This has happened to every Chicagoan who’s ever left town: you tell someone where you’re from and they bring up the pizza. Or the winter. Or Al Capone–still with the Al Capone! Come on, you want to say, Chicago’s so much more than that. Sure it’s the Sox and the Sears Tower, but it’s also rattlesnake hot dogs and Del Close’s skull. It’s the Mayors Daley and the Jesses Jackson and, hello, future president Barack Obama. It’s Algren and Addams and Alinsky–and Steve Albini and Grant Achatz, and maybe the only place those two would ever end up in a sentence together. And in addition to being ground zero for experimental American cuisine and home to the most active independent music scene in the country, it’s a world-famous incubator of comedic talent and fertile ground for emerging artists of all kinks and persuasions. There’s so much to do and see and learn that list making can’t do it justice.
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This issue is our user’s guide to the city we know and love. Enjoy.
