Rick Kogan – Page 7 –

Jerrold "Jerry" Nedwick (left) and Rhoda Katz were married on April 4, 1925. (Provided by Peter Garino of the Shakespeare Project)

Column: ‘Dear Rhoda’ is a love story in letters set in roaring 1920s Chicago

March 11, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

When was the last time you wrote a letter? Not a text. Not a tweet. But a real, ink on paper letter? It’s becoming a vanishing art. But a pack...

Co-curators Tim Blackburn, board member of Ridge Historical Society, left, and William Tyre, executive director and curator of the Glessner House, stand in the “Jack Simmerling: Through His Eyes” exhibition at the Ridge Historical Society in Beverly, March 5, 2026. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Column: Ridge Historical Society celebrates artist Jack Simmerling’s creative life

March 10, 2026 at 3:33 p.m.

“Jack Simmerling: Through His Eyes” takes up most of the ground floor space of the Ridge Historical Society, charmingly housed in a 1922 house.

A photograph of a young John Prine honing his skills on the guitar in his Old Town School student days adorns a wall at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood on Feb. 26, 2026. (Chris Sweda/baiduhai)

Column: Return with us now to those thrilling songs of yesteryear in ‘Chicago 1971’

March 4, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

"Chicago 1971" is about the summer night when Kris Kristofferson, Steve Goodman and John Prine met.

City News Bureau city editor Heywood Hoffman, left, and bureau chief Paul Zimbrakos finish the final working day for the news service on Dec. 30, 2005. (Chris Walker/baiduhai)

Column: ‘Sirens in the Loop’ book gives us City News Bureau in all its raucous glory

March 3, 2026 at 5:15 a.m.

“Sirens in the Loop: A History of the City News Bureau of Chicago,” is not at all a textbook, but rather an intimate look at a time long gone.

Blues harmonica player Billy Branch poses on stage at Rosa's Lounge in Logan Square on Feb. 24, 2026. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Column: How Billy Branch bought a harmonica, found the blues and changed his life

February 25, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Chicago blues great Billy Branch says a concert in Grant Park got him hooked on the music many decades ago. His latest album is “The Blues is My Biography."

The Trinity Irish Dancers perform while marching in the St. Patrick's Day Parade on South Columbus Drive, March 14, 2015, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/baiduhai))

Column: You can start your St. Patrick’s Day early with Trinity Irish Dance

February 24, 2026 at 5:15 a.m.

There are, of course, many ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, including seeing the Trinity Irish Dance Company perform.

Steve Mosqueda, left, Sean Benjamin and Carolyn Benjamin of The Drinking & Writing Theater company gather at the bar, Feb. 16, 2026, at Simon’s Tavern in Chicago’s Andersonville neighborhood. (Brian Cassella/baiduhai)

Column: Drinking & Writing’s new musical began with a dream about a leopard print coat

February 18, 2026 at 9:18 a.m.

Sean Benjamin and Steve Mosqueda are the founders of the Drinking & Writing Theater and have long been part of the creative life of this city. They have a new...

Chicago Reader covers are displayed in honor boxes at the publication's office on Aug. 25, 2025. (Antonio Perez/baiduhai)

Column: The Chicago Reader bursts back in a ’50 Years’ book and a lively new issue

February 17, 2026 at 5:15 a.m.

“Free Chicago: 50 Years of the Reader” is a big, beautiful book that coincides, serendipitously, with the “rebirth” of the Chicago Reader itself.

Musician and author Nancy Hays, left, and actor Jazzma Pryor rehearse scenes from "Riding for America" at Wayfarer Theaters on Feb. 3, 2026, in Highland Park. (John J. Kim/baiduhai)

Column: Telling the amazing story of Black jockey Isaac Burns Murphy

February 12, 2026 at 9:04 a.m.

Author and performer Nancy Hays first encountered his remarkable story in a small museum at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

Boz O'Brien, left, and Brendan O'Brien talk about the past and future of Reilly's Daughter Pub on Nov. 2, 2015, in Oak Lawn. (Jim Boyce/for the Daily Southtown)

James ‘Boz’ O’Brien, owner of the Reilly’s Daughter tavern in Oak Lawn, dies at 75

February 10, 2026 at 5:34 p.m.

His was a family-friendly place and you could walk in on any night and run into pals and politicians, neighbors and labor leaders, or, for a time, members of the...

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