Chi TownThe final work of the acclaimed Chicago Trilogy, this collection of nonfiction tales reveals Sandburg's "city of the big shoulders," concrete and neon; uptown and downtown; State Street, Michigan Avenue; the river, the lake; the matter-of-factness and poetry of Chicago people-from Mike Royko describing his neighborhood to the observations of newspaper vendors, from Studs Terkel interviewing jazz great Dave Brubeck to dinner with Petros in Greek Town. Written with a keen eye, Blei's stories evoke a vanished Chicago, a city of gritty and colorful neighborhoods and their gritty and colorful characters. It is, as he writes, a "love letter to a city that has meant so much to me." Chi Townis the story of Norbert Blei's love affair with a city that shaped both his life and work. Along the route of this walking tour of the Windy City, you'll dine with Petros in Greek Town, see Studs Terkel in action at WFMT interviewing Dave Brubeck, listen to Mike Royko describe his own neighborhood, share the thoughts of Chicago sportswriter Jerome Holtzman, and meet newspaper vendors, trash collectors, bankers and more. |
Contents
Chi Town Blues | 1 |
Man in the Window | 21 |
The Best Bargains in Town | 23 |
Supercook | 31 |
The Museum of Science and Industry | 39 |
Strictly Personal | 43 |
To Stop Shop | 51 |
Europe in Chicago | 57 |
Chanoyu in Uptown Chicago | 191 |
Dr A R Schwartz | 199 |
Inside Chicagos Foreign Banks | 205 |
A Warm Conversation with Burr | 211 |
Scavenger City | 217 |
Party Man | 223 |
Not Resting in Peace | 227 |
FlakeOut at the SkinFlicks | 229 |
The Confidence of Competence | 61 |
Fred and the Chocolate Factory | 67 |
Invisible Artist | 75 |
I Can Drink It For You Wholesale | 85 |
The Man Who Made Rocking Horses | 93 |
Travels with Royko or The Kid Who Scattered Pigeons | 99 |
Paint My Body Color Your Mind | 107 |
Hoke Norris and the Quiet Night of the Soul | 113 |
J Robert Nash | 119 |
Marshall Fields | 125 |
A Man on a Bench | 135 |
The Antique Dealer Who Beat Joe Louis | 137 |
They Come with the Corner | 145 |
Chicagos Public Library | 153 |
School for Brewmasters | 159 |
Restaurateur | 167 |
The Great Hot Dog Quest | 175 |
Amazing Grace | 183 |
Mornings at Pixleys | 188 |
On the Outskirts of Town | 235 |
Chicagos Dean of Baseball | 241 |
Poetry in Paper | 253 |
A Writers Bookseller in Chicago | 261 |
Bringing the Good News to Skid Row | 279 |
Bill Mauldin Up Front | 289 |
Tuxedo Junction | 295 |
Buried Alive in Chicago | 305 |
Sing a Song for Van Buren Street | 311 |
Dance With Me Petros | 319 |
Window Washer | 327 |
The Petrakis Story 1980 | 333 |
The Art of Talk | 339 |
The Worlds Greatest Czech Bakeries Memories of Old Bohemian Bakeries | 351 |
The Houby Parade | 363 |
A Czech Shop on Main StreetCermak Road | 369 |
The Peoples Restaurant LJ Lounge The Peoples Bar | 375 |
Coming Back | 381 |
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Common terms and phrases
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