Michelle Obama appeared on Ellen DeGeneres's show to promote her "Let's Move!" campaign. One thing led to another and suddenly the two were engaged in a push-up contest. more ›

He has since apologized, but this is the kind of behavior you'd expect from a sorority sister, not an elected official charged with running our country. more ›

This is Michelle Obama's first public event in Chicago since she became first lady. more ›

There is some progress and attention coming to Mayor Emanuel's campaign to address the problems of food deserts within Chicago's various neighborhoods. We heard that Save-a-Lot food stores were opening up in areas where there is no immediate access to fresh and affordable groceries earlier this year, and Mayor Emanuel's efforts will bring First Lady Michelle Obama to Illinois to advocate the mayor's cause. more ›

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama's appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, which was taped last week, aired today. The show led off with the already seen clip of Winfrey asking the President about the release of his birth certificate, which the President said "it seemed unlikely my 18-year-old mother had plotted at the time" for him to be a Manchurian candidate and Michelle Obama called "ridiculous." From there, the appearance settled down into a discussion on the Obama's stay at the White House, the pitfalls and advantages of living in the White House, raising a family inside the bubble of the Presidency and what they hope the future holds for them. Here are some of the highlights. more ›

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama flew into Chicago today to tape an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. (An appearance that became much more interesting with the release of his birth certificate.) To clear the Presidential motorcade's trip from Lake Shore Drive to the HARPO studios, Lake Shote Drive was closed in both directions between Soldier Field and 31st Street this morning. So were portions of the Kennedy, Dan Ryan and Stevenson Expressways where they feed into LSD. more ›

Last week, the attention of many political junkies was fully occupied - in Illinois, by the passage of the law allowing same-sex civil unions and at the federal level, by the debate over the extension of the Bush-era tax cuts. At the same time, two major pieces of food-related legislation made it through congress that some may have missed. The Child Nutrition Bill and the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act both passed, with the former just awaiting a presidential signature and the latter needing house approval and reconciliation. Both bills contain provisions that the slow food and anti-poverty activist communities have been fighting for, but some analysts have argued that the bills have serious problems. Food writers care about politics too; belly up to our breakfast table and discuss. more ›

President Obama and VP Joe Biden have already made the local rounds in support of U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias so the next logical step is a helping hand from the First Lady, Michelle Obama. Lynn Sweet reports that Michelle will be back in town on October 13 to help raise some cash for Alexi as well as Rep. Debbie Halvorson, Rep. Bill Foster and Dan Seals. It'll be the first stop for the First Lady who plans to do her first bit of campaigning since the 2008 election. According to Sweet, Michelle's schedule features "nine events in seven cities in six states," quite the whirlwind trip. more ›

At least, that's according to Carla Bruni, wife of French PM President Nicolas Sarkozy. A new book written in collaboration with Bruni claims that when she asked Michelle how living in the White House was, she replied "Don’t ask! It’s hell. I can’t stand it!" The Daily Mail in London was the first to report the statement which supposedly took place this March during the Sarkozy visit to Washington. more ›

Earlier this month, the Sun Times reported that Illinois Democrats hoped to get the First Lady on the campaign trail. Now, they might get their wish. According to the Tribune, Michelle Obama will hit the campaign trail in the fall to help mid-term Democrats keep their seats. Mrs. Obama will keep her appearances and the political rhetoric light and is expected to keep a more positive sounding message. The Trib quotes an anonymous White House official saying “This won't be a red-meat partisan speech. That's not her nature, and it wouldn't necessarily be effective.” more ›

Today, superhero Chicago chefs including Paul Kahan, Koren Grieveson, Gale Gand and many others met on the lawn of the White House with First Lady Michelle Obama to kick off “Chefs Move to Schools” campaign. Running parallel with the First Lady’s “Let’s Move” campaign, "Chefs Move to Schools" connects children with the nutritious food they need to lead healthy, active lives. At the event, local chefs learned how to adopt a school at a panel discussion with Assistant to the White House Chef Sam Kass and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. more ›

Last week, we fell in love with Michelle Obama all over again (despite that whole pizza flap). Now, we're learning to fear (and respect) her strength as the makes this appearance supporting her anti-obesity campaign. Who needs Twinkies anyway? more ›

First lady Michelle Obama gave praise to Chicago's Pilsen and Little Village neighborhoods during her recent trip to Mexico, calling them her "favorite" Mexican neighborhoods. more ›

First Lady Michelle Obama may be on her way to Mexico on an ambassadorial mission of sorts, but she's already grooved her way into our hearts. Not since Nancy Reagan have we felt this many butterflies in our stomachs looking at a FLOTUS. Pardon us while we pick our jaws up off the floor. If we weren't in love before, we are now. more ›

Gothamist has discovered that Michelle Obama has dissed our pizza. Kind of. After eating at the popular Brooklyn pizza joint Grimaldi's yesterday, she declared that "It's the best pizza, and I'm from Chicago." more ›

Michelle Obama looked pretty dang good at last night's State of the Union address, so we're glad this legislation has been introduced. more ›

Today through Wednesday, we're counting down the top 9 stories of 2009 according to the Chicagoist staff. more ›

President Obama's first White House state dinner would have made headlines last week even before a couple of socialites deep in debt and desperate for the spotlight crashed it. The antics of Tareq and Michaele Salahi overshadowed the menu created by noted superchef Marcus Samuelsson (pictured above at Chicago Gourmet 2009), (the link will take you to the menu, in PDF format) in honor of Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh. For the dinner Samuelsson incorporated fresh herbs and vegetables from First Lady Michelle Obama's White House garden. more ›

As we all know by now, today is the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street. From the thousands of clips we could possibly choose, including a recent appearance by First Lady Michelle Obama, the side-splitting conversation between Elmo and Ricky Gervais, or even the heart-wrenching scene when Big Bird learns Mr. Hooper isn't coming back, we all know what you really want: Stevie F'n Wonder rocking out "Superstition" with the kids of Sesame Street (especially the kid at 4:12). more ›

Back in February, kids everywhere were deprived of the opportunity to play with Sasha and Malia Obama dolls after Michelle complained that Ty was using her daughters for marketing purposes. Then in May, kids everywhere were appeased by the introduction of a First Puppy Bo Beanie Baby. Now, coming soon, a Michelle Obama action figure. more ›

The IOC is all about pomp and circumstance, which is the only way to explain the opening ceremonies held Thursday night in Copenhagen. An opening ceremony for a vote? Sure, why not. Oprah, Mayor Daley, and Michelle Obama were among the Chicago delegates there while other members continued to spread out around town. The Trib has a running update of today's events. more ›

If the series of delegates visiting Copenhagen on behalf of Chicago 2016 were like a concert bill crica 1986, then yesterday's arrival of the first contingent would be White Snake and President Obama's headlining appearance would be like Bon Jovi or Poison. Which makes today's arrival of First Lady Michelle Obama and Oprah like...Cinderella? The pair of ladies joined the rest of Chicago 2016 today in Copenhagen to continue the wooing process. more ›

There's been much speculation over the past day or two whether or not President Obama will be visiting Copenhagen ahead of the October 2nd IOC vote for the 2016 Summer Olympics host city. Speculation heightened when Mayor Daley, at a press conference this morning, made a reference to a phone call he received from Obama. Now come reports that an Obama is going to Copenhagen, it's just not the one everyone assumed it would be. Instead, First Lady Michelle Obama will take on diplomatic duties in Denmark, helping make a final pitch in the name of Chicago. While the First Lady certainly will make a good impression on the IOC with her dignity and grace, one can't help but wonder if anything less than the President himself matters to the IOC. We also wouldn't be that surprised if the President himself still manages to make the trip, though he claims the fight for his health care reform is what might keep him stateside. more ›

Sad news for Soul Food fans this morning: Helen Maybell Anglin, who founded South Side staple Soul Queen, passed away yesterday at the age of 80. Take a pilgrimage to 90th and Stony Island this weekend in Ms. Anglin's honor. [Sun-Times] more ›

As if the Burr Oak Cemetery case wasn't under enough scrutiny, the heat on the investigation is sure to amp up with the revelation that Fraser Robinson III, the father of First Lady Michelle Obama, is buried at the historic African-American cemetery. Michelle's spokeswoman, Camille Johnston, confirmed that Robinson was buried at the Alsip cemetery but refused to comment any further on the matter and there's no word if his grave or headstone was among the hundreds of burial sites that had been disturbed. [Chicago Breaking News] more ›

Pictures from President Obama's first Fourth of July in office, which also happened to be oldest daughter Malia's 11th birthday. Most pics are from the Fourth of July party on the White House's South Lawn. more ›

For this year's edition of their annual 100 list, Time Magazine listed their 100 most influential people which featured a trio of Chicagoans: Michelle Obama, Oprah, and...Sheriff Tom Dart??? Yep, Cook County's sheriff who refused to enforce evictions and went after Craigslist for their sex ads has been recognized by the famed magazine, profiling him as a sheriff with "heart." [via Sun-Times] more ›

In the nine years Oprah Winfrey's eponymous magazine has been in circulation, no one other than the media mogul herself has appeared on the cover. Michelle Obama will be the first person to share the cover with Winfrey in the magazine's upcoming March cover, hitting newsstands March 17th. more ›

The Ty Inc. dolls that were named Sasha and Malia but were in no way at all meant to be Sasha and Malia Obama have been retired and renamed, thus bringing the saga of the Obama Dolls to its conclusion. If you remember, the company originally claimed the dolls, Sweet Sasha and Marvelous Malia, were inspired by the Obama girls, but later backed off after they raised the ire of First Lady (and Mom) Michelle Obama. Since then, Ty has distanced themselves from the Obamas. The announcement was made via the company's website which also included this statement from founder Ty Warner:

In deference to the wishes of the First Family, Ty Inc. has officially retired the Ty Girlz names Marvelous Malia and Sweet Sasha. We have renamed the dolls Marvelous Mariah and Sweet Sydney. more ›

Looks like word about Oak Brook-based Ty, Inc. selling Sasha and Malia dolls has made its way to the White House, and Michelle Obama is not happy. Ty is insisting that the dolls are not supposed to represent the Obama girls, and that the names were chosen at random simply because "they are beautiful names." But the First Lady isn't buying any of that crap. Through her press secretary, Mrs. Obama said that it is "inappropriate to use young, private citizens for marketing purposes." Maybe it's just us, but we don't think it is wise to get on Michelle Obama's bad side. more ›