Uptown Theatre, An Editorial

Editor's Note: Thanks to the News-Star for their lovely editorial, in which both Friends of the Uptown and our own Compass Rose were mentioned.

'Not for today, but for all time'
Relight the Uptown Theatre

Our Views
By the time movie theater moguls, A.W. and Barney Balaban, and their brother-in-law, Sam Katz, opened the doors to their "palace of enchantment" on Aug. 18, 1925, Uptown, as well as the rest of Chicago, were in frenzy.

Upon the presentation of the theater's presentation to the Central Uptown District, one of the magnificent building's architects, George Rapp, declared, "Not for today, but for all time." No doubt many of us, impressed by our parents' and grandparents' tales of its lavish stage shows, or who attended a Jam concert there in our hazy youth, were impressed by the massive Grand Lobby's crystal chandeliers, the gilded décor and "room bosses" whose faces watched us from above as we moved around the mezzanine.

But times and entertainment tastes changed, and the Uptown became a victim of its own success and relic of Roaring Twenties-opulence. Except for brief moments when the Uptown was relit for charitable events and even a movie set in the 1990s, the storied theater has stood silent and darkened on the corner of Lawrence and Broadway since 1981.

Thanks to non-profit organizations like the Friends of the Uptown Theatre, Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads and a host of other theater activists, their efforts have helped build community support for preserving the storied theater. But with each passing year that the Uptown has stood vacant and uninhabitable, exuding the human energy of audiences that once settled into its crimson seats, lays the danger of further deterioration and decay that could render it beyond saving.

News of the Uptown's ownership being settled in a court-ordered auction, that comes with a city deadline for its restoration, has brought hope to its thousands of supporters that the building will once again light up the corner of Broadway and Lawrence. More than 3,200 persons have gone on the record for restoring the theater for the 21st century, by signing a petition to renovate the Uptown Theatre, at whatever cost.

Never has there been a more golden opportunity to preserve the Uptown. We support the release of public funds and urge other civic leaders, whose private gifts have enabled Millennium Park, restoration of the Chicago Theatre and the city's other cultural institutions to thrive, to turn their attention from downtown to one of the city's great unfulfilled neighborhoods.

We wish the Uptown's new owners well and pledge our support in preserving the theater "for all time."

The Gray Old Lady is Ready--An Article on the Uptown Theatre

Uptown Theatre image courtesy Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads.

All Rights Reserved.

Ted Calhoun, a director at Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads (the host of this history blog) and a Friend of the Uptown (he appeared in the documentary "Uptown: Portrait of a Palace") was recently interviewed by Lorraine Swanson for this article on the Uptown Theatre.

The gray old lady is ready
Is a makeover for the Uptown Theatre waiting in the wings?

By LORRAINE SWANSON
Editor


For decades, the Uptown Theatre's loudest champions have watched a succession of owners mishandle the once "palace of enchantment" as if it were a shabby clown painting on velvet. They remember the bad times, when sheens of ice covered the winding staircases in the Grand Lobby, of burst water pipes and investors that raised their hopes for building's restoration, only to walk away broke and defeated.

Since the announced sale of the Uptown Theatre to Jerry Mickelson of Jam Productions, the Uptown's champions are cautiously optimistic that the architectural landmark will finally get the makeover they've been waiting and fighting for. Mickelson's limited liability company, UTAII, purchased the theater in a court auction for $3.2 million last month...

For complete article, go here.

Wilson Avenue, Between Ravenswood and Hermitage

This stretch has changed a lot. The cameraman is standing at Ravenswood, looking east down Wilson Avenue towards Hermitage. The building at right once housed the Zephyr Cafe, which closed in 2006 after 30 years of business. This image is courtesy John Chuckman; circa 1910.

Aragon Drugs, 1039 Lawrence Avenue, Uptown Chicago

The address, 1039 Lawrence Avenue, puts it at the old Viceroy Hotel (now the Lorali), across the street from the famous Aragon Ballroom

Wilson Yard

Thanks to Jennifer B. for this photo of Wilson Yard; I'm not sure what the date of it is. In the upper right corner, you can see the Sheridan Plaza Hotel.

Tom Mix, the New Lawrence Hotel, and the Uptown Theatre

Thomas Edwin Mix (born Thomas Hezikiah Mix; January 6, 1880 – October 12, 1940) was an American film actor and the star of many early Western movies. He made a reported 336 films between 1910 and 1935, all but 9 of which were silent features. He was Hollywood’s first Western megastar and is noted as having defined the genre for all cowboy actors who followed. And in May (year unknown) he and his horse Tony visited Uptown Chicago, as evidenced by this vintage newspaper advertisement.

Edgewater Chicago History Celebrated in New Bricolage Mural

'Our city has a soul'
Daley and Smith dedicate Bryn Mawr bricolage mural

By LORRAINE SWANSON
Editor

Hundreds of Edgewater residents turned out Saturday morning for the dedication of Phase II of the bricolage mural at the Bryn Mawr and Lake Shore Drive underpass. Mayor Richard M. Daley and Ald. Mary Ann Smith, 48th, placed the final tiles that completed the direct-application mosaic, depicting Chicago Fire Department Station 57.

Growing 2008 on the south wall of the Bryn Maw underpass is the companion piece to Living 2007, on the north wall, which was completed last year. Growing 2008 continues to explore the themes of the community defined in last year's mural, and thematically connects the north and south walls...

For complete article and commentary, go here.
For images, go here.

Uptown Theatre Sale Finalized, UTAII the New Owner

Uptown Theatre a done deal
Sale of landmark finalized in court

By LORRAINE SWANSON
Editor

The forced judicial sale of the Uptown Theatre was finalized in Cook County Circuit Court on Monday after a years' long dispute over the ownership of the Chicago landmark once billed as "An Acre of Seats in a Magic City."

The deed to the property was transferred to Jerry Mickelson, president of Jam Productions, whose limited liability company, UTAII, purchased the Uptown Theatre in a court auction on July 29 for $3.2 million.

The judge entered an order approving the sale, indicating that UTAII was the successful purchaser, said Mickelson's attorney, Todd Rowland, of the firm Thomspon Coburn Fagel Haber.

Terms of the sale include the $3.2 million distribution of proceeds, including $1.8 million to Uptown for Broadway, the first mortgagee on the property, with the remaining proceeds distributed to UTAII as the second mortgagee. UTAII purchased the theater in a credit bid. Still to be resolved is approximately $1.7 million in receiver liens held against the property by the city...

For complete article and commentary, go here.

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Renaissance or practicality?
Gibraltar may tumble, but public art is here to stay

[from the Chicago Journal]

This week's edition of News-Star focuses on the finalized court sale of the Uptown Theatre, a landmark considered by many to be the soul of Uptown, and on Saturday's dedication of the bricolage mural at the Bryn Mawr and Lake Shore Drive underpass in Edgewater.

When it opened in August 1925, the Uptown projected the highest deals of art and architectural design. For the thousands of Depression-weary Chicagoans that passed through its majestic lobbies and beneath its ceiling painted with angels, the Uptown offered a touch of glamour-and hope. Firmly ensconced in the nation's entertainment history, the theater's cavalcade of international motion picture and stage artists rivaled that of any theater in Hollywood or New York City...

For complete article, go here.

Beef, It's What's for Dinner

Seriously, why don't we send postcards of red meat anymore? This was a featured meal at the Edgewater Beach Hotel's Rib Room. That bit of greenery hardly qualifies as a salad, and is that Yorkshire Pudding in the lower right?

Uptown's Aldermen on Wikipedia.

Both Helen Shiller of the 46th Ward and Mary Ann Smith of the 48th Ward have pages devoted to them on Wikipedia. As with all pages on Wikipedia, anyone can edit them. Have fun!

People's Music School Teacher Recognized

The People's Music School in Uptown has been teaching students for more than 30 years. One of its teachers, Carter Hoyt III, was recognized by the Sun Times. This excerpt is from 50 People Who Make Chicago a Better Place

CARTER HOYT III | Making music lessons affordable (free) in Uptown

The People's Music School in Uptown opened its doors in February 1976 and within a few months, guitarist and music teacher Carter Hoyt III knew he had to be part of it.

"Music is ultimately an intricate part of everyone's soul," Hoyt says. "It's a part of humanity and what sets us apart from other species."

Unfortunately, Hoyt says, he realized not everyone has the financial means to study music, and that's where the school comes in. Students exchange a few hours of volunteer work assisting at the school for free music classes taught by professionals.

"Music has given so much to me, teaching here was a way to give back," he says.

Hoyt, who now teaches the school's music theory classes for adults, figures he has instructed thousands of students in both that subject and guitar.

"I'm here until they kick me out or I fall over from exhaustion," he says with a chuckle.

Uptown Theatre Chicago Art Print, from an Original Oil Painting

I spotted this on Cafe Press this morning. It is a print of an oil painting by Don Elmi, available here.

Wilson Avenue YMCA, 1725 Wilson Ave, Chicago

Wilson Avenue Dept. Chicago Y.M.C.A., 1725 Wilson Avenue

1930s Art Print Wrigley Field, Home of the Cubs

This beautiful, full-color image of Wrigley Field is available from here: Wrigley Field.

Wrigley Field

An historic view of Wrigley Field, Home Grounds of the Chicago Cubs, available as an art print from: Wrigley Field.

Vintage Aragon Ballroom Documentary

This mini TV documentary about the Aragon Ballroom was shot in the mid-seventies (at a time when it was sometimes called the Scare-agon Brawlroom). It's a nostaglic look of what the ballroom was like when people actually went there to dance. There's even an interview with the son of the man who built the ballroom, who was acting as manager at the time.

Be sure to watch past the moment with the blue screen, about two minutes before the end of the film. There's an unrelated short video with a seventies couple dancing at the Aragon.



If the embedded video is not visible, you can go directly to: Documentary About The Aragon Ballroom.

A Poster of Clarendon Beach

An 18x12 inch art print of the Clarendon Municipal Bathing Beach, Chicago, is available from: Clarendon Beach.

Wallace Beery, a Chicago Essanay Player

Editor's Note: To learn more about Essanay Studios and its history in Uptown, go here.

Wallace Beery (April 1, 1885 – April 15, 1949) was an American Academy Award-winning actor, arguably best known for his portrayal of Long John Silver in Treasure Island (1934) as well as more than 200 other movie roles over a 36-year span.

Biography

Early life and career

Born in Kansas City, Missouri to Noah W. Beery and Marguerite Fitzgerald Beery, he was the younger brother of actor William Beery and Noah Beery, who also would have a lengthy career in motion pictures, as well as the uncle of actor Noah Beery, Jr.

According to U.S. Census records, all three Beery brothers were born to the same parents, making them full brothers and not half-brothers as many reports have it. Wallace Fitzgerald Beery joined the Ringling Brothers circus at the age of sixteen as an assistant elephant trainer. He left two years later after being clawed by a leopard. He found work in New York City in musical variety and began to appear on Broadway. In 1913, he moved to Chicago to work for Essanay Studios in Uptown Chicago, cast as "Sweedie, The Swedish Maid," a manly character in drag. Later he would move to California, to the Essanay Studios location in Niles, CA.

In 1915, Beery starred with his wife Gloria Swanson in Sweedie Goes to College. The marriage did not survive his drinking and abuse. In the following years, he began to play villains in several movies, and in 1917 portrayed Pancho Villa in Patria during the period when Villa was still active in Mexico; Beery would reprise the role seventeen years later.

His notable silent films include Arthur Conan Doyle's dinosaur epic The Lost World (1925; as Professor Challenger), Robin Hood with Douglas Fairbanks (1922; Beery played King Richard the Lionheart in this film and a sequel the following year called Richard the Lion-Hearted), Last of the Mohicans (1920), The Round-Up (1920; with Roscoe Arbuckle), Old Ironsides (1926), Now We're in the Air (1927), The Usual Way (1913), and Beggars of Life (1928; with Louise Brooks).

Transition to sound

With the transition to sound film he was for a time put out of work, but Irving Thalberg had no objection to Beery's gruff slow speech as a character actor, and hired him under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Beery appeared in the highly-successful 1930 prison film The Big House (for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor). The same year, he made the pivotal Min and Bill opposite Marie Dressler, the movie that vaulted him into the box office first rank. He followed that up with The Champ in 1931, this time winning the Best Actor Oscar, and the role of Long John Silver in Treasure Island (1934). He received a gold medal from the Venice Film Festival for his second performance as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa! (1934) with Fay Wray (Lee Tracy was originally to appear in the film until he drunkenly urinated off the balcony into a crowd of Mexicans standing below; Tracy's career never recovered from the incident). Other notable Beery films include Billy the Kid (1930) with John Mack Brown, The Secret Six (1931) with Jean Harlow and Clark Gable, Hell Divers (1931) with Gable, Grand Hotel (1932) with Joan Crawford, Tugboat Annie (1933) with Dressler, Dinner at Eight (1933) opposite Jean Harlow, The Bowery with George Raft and Pert Kelton that same year, China Seas (1935) with Gable and Harlow, and Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! (1935) in the role of a drunken uncle later played on Broadway by Jackie Gleason in a musical comedy version. During the 1930s Beery was regularly one of Hollywood's Top 10 box office stars, and at one point his contract with MGM stipulated that he be paid $1 more than any other contract player at the studio, making him the highest paid actor in the world.

He made several comedies with Marie Dressler (Min and Bill and Tugboat Annie, both sensationally successful) and Marjorie Main, but his career began to slow down in his last decade. In 1943 his brother Noah Beery co-starred with Wallace Beery in the war-time propaganda film Salute to the Marines, followed by Bad Bascomb (1946) and The Mighty McGurk (1947).

Personal life

His second wife was Rita Gorman. Together they adopted a daughter Carol Ann, daughter of Rita Gorman Beery's cousin. The marriage ended in divorce.

According to E.J. Fleming's book "The Fixers" (about MGM's legendary "fixers" Eddie Mannix and Howard Strickling) Beery, gangster Pat DiCicco, and Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli (who was also DiCicco's cousin and eventual producer of the James Bond films) allegedly beat comedian Ted Healy to death in a brawl. The book went on to claim that Beery was then sent to Europe by the studio for a few months until the heat was off, while a story was concocted for the public that three college students had killed Healy instead. (Immigration records confirm a four-month trip to Europe on Beery's part immediately after Healy's death, ending April 17, 1938.) Oddly, a superb pencil drawing of Beery survives that was drawn on a film set by Healy, an amateur artist as well as the organizer and original leader of the Three Stooges.

At best, Beery seems to have been somewhat misanthropic and difficult to work with, and Jackie Cooper, who worked with Beery in several films, called him in his autobiography "the most sadistic person I have ever known". Child actress Margaret O'Brien also worked with Beery, and ultimately had to be protected by crew members from Beery's insistence on constantly pinching her.

One of his proudest achievements was catching the largest black sea bass in the world off Santa Catalina Island in 1916. It was to be a record that stood for 35 years.

He died at his Beverly Hills, California home of a heart attack at the age of 64, and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, in Glendale, California.

For his contribution to the film industry, Wallace Beery has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7001 Hollywood Blvd.

Selected Filmography

* His Athletic Wife (1913)
* In and Out (1914)
* The Ups and Downs (1914)
* Cheering a Husband (1914)
* Madame Double X (1914)
* Ain't It the Truth (1915)
* Two Hearts That Beat as Ten (1915) with Ben Turpin
* The Fable of the Roistering Blades (1915)
* The Broken Pledge (1915) with Gloria Swanson
* A Dash of Courage (1916) with Gloria Swanson
* Are Waitresses Safe? (1917) with Ben Turpin
* Maggie's First False Step (1917)
* Patria (1917; as Pancho Villa in a supporting role) with Irene Castle, Milton Sills, and Warner Oland
* 813 (1920)
* The Virgin of Stamboul (1920)
* The Mollycoddle (1920) with Douglas Fairbanks
* The Round-Up (1920) with Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
* The Last of the Mohicans (1920)
* The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) with Rudolph Valentino
* I Am the Law (1922) with Noah Beery
* Robin Hood (1922) with Douglas Fairbanks
* The Flame of Life (1923)
* The Spanish Dancer (1923) with Pola Negri
* Stormswept (1923) with Noah Beery
* Drifting (1923)
* Three Ages (1923) with Buster Keaton
* White Tiger (1923)
* Richard the Lion-Hearted (1923; sequel to 1922's Robin Hood)
* The Drums of Jeopardy (1923)
* The Lost World (1925; Arthur Conan Doyle dinosaur epic in which Beery portrayed Professor Challenger) with Lewis Stone (and Doyle himself in a frontispiece)
* Old Ironsides (1926) with George Bancroft and Charles Farrell
* Casey at the Bat (1927) with Ford Sterling and Zasu Pitts
* Now We're in the Air (1927) with Louise Brooks (lost film)
* Beggars of Life (1928) with Louise Brooks and Richard Arlen
* Chinatown Nights (1929) with Warner Oland and Jack Oakie
* The Big House (1930) with Chester Morris, Lewis Stone, and Robert Montgomery
* Billy the Kid (1930; widescreen) with Johnny Mack Brown (billed as "John Mack Brown")
* Way for a Sailor (1930) with John Gilbert
* A Lady's Morals (1930; as P.T. Barnum)
* Min and Bill (1930) with Marie Dressler
* The Stolen Jools (1931; 20-minute ensemble short) with Edward G. Robinson and Buster Keaton
* The Secret Six (1931) with Jean Harlow and Clark Gable
* The Champ (1931; Oscar-winning performance) with Jackie Cooper
* Hell Divers (1931; early military planes) with Clark Gable
* Grand Hotel (1932) with Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, and Joan Crawford
* Flesh (1932; as a wrestler, directed by an uncredited John Ford)
* Tugboat Annie (1932) with Marie Dressler, Robert Young, and Maureen O'Sullivan
* Dinner at Eight (1933) with Marie Dressler, John Barrymore, Jean Harlow, and Lionel Barrymore
* The Bowery (1933) with George Raft, Jackie Cooper, Fay Wray, and Pert Kelton
* Viva Villa! (1934; as Pancho Villa again) with Fay Wray (shot on location in Mexico)
* Treasure Island (1934; as Long John Silver) with Lionel Barrymore and Lewis Stone
* The Mighty Barnum (1934; as P.T. Barnum again)
* West Point of the Air (1935) with Robert Young, Maureen O'Sullivan, Rosalind Russell, and Robert Taylor
* China Seas (1935) with Clark Gable and Jean Harlow
* O'Shaughnessy's Boy (1935) with Jackie Cooper
* Ah, Wilderness! (1935) with Lionel Barrymore and Mickey Rooney
* A Message to Garcia (1936) with Barbara Stanwyck and Alan Hale, Sr.
* Old Hutch (1936)
* The Good Old Soak (1937) with Betty Furness and Ted Healy
* Slave Ship (1937) with Warner Baxter (first-billed) and Mickey Rooney
* The Bad Man of Brimstone (1937) with Noah Beery
* Port of Seven Seas (1938; written by Preston Sturges and directed by James Whale) with Maureen O'Sullivan
* Stablemates (1938) with Mickey Rooney
* Stand Up and Fight (1939) with Robert Taylor and Charles Bickford
* Sergeant Madden (1939; directed by Josef von Sternberg) with Laraine Day
* Thunder Afloat (1939) with Chester Morris
* The Man From Dakota (1940) with Dolores del Rio
* 20 Mule Team (1940) with Anne Baxter and Noah Beery, Jr.
* Wyoming (1940) with Ann Rutherford
* The Bad Man (1941) with Lionel Barrymore, Laraine Day, and Ronald Reagan
* Barnacle Bill (1941) with Marjorie Main
* The Bugle Sounds (1942) with Marjorie Main, Lewis Stone, and George Bancroft
* Jackass Mail (1942) with Marjorie Main
* Salute to the Marines (1943, in color) with Noah Beery, Sr.
* Rationing (1944) with Marjorie Main
* Barbary Coast Gent (1944) with Chill Wills and Noah Beery, Sr.
* This Man's Navy (1945) with Noah Beery, Sr.
* Bad Bascomb (1946) with Marjorie Main
* The Mighty McGurk (1947) with Dean Stockwell and Edward Arnold
* Alias a Gentleman (1948) with Gladys George and Sheldon Leonard
* A Date With Judy (1948) with Jane Powell and Elizabeth Taylor
* Big Jack (1949) with Richard Conte, Marjorie Main, and Edward Arnold

Speculation on the Uptown Theatre from Time Out Chicago

Uptown Theatre, a history of rock

You may know by now that the Uptown Theatre will be rehabbed by Jam Productions to serve as a live music venue. You might even know that the Balaban & Katz-era theatre was once home to a giant Wurlitzer pipe organ. But, if you weren’t living in Chicago in the ’70s you might not be aware that the venue has rocked before—and rocked (and funked) heartily...

For complete article and comentary, go to Time Out Chicago.

Rooting for the Big Guy -- More Uptown Theatre News Coverage

Rooting for the Big Guy
Why local music fans should be glad Jam won the battle for the Uptown Theatre
By Miles Raymer

August 7, 2008, excerpted from the Chicago Reader.

On July 29 the city ordered the Uptown Theatre onto the auction block, and the sale had one immediately obvious benefit—it eliminated the tangle of owners, partial owners, mortgages, and liens surrounding the property and made it clear who’s actually responsible for the place. Chicago-based Jam Productions won with a bid of $3.2 million—and surprisingly, the only other bid accepted was from the holder of the first mortgage, not from one of Jam’s competitors.

A benefit that’s perhaps less obvious is that the sale prevents any of those competitors—notably Clear Channel spin-off Live Nation, Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits organ­izer C3 Presents, or Coachella producer AEG Live—from controlling a little more of the Chicago concert landscape.

For complete article and commentary, go to Chicago Reader.

Recent Comments Feature Added to Uptown Chicago History Blog

I've finally added a "recent comments" feature to the Uptown Chicago History blog, which you'll find at the right. I admit, I've been slacking when it comes to checking for comments on older posts--I was surprised and pleased to discover this afternoon that a lot of people have left comments, sharing their memories of what Uptown was like over the years. I definitely hope to see more!

Memories of Uptown in the Fifties

Editor's Note: A reader left a comment on an older post that is worth sharing. Do you have a memory of growing up in Uptown? Write me at blog(a)compassrose.com and I will post it here.

We grew up in the 50's on Lakeside Pl. right off Sheridan Rd., attended Stewart, and went to the Lakeside theater (it was only 50 yds. away from our bldg and we could see the marquee from our window.) Also went to the Pantheon, the filthy Deluxe, the Riviera, and of course the Uptown.

Our mother was a waitress at the Aragon Ballroom as well as a part-time counter clerk at Gary's drug store on Lawrence & Kenmore. We went to Montrose beach a lot, the Clarendon field house, the Margate field house, and played arcade games at the Uptown Bowl (where they still used real pinboys).

I wonder if R.C. remembers the teachers at Stewart: Ms Zeitler, Mrs. McCracken, Mrs. Flanagan, Miss Schlimmer, our gym teacher Mr. Conway, the prune-faced principal Sigrid C. Nelson, or that horrible Mrs. Fournier. There was that retarded guy named Ritchie who hung around near the school pushing a cart full of junk, spitting at people and babbling incoherently.

Me and my brother Tom swam at the McCormick boys club once in a while, ate at Johnnie's Hot Dogs and the Kresge's on Broadway, played a lot of baseball at Margate Park, and got most of our clothes from Goldblatts. I remember so many days in class staring out the window at a big white building with the name "McJunkin Building" carved in black letters on the front, all the time thinking what a strange name McJunkin was. I guess I could go on indefinitely, but I have to go.

G. Larner
G.L.

Argyle Street Station, Uptown, Chicago 1916 and 2007

Chicago Daily News original caption: View of the new elevated tracks of the Northwestern Elevated Railroad at Argyle Street Station in the Uptown, Chicago, Illinois.

This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's American Memory Collections under the digital ID DN-0065610



Arglye 'L' station on the CTA Red Line in Uptown, Chicago, Illinois, 2007. © Jeremy Atherton, 2007. Permission is granted under the Creative Commons attribution license. Derivative works must use the same licence

Argyle Street, Chinatown's Troubled Cousin

Argyle Street: Chinatown's troubled cousin
by Alex Horowitz

“Argyle Street looked like death,” recalls Tam Van Nguyen, who frequented the Chicago neighborhood nearly 30 years ago, but only in the daytime.

“Gangs, prostitution, drug trafficking, vacant lots. There were very few open stores, and by 5 p.m. every day, gangs hung around the area. It was very scary.”

Argyle Street, which is regarded as Chicago’s North Side hub of Asian commercial activity, has come a long way since the 1970s. Improved community safety has been the driving force behind Argyle’s vast business growth over the years. In fact, crime on Argyle Street has followed the trend of crime in Chicago, where annual murders have decreased by over 500 since 1975. Now, despite a recent slump, shops and restaurants flourish on the street that was once too dangerous to walk on...

For complete article and commentary, go to: Argyle Street.

Argyle Street Fire

Four businesses were destroyed Wednesday morning by an extra-alarm fire in the Uptown neighborhood on Chicago's North Side, fire officials said.

THE BLOTTER

11:01 AM CDT, August 6, 2008

No injuries were reported in the fire, which started about 1 a.m. in the 1100 block of West Argyle Street in the city's Vietnamese commercial area, according to Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford.

The blaze started in a large one-story building that housed a restaurant, food market, real estate office and herbal store, said Chicago Fire Department Cmdr. Will Knight. An adjacent three-story apartment building did not burn, but some of the residents were evacuated because of heavy smoke and fast-moving flames...

For article and commentary, go to: Chicago Tribune.

An Intentional Community in Uptown

Editor's Note: From the Friendly Towers of Jesus People USA (formerly the Chelsea Hotel) to Keystone Ecological Urban Center, Uptown has seen its share of Intentional Communities. Wikipedia defines an intentional community as "a planned residential community designed to have a much higher degree of teamwork than other communities. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political or spiritual vision and are often part of the alternative society. They also share responsibilities and resources. Intentional communities include cohousing, residential land trusts, ecovillages, communes, kibbutzim, ashrams, moshavs, and housing cooperatives. Typically, new members of an intentional community are selected by the community's existing membership, rather than by real-estate agents or land owners (if the land is not owned by the community). Though intentional communities do not claim to be utopias in the sense of perfect places, many do attempt to live a different and better sort of society, and as such many draw on historical utopian experiments or ideas in utopian fiction."

AP writer Martha Irvine explores this concept with an interview of a woman at Keystone. For complete article and photos, go here, here or here (each version of the article has different pictures).

Living simply provides economic shelter
By MARTHA IRVINE AP National Writer

CHICAGO - Keri Rainsberger isn't rich. She works in the nonprofit world for a relatively low-profit salary. Yet, as many Americans are scrimping for every penny, she hardly feels the pinch. She still tithes 10 percent of her income to her church, even as other members have cut back. She rarely worries about rising gas and food prices. And she never bothers to balance her checkbook, because she doesn't come close to spending what she has. "I live so far below my means that it doesn't really register," says Rainsberger, a 31-year-old Chicagoan with a wiry frame and unusually sunny outlook. "I don't have to think about money." How is this possible?

To find out how, go to: Living Simply

Wilson Avenue Beach, Chicago, Another Poster

Another 100-year-old view of Wilson Avenue Beach, available as a poster from here: Wilson Beach.