael Sarno is the head of the Cicero mob crew, according to federal prosecutors, and is the main defendant on racketeering charges. more ›

• The search continues for an Albany Park boy who fell into the Chicago River while playing yesterday.
• The New Trier student accused in a hit-and-run admitted to police she had been smoking marijuana the night before the accident.
• Jurors on the Rod Blagojevich case will remain anonymous until after the trial is over.

Spring is here and we're leaving the house much more frequently to enjoy what this city has to offer, including a pair of roller derby leagues, both of whom have bouts coming up. more ›

The Tribune reports that Federal authorities scooped up reputed mobster Rudy "The Chin" Fratto and business owner William Anthony Degironemo this morning, charging the pair with rigging the bid for a contract at McCormick Place. The Department of Justice press release about the case states that Fratto and Degironemo received inside information and help from an employee at trade show general contractor Greyhound Exposition Services in Las Vegas to secure a forklift contract at McCormick for Degironemo's business, MidStates Equipment Rentals and Sale. more ›

By day, Jeff Coen is the federal court reporter for the Chicago Tribune. But by night over the last year and a half, he's been putting together a historical account of one of the biggest mob trials in this city's - and nation's - history. Family Secrets: The Case That Crippled the Chicago Mob gives the reader an inside look into the trial that brought down the Chicago Outfit, a wide-reaching mob that controlled not only the Chicago area, but reached all the way to Las Vegas (and was the inspiration for the Martin Scorsese movie Casino). Using source material like police reports, interviews, and court transcripts, as well as his own notes from covering the trial, Coen recreates not only the trial of mobsters Frank Calabrese, Sr., Joey "The Clown" Lombardo, James Marcello, Paul Schiro, and Anthony "Twan" Doyle, but he gives us a significant look at Nick Calabrese, Frank Sr.'s brother and Outfit hitman, whose turning states evidence gave us incredible testimony and an unprecedented look into the inner-workings of the Outfit. more ›

That steady wailing sound you may have heard this morning is 45,000 runners freaking out about Sunday’s forecast. For the 30th Chicago Marathon, Tom Skilling is promising record heat with a generous dollop of humidity. Runners, it’s time to dig deep and summon the strength that got you through that 14-mile training run in August or that sweaty half-marathon you conquered last month. To the thousands who fear death or worse this weekend, we say:... more ›

We don't know whether you've been following the trial of Joey "The Clown" Lombardo or not, but even if you haven't you would still be able to appreciate yesterday's courtroom antics. more ›

Many a pilot and flight attendant will be looking for somewhere else to sleep on their layovers at Midway; an anonymous tip led to an investigation into forty "crash pads" located within a mile of the airport. more ›

Sean Chercover definitely writes what he knows. In his debut novel, Big City, Bad Blood, Chercover takes us on a ride with private investigator Ray Dudgeon. Dudgeon is hired to protect a Hollywood patsy, Bob Loniski, who saw something he shouldn’t have and is now being hunted by the Chicago Outfit. Chercover himself was a private eye, and obviously a lover of Chicago, and his knowledge of both make for an enjoyable read. more ›

Soldier Field/Burnham Harbor via Chicago Outfit. See more photos from the set here. more ›

We think it could be an interesting case, especially because it seems that it may be difficult for Calabrese to prove that the Trib published the photo maliciously, with reckless disregard for the truth, as the correction is now ALL OVER the news. more ›