Essential Things

Five things you should know about our flag

Ten best books about Chicago

Five useful Chicago books

Ten legendary Chicago concerts

Five best live albums recorded in Chicago

Our five favorite scribblings on the greenroom wall at Second City

Five top-selling postcards at the Art Institute of Chicago’s museum shop

Chicagocentric tattoos we love

Five ’80s teen movies set in Chicago, ranked in order of awesomeness

Five coldest opening days for Chicago baseball teams

Five coldest opening days for Chicago baseball teams

10 unexplained phenomena

Five most-asked questions of the concierge at the Drake Hotel

Ten things you can find only in the suburbs

Five things you should know about our flag

1. The three white stripes represent the North, West and South Sides of the city (from top to bottom).

2. The top blue stripe stands for Lake Michigan and the North Branch of the Chicago River. The bottom blue stripe symbolizes the South Branch of the Chicago River and the Great Canal.

3. The four stars signify major events in Chicago’s history: the Fort Dearborn Massacre of 1812, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, and the World’s Fairs of 1893 and 1933.

4. The flag is aesthetically popular across the nation—in a review by the North American Vexillological (that is, related to the study of flags) Association of American city flags, Chicago’s ranks second with a rating of 9.03 out of 10 (Washington, D.C., got top honors).

5. The six points of each star symbolize community ideals, city achievements or regional industries. For example, the second star’s points stand for religion, education, aesthetics, justice, beneficence and civic pride.—Liz Baker Plosser

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Ten best books about Chicago

1. City on the Make by Nelson Algren

2. Tie: Boss and One More Time by Mike Royko

4. Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

5. Division Street: America by Studs Terkel

6. I Sailed with Magellan by Stuart Dybek

7. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

8. The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow

9. Bridges of Memory by Timuel D. Black

10. Studs Lonigan by James T. Farrell (Yup, we’re cheating and counting the trilogy as one.)

—JM

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Credit:Nicole Radia

Five useful Chicago books

1. Chicago’s Famous Buildingsby Franz Schulze and Kevin Harrington (University of Chicago Press, $14). In its fifth edition, this book includes new projects alongside old favorites, plus insightful walking maps.

2. BYOB Chicagoby Jean Iversen (BYOB Chicago, Inc., $12.95). It’s an idea so good we’re surprised it didn’t happen until two years ago. And we’re not surprised it’s already in its second edition.

3. Time Out Chicago city guide (Time Out, $18.95, fourth edition, available April, 2007). Did you think we weren’t going to list this? We fucking wrote it.

4. The Cheap Bastard’s Guide to Chicagoby Nadia Oehlsen (Globe Pequot Press, $14.95). What makes this book great is the sheer variety of ways it gives you to have fun on the cheap. Of course, it’d be better if it didn’t cost so much.

5. Return to the Scene of the Crimeby Richard Lindberg (Cumberland, $18.95). Call us morbid, but we’ve memorized all of the places where the mob or the cops gunned people down, just so we can walk by and say things like, “That’s where Patsy Lolordo got iced.”—JM

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Credit:Paul Natkin

Ten legendary Chicago concerts

1. The Rolling Stones Double Door, September 18, 1997

Mick flounced around the stage, Keith wore a pink jacket and shades, and 400 fans saw the Glimmer Twins up close and personal. Ticket price? Seven dollars.—AS

2. The Grateful Dead Soldier Field, July 9, 1995

The band ended its 2,314th show with a “Black Muddy River”/“Box of Rain” medley; a month later, Jerry went truckin’ on to heaven.—AS

3. Sonic Youth and Public Enemy Aragon Ballroom, December 29, 1990

This fantastic double bill sadly became best known for what happened afterward: An impromptu anti–Gulf War protest broke into a riot.—AS

4. Sun Ra & His ArkestraChicago Jazz Festival, Grant Park, September 1981

The avant-garde jazz iconoclast’s set featured the gold lamé–clad Arkestra whipping out ecstatic improvisations. The masses at the fest probably never heard a better intro than, “Some call me Mr. Ra; others call me Mr. Ree. You can call me Mr. Mr. Ree.”—ML

5. Bringing The Blues Back Home: The Original Chicago Blues Festival  Grant Park, August 30, 1969

Fifteen years before the first Bluesfest, an unrelated concert featured a lineup that reads like a Blues Hall of Fame: Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Willie Dixon, Koko Taylor, Junior Wells and more.—JP

6. MC5  Grant Park, August 25, 1968

During the ’68 Democratic Convention, these Detroiters made the best of a bad situation with an eight-hour set.—AS

7. The Beatles Comiskey Park, August 20, 1965

Back when the Cell had a normal name, the Fab Four played to 50,000, then hit Margie’s Candies (1960 N Western Ave) for sundaes.—AS

8. WVON Blues Revue Comiskey Park, 1964

Sam Cooke, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Marvin Gaye and several others—for free. Way too much sugar for a dime.—JP

9. Jerry Lee Lewis Chicago Opera House, 1957

The thought of a raging Jerry Lee Lewis kicking over a piano stool where an opera singer once stood is a colossal mindfuck.—JP

10. Maria Callas debut at Lyric Opera Civic Opera House, November 3, 1954

The Greek diva opened a new chapter in American opera history with her performance of Bellini’s “Norma,” which kicked off the Lyric’s inaugural season.—Marc Geelhoed

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Five best live albums recorded in Chicago

Ahmad Jamal, But Not For Me (Chess) Recorded live on January 16, 1958, at the South Side’s legendary—and long defunct—Pershing Lounge, this live album was pianist Jamal’s commercial breakthrough, remaining in the Billboard Top 100 for months. His ability to generate such tremendous swing with so few notes never sounded better on record.
—Matthew Lurie

Wilco, Kicking Television: Live in Chicago (Nonesuch)

Recorded over four nights at the Vic Theatre in 2005, this disc finds Jeff Tweedy and company in top form, whether they’re tinkering on piano or wrapping themselves in a swirl of guitar noise.—Antonia Simigis

Southern Culture on the Skids, Peckin’ Party (Feedbag)

This 1993 EP features the Chapel Hill swamp-rock trio tearing it up in front of a sweaty Lincoln Park audience. It was recorded at the late, lamented Lounge Ax.—James Porter

Gene Chandler, Live on Stage in ’65 (Constellation). Reissued as Live at the Regal (Collectables)

As soon as WVON blues DJ Pervis Spann finishes his intro (“All right, ladies and gentlemen, it’s Startime at the Regal!”), it’s on. The minute this Chicago soul singer kicks off with “Rainbow ’65,” the women’s screams are so deafening it feels like all of 47th Street is going to explode right there.—JP

Various artists, And This Is Maxwell Street (Rooster Blues)

It’s now a row of condos on Halsted Street between Greektown and Pilsen, but 43 years ago (when this album was recorded) Maxwell Street was an outdoor flea market where deals were made, Polish sausages were grilled, and legends of blues and gospel like Robert Nighthawk, Carey Bell and Jim Brewer brought their music to the streets.—JP

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Our five favorite scribblings on the greenroom wall at Second City

Credit:Allison Williams

1. Bernie Sahlins

Credit:Allison Williams

2. Jim Zulevic

Credit:Allison Williams

3. Liz Cackowski

Credit:Allison Williams

4. Tim Meadows

Credit:Allison Williams

5.Tina Fey—SH

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Five top-selling postcards at the Art Institute of Chicago’s museum shop

1. Paris Street; Rainy Day, Gustave Caillebotte

2. Water Lilies, Claude Monet

3. Nighthawks,Edward Hopper

4. A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, Georges Seurat

5. American Gothic, Grant Wood—MN

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Chicagocentric tattoos we love

Credit:Calbee Booth

“I call it ‘California Nightmare and Sweet Home Chicago.’ One part has a scene of California, and it’s all gray and depressing-looking, and there’s a tornado in the middle, then mountains, then rain, then a sunset view of Chicago. I lived in San Diego and had lots of bad luck there.”

—Merrick

Credit:Calbee Booth

Credit:Calbee Booth

“I really like the six-way. I live close to there—it’s my neighborhood. I like the Double Door sign, and I was active in the fight to keep it from closing. I volunteer at an animal shelter and rescued two cats from Cabrini-Green. Architecturally, I liked Cabrini-Green—it had an ominous, dark style.”

—Julia Chosy, 31

Credit:Calbee Booth

“The skyline was my third tattoo, and I realized I was going to cover my whole arm. Once I started, I kept coming up with Chicago ideas.”

—Victor Pitri, 27

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Five ’80s teen movies set in Chicago, ranked in order of awesomeness

Credit:Photofest

1. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

Ferris and friends gallivant around Wrigley Field, Lake Shore Drive, the Sears Tower and Board of Trade, making this flick more Chicago than Ditka’s ’stache.

2. Sixteen Candles (1984)

You won’t find a more accurate portrayal of what it’s like being a teenager in suburban Chicago. That is, if your teenage experience included getting felt up by your grandma, landing the hottest dude in school even though you’re a dork and going to beer-drenched parties in ridonk mansions—all of which totally happened to us.

3.Breakfast Club (1985)

Shot at various suburban high schools, this movie launched the career of Judd Nelson, who taught us that you can woo a woman by sticking your face between her legs.

4.Adventures in Babysitting (1987)

Elisabeth Shue leads a pack of scamps from the safe suburbs to scary downtown, to rescue a friend from the bus station (okay, the bus station is pretty scary).

5.Risky Business (1983)

High-class hooker Rebecca De Mornay delivers the unforgettable suggestion that she and Tom Cruise should “make love on a real train.”

—LB and Hank Sartin

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>Five warmest opening days for Chicago baseball teams

1. April 22, 1960—Chicago Cubs vs. San Francisco Giants

2. April 12, 1977—Chicago White Sox vs. Boston Red Sox

3. April 19, 1985—Chicago White Sox vs. Boston Red Sox

4. May 7, 1880—Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds

5. April 17, 1964—Chicago Cubs vs. Philadelphia Phillies

—TM, with thanks to Steve Kahn at WGN

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Five coldest opening days for Chicago baseball teams

1. April 8, 2003—Chicago Cubs vs. Montreal Expos

2. April 8, 1997—Chicago Cubs vs. Florida Marlins

3. April 16, 1935—Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals

4. April 18, 1907—Chicago White Sox vs. St. Louis Browns

5. April 4, 2003—Chicago White Sox vs. Detroit Tigers

—TM, with thanks to Steve Kahn at WGN

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10 unexplained phenomena*

1. Resurrection Mary (Justice) A blond hitchhikes on Archer Avenue, then vanishes into her namesake cemetery.

2. Jane Addams Hull-House (800 S Halsted St) A devil baby leers from a window.

3. Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery (Midlothian) Some see a phantom Victorian manse, orbs and apparitions.

4. Red Lion Pub (2446 N Lincoln Ave) The owner’s dead father lingers in the stairwell, giving boozers the spins.

5. St. James Sag Church & Cemetery (Lemont) Phantom monks chant in Latin, and ghost horses pull a phantom carriage.

6. Excalibur Nightclub (632 N Dearborn St) Glasses break; liquor bottles shatter. The owners blame spirits.

7. Harpo Studios (1058 W Washington Blvd) Oprah’s HQ is home to specters from the 1915 Eastland disaster.

8. Rico D’s (Willow Springs) A hooker and gangster haunt a former brothel and speakeasy.

9. Oriental Theater (24 W Randolph St) Glowing orbs float in the alley behind the site of the 1903 Iroquois Theater fire.

10. O’Hare UFO United employees see a flying disc on November 7, 2006; the FAA calls it a “weather phenomenon.”—Steve Heisler

*Source: Dale Kaczmarek, author of Windy City Ghosts and president of the Ghost Research Society

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Five most-asked questions of the concierge at the Drake Hotel

On a typical Saturday, John Dowd—the head concierge at the Drake Hotel (140 E Walton Pl, 312-787-2200)—fields 400 queries by noon. Here’s what guests want to know:

1. “Where can I go for an iconic Chicago meal?” Dowd points folks to Gibsons (1028 N Rush St, 312-266-8999) and the Chicago Chop House (60 W Ontario St, 312-787-7100) for steaks, and Charlie Trotter’s (816 W Armitage Ave, 773 248-6228), TRU (676 N St. Clair St, 312-202-0001) and Alinea (1723 N Halsted St, 312-867-0110) for a splurge.

2. “What’s the city’s best tour?” Dowd likes the combo bus and walking tour offered by See It All Chicago (773-525-6152). For historic walking tours, he recommends the Chicago Architecture Foundation (312-922-3432).

3. “How do I get tickets to Wicked?” The musical is sold out months in advance, but Dowd directs guests to brokers who’ve reserved seats. (We found some at www.stubhub.com.)

4. “Where can I get Cubs/Sox/Bears/Bulls/Hawks tickets?” The hotel doesn’t sell tickets, so Dowd goes with ticket brokers. Or you could call the teams and hope you get lucky: Cubs (773-404-CUBS); White Sox (866-SOX-GAME); Bears (call Ticketmaster at 312-559-1212); Bulls (312-455-4000); Blackhawks (312-943-HAWK)

5. “Where can I get a massage and blowout?” Dowd recommends two ritzy Michigan Avenue spas for women—Christopher Charles (980 N Michigan Ave, second level; 312-664-6404) and Tiffani Kim Institute (800 N Michigan Ave, seventh floor; 312-239-4036). Gents who want a haircut are told to hit Truefit and Hill (900 N Michigan Ave, level six; 312-337-2525), a classy old-school barber shop.—LBP

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Ten things you can find only in the suburbs

Credit:Nicole Radina

1. Drivers talking (legally) on their cell phones

2. Cheap cigarettes (Clearly, it’s all about living dangerously outside the city limits)

3. Foie gras being bought, sold and devoured guilt-free

4. Tiny bottles (1.7oz) of booze

5. Cheap-yet-stylish Swedish furniture (IKEA Schaumburg, 1800 E McConnor Pkwy, 847-969-9700)

6. Spray paint for all your DIY craft-project or tagging needs (available at any home-improvement store)

7. The largest Hindu temple in North America (BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, 4N739 Rte 59, Bartlett, 630-213-2277)

8. Cheap-yet-stylish Swedish lighting (IKEA Bolingbrook, 750 E Boughton Rd, 630-972-7900)

9. $2.19/gallon gasoline

10. People flying like Superman, 60mph and 115 feet above the ground (Superman: Ultimate Flight, Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, 847-249-4636)—Amy Carr

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