Now that the Cubs are in the playoffs, want to convert? Or maybe you've been a Cubs fan but need to brush up on your trivia skills? Tonight, authors Glenn Stout, of the Best American Sports series, and Richard A. Johnson, the curator of the New England Sports Museum, present their latest collaboration, The Cubs: The Complete Story of Chicago Cubs Baseball, at Harold Washington Library. The Cubs details Cubs history covering such items as... more ›

A smorgasbord for the mind, the 2005 Chicago Humanities Festival has rolled into town. This year’s theme is Home and Away, concerning “the role that ‘place’ serves in the creation of our sense of rootedness and belonging.” Sounds like Pretentious-English-Major-speak, but an impressive slate of writers, musicians and performers are addressing such hot button issues as globalization, mobility, national identity, and bridging regional differences. Most tickets are $5, a bargain that ensures many sold out... more ›

Having finished their work at UIC last week, the makers of the film Stranger Than Fiction move downtown to Daley Plaza this June and are looking for some authentic city background. This means you. If you’re looking to gaze longingly at Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Dustin Hoffman (from a respectable, non stalker-y distance and God help you if you ask for an autograph!), then why not become an extra in the film? Alert reader... more ›

If all the Harry Potter screenings tonight are already sold-out, how about a nice socially relevant documentary instead? Chicagoist knows what you�re thinking: a hard-hitting expose about the death penalty in Illinois probably won�t be as much fun as watching attractive tweens perform magic. But Deadline, screening this week at the Gene Siskel Film Center, tells an important story, one oft-repeated by the Trib: how the research of some diligent Northwestern students stopped our state from (whoops!) executing innocent people. As an exciting added bonus, �filmmakers and participants� are promised �in person everyday,� so expect there to be someone to answer your questions when the lights come up. Also, former governor George Ryan � a Nobel Peace Prize nominee for his work on this issue, not for truckers� licenses � will be in attendance tonight, while legal author Scott Turow � fresh off of being ranked third in New City�s list of local literary giants � will make an appearance June 7. more ›