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Tag: Long Reads
Mr. Un-Popularity
By David Bernstein
From our February 2008 issue: Rod Blagojevich was something of a golden boy when he became the governor of Illinois—a young, charismatic champion of change with powerful backers and presidential aspirations. Now he may be the most unpopular governor in the country. A look at how things fell so completely apart Read more
The Smoking Gun
By Robert Loerzel
At the turn of the 20th century, the country's most famous antismoking crusader was a sharp-tongued, stern-faced zealot from Chicago who nearly succeeded in achieving a statewide ban on cigarettes. Now, as a new antismoking law takes effect in Illinois, her nearly forgotten story gets a fitting coda. Read more
Inside Job
By Michael Stone
As a U. of C. grad student, Sudhir Venkatesh talked his way inside a crack-dealing gang at the notorious Robert Taylor Homes and befriended its charismatic leader. Now, in a new book, this "rogue sociologist" tells of his up-close—at times perhaps too close—encounter with gang life Read more
The Transformers
Our Chicagoans of the Year for 2007 are a champion of the disabled, an African American publisher, a world-renowned chef, a mother who turned loss into hope, a lifesaving animal lover, a kid helping other kids, and a longtime advocate of tolerance and diversity. Read more
Bloodlines: The Death of Chicago Dermatologist David Cornbleet
By Bryan Smith
After dermatologist David Cornbleet was murdered in his Michigan Avenue office, his son, Jonathan, devoted himself to finding the killer. Now a shy and troubled young man—a former patient of Dr. Cornbleet's—has confessed. But that man's anguished father is arguing that a drug prescribed by the slain doctor may have contributed to the killing. Read more
Biography of a Gun
By David Bernstein
FROM OUR ARCHIVES: Tracking the history of a gun used in a recent Chicago shooting provides a revealing account of how guns get into criminals' hands, and how unapproved purchases easily evade the state's gun-control laws. Read more
The New Vice President
By Kevin McKeough
In his new book, Peter Sagal, the smart and impish host of NPR's “Wait Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!”, turns his attention to porn, gluttony, swingers' clubs, and other forms of behavior that he'd never, ever have the nerve to do on his own. Read more
Steve Stone in Exile
By Josh Schollmeyer
Three years ago, after a simmering feud with Cubs players and management, the popular broadcaster Steve Stone resigned from the Cubs, though his affection for the team and for Chicago never wavered. Now, with new ownership likely to take over he waits—often at the bar at Harry Caray's—hoping for a summons to the front office. Read more
A Classic Act
By Robert Sharoff
With a passion for tradition, the investment guru Richard Driehaus has become one of the city's most dedicated advocates for historic preservation. This fall, he takes his commitment further by opening a museum of decorative arts in a phenomenally lavish 19th-century mansion on the Near North Side. Read more