Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
For more than 45 years, Chicagoans have looked to WGN-TV meteorologist Tom Skilling as a trusted source.
Ahead of his retirement next week, Skilling sat down with the Sun-Times for an exit interview. Below, we’ve got highlights from that conversation.
Plus, we have reporting on the city’s new acting buildings chief — who was at the center of the 2020 Little Village implosion debacle — a list of things to do this weekend and more community news you need to know. 👇
Thanks for spending a little bit of your afternoon with us.
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Retiring WGN meteorologist Tom Skilling: ‘It seems like what I did meant something to people’
Reporting by Mitch Dudek
The weatherman’s legacy: In the nearly 46 years since his first forecast for WGN in 1978, meteorologist Tom Skilling, has, in his folksy way, simply and clearly explained the science behind the weather while coming to be viewed as a Chicago treasure with little parallel. His career-ending signoff is set for Wednesday.
A lifetime love: Skilling was born in Pittsburgh and grew up in New Jersey, where he loved watching the ocean and studying weather maps. He was in seventh grade when his family moved to Aurora. At 14, Skilling began doing forecasts for the local radio station before heading to class at West Aurora High. He went on to the University of Wisconsin, where he studied meteorology and journalism. Soon, he found work at TV stations in Jacksonville, Florida, and Milwaukee before beginning at WGN.
Weather memories: During a recent sit-down with the Sun-Times, Skilling recalled a number of moments from his career that stuck out to him. Among them, a near-death experience running from a tornado in Oklahoma in 2010 and getting emotional while witnessing a solar eclipse in 2017.
Why he’s retiring: The decision to walk away wasn’t easy. Skilling, who turned 72 this month, has suffered a few spells of vertigo recently that he ties to the stress of deadlines and fighting traffic on his 45-minute commute. “I thought: This is my body saying maybe it’s time to slow down a bit,” Skilling said.
What’s next: Skilling says he is excited, if a tad uneasy, about retirement. Days after he signs off, Skilling plans to spend three weeks in Hawaii, where he has a place. But he’s not stepping out of the weather game completely. “There may be a situation where I continue to do some work with the station,” he said.
Key quote: “It seems like what I did meant something to people. And there’s something kind of marvelous about that. And I can’t get over the fact people so generously share that with me. It’s very moving,” Skilling said.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
- Chicago’s acting buildings chief: Marlene Hopkins, a city official who was found negligent after an investigation into the 2020 coal plant implosion in Little Village that left the community blanketed in dust, is now leading the city’s department responsible for making sure buildings are safe.
- A grim anniversary: Hundreds of refugee students, parents and faculty gathered Thursday at a Ukrainian Village school to commemorate the Feb. 24, 2022, Russian invasion of their “beautiful country.”
- ‘El Tomate’ pleads guilty: Adan Casarrubias Salgado pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy and money-laundering charges. Salgado admitted that he smuggled heroin to Chicago by hiding it inside passenger buses and then had hundreds of thousands of dollars shipped back to him in Mexico.
- Paved paradise? As White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf seeks $1 billion in taxpayer funding for a new ballpark in a planned mixed-use district in the South Loop, his associates have spent millions buying parking lots run by his competitors to build what could be a similar district around the United Center.
- Cops out of schools: The Board of Education voted Thursday to remove dozens of uniformed police officers from 39 high schools that still have them.
- Possible snow coming: The city could see rain showers transitioning into snow Friday evening as temperatures drop below freezing, according to the National Weather Service.
- Ex-Bears kicker’s next gig: Chicago Bears kicker Robbie Gould is the new head football coach at Rolling Meadows High School.
- $600 rat hole sculpture: Thanks to McKinley Park artist Don Mega, you can now own a handmade replica of a rodent’s sidewalk indentation, set as the backdrop to a shrine replete with a small dumpster, a bottle of Malört and more.
WEEKEND PLANS 🎉
🎷 Chicago Winter Jazz Fair
Friday, through 10 p.m.
📍Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St.
This mix of concerts, panel discussions and vendors kicked off this morning and will run through tonight — and feature performers including Marques Carroll’s Trumpet Summit, Windy City Jazz Electric and more.
Admission: Free
🎶 Black History, Folk Futures Symposium
Saturday, 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
📍Old Town School of Folk Music, 4545 N. Lincoln Ave.
Through panel discussions, presentations, performances and workshops, this event will explore the rich tapestry of Black musical heritage and its influence on temporary folk music, organizers say.
Admission: Free
💘 Cupid’s Undie Run
Saturday, 12-4 p.m. Run starts around 2.
📍Sluggers, 3540 N. Clark
Hit the road in your skivvies to support neurofibromatosis research. You can kick the day off with a mixer before embarking on a mile run.
Admission: $50+ to register
🎸 Music Frozen Dancing
Saturday 1 p.m.
📍Outside The Empty Bottle, Western Avenue and Cortez Street
Celebrating 10 years, this outdoor winter block party will feature local bands Lifeguard, the Mall, Upchuck, Cell Ray and Nancy — plus DJs inside.
Admission: Free
🛍️ Wabash Y Open House and Black-Owned Market
Saturday, 1-4 p.m.
📍Historic Former Wabash YMCA, 3763 S. Wabash Ave.
Guests can freely roam the two floors of the birthplace of Black History Month, where they can observe archival photos and speak with volunteers who will share the deep history of the Wabash Y. Plus, several Black-owned businesses will be there for some on-site market shopping.
Admission: Free
📽️ No One Is Going To Mythologize My Life
Sunday, 3-6:30 p.m.
📍Blanc, 4445 S. Martin Luther King Drive.
This event will present short films by Chicago-based filmmakers, including kelechi agwuncha, Jada-Amina Harvey, and Paige Taul, followed by a talk back and time to mingle with the artists and fellow attendees.
Admission: Free
BRIGHT ONE ✨
This Chicagoan is one of the best in the world at finding a location with only a Google Street View image
Reporting by Kade Heather
If you were blindfolded and left at a random spot in the world, could you navigate your way home? Gavin Atack of North Center thinks he could find his way.
His friends have jokingly presented that scenario a few times because Atack, a geography buff and competitor in the esports game GeoGuessr, can almost precisely find where he is on a map using only a still image from Google Street View.
“It’s definitely come across my mind. I feel like I’d be able to do it,” Atack, 23, said.
He is known as Chicago Geographer in GeoGuessr, which held its first World Cup tournament last year at the game’s headquarters in Stockholm.
Atack failed to make it out of his group stage in last year’s tournament, but his appearance alone earned him a ticket back to the second World Cup in September. But first, he’s competing at the Americas Regional Finals through Feb. 25, also in Stockholm.
Growing up in Chicago influenced Atack’s interests in geography and urbanism, which led him to graduating last year from the University of Chicago with a degree in urban studies. He plans to pursue a master’s degree or start working, but “as of right now,” GeoGuessr and posting geography videos on his YouTube channel and other sites are his focus.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Ahead of Tom Skilling’s retirement, what’s a message you’d like to share with the longtime Chicago meteorologist?
Email us (please include your first and last name). To see the answers to this question, check our Morning Edition newsletter. Not subscribed to Morning Edition? Sign up here so you won’t miss a thing!
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Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
