AP - Days before a former suburban Chicago police officer's fourth wife vanished in 2007, she told a divorce attorney that her husband thought she suspected he had killed his previous wife and suggested extorting money from him to keep quiet, the lawyer testified Monday.

The New York Times' David Kirkpatrick delivers the shocking and troubling news that Wall Street bankers are so disappointed in Barack Obama that they've started giving money to Republicans. Bankers! To Republicans!

Apparently Wall Street has long been a bastion of support for Democratic political candidates, but now that Obama has launched a campaign — unprecedented for a Democrat — to enact policies that may cut into corporate profits, some bankers are holding their noses and cutting checks to Republicans:

But this year Chase's political action committee is sending the Democrats a pointed message. While it has contributed to some individual Democrats and state organizations, it has rebuffed solicitations from the national Democratic House and Senate campaign committees. Instead, it gave $30,000 to their Republican counterparts.

The shift reflects the hard political edge to the industry's campaign to thwart Mr. Obama's proposals for tighter financial regulations.

Here's a chart illustrating that "shift" in giving, from the Center for Responsive Politics. It shows political giving from political action committees and individuals associated with commercial banking, going back to 1990. In every year since 1994, Republicans got more money than Democrats.

To make his case, Kirkpatrick cites CRP figures showing that individuals and PACs from the securities and investment business gave $89 million to Democrats in 2008, a 57% to 43% edge over Republicans. That's true. It's also true that, according to the CRP, the securities and investment sector favored Republicans over Democrats in the 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, and 1996 election cycles. It's also true that, overall, the wider finance, insurance, and real estate industry has favored Republicans 55% to 45% since 1990. This is because people who care about money want Republicans to win elections, and always have.

But what about Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase and Obama's Chicago pal? Kirkpatrick makes much of the fact that JPMorgan Chase's PAC has "rebuffed solicitations from the national Democratic House and Senate campaign committees" and given "$30,000 to their Republican counterparts."

He calls this a "shift." JPMorgan Chase has two PACs. One of them, it is true, gave 58% of its $130,427 in disbursements in 2008 to Democrats. But the other one, which handed out $797,977 in 2008, gave 53% of it to Republicans. In fact, both PACs have favored Republicans in all but two of the last six election cycles—one being the aforementioned 2008 cycle, and the other being 2002, when one of the PACs split its money 50-50. So Chase's shift to the GOP is more of a return to the way it's always behaved and should always be expected to behave, since "Wealthy Bankers Give Money to Republicans" is sort of axiomatic.

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Couldn't get enough of Kitty Half-time on Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl yesterday? (Neither could we.) You're in luck. Embrace your inner cat lady this Saturday (trust us, we're in no position to judge--we have a fluffy white cat in our lap as we type) and head down to Gorilla Tango Theatre for a special "Cupid Cats" performance of the Circus Cats of Chicago. Samantha Martin, inspired by a white odd-eyed beauty named Tuna, has trained a handful of precocious felines to jump through hoops, walk on large rubber balls, and even rock out in a three-piece band called (naturally) The RockCats.

Martin has been working with animals for more than 25 years, starting off as a rat trainer who took her troupe of performing rats to various nightclubs around Chicago (something we really wish we could have seen). Today, Martin's cats take center stage---"there aren't that many jobs for rats," she says--and the Circus Cats now perform around the country. She has two dozen cats (though not all of them are part of the troupe) who are housed in a special facility below her apartment.

Last year, Chicagoist caught up with Samantha Martin to ask about this transformation from "rat lady" to "cat lady." Martin says that although she started off training her family's dogs, she has always felt a special bond with cats. And let her disabuse you of the notion that cats are lazy or aloof: she claims that "Tuna actually gets crabby if I don't spend time training her."

And maybe the Cupid Cats will inspire you to train your own Felix and Fluffy to earn their room and board.

The Cupid Cats are featured in two special performances on Saturday, February 13, at 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N Milwaukee. To purchase tickets call 773-598-4549 or visit Gorilla Tango Theatre. Good for ages 5 and up.

Sitting outside the café replicated from Edward Hopper’s famous "Nighthawks" at the beginning of the second act, a wife asks her husband about the people inside the café. “Don’t you ever wonder about people here?” she asks, gesturing towards a visibly upset woman being consoled by her husband/boyfriend, “Maybe she’s dying.” Her husband, busy eating his green beans, doesn’t care to pry. “It’s creepy,” he says. It's a particularly urban voyeurism that is prevalent in many of Hopper’s paintings.

Presented at Storefront Theater by WNEP Theater in association with Chicago DCA Theater, The (Edward) Hopper Project is a fan fiction-esque play of intertwined vignettes taking place in and inspired by some of Hopper’s urban paintings.

Because the play is essentially telling stories behind Hopper’s work, it erects for itself a lofty standard to meet. Not only with the narrative or the characters—Hopper’s work is packed with the kind of silent tension, drama, and poignancy that is inherently difficult to replicate with dialogue and movement—but with the set. In a long, narrow room in the Storefront Theater, the set satisfies expectations: it’s an excellent replication of the settings Hopper painted.

The set’s two floors are split into six rooms with window frames and support poles holding the (invisible) panes of glass through which we see the drama playing out. Just as in the Hopper paintings that peek within a bedroom or an office, the play gives us that glimpse by removing the tenement brick and glass exteriors and exposing the emotions within. The set’s colors, even as lighting changes throughout the play’s day (6AM to Midnight), have the same grime and rust as in the paintings.

Even though some of the vignettes and characters are perhaps not as well formed as others (there’s a 17 member cast), the themes within are clear. Even before the play starts, when you walk into the theater, you see a couple getting ready for bed in a room on the top floor of the set. You feel like you’re interrupting an intimate scene. Likewise, the characters don’t stop moving on with their lives during the intermission.

In fact, there are few if any breaks in the action. There is just the one set, but because it’s split into at least six separate spaces, the vignettes flow in and out of each other. As one is ending, another on the other end of the stage is ready to pick up again. Some, as you’d expect, overlap with each other—you know, like when you run into someone you know at a random bus stop somewhere.

With the L audible outside the theater just a bit west on Randolph, the play’s constant motion fits the urban paradigm that Hopper painted, but more, it fits the paradigm we’re all living.

Ok, so we’re a good half decade past Hopper’s time. But isn’t there always some kind of particularly urban drama happening, right now, even as you read this? The point isn’t that your neighbor worries over his taxes, that your boss worries about his daughter, or that your girlfriend is suddenly hard to reach. The point is that it’s all happening on top of each other. In the same building, even. You might live alone, but you’re not fooling anyone.

It’s that urban balance of nosiness and curiosity, apathy and ambivalence, company and congestion that have made Hopper’s paintings relevant to this day. The play, thankfully, does not overreach or take too many liberties with Hopper’s messages—it doesn’t have to.

You have to imagine that if Hopper ever saw it he’d tip his hat.

The (Edward) Hopper Project runs until February 21.

Filed under: Classics, Coupe, Performance, Dodge

For the record, the Dodge Challengers you see above are not pink. Despite a Pepto-ish hue, they're actually Furious Fuchsia. It would seem that Chrysler is choosing not to remember that it offered a similar shade back in 1970 and 1971 known as Panther Pink. This despite the fact that Dodge president and CEO Ralph Gilles tells us in the press release after the break that the R/T Classic and SRT8 Furious Fuchsia editions "[commemorate] four decades of Challenger performance" and "modernize one of the most memorable hues from 1970."

It seems to us that if it's acceptable to reintroduce Plum Crazy in its original purple flavor that it's equally okay to call these cars Panther Pink, but whatever. In any case, there's also an optional set of Pearl White performance seats with Furious Fuchsia stitching that we think would look just dandy with the Bright White A-line body-side R/T stripes and functional hood scoop on the R/T Classic (above left).

If the R/T's 376 horsepower just aren't enough for your tire-screeching needs, you can always upgrade to the SRT8 (above right) and its 6.2-liter Hemi V8, which offers up a willing 425-horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque... but act fast as there's only 400 slated for production. Base price for the 2010 Dodge Challenger R/T Classic in Furious Fuchsia Pearl Coat comes in at $35,140 with the SRT8 model at $45,150 (both prices include $725 destination) and cars will hit dealerships in March. We'll do our best to bring you live shots of the pair from the Chicago Auto Show later this week.

Gallery: Furious Fuchsia Dodge Challengers

[Source: Chrysler]

Continue reading Dodge celebrates 40 years of performance with Furious Fuchsia Challengers

Dodge celebrates 40 years of performance with Furious Fuchsia Challengers originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The International Children's Heart Foundation seeks to care for and cure congenital heart conditions in children from developing nations. Friday night at Old Oak Tap (2109 W. Chicago Ave., 773-772-0406) a fundraiser for ICHF will be held, featuring tastings from NAHA's Carrie Nahabedian, Custom House Tavern's Aaron Deal, and Branch 27's John Manion. Manion fans will remember that, during his time walking the earth like a cheffing ninja between leaving Mas and landing at Branch 27, he helped revamp Old Oak Tap's menu to the point where it got Tankboy's attention. So he'll be on familiar ground.

There will also be complimentary cocktails and a silent auction. The cost of the fundraiser is $50 and, if interested, you can RSVP here.

The Atlantic coast suffered the brunt of this past weekend's snowstorm but it looks like the Midwest is about to get its fair share of the white stuff. The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for what it's calling a "long duration winter storm." The snow will start late to overnight tonight but will be heaviest tomorrow afternoon and evening. By the time it all tapers off Wednesday, most of the area chould have 6 to 12 inches of snow on the ground. High winds tomorrow will cause hazardous driving conditions tomorrow so if you have to be out on the road, be careful.

Photo Credit: AP

Northwestern Tops Hoosiers

Northwestern took another step towards its first NCAA tournament bid with a convincing 78-61 victory over Indiana before a sellout crowd at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Wildcats opened up a 13-2 lead early and never looked back, and now have an overall record of 16-7 (5-6 in Big Ten play). All five NU starters scored in double figures, led by John Shurna's 16 points. The Wildcats travel to Iowa Wednesday.

This week's concert preview is being brought to you by Kevin Meenan of Epicsauce, providing detailed concert listings for the Bay Area every week. Follow them on Twitter.

There are a plethora of show options this week with Brooklyn's The Antlers at The Warfield tonight, Los Angeles's buzzed lo-fi pop act Best Coast with Vivian Girls at Bottom of the Hill Tuesday and San Francisco's beyond hyped Girls doing a V-day show with Magic Kids at Great American Music Hall Sunday (sadly, very sold out).

Our pick for this week, however, is San Francisco's garage-pop outfit The Mantles at Hemlock Saturday. While no doubt at home alongside previously profiled local garage favorites Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall, The Mantles' sound really has more in common with of The Byrds and Paisley Underground era jangle than it does with the current wave of fellow reverb soaked lo-fi acts. This pop prowess is perhaps most evident on Don't Lie, a standout track that deservedly topped several best of lists last year. While the quartet found quite a bit of success with their enjoyable self-titled debut last fall, our money is on 2010 being their true breakout year -- just last week the group was added to tastemaker Gorilla Vs Bear's buzz band packed SXSW showcase, a surefire sign that they are on the brink of reaching critical mass. Saturday's bill is rounded out by the aforementioned Ty Segall (the dude really gets around) and Sacramento's G.green, so be sure to arrive early.

Monday, February 7th
Editors, The Antlers @ Warfield $20
Death Sentence: Panda!, Pompoir, Slaughtering Dolphins @ 21 Grand $5
Scott H. Biram, Dirt Daubers, The Ferocious Few @ Bottom of the Hill $10
St. Vincent, Wildbirds & Peacedrums @ Great American Music Hall (Sold Out)

Tuesday, February 8th
Vivian Girls, Best Coast, The Bananas @ Bottom of the Hill $10
Airfix Kits, Rank/Xerox, La Corde @ Knockout (Free)
Dave Rawlings Machine @ Fillmore $27.50
Garrett Pierce, Mountain Man, Mira Cook @ Hemlock $6

Wednesday, February 9th
T.I.T.S., Eats Tapes, Houndsound @ Elbo Room
Eyedea & Abilities, dosh, Cubik & Origami @ Bottom of the Hill $10
Curse Of The Birthmark, Careerers, Tank Attack @ Hemlock $6

Thursday, February 10th
Alice In Chains @ Fox Theater (Sold Out)
Wild Beasts, Still Life Still, Magic Bullets @ Independent $14
Shannon and the Clams @ Amoeba Berkeley (Free)
Nothing People, Moon Duo, Epikurs Euforie @ Hemlock $6
Mumford & Sons @ 330 Ritch (Sold Out)

Friday, February 11th
The Thermals, Thao with the Get Down Stay Down @ UC Berkeley (Free)
The Album Leaf, Sea Wolf @ Great American Music Hall $15
Alec Ounsworth @ Cafe Du Nord $16
De La Soul @ Yoshi's (SF) $40

Saturday, February 12th
Ty Segall, The Mantles, Ggreen, Peter Grimm @ Hemlock $7
Sound Tribe Sector 9, Nalepa Dub Orchestra @ Fox Theater $27.50
Blowoff (DJs Bob Mould and Rich Morel) @ Slims $15
Sinden, Disco Shawn, ORO11, Tuesday Lockhart @ Elbo Room $5 - $10
De La Soul @ Yoshi's (SF) $40

Sunday, February 13th
Girls, Magic Kids @ Great American Music Hall (Sold Out)
The Entrance Band, Lights, Sic Alps @ Independent $15
Dead Prez, Pep Love, Nima Fadavi @ Shattuck Down Low $20
Chicago Underground Trio @ Cafe Du Nord $12
The Damned, Hewhocannotbenamed, The Generators @ Slim's $30

Okay, so, we've covered how to roast a chicken. But what if you're dumb? Here are the cliff notes: Buy chicken. Salt chicken. Put in 450 degree oven for an hour. Done.
We're not really kidding. Okay, so, it goes more like this: Buy a 3 lb chicken. Wash it off. Dry it off. Salt and pepper it. Put it in 450 degree oven for an hour. Take temp. Done. Seriously.

Here's why we love this method: 1) it's easy 2) the chicken's skin is crispy and salty and awesome and 3) the meat is tender and juicy.

Details in the photo captions.

The Chicago Transit Authority's "Doomsday" schedule was implemented yesterday, but today is supposedly the day where riders will feel the cuts in service. I'm of the opinion CTA wasn't doing a bang-up job maintaining its bus routes and schedules when they had a full service schedule — a friend Saturday called CTA the "Chicago Tardiness Authority" — but I have to say that my trip from Bridgeport to my day job in Evanston was none the worse for wear. Now ask me again after the return trip home.

Let's call this post an open thread: if you took the bus or train to work, your health club, school, or just to run errands, how did the service cuts affect your transit or your planning?

It's great to see A&E getting into more scripted shows and not just concentrating on reality shows and documentaries. But they're not just taking everything. This week they're passing on one drama but going ahead with another one.

The drama 'Sugarloaf' has been given the green light. It's about a Chicago cop who gets accused of something he didn't do so he decides to move to a small Florida town and become an officer there.

The drama the network passed on? 'The Quickening.' No, it wasn't another version of 'Highlander,' it was actually about a homicide detective who is bipolar. Sounds a bit like 'Monk' only maybe a little bit more serious? Anyway, we probably won't be seeing that one.

Like a lot of people who live in New England, every single time I hear the name 'Sugarloaf' I'm going to think of a cold ski resort, not a warm small town in Florida.

 

Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Programming, Reality-Free

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Finalists for the 2010 James Beard Foundation awards won't be announced until late next month, but it can be told with certainty that Chicago will be home to one Beard Award winner this year. Calumet Fisheries, home to the best smoked fish on the South Side, is one of five recipients of the Beard Foundation's American Classics award. The award is given to smaller, casual restaurants that leave an impression on their respective areas and the Beard Award committee.

This is the second high-profile nod to Calumet Fisheries in the past two years. Anthony Bourdain visited the restaurant in his Chicago episode of "No Reservations."

A tearful Democratic Lt. Governor nominee Scott Lee Cohen announced his withdrawal from the Democratic ticket last night amidst increasing calls for him to remove himself from the ticket. Last week's revelations of Cohen's use of anabolic steroids, allegations of domestic abuse, and owing nine months in back child support payments while he pumped $2 million of his pawnbroker's fortune into his successful primary victory had party leaders fearing Cohen's presence could jeopardize the election chances of Governor Pat Quinn and Democratic Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias. Cohen came to his decision after a Friday meeting with State House Michael Madigan, who's also state Democratic Party Chairman. According to the Tribune, Madigan told Cohen "very direct and very frank" way to step down from the ticket. Governor Quinn's office released a statement following Cohen's announcement which read Cohen "made the right decision for the Democratic Party and the people of Illinois. Now we can continue to focus our efforts on putting our economy back on track and working to bring good jobs to Illinois."

Meanwhile, the Sun-Times reports that Cohen received critical backing in the primary from three powerful aldermen: 33rd Ward Alderman Dick Mell, 22nd Ward Alderman Roberto Maldonado and 50th Ward Alderman Bernard Stone.