Chicago Sun-Times: Chicago news, sports, politics, entertainment

Cubs visit Fenway Park for the first time since 2017: 'Awesome, historic'

Notes: Lefty Justin Steele threw in an extended spring training game Friday.

By Maddie Lee

Cubs

How Cubs' Shota Imanaga helped steady a rotation tested by injuries

Imanaga held the Red Sox to one run through 6 1/3 innings in the Cubs’ 7-1 win Friday.

By Maddie Lee

Yale offensive lineman Kiran Amegadjie speaks during a press conference at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Saturday, March 2, 2024.

Bears

Bears draft local product Yale OT Kiran Amegadjie with 'starter potential' in 3rd round

Bears

'Why duck?' New Bears QB Caleb Williams elevates expectations rather than tempering them

Bears

Ryan Poles on Bears' QB history: 'Those days are over'

White Sox

Player development falls at the feet of White Sox manager Pedro Grifol

Commentary

The opinions in and around Chicago that inform, analyze, hold power accountable and entertain.

Lee Bey

Architecture Critic and member of the Editorial Board

Bears have designs on the lakefront, as Mayor Johnson plays the wrong position of cheerleader-in-chief

David Roeder

Business reporter

Bears, White Sox want stadium deals, so how about a cut of the action?

Mary Mitchell

Columnist

Scam calls asking for money are serious business; authorities believe one was tied to an Ohio death

Michael Sneed

Columnist

Why did Harry Caray always say ‘Holy Cow?’ It could be linked to a 1930s flying bovine. No bull!

Politics

Cristina Nichole Iglesias, who received gender affirming surgery in March 2023 while she was serving her prison sentence, sits among the flowers at the Garfield Park Conservatory in Garfield Park, Friday, April 5, 2024. Iglesias said that going through gender dysphoria was “traumatic” and “torture.” The surgery was made possible by a settlement she reached with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

LGBTQIA+

After fighting to have gender-affirming care, a former prisoner adjusts to life in Chicago as a woman

Cristina Nichole Iglesias sued the federal Bureau of Prisons for the right to have the surgery and get the agency to pay for it and won.

By Stefano Esposito

University of Chicago students, faculty members and their supporters protest in support of Palestine and march around the South Side campus, Friday, April 26, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

Israel-Hamas War

Hundreds join pro-Palestinian protests at Chicago universities; Northwestern encampment continues for 2nd night

Politics

Cook County Democratic leaders pick Monica Gordon to run for county clerk: 'I have some big shoes to fill'

Democracy Solutions Project

Illinois Republicans grapple with mail voting amid mixed signals from Trump — 'We have to adapt'

Education

Arlington Heights school nurse placed on leave amid probe into possible medicine swap

Sports

Columnists

How old are you in cicada years?

The appearance of the 17-year cicadas this year will mark the fourth emergence of the red-eyed, orange-veined creatures in my lifetime — thus, my fourth cicada birthday, Scott Fornek, an editor at the Sun-Times, writes.

By Scott Fornek

Horoscopes

Horoscope for Saturday, April 27, 2024

Israel-Hamas War

Columbia protesters say they're at an impasse with administrators, will continue anti-war camp

White Sox

Chris Flexen deals as White Sox snap seven-game losing streak

Crime

Arrest warrant issued for Aurora man charged with killing Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca

Entertainment and Culture

Heading to C2E2 this weekend? Have a game plan ready to navigate its vast offerings

The massive pop culture convention runs through Sunday at McCormick Place.

By Stefano Esposito

Art

Chryssa exhibit a vivid reminder of all-but-forgotten Greek artist and her impact on 20th century American art

Dance

A dance party at heart, Joffrey Ballet's 'Midsummer Night's Dream' is a joyous celebration

Murals and Mosaics

In Blue Island, Chris Campagna's murals aim to soften hard edges, tie together neighborhoods

Theater

There's plenty to like in magician Ondřej Pšenička's '52 Lovers'

All latest stories

La Voz Chicago

Artistas para el Festival de Micheladas 2024: Junior H, Los Ángeles Azules, Luis R. Conriquez entre la lista

El sexto Festival anual de Michelada regresa al sur de Chicago los días 13 y 14 de julio, con Oakwood Beach como su nueva sede designada.

By Andrea Flores

R. Kelly

R. Kelly's Chicago conviction upheld by appeals court

The former R&B star is being held in a medium-security prison in North Carolina, records show. He is not due to be released until December 2045.

By Jon Seidel

Bears

New Bears QB Caleb Williams sets draft night sales record for Fanatics

Caleb Williams is No.1 in more ways than, well, one.

By Patrick Finley

Crime

2 teens critically wounded in South Shore shooting

Two people entered an apartment and began shooting, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Mason (John Travolta) wants out of the robbery racket after an attempted car theft goes awry.

Movies and TV

Routine heist movie 'Cash Out' relies on Travolta's sturdy star power

At 70, the screen stalwart charms as reformed thief with a goofball brother and an inscrutable ex.

By Richard Roeper

Nambi E. Kelley (from left), TayLar, Dexter Zollicoffer and A.C. Smith star in the Goodman Theatre's production of August Wilson's "Joe Turner's Come and Gone." Liz Lauren Photo

Theater

Timeless ‘Joe Turner’s Come and Gone’ richly acted by Goodman Theatre's all-Chicago cast

The ensemble storyline captures not just a time and place, but a core theme playwright August Wilson continued to express throughout his Century Cycle.

By Steven Oxman | For the Sun-Times

Bronzeville

Woman dies in Bronzeville fire

The cause of the fire was apparently accidental, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

Crime

Man dies after being shot 20 times in South Shore

The man was found by police in the 200 block of West 72nd Street around 2:30 a.m.

By Sun-Times Wire

Outdoors

Reaching into the art of Matt Mullady's outdoors experiences

Matt Mullady is known as a Kankakee River expert and former guide, but he has a very important artistic side, too.

By Dale Bowman

US-CONGRESS-POLITICS-UKRAINE-ISRAEL-TAIWAN

Columnists

Americans yearn for bipartisan cooperation

When push comes to shove, what the vast majority really want is something like what happened in Congress last week — bipartisan cooperation and a functioning government.

By Gene Lyons

Other Views

Climate change demands global solutions, not local lawsuits

Chicago’s climate lawsuit won’t curb greenhouse gas emissions or curb the effects of climate change. Innovation and smart public policies are what is needed.

By Mark Denzler and Phil Goldberg

Dear Abby

Dear Abby: Boyfriend’s living with other woman — in my apartment

Reader still hopes to make the relationship work as she watches her man fall for someone else under her own roof.

By Abigail Van Buren

A grey wind turbine with three blades stands against a hazy blue sky, near the Testa Produce facility in Chicago.

The Watchdogs

Will climate change suck the air out of Illinois' wind power industry?

Wind and solar are supposed to replace coal plants that are closing, but that didn’t happen in 2023. Another fossil fuel, natural gas, filled the void.

By Brett Chase and Dan Gearino | Inside Climate News

Bears

After drafting Caleb Williams, GM 'done talking about' Bears' spotty QB history

Hours after Williams said he asked the Bears for reasons why the team had a well-worn history of quarterback struggles, GM Ryan Poles said that “we’ve got to stop going back all the time.”

By Patrick Finley

Horoscopes

Horoscope for Friday, April 26, 2024

By Georgia Nicols

Crime

2 shot, wounded near United Center on Near West Side

The men, 18 and 20, were in the 1800 block of West Monroe Street about 9:20 p.m. when two people got out of a light-colored sedan and fired shots. They were hospitalized in fair condition.

By Sun-Times Wire

Top draft prospects stand on stage during the first round of the NFL football draft.

NFL

2024 NFL Draft first-round results: Full list of top 32 selections

Here’s where all the year’s top rookies are heading for the upcoming NFL season.

By Sun-Times staff

Bears

Bears GM Ryan Poles corrects errors, fixes WR room with Rome Odunze pick at No. 9

The position has been a headache for Poles, but now he has stacked DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Odunze for incoming quarterback Caleb Williams.

By Jason Lieser

33rd Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony - Arrivals

Music

Mike Pinder, Moody Blues co-founder and keyboardist, dies months after bandmate Denny Laine

Pinder, the last original member of the band, sang and played keyboards, as well as organ, piano and harpsichord. He founded the British band in 1964 with Laine, Ray Thomas, Clint Warwick and Graeme Edge.

By USA Today Network

Northwestern University students stand on green grass holding signs and a Palestinian flag at a protest camp on Deering Meadow, with blurred trees in the background.

Israel-Hamas War

Northwestern students set up pro-Palestinian encampment, joining protesters nationwide

Students linked arms and formed a line against police after Northwestern leaders said the tent encampment violated university policy. By 9 p.m. protest leaders were told by university officials that arrests could begin later in the evening.

By Isabel Funk

NFL

J.J. McCarthy, former Nazareth QB, selected by Vikings in 1st round of 2024 NFL Draft

McCarthy, who went to Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park before starring at Michigan, will now play for the Bears’ rivals in Minnesota.

By Patrick Finley

Education

Facing budget criticism, CPS officials say changes are 'milestone' to be celebrated

In a surprise, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s top ally — the Chicago Teachers Union — was also critical of the district’s lack of transparency and failure to prioritize classroom aides in the budget, even though the union has long supported a shift toward needs-based funding.

By Nader Issa

Bears

Bears draft Washington WR Rome Odunze at No. 9 to pair with QB Caleb Williams

They’ll go into Williams’ rookie season with DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Odunze at wide receiver.

By Jason Lieser

Immigration

15 migrant couples to exchange wedding vows at Near North church

A big ceremony will be held Friday evening at Community Park Near North Church for 15 migrant couples. They pooled together money to help pay for the celebration, which will be witnessed by about 200 family and friends of the couples.

By Emmanuel Camarillo

Travis Scott performs in December in Miami.

Music

Travis Scott, Playboi Carti and Chief Keef to headline 2024 Summer Smash

The hip-hop music festival will return to Bridgeview’s SeatGeek Stadium in June.

By Vanessa Lopez

Bears

He's No. 1: Caleb Williams era to get started right away

The Bears tried an ill-fated apprenticeship plan with Mitch Trubisky in 2017 (behind Mike Glennon) and Justin Fields in 2021 (behind Andy Dalton). But the 2024 Bears are set up for Williams as the Week 1 starter.

By Mark Potash

Bears

Caleb Williams: Right guy, right place, right time

The Bears have been here before in their search for a quarterback — Jay Cutler, Mitch Trubisky, Justin Fields — and have found only disappointment. But Williams not only is a cut above as a prospect, the Bears are set up for him to succeed where others failed.

By Mark Potash

Bears

Bears' Caleb Williams has one thing on his mind: Winning the Super Bowl

“My last goal is immortality,” Williams said two hours after the Bears made him their first-ever No. 1 overall pick at quarterback. “The only way to reach that is winning championships.’'

By Patrick Finley

Cubs

Cubs sweep Astros at Wrigley Field while battling injury bug

Manager Craig Counsell and pitching coach Tommy Hottovy provided injury updates for Seiya Suzuki, Justin Steele and Kyle Hendricks this week.

By Maddie Lee

Crime

Boston man who fatally stabbed Chicago-area Marine gets 17 to 20 years in prison

Alvaro Larrama, a bouncer at a bar, chased and stabbed Daniel Martinez to death in 2022. Martinez, a former Marine sergeant, grew up in Gage Park.

By Violet Miller

Bears

Once grounded, Bears WR Rome Odunze ready to soar with Caleb Williams

Months before Rome Odunze ever shared an airplane ride with new Bears teammate Caleb Williams, he was forced into a two-day road trip.

By Patrick Finley

Bears

Bears QB Caleb Williams arrives at Halas Hall embracing enormous expectations

“What’s there to duck?” he responded when asked about the pressure he’ll be under in Chicago.

By Jason Lieser

Renderings of the proposed new Bears stadium

Letters to the Editor

Don't give away taxpayer money for a new Bears stadium

Not a dollar of taxpayer money went to the renovation of Wrigley Field and its current reinvigorated neighborhood, one reader points out.

By Letters to the Editor

From left, Pilipili and Lomelok, large lion cubs, lounge side by side on the highest rock of their outdoor enclosure at Lincoln Park Zoo.

Picture Chicago: 12 can't miss photos from Sun-Times photographers

By Sun-Times staff

La Voz Chicago

15 parejas de migrantes venezolanos contraerán matrimonio en iglesia de Chicago

Todas las parejas son miembros de la Iglesia Cristiana La Vid, 4750 N. Sheridan Road, en Uptown, que brinda servicios a los recién llegados.

By Emmanuel Camarillo

How Realtors deal will affect homebuying

By Abby Miller

Work

Former Foxtrot workers rally, demand back pay after grocer's sudden closure

The former employees contacted workers rights organization Arise Chicago and filed charges with the Illinois Department of Labor, according to the organization.

By Abby Miller

La Voz Chicago

Se declara culpable agente de seguridad de Boston que apuñaló fatalmente a Marine de Gage Park

Álvaro Larrama fue sentenciado a entre 17 y 20 años en una prisión estatal después de perseguir y apuñalar a Daniel Martínez, un ex sargento de la Marina.

By Violet Miller

Small Business

Call & Response Books opening new store in Hyde Park

Owner Courtney Bledsoe said the store will focus on stocking books by authors of color and celebrating the stories they tell.

By Isabel Funk

White Sox

White Sox selecting contract of Tommy Pham

Veteran outfielder will join White Sox for game against the Rays Friday night

By Daryl Van Schouwen