Power Lines and Puddles, a drawing by Charlie B. Thorne, part of a show with Don Copper on display through 1/15 at Tom Robinson Studio/Gallery, 2416 W. North, 773-227-3144.
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/20/morning-art-charlie-b-thorne
What is the best thing about the holidays? Gifts?…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/Matches/archives/2010/12/20/the-island-of-misfit-dates
The hearing officer who presided over three days of testimony and oral arguments last week in the Rahm Emanuel residency fight is expected to make his recommendation today on whether Emanuel can stay on the mayoral ballot for the Feb. 22 election.
The Chicago Board of Election Commissioners is scheduled to vote Thursday on the issue, and a court appeal is likely no matter what the ruling. At issue is whether Emanuel, who served as President Barack Obama's chief of staff in Washington until Oct. 1, meets the legal requirement of being a Chicago resident for one year prior to the election.
The Chicago Board of Election Commissioners is scheduled to vote Thursday on the issue, and a court appeal is likely no matter what the ruling.
Lawyers in the residency fight filed legal briefs today reasserting their arguments before Thursday's election board meeting.
Emanuel's lawyers maintain he never abandoned Chicago or his residence during the roughly two years he was Obama's chief of staff. Emanuel always intended to come back to Chicago, and as proof he offered that he never sold his North Side house and kept treasured items in the basement while leasing it.
His challengers counter that Emanuel is not qualified to run because he wasn't physically here and had no permanent Chicago home. Burt Odelson, the attorney for the lead objectors, also notes that Emanuel moved most of the family's possessions out of the house and forwarded their mail to Washington.
Hearing officer Joseph Morris declined to accept a brief submitted over the weekend by a group of 48 lawyers, professors and former judges who reiterated the arguments made by Emanuel's lawyers. It was endorsed by former federal Judge Abner Mikva and others who equated Emanuel's departure to Abraham Lincoln's move to Washington to become the 16th president.
Emanuel said Monday that if elected mayor, he would cut city costs in part by rewarding workers for taking part in a "wellness and disease management" program that could reduce the city's $500 million bill for health care to employees, retirees and their families.
-- Kristen Mack
Teal Wicks will be Broadway’s newest green girl when she steps into the role of Elphaba in Wicked on February 1, 2011, and former Broadway.com video blogger Kyle Dean Massey will take on the role of Fiyero beginning January 25. Wicks and Massey are taking over the roles currently played by Mandy Gonzalez and Andy Karl, respectively.
Wicks has appeared in both the San Francisco and Los Angeles productions of Wicked, as well as the national tour of Pippin, the NY City Center Encores production of Stairway to Paradise, the New York premiere of Fahrenheit 451, the world premiere of Turandot, Rumble for the Ring at Bay Street Theatre, and 1776 and Pippin at the Goodspeed Opera House. She is currently appearing in the American Repertory Theatre production of The Blue Flower.
Massey is currently starring as Gabe in the Broadway production of Next to Normal, which is scheduled to close on January 16. Other Broadway credits include Xanadu and Wicked (Fiyero u/s), and he has been seen off-Broadway in Altar Boyz.
Wicks and Massey join a cast which includes Katie Rose Clarke as Glinda, Kathy Fitzgerald as Madame Morrible, P.J. Benjamin as the Wizard, Jenny ...
A man was shot dead and two others were wounded in separate shootings Monday night on the city's West and Far South Sides.
Police responded to a call of a person shot about 7 p.m. on the 700 block of East 130th Place. When they arrived police found a 40-year-old man who was shot in the head. The man was taken to Roseland Community Hospital where he was pronounced dead, police said.
Fifteen minutes earlier, a 24-year-old man was shot on the 11000 block of South Racine Avenue.
Preliminary reports said the man was standing on the street when someone approached and shot him in the side. The man was taken in serious condition to Stroger Hospital.
Just before 9 p.m., a 26-year-old man was shot multiple times on the 1500 block of South Ridgeway Avenue on the West Side.
He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition.
As of 12:15 a.m. this morning, no was in custody for any of the shootings.
Calumet Area and Harrison Area detectives were investigating.
A pill-popping therapist named Mit (Ed Meanan) has visions of an alternate life as Tim, a transvestite train station janitor, in Rujanee Mahakanjana's "Psy/Fi" feature Parallel Universe.
With her second feature-length work, the Bangkok-born, Chicago-based filmmaker continues the psychosexual exploration she began in her 2009 architecture documentary Man and His Erections.…
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Sweet! That’s the verdict of the cast of Freckleface Strawberry, who gathered at Serendipity 3 on December 20 to sample a new sundae created in honor of their family-friendly off-Broadway musical. The recipe is a fruit lover’s delight: two scoops of strawberry ice cream covered in “strawberry freckled” topping, a mound of candy-malt ball-freckled whipped cream, plus candy strawberry blossoms and fresh strawberries. Title star Hayley Podschun and her castmates are also celebrating the release of the musical’s original cast album. All in all, the gang at Freckleface Strawberry (based on Julianne Moore’s children’s book) has plenty of reasons to indulge in a frozen treat.
Santa Claus is working overtime this year by delivering all those toys and performing eight shows a week! Well, not quite, but Broadway audiences can catch TV icon George Wendt take on the bearded toymaker in the new holiday musical, Elf. The festive show marks a return to the Great White Way for Wendt, who starred on Broadway in Art and Hairspray and toured in 12 Angry Men, after an 11-year run as barfly Norm on the hit TV series Cheers. Broadway.com chatted with Wendt about playing the beloved Christmas figure, dressing up in Edna Turnblad's glitzy gowns and "shooting the shit" with Michael Jackson.
What’s the key to playing Santa Claus in a way that’s different from your average mall Santa?
Honestly, I’m a shallow performer. I just go with the text and feel my way around it. There’s not a whole lot of shaping. The writers informed me every day with new bits, new lines, but it’s pretty straightforward. It’s Santa as a real guy. He brings bliss and delivers the toys the elves make, but at the end of the day he would love to just sit in front ...
Elmhurst police say they may decide today whether to charge a motorist who allegedly threw an 8-month-old puppy out of his car window.Officers say the white and black puppy was thrown out of a car window on the morning of Dec. 10 near the busy intersection of North Avenue and Route 83.
A good Samaritan found the puppy and brought him to a fitness center until police arrived and took the dog to DuPage Animal Hospital in Villa Park.
A hospital representative says the dog is healthy and the puppy--named "Ralphie"--soon will be transferred to the West Suburban Humane Society in Downers Grove to be put up for adoption.
-- Associated Press and staff
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ChicagoBreakingNews/~3/GFiZ5k6GQ5M/elmhurst-police-say-they-may.html
The 35-member cast of the forthcoming Broadway production of War Horse has been announced. The acclaimed drama, adapted by Nick Stafford from the novel by Michael Morpurgo, will begin previews on March 15 at the Vivian Beaumont Theater and open on April 14, directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris.War Horse will be presented by Lincoln Center Theater and the National Theatre of Great Britain in association with Bob Boyett.
Seth Numrich, who is currently playing Lorenzo in the Broadway production of The Merchant of Venice, has won the central role of Albert in War Horse. At the outbreak of World War I, Albert’s beloved horse, Joey, is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. He’s soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man’s land. But Albert cannot forget Joey and, still not old enough to enlist, embarks on a mission to find him and bring him home.
Also featured in the cast will be Stephen James Anthony, Zach Appelman, Alyssa Breshnahan, Richard Crawford, Sanjit de Silva, Matt Doyle, Austin Durant, Joby Earle, Koel Reuben Ganz, Ariel Heller ...
Casting has been announced for the La Jolla Playhouse's musical adaptation of the 2006 film, Little Miss Sunshine. Tony nominee Hunter Foster will star as Richard Hoover alongside Tony nominee Jennifer Laura Thompson as Sheryl Hoover, Tony nominee Malcolm Gets as Frank Ginsberg, Tony winner Dick Latessa as Grandpa, Georgi James as Olive and Taylor Trensch as Dwayne.
The production will run from February 15 through March 27, 2011 and is directed by Tony winner James Lapine, who also wrote the book. Tony winner William Finn composed the score.
Foster can currently be seen on Broadway in Million Dollar Quartet. He received a Tony nomination for Little Shop of Horrors and has also starred in The Porducers, Urinetown and Les Miserables. His other credits include Grease, Footloose, King David, Happiness, Ordinary Days, Frankenstein and Modern Orthodox. He is currently developing the musical Bonnie and Clyde: A Folktale, for which he wrote the book.
Thompson received a Tony nomination for Urinetown. Her other Broadway credits include Footloose, Wicked and Lend Me a Tenor. She has appeared off-Broadway in Little Fish, A Doll's Life, On the Town and Pardon My English.
Gets is best known for his work on Caroline ...
Reggie's Rock Club becomes vintage pop-punk heaven May 27-29, when Screeching Weasel celebrates its 25th anniversary with a three-day festival featuring Screeching Weasel (obviously), the Riverdales, the Queers, Chixdiggit, Teenage Bottlerocket, and others. Ben Weasel and his revolving-door cast of leather jackets have been plugging along in some form or another since 1986, various breakups and hiatuses included, and have recently been good for a show or two a year on the south side.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/16/early-warnings-roundup
Age & Hometown: 27. New York City.
Currently: Swinging into his first Broadway show as your friendly neighborhood webslinger in Julie Taymor’s mega-musical, Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark.
His Spidey Sense: Like any kid, Carney dreamed of being a superhero. “I loved comic books and was always doing stunts. I wanted to be a cartoon artist at one point.” He even remembers drawing copies of Spider-Man comic covers and selling them at an elementary school fair. Though he still enjoys drawing, Carney followed the path of his musician parents and, by age 15, was playing guitar professionally at B.B. King’s nightclub in L.A. “It was a novelty in a way: ‘Hey, look at that kid playing the guitar,’" he says now, “but I’m so grateful, because it helped me grow as a musician and equipped me with the tools I needed to be here on Broadway and in front of an audience. I didn't want to be perceived as a musician trying to act.”
Making the Band: Carney eventually formed an eponomous band alongside his brother Zane, bass player Aiden Moore and drummer Jon Epcar, all of whom appear onstage in the Spider-Man band. “My ...
Got an e-mail this morning reading in total:
"rex grossman is the #1 trending topic on twitter right now"
This seems to be as good a datapoint as any that Twitter is very DC-centric. Not everyone is happy about McNabb being benched for nu-Jeff George, but the Northern Virginia Redskins are out of the playoff hunt, and, hey: there's no more entertaining quarterback this side of Michael Vick (sorry, probably a sore subject*).…
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Would late comic genius John Belushi have had a career on Broadway? His friend and fellow original Saturday Night Live cast member Dan Aykroyd believes so.
"He would be probably one of the top Broadway directors," Aykroyd told the Associated Press. "That's the caliber of work he'd be doing. Although the rest of us would still be making buddy comedies, he would have definitely risen above all of that and gone on to do really important work."
Akroyd, who co-starred with Belushi in The Blues Brothers and 1941, believes Belushi would have made the transition to Broadway due to the way Hollywood currently operates. "I don't know today whether his spirit could take some of the abuse that you'd have to go through to be in the television, motion-picture business. John, even though he was tough, he was sensitive."
Belushi, who also appeared in films such as Animal House and All You Need is Cash, died in 1982 at the age of 33 of a drug overdose. Aykroyd is currently promoting the animated film Yogi Bear, for which he provided the voice for the title character.
Director/screenwriter Blake Edwards, who helmed iconic comedy films ranging from Breakfast at Tiffany's and The Pink Panther series to 10 and Victor/Victoria, passed away of complications from pneumonia on December 15 in Santa Monica, California. He was 88. His wife of 41 years, actress Julie Andrews, and other family members were with Edwards when he died.
Edwards made one foray into Broadway, producing and directing a 1995 stage adaptation of Victor/Victoria starring Andrews, who famously declined a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress when the production failed to receieve any other nominations.
Born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on July 26, 1922, Edwards began his show business career as an actor, moving on to writing and directing TV shows such as Peter Gunn (for which he received two Emmy nominations) in the late 1950s. That series introduced him to composer Henry Mancini, with whom he would work on almost every feature film. Although he was best known for comedies, Edwards also won praise for his direction of Days of Wine and Roses, a drama about alcoholism.
Edwards' film credits include Operation Petticoat, The Pink Panther and several sequels, The Party, The Great Race, S.O ...
Director/screenwriter Blake Edwards, who helmed iconic comedy films ranging from Breakfast at Tiffany's and The Pink Panther series to 10 and Victor/Victoria, passed away of complications from pneumonia on December 15 in Santa Monica, California. He was 88. His wife of 41 years, actress Julie Andrews, and other family members were with Edwards when he died.
Edwards made one foray into Broadway, producing and directing a 1995 stage adaptation of Victor/Victoria starring Andrews, who famously declined a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress when the production failed to receieve any other nominations.
Born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on July 26, 1922, Edwards began his show business career as an actor, moving on to writing and directing TV shows such as Peter Gunn (for which he received two Emmy nominations) in the late 1950s. That series introduced him to composer Henry Mancini, with whom he would work on almost every feature film. Although he was best known for comedies, Edwards also won praise for his direction of Days of Wine and Roses, a drama about alcoholism.
Edwards' film credits include Operation Petticoat, The Pink Panther and several sequels, The Party, The Great Race, S.O ...
Chicago Heights police are questioning two people of interest in connection with a deadly shooting early Sunday that killed one and wounded two others in a south suburban restaurant parking lot.
"Something about someone dancing with another and jealousy kicking in," Chicago Heights police Sgt. Tom Rogers said. "That's what we're hearing of how all this started."
Rogers said there was an earlier altercation at Knockouts Sports Bar in Matteson, 4800 Lincoln Highway, that was broken up and then continued in the parking lot of Big Boy Submarine restaurant, 405 W. 14th St., Chicago Heights.
Ted Coklas, who owns Knockouts, said his son talked to police, but he did not know more details.
At 2:30 a.m., police responded to a shooting in the Big Boy Submarine parking lot. They found Marquetta Campbell, 26, of the 300 block of West 17th Street in Chicago Heights, in the parking lot, unresponsive and bleeding from the head, authorities said.
Two men suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds, authorities said.
Tanisha Riley, 27, a friend of Campbell's, said she received a phone call from her cousin around 2:30 a.m. telling her that Campbell's boyfriend had been shot at the sandwich shop.
"When I got there, it was Marquetta on the ground," Riley said.
Five of Riley's friends who saw what happened were being interviewed as witnesses by Chicago Heights police since about 3 a.m. Around 6 p.m., one of the friends, Tia Trigg, 26, arrived at Riley's grandmother's house with dried blood still on her sweater and coat.
"It was a disaster," said Trigg.
Campbell had two children, ages 1 and 9, and worked as a certified nurse assistant, Riley said.
"We have been living across the street from each other our whole lives," Riley said. "It's just senseless. She was a good person."
Campbell's relatives declined to comment.
Police are questioning a male and a female, Rogers said, but no charges have been filed. Police have had no prior contact with anyone involved in the incident, Rogers said.
An employee at Big Boy, who did not want to be identified for fear of retribution, said the sandwich shop is a popular hangout for the late-night crowd.
The parking lot and the inside of the shop were bustling with people moments before the shooting, with about 10 cars parked outside.
Just before shots rang out, another employee had called police because people were being disruptive.
An autopsy on Campbell is scheduled for Monday, according to a Cook County medical examiner's office spokesman.
Chicago Heights police, the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force and Illinois State Police are investigating.
-- Kristen Schorsch and Serena Maria Daniels
Big news in and of itself, but the story's really just developing. Jim DeRogatis is doing some fascinating reporting on the recent comings and goings in the department with regards privatization.…
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Saturday night marks the end of an era in Chicago moviegoing: the Classic Film Series, founded in 1972 by old-time radio guru Chuck Schaden, will present its last screening, Laurel and Hardy's 1934 fantasy Babes in Toyland. For decades the series was funded and hosted by LaSalle Bank, whose branch at Irving Park and Cicero had a nice little 298-seat theater on its second floor; a community goodwill project on the bank's part, the series continued after LaSalle was swallowed up by Bank of America in October 2007, but now that Bank of America has sold the building, time has finally run out for the Classic Film Series.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/17/the-last-picture-show
A group of 48 lawyers, professors and former judges filed a brief with Chicago elections officials today saying that former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel meets the city residency requirement to run for mayor.
The brief -- endorsed by former federal judge Abner Mikva, Northwestern University professor Albert Alschuler, former Illinois Attorney General Neil Hartigan and others -- reiterates the arguments Emanuel's lawyers made during his hearing this week before the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.
Read more HERE on Clout Street.
Promises, Promises leading lady Kristin Chenoweth will appear on the premiere episode of Show People, a new Broadway.com interview show. Hosted by Editor-in-Chief Paul Wontorek, Show People will highlight the brightest talents of the stage. The Chenoweth episode will premiere on Thursday, December 23, 2010.
“I’m truly honored that Kristin has agreed to be the first guest,” Wontorek said. “She’s had an incredible year and is one of our readers' favorite Broadway stars. There's definitely a lot to talk about!”
Chenoweth received two Broadway.com Audience Awards for her performance in Promises, Promises, which was recently named the best show of 2010 by the editorial staff of Broadway.com. She won a Tony Award for You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown and was also nominated for her work in the mega-musical Wicked. Other Broadway credits include Steel Pier, Epic Proportions and The Apple Tree. In 2009, Chenoweth won an Emmy Award for the TV show Pushing Daisies.
Show People will appear weekly on Broadway.com every Thursday.
An unidentified woman is dead after an early morning shooting today outside a sandwich shop in south suburban Chicago Heights. Two males were also injured.
Police responded to a shooting at the Big Boy Submarine restaurant, 405 W. 14th St., at 2:39 a.m., said Chicago Heights police Sgt. Joseph Petrarca. When they arrived, they found the woman in the parking lot, unresponsive and bleeding from the head, he said. The two males suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
The Cook County Medical Examiner's office was notified of the death but has not yet identified the victim, who appears to be in her mid-20s, a spokesman said. An autopsy is scheduled for Monday.
Chicago Heights police, the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force and Illinois State Police are investigating, Petrarca said.
On December 17, the cast and creative team of Manhattan Theatre Club’s The Whipping Man braved the winter cold to step out for a meet and greet. Doug Hughes directs the New York premiere of Matthew Lopez’s play, set in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War. A Jewish Confederate soldier returns wounded from the battlefield to find his family home in ruins, abandoned by everyone except two former slaves who were raised as Jews in the his home. As the three men reunite to observe Passover, they uncover a tangle of secrets, plus ties that bind them together and, ultimately, might cost each man his freedom. Click through to get acquainted with cast members Andre Braugher, Andre Holland and Jay Wilkison before performances of The Whipping Man begin on January 13, 2011 at New York City Center Stage 1.
Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark will delay its opening night again, according to The New York Times. Citing two sources within the production, the Times says the big-budget musical will now open "sometime in February." Julie Taymor's production has been in previews at the Foxwoods Theatre since November 28 (after a delay from November 14) and was scheduled to open on January 11, 2011. A show spokesperson had no comment on the story.
The delay is reportedly designed to provide time for the creative team to stage a new ending, change dialogue, cut and insert scenes and perhaps add songs by Bono and The Edge. The composers are currently in Australia with their band, U2, which will end the current leg of its international tour on December 19 in Perth. U2 will be off the road until a February 13 concert in Johannesburg, South Africa, presumably allowing Bono and The Edge to return to New York to work on their Broadway debut tuner.
Spider-Man, Turn off the Dark features a book by Taymor and Glen Berger. Reeve Carney stars as the title webslinger alongside Jennifer Damiano as Mary-Jane Watson and Patrick Page as Norman Oswald/The Green Goblin.
A 78-year-old Gary woman was killed Saturday night when a van being driven by her husband struck a traffic barrier and crashed into another car on I-80 in Lake County, Indiana.
Charles O. Hawkins, 74, of Gary was driving the 2006 Chrysler van about 6 p.m. when the vehicle hit a traffic barrier in the eastbound lanes of I-80 at the northbound exit to I-65, according to a release from the Indiana State Police.
The van went out of control and struck an eastbound 2003 Toyota near the 11.5 mile marker on I-80.
Hawkins' wife, Dorothula Martin of Gary, was a front-seat passenger in the van and was pronounced dead at the scene. Hawkins was taken to St. Mary's Hospital in Hobart for chest pains, the state police said.
The driver of the Toyota, Kaleena A. Parker-Hood, 27, of Bridgeman, Mich., was not injured in the crash, police said.
The cause of the accident remained under investigation Saturday night, but initial reports indicate that alcohol or road conditions were not factors. No other information was available at this time, police said.
--Staff report
Downsizing CEOs need to get together and demand Christmas be rescheduled to some time that doesn't make those end of the year budget adjustments so awkward.
Consider Pioneer Press, where the decision's been made to close seven weeklies on December 23.…
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Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark has confirmed that its opening night will be pushed back to February 7, 2011 at the Foxwoods Theatre. This is the latest delay for the highly anticipated musical which was first expected to arrive on Broadway in February 2010. Opening night was moved to December 21 and then delayed until January 11. All preview peformances for the show will continue as planned.
"The creative team is implementing truly exciting changes throughout the preview process," lead producer Michael Cohl said in a statement. "Due to some unforeseeable setbacks, most notably the injury of a principal cast member, it has become clear that we need to give the team more time to fully execute their vision. Spider-Man, Turn Off The Dark is an extremely ambitious undertaking, as everyone knows, and I have no intention of cutting a single corner in getting to the finish line.”
Spider-Man, Turn off the Dark features a book by Julie Taymor and Glen Berger. Reeve Carney stars as the title webslinger alongside Jennifer Damiano as Mary-Jane Watson and Patrick Page as Norman Oswald/The Green Goblin.
As the curtain goes down on 2010, Broadway.com is looking ahead to the new year. We’ve asked the brightest stars on Broadway to reflect on their personal highlights from the past year and to reveal their hopes for 2011. Check out what they had to say, and have a Happy New Year!
MARK RYLANCE (Valere in La Bete)
Highlight of 2010: “Going to the Edison Hotel on 46th Street and hearing Vince Giordano and His Night Hawks in the Basement on Monday and Tuesday evenings. He has a fantastic big band that plays '20s, '30s and '40s dance music. You can make a request for any song and they'll play it. If you can sing well and know the lyrics, you can get up and sing with them.”
Resolution for 2011: “To learn how to dance so I can join the wonderful dancers who foxtrot, tango and do all the wonderful dances you can do to that type of music.”
Keep checking for more resolutions from your favorite stars.
A Chicago care facility where a high number of disabled children have died in recent years said it has taken numerous steps to improve care, including replacing the top administrator, hiring more staff and retraining employees.
"We're looking at everything critically," said Bob Molitor, chief operating officer of the Alden nursing home chain, which oversees Alden Village North on North Sheridan Road. "Are we weak in that area? If we are, we want to boost that up."
Alden Village North has been under fire since October, when a Tribune investigation documented a 10-year pattern of violations and deaths at the facility, which cares for about 90 children and adults with severe physical and mental disabilities.
Some advocates welcomed the changes as long overdue.
"This is sort of what you would do in a situation when things aren't just problematic, but problematic down to the core," said Zena Naiditch, president of the Chicago-based watchdog group Equip for Equality. "It suggests they recognize on some level that to try to turn this place around, you're not starting over, but you're getting pretty close to it."
In his first interview about the troubled facility, Alden owner Floyd Schlossberg said the home is improving and that he disagreed with suggestions made by some relatives of residents who have died there that he does not care about what happens in his homes.
"Don't ever say this about this owner or anyone else in this company," the 72-year-old longtime nursing home operator said. "We care for everything that happens in all of the facilities. No one in this world wants to see someone pass on."
The Tribune found that 13 children and young adults have died at the facility since 2000 in cases that resulted in state citations for neglect or for failure to investigate thoroughly. Seven of those deaths occurred after January 2008, when Alden took over the facility. At least 11 additional residents have died since 2008, though those cases did not result in citations.
Schlossberg said he was "deeply hurt" by the Tribune's articles because they "don't really portray us the way we really are. ... We're a sincere company interested in providing quality services for the frail, elderly and pediatric population."
When Schlossberg was asked whether he would have his staff re-examine the circumstances for all deaths that have occurred at the home since he became operator, his lawyer stepped in to say Schlossberg would not answer. But Schlossberg then said he would discuss the matter with his colleagues and decide later.
In response to the Tribune articles, Gov. Pat Quinn placed a state monitor in the facility, and federally backed Equip for Equality started an investigation into numerous deaths at the home. In a rare move, state child-welfare authorities pulled two residents from Alden Village North and four from another Schlossberg home, Alden Village Health Facility in suburban Bloomingdale, because of concerns over care.
Schlossberg would not comment on authorities' removal of children from his facilities, other than to say, "I think we took really good care of them."
Although Schlossberg said "there are no major problems going on" at Alden Village North, he and Molitor detailed a variety of changes that have occurred in recent weeks.
They would not say whether they had fired the previous administrator. She could not be reached for comment, but her mother told the Tribune her daughter had been fired about three weeks ago, right after returning from her honeymoon.
Molitor said Alden Village North has hired several more staffers and created a "nursing liaison" position to handle any complaints from schools and day training centers. New procedures, he said, also ensure children go to school clean.
"There isn't anyone from that facility who isn't looked at head to toe," he said.
The Tribune reported that teachers over the years have complained that the facility sent some children to school in tattered clothing, soiled diapers and filthy wheelchairs.
The newspaper also reported how the state repeatedly has cited the facility with not providing enough activities or outings for some residents. Molitor said Alden has stepped up activities, including trips to the Shedd Aquarium and the Field Museum. Schlossberg also said the facility began renovations last year that will offer more program and living space for residents.
Bob Hedges, president of the Illinois Health Care Association, a lobbying group for nursing home operators, said Schlossberg clearly wants to improve the facility.
"You don't make those kinds of changes unless you recognize there are some issues," he said.
Amber Smock, of Access Living, a Chicago advocacy group that helped stage a protest at Alden corporate headquarters on West Peterson Avenue last month, said the changes are a step in the right direction, but she said her group still wants Alden Village North closed and children with disabilities moved into more home-based settings.
Naiditch of Equip for Equality said changes must be lasting if they are to make a difference.
"The key will be in six months, when the limelight is taken off this facility," she said. "If one of these deaths were to occur at that time, would the staff handle it differently?"
--Sam Roe and Jared S. Hopkins
Before he joined the cast of The Merchant of Venice as Portia's love Bassanio, David Harbour hadn’t been seen on a New York stage in three years. Instead, the actor, known for roles in The Coast of Utopia, The Invention of Love and a Tony-nominated turn as Nick in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, has been in Hollywood, landing parts opposite stars like Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck, not to mention playing a James Bond villain. During a break from his daily Shakespeare, Harbour chatted with Broadway.com about sharing the stage with Pacino, the screen with Kate Winslet and being directed by Queen Madge herself.
You’ve been away from theater for a while; how did Merchant lure you back?
I’d been doing a lot of film work and I started to feel…flabby. Metaphorically. Then [director] Dan [Sullivan] called about Merchant and I thought, “Perfect.” I was anxious to get back to something that felt substantial, like eating a meal, as opposed to the flimsiness that film can be.
Was it difficult joining a cast that had already had a successful run in Central Park?
No, it was great. Everybody was there to rehearse ...
A Cadillac reported to be going in the wrong direction on I-294 near the Lincoln Oasis collided with a semi-trailer tractor truck Friday night, injuring the car's driver and requiring multiple southbound lanes of the highway to be closed down during the investigation, Illinois State Police said.
Police arrived on the scene near South Holland at about 9:14 p.m. The truck driver was not injured, and the driver of the Cadillac was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Police were still investigating the cause of the accident late Friday night, including whether drugs or alcohol had played a role in the crash.
Police said they had received calls that the Cadillac may have been heading in the wrong direction on the highway, but had not yet confirmed the sequence of events.
Big news in and of itself, but the story's really just developing. Jim DeRogatis is doing some fascinating reporting on the recent comings and goings in the department with regards privatization.…
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"I don't mind making year-end lists," Peter Margasak writes in this week's Reader, "and in some cases I even enjoy reading them—but anybody who bothers arguing about them is a fool." I feel the same way, but arguments about matters of taste are a favorite music-nerd activity, and I'm sure the top-ten album lists from Peter and I—and especially from our snarky fictional coworker, Gossip Wolf—will inspire a few.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/16/this-week-in-reader-music
Five days after she ran away from her South Side home, an 11-year-old girl called her uncle after hearing his impassioned plea on a local radio station for her to contact him.
Within an hour of her phone call, frantic efforts to find the girl by her family, a community activist and Chicago police ended when she was found just blocks from her parent's home in the apartment of a man now charged with sexually assaulting her.
"She was crying because I was crying," the girl's uncle said after a bond hearing for Derrick Turner, 53, who was ordered held Friday in lieu of $200,000 bail on the charge of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.
The uncle, who is not being identified by the Tribune to protect the identity of the victim, said his niece ran away from her home on Dec. 10.
On Tuesday, he appeared on WGCI-FM begging her to call. At about 2 a.m. Wednesday, his phone rang.
"She said she didn't want to tell me anything that happened over the phone," the uncle said. "She asked if I could come and pick her up."
On another line, the uncle was coordinating the search for the girl with activist Andrew Holmes, director of No Guns No Violence, a nonprofit group. Holmes had a contact who quickly traced the number that had turned up on caller ID.
Holmes said he raced over to the address in the 6100 block of South University Avenue, and he and the uncle told the girl by phone to switch a light on and off so they could find her exact location in the apartment building. Police arrived within minutes, Holmes said.
Turner is alleged to have met the victim four days earlier on a Green Line "L" train and invited her to his home out of the cold.
Prosecutors said the girl lied about her name and told him she was 18. Under Illinois law, Turner didn't need to know the victim was under age 13 to be convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault.
The uncle said that the girl was having a difficult relationship with her mother. A spokesman for the Illinois Department of Child and Family Services said the agency has had no previous contact with the family and had not initiated any investigation since she was found Wednesday.
Turner has no felony background, prosecutors said.
Would late comic genius John Belushi have had a career on Broadway? His friend and fellow original Saturday Night Live cast member Dan Aykroyd believes so.
"He would be probably one of the top Broadway directors," Aykroyd told the Associated Press. "That's the caliber of work he'd be doing. Although the rest of us would still be making buddy comedies, he would have definitely risen above all of that and gone on to do really important work."
Akroyd, who co-starred with Belushi in The Blues Brothers and 1941, believes Belushi would have made the transition to Broadway due to the way Hollywood currently operates. "I don't know today whether his spirit could take some of the abuse that you'd have to go through to be in the television, motion-picture business. John, even though he was tough, he was sensitive."
Belushi, who also appeared in films such as Animal House and All You Need is Cash, died in 1982 at the age of 33 of a drug overdose. Aykroyd is currently promoting the animated film Yogi Bear, for which he provided the voice for the title character.
Before he joined the cast of The Merchant of Venice as Portia's love Bassanio, David Harbour hadn’t been seen on a New York stage in three years. Instead, the actor, known for roles in The Coast of Utopia, The Invention of Love and a Tony-nominated turn as Nick in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, has been in Hollywood, landing parts opposite stars like Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck, not to mention playing a James Bond villain. During a break from his daily Shakespeare, Harbour chatted with Broadway.com about sharing the stage with Pacino, the screen with Kate Winslet and being directed by Queen Madge herself.
You’ve been away from theater for a while; how did Merchant lure you back?
I’d been doing a lot of film work and I started to feel…flabby. Metaphorically. Then [director] Dan [Sullivan] called about Merchant and I thought, “Perfect.” I was anxious to get back to something that felt substantial, like eating a meal, as opposed to the flimsiness that film can be.
Was it difficult joining a cast that had already had a successful run in Central Park?
No, it was great. Everybody was there to rehearse ...
An African luncheon, a warehouse sale, a whiskey tasting, and more.
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/16/this-weeks-food-and-drink-events
Reggie's Rock Club becomes vintage pop-punk heaven May 27-29, when Screeching Weasel celebrates its 25th anniversary with a three-day festival featuring Screeching Weasel (obviously), the Riverdales, the Queers, Chixdiggit, Teenage Bottlerocket, and others. Ben Weasel and his revolving-door cast of leather jackets have been plugging along in some form or another since 1986, various breakups and hiatuses included, and have recently been good for a show or two a year on the south side.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/16/early-warnings-roundup
Big news in and of itself, but the story's really just developing. Jim DeRogatis is doing some fascinating reporting on the recent comings and goings in the department with regards privatization.…
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A firefighter battling flames at 1752 W. Cullerton St. (Tribune / Nuccio DiNuzzo)
She would notice some improvement in her son's monthlong stay in the hospital and get her hopes up. But the damage to his lungs was just too severe, she said. "He hung in for the six weeks."
Lopez said her son left behind six children and was expecting a seventh child.
One of his daughters, Caila, was also injured in the fire in the family-owned building in the 1700 block of West Cullerton Street . She spent three days in the hospital and is doing well, living with her mother and her maternal granddaughter, Lopez said.
The cause of the fire, which fire investigators believe started in the bedroom where Michael Jr. was found, remains undetermined, Fire Department spokesman Kevin MacGregor said this afternoon. The Chicago Police Bomb and Arson unit ruled the fire accidental, police said.
Lopez said Cruz was the oldest of her five children and served as a protector to his siblings, especially his only sister. "Being the big brother, he was always looking out for his brothers and little sister."
There are a number of family birthdays around this time of the year when the extended family always gathered together. On Monday, Cruz's daughter Apple celebrated her 6th birthday.
With Christmas so close, Lopez said the family is trying to focus on the children.
"We're going to try and make Christmas as happy for the children as possible and see what happens. It's just so hard," she said. "I keep thinking it's a bad dream."
Cruz was especially close to his son, according to Lopez.
Cruz was a disc jockey who worked at parties and other events and would let his son tag along. He even outfitted his son with small headphones.
"He [Michael Jr.] just loved being with him," said Lopez. "For being only 3, we have enough memories if he was 10 or 15 years old."
The Cruz family is accepting donations at MB Financial branches across the city.
-- Carlos Sadovi, Caroline Kyungae Smith
A person jumped into the Chicago River downtown in an apparent suicide attempt this afternoon, officials said.
The person apparently tried to commit suicide by jumping into the river near Dearborn Street and Wacker Drive just after 2:50 p.m., said Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Darryl Baety.
A Chicago Fire Department helicopter responded within eight minutes of the call and saw the elderly man near the middle of the river just east of the Dearborn Street bridge, said Chicago Fire Department Chief Kevin MacGregor.
Two divers jumped into the water from the helicopter and managed to get the man out of the water and transferred him to a nearby ambulance, said MacGregor.
The man was in extremely critical condition and was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where he was being treated, MacGregor said.
-- Staff report
Saturday night marks the end of an era in Chicago moviegoing: the Classic Film Series, founded in 1972 by old-time radio guru Chuck Schaden, will present its last screening, Laurel and Hardy's 1934 fantasy Babes in Toyland. For decades the series was funded and hosted by LaSalle Bank, whose branch at Irving Park and Cicero had a nice little 298-seat theater on its second floor; a community goodwill project on the bank's part, the series continued after LaSalle was swallowed up by Bank of America in October 2007, but now that Bank of America has sold the building, time has finally run out for the Classic Film Series.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/17/the-last-picture-show
Broadway.com resident artist Justin ‘Squigs’ Robertson tackled a truly color-ful assignment when he headed up to Lincoln Center Theater to draw the larger-than-life denizens of A Free Man of Color. Set in New Orleans at the turn of the 19tth century, John Guare’s epic play features Jeffrey Wright as dandified Jacques Cornet and mos as his not-so-faithful servant, Murmur. Squigs captured the stars and supporting cast in all their bewigged glory. To see Wright & Co. in person, head up to the Vivian Beaumont Theatre!
About the Artist: With a desire to celebrate the magic of live theater and those who create it, and with a deep reverence for such touchstones as the work of Al Hirschfeld and the wall at Sardi’s, Squigs is happy and grateful to be among those carrying on the traditions where theater and caricature meet. He was born and raised in Oregon, lived in Los Angeles for quite a long time and now calls New York City his home. Photo by Matthew Murphy
If you're running around picking up last-minute presents, here are a few events to try:
Today's the last day for the 900 Shops' (900 N. Michigan) Holiday Happy Hour, where you can get blowouts from Mario Tricoci Salon and Day Spa, makeovers from Bloomingdale's, shoe shines from John Allans Chicago, and more, including promotions and giveaways from 5 to 7 PM.
Tomorrow from noon to 7 PM, Eskell (1509 N. Milwaukee) is hosting a trunk show for Australian footwear line EMU: get a free pair of boots when you buy a piece of outerwear from the company.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/17/fashion-events-this-weekend
As the curtain goes down on 2010, Broadway.com is looking ahead to the new year. We’ve asked the brightest stars on Broadway to reflect on their personal highlights from the past year and to reveal their hopes for 2011. Check out what they had to say, and have a Happy New Year!
LISA BRESCIA (Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia!)
Highlight of 2010: “I have to pick just one? Having gotten married on New Year's Eve 2009 to my partner of nine years (Broadway composer/lyricist Craig Carnelia), I have to say it's living our first year of marriage together. Artistically it's been a transformative year, too, but my husband deserves to be, and is, 'the highlight.’”
Resolution for 2011: “At the risk of sounding trite, I want to continue to practice being more fully present. Onstage, we are required to stay ‘in the moment,’ but offstage I often find myself absent, letting chunks of time go by as I obsess about the past or future. Too many opportunities to fully connect with others have been lost that way. Oh, and I want to have a lot of fun this year. However it manifests. The more ...
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/savage-love-wet-and-messy-fetish-sex-toys/Content?oid=2889304
Reggie's Rock Club becomes vintage pop-punk heaven May 27-29, when Screeching Weasel celebrates its 25th anniversary with a three-day festival featuring Screeching Weasel (obviously), the Riverdales, the Queers, Chixdiggit, Teenage Bottlerocket, and others. Ben Weasel and his revolving-door cast of leather jackets have been plugging along in some form or another since 1986, various breakups and hiatuses included, and have recently been good for a show or two a year on the south side.…
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/12/16/early-warnings-roundup
A 19-year-old woman who was last seen leaving her South Side home earlier this week is missing and does not have the medication she takes for depression, police said tonight.
Lakariah Thompson left her home Tuesday at noon to avoid a doctors appointment for her depression and schizophrenia, according to a missing persons alert.
Thompson, who frequents the area of 79th Street and Eberhart Avenue, has recently been experiencing lapses in her short-term memory, police said.
She is described in the alert as black, 5-feet-9, 260 pounds with black hair. She was last seen wearing a green wool hat, green puffy style coat, blue jeans and black gym shoes.
Anyone who knows of Thompson's whereabouts should call the Calumet Area Special Victims Unit at 312-747-8274.
-- Jeff Finkelman
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-best-music-of-2010/Content?oid=2889314
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-hideout-holiday-ball-december-11/Content?oid=2889564
After being temporarily sidelined due to an injury, Natalie Mendoza returned to Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark on December 15. A spokesperson for the production could not confirm that Mendoza, who plays the spider goddess Arachne, will return permanently. Mendoza's understudy America Olivo took over the role beginning December 2.
Mendoza is best known for her role on the U.K. TV show Hotel Babylon. Her film credits include Moulin Rouge, The Descent, The Descent Part 2, Code 46 and The Great Raid. She has appeared on stage in Romeo and Juliet at the Sydney Opera House and in Les Miserables. Spider-Man marks her Broadway debut.
Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark, which stars Reeve Carney, Jennifer Damiano and Patrick Page, began performances at the Foxwoods Theatre on November 28. The show, directed by Tony winner Julie Taymor, features a book by Taymor and Glen Berger and music and lyrics by Bono and The Edge. Opening night is scheduled for January 11, 2011.
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Source: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-fourth-format/Content?oid=2889551
As the curtain goes down on 2010, Broadway.com is looking ahead to the new year. We’ve asked the brightest stars on Broadway to reflect on their personal highlights from the past year and to reveal their hopes for 2011. Check out what they had to say, and have a Happy New Year!
STARK SANDS (Tunny in American Idiot)
Highlight of 2010: “Proposing to my beautiful girlfriend [writer Gemma Clarke] at the lily pond at Mohonk Mountain House.”
Resolution for 2011: “To take some time off!”
Keep checking for more resolutions from your favorite stars.
City officials want the public to join their calls to stop the planned closure of the A.J Wright store in Evanston Plaza.
Officials plan a news conference at 3 p.m. Thursday outside the store at 1916 Dempster St. to call on TJX Companies Inc. to remain in Evanston by rebranding its A.J. Wright store.
Read more HERE on TribLocal.
