It's a rare condition in this day and age to read any good news on the newspaper page. more ›

On this date in 1990, the first McDonald's restaurant opened up in the Soviet Union and served 30,000 people. more ›

The Get Up Kids are kind of a big deal. Any mention of their name stirs up fond memories of the music industry's past for sure, when "indie music" was still a legitimate genre of music. Plus, we aren't afraid to admit that we still own a worn copy of Something to Write Home About and play it on repeat, tearing up when we hear Matt Pryor's boyish voice sing about fleeting love. Although TGUK went through some rough times and broke up after their farewell tour in 2005, they recently reunited and released their fifth full-length album, There Are Rules, in late January. Last night, The Get Up Kids made a statement appearance to a sold out crowd at Lincoln Hall in support of their new album, and it was a relief to see that TGUK still had some of the indie magic it possessed a long time ago. more ›

Love it or leave it, the holiday shopping season is upon us, and one thing we're definitely trying to do is stay away from malls. Who isn't, right? They're far away, there's no parking and they're crowded with stollers, saddlebags and static cling. (Damn the electric shocks!) However, there is one indisputable benefit: they provide one singular place to get a wide variety of gifts for the diverse people on your list. So where else can you go to knock out a lot of your holiday shopping in a hurry? Why, the old-fashioned Christmas Bazaar of course! Remember those? Gadgets and gizmos a plenty, whosits and whatsits galore, my friends. We've sought out a handful of holiday flea markets in the hopes of getting our shopping out of the way in one fell swoop. more ›

If you are of a certain advanced age, and were ever into the rock and/or roll of the hair metal variety, chances are you patronized The Thirsty Whale. It closed in 1996 after a long run of playing host the the harder rocking bands throughout Chicago and it's suburbs. O.K., and Indiana too. Our band once played there but we didn't quite fit the mold since we sang wearing a hockey mask and a black one-piece dress ... but we did at least have the prerequisite long hair. more ›

Here we go again ... The Police are coming back to town, playing Allstate Arena, with Elvis Costello opening. We enjoyed them immensely last time they came through town, but we'll probably pass on seeing them again, although Costello is a much more enticing opening act than Sting's son. But we reckon Costello was brought in to counter the fact that the immediate mix of nostalgia and excitement will probably make it harder to move tickets this time. more ›

Nothing screams nostalgia like advertising. It's not entirely clear why the commercials from our youth take us back the way that few other things can, but that "588-2300" animation (without the "1-800" tacked onto it) combined with a Charlie Brown-sized Christmas tree makes us all fuzzy inside for the 80s. more ›

Countdown to Smoke-Out 2008! In case you forgot, or were outside smoking when someone shared the news, come January 1 there will be no more smoking in public places, including bars, restaurants, casinos, dorms, stadiums and anywhere else that is inside, aside from personal homes and cars. more ›

Knif sure knows how to fire up the nostalgia-mobile.... more ›

On the subject of hot dog stands, it's the little differences that separate the ones we like from the ones we don't. Growing up on the Northwest side we had the good fortune (although as teenagers we never realized it) of living near some of the best, like Bemo's on Fullerton; the recently closed Toots Drive Thru at Central and Montrose; Duke's, just up the street at Central and Bryn Mawr; and Jimmy's Red Hots on Grand and Pulaski. A visit to Jimmy's over the weekend showed us how much a neighborhood can change in over twenty years: compared to our memories the intersection today could pass as a suburb. But the muffler man at the auto parts store on Grand still lords over all he surveys, and Jimmy's is still doing business the way we remembered. A hot dog stand like Jimmy's doesn't stay in business for fifty-five years by serving up bad red hots. more ›

This week, Phillyist saw the waters of a landmark fountain run red for a Showtime marketing stunt, the Phils pull ahead, and some serious nostalgia. They also got a chance to review an awesome tribute album, reminded folks to see the King and appreciated their beautiful skyline. Chicagoist knows what it's like to like the Cubs. But naming your kid Wrigley Fields? At least they can breathe a little easier now that Grossman's out... more ›

Earlier this year when we interviewed ME-TV's Neal Sabin, he let drop that cult fave series "Night Gallery" would soon be part of the weekly line-up. True to his word, the early 70's horror anthology show created by Rod Serling is now on every Sunday from 5 to 6. That's two half-hour episodes back to back. It's part of the channel's "chill" new Sunday evening schedule. "Night Gallery" is followed by a full hour of... more ›

There was a time when a little bit of Kurt Elling went a long way. The insanely talented singer always seemed to balance precariously on the gossamer between genius and schmaltz, but Elling always had a knack for pulling the reins tight just when listeners were ready to cringe. Most of the time. Restraint, or knowing when to utilize it, seemed to be one of Elling's shortcomings in the past. more ›

... that REO Speedwagon is ridin' the storm out to Elk Grove Village for an in-store appearance tomorrow at a Wal-Mart (801 Meacham Road, Elk Grove Village). If you can't fight this feeling that keeps coming over you when you watch the "We Love the '70s and '80s" shows, you might want to head out there and check it out. more ›

Hold onto your lunch money - recess is in session tonight at the Green Mill with the return of Mortified, a live comedy production based almost entirely on the forgotten artifacts of disaffected youth. Sometimes truth is stranger (and a heck of a lot funnier) than fiction, and the overwrought journal excerpts, angsty poems, and unrequited love letters culled from the performers’ teenage years make for a hilarious reminder that it’s totally awesome to be... more ›

Before we start celebrating St. Patrick’s Day or get too far in the zone on the NCAA action, there are a few shows going on sale that we would like to talk about. more ›

Tea is a hot commodity these days. With almost as many varietals and blends as coffee, better organic farming practices, less acid, and health benefits galore, it’s becoming a welcome alternative to the morning cup o’ joe. John Daley first found this out during two trips to Sri Lanka after college. Later, when he was working in Washington, DC, he sipped tea when his workmates were downing multiple cups of coffee every morning. From those... more ›

Alinea Chef/Owner Grant Achatz more ›

This morning Billy Corgan announced to his myspace friends that the 6th album from the Smashing Pumpkins will be titled “Zeitgeist”. The post lists the strange drop date as July 7, 2007 – a Saturday. Is it a wedding gift for Eva Longoria or an opportune day for reunion fans still swooning about the past after The Police concerts at Wrigley to keep the nostalgia trip going with a purchase? more ›

Oh. My. God. It. Is. Cold. Outside. Here’s what’s gonna motivate us to don seventeen layers of protective cold-weather gear and frequent the local clubs. Tonight the seventy-eight person (okay, we exaggerate slightly) orch-pop outfit The 1900’s begin their Practice Space residency at Schuba’s. We’re expecting to hear them work through new material over the next few weeks, so it should be interesting to see how each Monday’s set-list differs from the last. This is... more ›

Neal Sabin, MeTV more ›

We know that our nostalgia over the former FAO Schwarz on Michigan Avenue is probably matched by the tortured remembrances of those we dragged into the store as a chorus of terrifying little voices sang "It's a Small World After All." Even so, we maintain that the American Girl Place is 100 percent more aesthetically upsetting than any other toy store that has ever existed. That's why we have some sick, sick pleasure in hearing... more ›

Chicagoist is not immune to the nostalgia that strikes all media entities at the end of the year, as evidenced by the orgy of posts this week that looked back at significant happenings in food, booze, theatre, art, music, movies and photography. The desire to pontificate on this year's newsworthy events in Chicago is a powerful one, but we're saving ourselves for tomorrow night. Chicagoist co-editors Rachelle Bowden and Scott Smith will be guests on... more ›

Despite the overall increase in department store shopping, 2006 has been a disappointing year for such shops in the city. From Macy’s takeover of Marshall Fields (and the resulting low sales) to the closing of Carson’s on State Street, the department stores where many of us grew up shopping have been having a tough time with Chicago buyers. While the plight of Macy’s/Marshall Fields and Carson’s is well-known, two other Magnificent Mile mainstays are struggling,... more ›

The last time we saw James McAvoy, he was Mr. Tumnus in . There was something about that half-human, half-goat thing (combined with his angelic curls and baby blue eyes) that gave us some not-very-rated-PG thoughts. Thus we are thrilled to see Mr. McAvoy return to the screen in Starter for Ten, a comedy from the UK showing as part of the Chicago International Film Festival. more ›

Theaters typically sell subscriptions on the strength of tried and true stories, and no story is more tried and true than the unhappy family. Writers write, and actors play, what they know or can easily research. Patrons take comfort, or catharsis, in seeing characters who have it worse. This week, three Chicago companies opened the the 2006 season with Tolstoy’s overquoted observation about unhappy families in mind. more ›

The Chicago Fire and their fans will pay homage to the Chicago Sting this Sunday in celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the Sting's first NASL Soccer Bowl Championship in 1981. During that season, fans came out to Wrigley Field and Comiskey Park not to see the Cubs or Sox, as there was a baseball strike underway, but to see the Chicago Sting. The Chicago Sting defeated the New York Cosmos 1-0 in front of a crowd of 36,000 in Toronto to earn the title. more ›

Ah, Sybaris. Back in high school, the “romantic couples getaway” beckoned like some sexual Valhalla: a vaunted place where lovemaking was positively cinematic with tropical backdrops, smoke machines, and "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin playing in the background. Never mind that the land of erotic mystery was located in the decidely uptight Frankfort, IL, in the southwest 'burbs. And that once we grew up, the whole place seemed a little too key-parties-in-the-1970s to us. more ›

Phil's Pizza was hipped to us by our long-suffering pal Tomatoist (by the way, please keep us updated on the tomatoes), who attended IIT and was well-versed in the cheap eats of Bridgeport long before Chicagoist even had a Bridgeport Bureau. more ›

525,600 minutes, 525,600 minutes, how do you measure, measure a year? In daylights? In sunsets? In midnights? In cups of coffee? In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife? Pardon our departure into lame, but catchy show-tunes, but we couldn't get it out of our head when we heard that it was Powell’s Bookstore's one year anniversary of their reading series. To celebrate, tomorrow night they will host John Tipton, founder and director of the... more ›