Chicago is My Home

15
Feb

Tribune Co. Cuts 100 Chicago Tribune Staffers, More Throughout U.S.

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business

The newsroom hit list continued to grow on Wednesday as the Chicago Tribune announced that 100 jobs would be cut at the newspaper.

Nationwide, 400 to 500 jobs will be cut at newspaper corporations operating under the Tribune Co. umbrella including papers such as the Los Angeles Times.

The Tribune Co. was taken private in 2007 when billionaire Sam Zell purchased the company for $8.2 billion. The Chicago Tribune reported that revenue was down 5 percent in January and advertising revenue significantly decreased. It has not yet been announced which departments of the company will face the most job cuts.

By Stephanie Huls

14
Feb

Top Chicago Theater Picks For Feb. 14, 2008: ‘Heat Wave,’ ‘Augusta,’ ‘Columbinus’

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Theater

Here are this week’s top Chicago theater selections and deals.

Title: “Heat Wave” Venue: Pegasus Players at O’Rourke Center Dates: Feb. 21 to 24, 2008 Full Price: $15        Partner Price: Free! Description: Based on the book “Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago,” Steven Simoncic’s moving new play looks at the heat wave of 1995 that took the lives of 739 Chicagoans. Simoncic presents a vivid portrait of a city in crisis but with its resources and humanity firmly intact. Snag your free “Heat Wave” tickets now!

Title: “Columbinus” Venue: Raven East Stage Dates: Feb. 14 to March 15, 2008 Full Price: $25        Partner Price: Free-$12.50! Description: “Columbinus” is a fascinating examination of human behavior based on interviews with Columbine residents. The play first creates a general world of adolescence and then morphs into the factual events leading specifically to the school shootings. “Columbinus” asks: “Why do people treat each other the way we do?” Snag your half-price “Columbinus” tickets now!

Title: “Augusta” Venue: American Theater Company Dates: Feb. 14 to 24, 2008 Full Price: $30-$35        Partner Price: $15-$17.50! Description: American Theater Company presents the Chicago premiere of Richard Dresser’s “Augusta,” which is directed by “Saturday Night Live” alum Nora Dunn. This searing dark comedy puts the clash between working people and corporate America under the microscope. Two women and their boss scheme with and against each other as they strive to make a housekeeping service their ticket to success. As the trio’s desperation moves them to test ethical limits, Augusta confronts the real meaning of getting ahead. Snag your half-price “Augusta” tickets now!

Title: “Good Boys and True” Venue: Steppenwolf Downstairs Theatre Dates: Feb. 15 to 16, 2008 Full Price: $55-$68        Partner Price: $27.50-$34! Description: Steppenwolf Theatre Company presents the world premiere of Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s “Good Boys and True”. When Brandon Hardy – a highly regarded student at an elite prep school – is embroiled in a scandal that threatens his future, his mother must investigate to separate fact from fiction. Snag your half-price “Good Boys and True” tickets now!

Title: “Talking it Over” Venue: Lifeline Theatre Dates: Feb. 11 to March 16, 2008 Full Price: $25        Partner Price: $12.50! Description: When steady Stuart marries the enigmatic Gillian, his impetuous school chum, Oliver, senses that three has become a crowd. But who will end up on the outside as this love triangle struggles to find balance? This darkly comic look at friendship, loyalty and love is at once funny and brutal. Snag your half-price “Talking it Over” tickets now!

08
Feb

Top Chicago Performance Picks For the Weekend of of Feb. 8, 2008

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Theater

Has watching Hulk Hogan on American Gladiators made you yearn for the good ‘ole days of wrestling?

Then let’s get ready to rumble as it’s time for a comedic foray into the lives of professional wrestlers in “Bodyslam! The Rise and Fall of CAWC”. The show playing at the Annoyance Theatre features an on-stage ring and is sure to please all your full-nelson cravings. Performances run at 10 p.m. on Fridays through April 11. Tickets cost $15.

Does the statue of David by Michelangelo make you want seek out other naked works of art or do you just have obsession with nude masterpieces?

If so, the Art Institute of Chicago is the place to be on Feb. 9, Feb. 16 or March 15 as it’s having a “Naked at the Art Institute Scavenger Hunt” where participants search for nakedness in exhibits for a chance to win a T-shirt. Tickets are $25.50 and can be purchased at WatsonAdventures.com.

Looking for some alternative action for you and your sweetie on Valentine’s Day?

Rev up your love life with some girl-on-girl shorts and a candlelit champagne reception at the Chicago Filmmaker in Andersonville. “Dyke Delicious Series: A Valentine For Lesbians” shows on Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. and includes film highlights from Anne Renton’s “Love is Love,” which depicts a world where heterosexuals are the minority. Tickets cost $8 to $10 or $15 a couple.

By Stephanie Huls

08
Feb

Top Chicago Music Picks For the Weekend of Feb. 8, 2008

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Music

The thrill of a day near the beach in Waukegan may still be gone for a few more months, but if you must have the blues, you may as well share them with guitar legend B.B. King.

Octogenarian King – who took down the house at last summer’s Crossroads Guitar Festival benefit from Eric Clapton – will perform at the Genesee Theatre on Saturday night. While you may have to sit through some of his classics, his trusty mate, Lucille (the Gibson guitar he has been playing since 1949), more than makes up for the diminished energy.

If you’re looking to get comfortably numb in the city on Saturday and want some tunes to complement your psychedelic scene, bounce on over to the House of Blues for the “Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular Show”.

The band’s original mates reunited a couple years back in London for Live 8. It was the first time since The Wall they performed together in public, and from reports, will likely be the last. This may be the closest we get to seeing them live again.

Though Fat Tuesday has come and gone, that doesn’t mean we can’t shake our bones to some Cajun funk. Buckwheat Zydeco, which has been touring for more than 20 years now, comes to the House of Blues on Friday. We hope you didn’t give up too much for lent!

By Brad Spirrison

05
Feb

All Not Aboard the Information Railroad in Chicago

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business

CHICAGO – A primary reason why the CME Group is positioned to make multibillion-dollar offers for rival exchanges is because Chicago hosts arguably the most advanced Internet infrastructure on the planet.

In the futures industry where a tenth of a second advantage on a trade can mean everything, access to reliable and light-speed communication networks is crucial. While downtown Chicago Internet capabilities and connections are world class, businesses that reside in many neighborhoods operate on relative dial-up speeds and capabilities.

“It is assumed that access is universal in the city and state, but it is just not,” said Paul O’Connor who in December stepped down from his post as executive director of World Business Chicago. “There are huge parts of population centers in areas of wealth and business that are not served.”

O’Connor – who spent the last decade recruiting companies such as Boeing to Chicago – believes maintaining a robust Internet infrastructure is as essential to the city’s economic well-being as is access to non-stop commercial flights.

He equated pockets of the city currently cut off from advanced communication networks to towns that were similarly out of the loop a century and a half ago. O’Connor added: “If you were not along the line of the railroad, you were [out of luck] in your economic future.”

According to Joe Mambretti – director of the International Center for Advanced Internet Research at Northwestern University – the global economy will eventually revolve around the transmission of digital information. In order to remain competitive, companies in all areas from all industries must learn how to best manage the movement of information.

As the pipes that transmit information expand, the depth of the content and information that travel within them will also increase. Mambretti currently is working on a technology known as “4K” that allows for 4,000 pixels of horizontal media display.

For those of you scoring at home, this means a viewing reception four times as strong as high-definition television. Industrial applications for 4K technologies, though, will not be limited to entertainment and will include advancements in areas ranging from banking to automotive to computational nanotechnology.

“It is critical for Chicago’s future to have an infrastructure to support these services that are being adopted around the world,” said Mambretti, who also directs the not-for-profit Metropolitan Research & Education Network that focuses on creating an infrastructure to support the so-called next-generation Internet.

He added: “The policymakers have to become more sophisticated with their concepts. They are used to thinking about infrastructure as things that were great in a 19th century economy like bridges, trains and roads. They often ignore infrastructure necessary for a digital economy.”

By Brad Spirrison

01
Feb

Sales Tax to Increase in Chicago to Help Bail Out Chicago Transit Authority

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Transportation

Illinois legislators have passed a 0.25 percent Chicago sales tax increase to help fund the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA).

The increase raises Cook County’s merchandise sales tax to 9.25 percent. It will become effective on April 1. Sales tax in collar counties such as DuPage and Lake will increase by 0.50 percent. As well, RTA riders 65 years or older will be eligible to ride transit for free beginning on March 17.

By Stephanie Huls

01
Feb

AT&T Launches U-verse Television Service to Chicago Suburbs

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business, Technology

AT&T on Monday launched its U-verse television service to 175 Chicago suburbs. AT&T U-verse offers television and high-speed Internet services. Service packages will cost consumers $69 to $154 a month. The Chicago rollout is expected to be low key so the company can keep up with customer demands.

By Stephanie Huls

01
Feb

Chicago Mercantile Exchange Offers $11 Billion For Nymex Holdings

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business, Technology

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is looking to expand its reach further by offering $11 billion in cash and stock for Nymex Holdings, which is an energy exchange in New York. The two exchanges have agreed to an exclusive, 30-day negotiating period.

The CME is the largest commodities exchange and also controls the Chicago Board of Trade. The deal is being touted by analysts as another way to boost a slowing U.S. economy.

By Stephanie Huls

01
Feb

Motorola in Schaumburg, Ill. Considers Selling Off Cell Phone Unit

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Business, Technology

Motorola’s lagging phone sales and inability to keep up with consumer needs has led the company to announce that it’s considering selling off its cell phone unit.

While the company at one time dominated the industry, it recently has come under harsh investor scrutiny by Carl Icahn who has been calling for the breakup of Motorola. Icahn holds a 3 percent stake in Motorola. In the past year, Motorola’s cell phone division garnered a $1.2 billion loss and has had two key executives resign.

By Stephanie Huls