Twelve years ago, when the late Gary Comer visited his former elementary school, he was brought to a room where ten new computers sat unused because the school lacked the funds to power them. Today, Paul Revere Elementary is outfitted with a wireless network, new software programs, and a $10 million investment.

Comer, the son of a railroad employee, graduated from Paul Revere Elementary in 1942. In 1963, he started Lands’ End Clothing Company, and in 2002, he sold it to Sears for $1.9 billion. Of that fortune, $100 million has since been poured into developing and revitalizing his childhood neighborhood.
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“You think six feet of dirt means something?” quips the ghost of Leon Goldwater’s trumpet-toting father in eta’s new production of “Fathers and Sons.” The essence of the story is encapsulated in this sentence. Although the show is not a remake of the original Russian classic, it does explore much of the same emotional terrain. Read the rest of this entry »

In the early 1850s, the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway was one of several connecting Chicago to parts south, and competition was fierce. When the Illinois Central Railroad lost a court battle to cross the LS&MSR tracks with its own, it responded in true Chicago style, kidnapping a guard and laying an intersecting track in the dead of night. Within a year, a fatal collision at what’s now 75th and South Chicago occurred between trains of two other companies operating on the disputed tracks. That didn’t deter Hyde Park founder Paul Cornell from developing the marshy surroundings, and when it was learned that a downstate village was already named Cornell, the area became Grand Crossing in honor of the intersection. By the late 19th century it was home to a range of factories and their mostly German workers. Successive decades brought demographic changes, and by 1920, eight years after the namesake railroads had finally been elevated above street level, Grand Crossing was mostly Hungarian. As in many South Side neighborhoods, the ’60s were years of white flight. To the immediate south across 79th Street, the neighborhood of Chatham remained middle-class through the transition. In contrast, Grand Crossing declined. But in spite of the—let’s not mince words—sketchiness, it’s got more to see and do than most parts of Chicago. Read the rest of this entry »

Anybody can tell you about Chicago’s culinary specialties. Some cities might stop at a single dish, but between the pizza, hot dogs, and Italian beef, our broad-shouldered town has a rock-solid reputation. Alas, it doesn’t extend so much to barbecue, for which Chicago has a distinctly lackluster reputation. Frankly, it’s deserved. Even though barbecue joints dot the city, especially the South Side, most of them aren’t very good. But most is not all, and at least two of them could go head to head with the best Memphis or Kansas City have to offer. Moreover, they put to rest the notion that there’s no such thing as Chicago-style barbecue. Read the rest of this entry »

The layout of Brown Sugar Bakery seems specially designed to invoke all five senses in the gustatory experience. Pressing your hands and face to the counter, witness a veritable feast for the eyes, while a tantalizing aroma wafts in from the kitchen, and owner Stephanie Hart chats with customers about her decadent desserts. As she spoons out samples of her caramel cheesecake, exclamations gush forth, but any praise falls short of fully capturing each creamy, sugary mouthful. Despite its richness, the cheesecake only stimulates our humble appetite: we carry an extensive selection of baked goods back to our table. Read the rest of this entry »

Serial dieters and otherwise picky eaters beware: Café Trinidad serves up generous portions of Trinbagonian food just like your fantasy grandmother used to make. The food is as filling as it is flavorful. You may want to save the calorie counting for when you’re back on campus because each bite transports the palate. Read the rest of this entry »

When Wesley’s sassy sister-in-law, Lily, comes home for a visit, her agenda includes more than just reminiscences of familial life with her late father and sister; Wesley’s single widower status and indecision about the fate of his daughters provides more than enough fodder for the chiding of firebrand Lily. As the story of the eta Creative Arts Foundation’s new play “Levee James” meanders along at a pleasant and conversational pace, the two eventually plow up a love that—though appearing ambiguous—seems long deterred. Read the rest of this entry »

As a musician-turned-painter, Robert “Baabe” Irving III is in famous, if not necessarily good, company. A foray into the visual arts seems to be the cool thing for past-their-prime rockers and strummers to do nowadays—Bob Dylan just had his first public exhibition of prints and sketches, Lou Reed’s second photography book was published not so long ago, and even Paul McCartney is contributing to the art market with a collection of lithographs. Talent among these men spans the spectrum, but Irving’s work falls nicely in the middle, as displayed by his show “Generations of Jazz Dreamscapes” at the eta Creative Arts Foundation. Read the rest of this entry »