Uptowners ..we will be holding a three day reunion this September 12th through the 14th
Location:
At the Embassy Suites Hotel in Deerfield IL 60015
phone 847-945-4500 online embassysuitesnothshore.com
Friday Sept. 12
meet and greet cocktail party, free to hotel guests,cash bar for all others
from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Saturday Sept 13
Reunion Dinner 6:30 PM
Photographer will take a group picture and deliver to Hotel by 11:pm
price is $10 to $15
Sunday Sept 14th free breakfast for those staying at the hotel
$15 for guests
Make Reservations Before Aug 12th
Hotel cost:
double beds $109
king size $99
Use special room rate code 60S
Call Carol Hamer Glass-desk@earthlink.net
or 847-432-2920
February 16, 2014
November 14, 2013
Uptown: Portraits of a Chicago Neighborhood
It's been a while since we've posted, but we're back and thrilled to announce that Bob Rehak's book of Uptown Chicago images is now available! If you recall, we stumbled across Bob's photos of Uptown in the 1970s this past summer; since then, they have gone viral, prompting the photographer to publisher a book of the best of the best images. You can get your copy from Amazon here: Uptown: Portrait of a Chicago Neighborhood in the mid-1970s.
August 10, 2013
Stewart School Fourth Grade Class (Room 204), 1970
Thanks to Doug for sending this fourth-grade class photo. Does anyone remember the teacher's name?
August 8, 2013
Cheetah Lounge, 1967
Thanks to a reader for sending this one in! For a brief time in the late sixties, the Aragon Ballroom was transformed into the uber-hip Cheetah Lounge.
August 5, 2013
Andersonville Swedish Bakery, 1992
My father grew up in Andersonville, and for him, Christmas included a visit to the Swedish Bakery. Customers came from all across the Midwest to purchase cardamon-laced coffee cakes and pastries, and the lines there were always long. You would pick a number and then go shopping for an hour or so, perhaps sample some glogg, before coming back to place your order.
This image of the bakery is from 1992, and is currently available on eBay: http://bit.ly/15BstRC
Children of Dover Street, Uptown Chicago, 1976
What a fun photo! The firemen of the local Uptown station at Wilson and Racine let the neighborhood kids climb aboard the truck.
Original caption reads: The children of Dover St. scramble for seats on a live engine at a street festival organized by the neighborhood association. Firemen from the station at Wilson and Racine avenues gave the kids rides.
Image available from eBay at time of writing http://bit.ly/15BkLaj
August 3, 2013
Do We Need More Parking in the Uptown Historic District?
by Steven Vance
Appearing on WGN/CLTV in May, 46th Ward Alderman James Cappleman said that “we’re doing everything we can to create more parking spaces.” Cappleman was talking about the renovation of the Uptown Theater at 4816 N Broadway and its parking requirements. His boast about adding more parking caught me off-guard, and I wasn’t alone.
Jerry Michaelson, CEO of JAM Productions, was on the show with Cappleman and didn’t seem to agree with him. After mentioning all of the places people can already park near the theater, which is on the verge of re-opening after sitting dormant since 1981, he said, “I don’t know if people have had a problem parking coming to our shows and we’ve been doing shows in the Uptown neighborhood since 1973.” ...
Read the rest of the article and neighborhood commentary here: http://chi.streetsblog.org
Appearing on WGN/CLTV in May, 46th Ward Alderman James Cappleman said that “we’re doing everything we can to create more parking spaces.” Cappleman was talking about the renovation of the Uptown Theater at 4816 N Broadway and its parking requirements. His boast about adding more parking caught me off-guard, and I wasn’t alone.
Jerry Michaelson, CEO of JAM Productions, was on the show with Cappleman and didn’t seem to agree with him. After mentioning all of the places people can already park near the theater, which is on the verge of re-opening after sitting dormant since 1981, he said, “I don’t know if people have had a problem parking coming to our shows and we’ve been doing shows in the Uptown neighborhood since 1973.” ...
Read the rest of the article and neighborhood commentary here: http://chi.streetsblog.org
Gangster Roger Touhy Arrested in Uptown
View of the apartment house located at 5114 Kenmore Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, where Special Agents of the FBI arrested Roger "Terrible" Touhy, Basil "The Owl" Banghart, and Edward Darlak on December 29, 1942.
Roger Touhy was an Irish-American mob boss and prohibition-era bootlegger from Chicago, Illinois. He is best remembered for having been framed for the 1933 faked kidnapping of gangster John "Jake the Barber" Factor, a brother of cosmetics manufacturer Max Factor, Sr.
The Factor kidnapping was a frame-up. Factor and Al Capone had arranged to fake the kidnapping and produce evidence implicating Touhy in order to eliminate him, so as to assume control over his organization. Despite unreliable testimony, a jury convicted Touhy and his associates; Touhy was sentenced to 99 years in prison and was incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center.
On October 9, 1942, Touhy and six other men escaped from Stateville. Eventually, they were discovered living in an Uptown Chicago boarding house. Touhy and three of those with him surrendered peacefully; the others were killed while trying to fight their way out. Touhy re-entered Stateville on December 31, 1942, and was sentenced to an additional 199 years in prison for the escape. A later court acknowledged the hoax, and Touhy was released from prison in 1959. Just three weeks later, Roger Touhy and his bodyguard were killed in a mob hit.
 |
| Image available at time of writing from eBay: http://bit.ly/1bXQDJy |
Roger Touhy was an Irish-American mob boss and prohibition-era bootlegger from Chicago, Illinois. He is best remembered for having been framed for the 1933 faked kidnapping of gangster John "Jake the Barber" Factor, a brother of cosmetics manufacturer Max Factor, Sr.
The Factor kidnapping was a frame-up. Factor and Al Capone had arranged to fake the kidnapping and produce evidence implicating Touhy in order to eliminate him, so as to assume control over his organization. Despite unreliable testimony, a jury convicted Touhy and his associates; Touhy was sentenced to 99 years in prison and was incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center.
 |
| Roger Touhy's FBI mugshot |
On October 9, 1942, Touhy and six other men escaped from Stateville. Eventually, they were discovered living in an Uptown Chicago boarding house. Touhy and three of those with him surrendered peacefully; the others were killed while trying to fight their way out. Touhy re-entered Stateville on December 31, 1942, and was sentenced to an additional 199 years in prison for the escape. A later court acknowledged the hoax, and Touhy was released from prison in 1959. Just three weeks later, Roger Touhy and his bodyguard were killed in a mob hit.
August 2, 2013
Isham Jones Orchestra - "Do You Ever Think of Me" (1921)
One more for the night, you say? Absolutely! Here is the Isham Jones orchestra. Jones, born in Ohio and raised in Saginaw, Michigan, moved to Chicago in 1915 and used it as his home base until the 1930s. I have a number of Isham Jones 78s that I inherited from my grandfather, so hearing the band always makes me a bit nostalgic. You can listen to many of Jones' recordings with the Rainbo Orchestra on YouTube.
The member who uploaded it to YouTube and put together this excellent video had this to say:
The video features tuba/Sousaphone player John Kuhn. also known as "Chief Red Cloud." Kuhn was born on the Sioux Reservation in Montana, and by 1920 was considered one of the very finest performers on this instrument. While attending the Haskell Institute in Kansas he studied modern music and had lessons on the tuba. He later joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and toured with the band in Europe. After returning to the United States, he joined the Dennison Wheelock Indian Band and then was discovered by John Philip Sousa who recruited him for the famous Sousa Band. Kuhn was with the Sousa Band from 1915 to 1919. In 1920 he joined Isham Jones' Rainbo Orchestra in Chicago and played the Sousaphone for Isham Jones during the early 1920s. Tom Lord's jazz discography credits Kuhn with 41 recordings between 1920 and 1929. He was also noted for authoring music instruction methods for the tuba, some which are still being sold. I could not find any biographical information beyond 1930.
The member who uploaded it to YouTube and put together this excellent video had this to say:
The video features tuba/Sousaphone player John Kuhn. also known as "Chief Red Cloud." Kuhn was born on the Sioux Reservation in Montana, and by 1920 was considered one of the very finest performers on this instrument. While attending the Haskell Institute in Kansas he studied modern music and had lessons on the tuba. He later joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and toured with the band in Europe. After returning to the United States, he joined the Dennison Wheelock Indian Band and then was discovered by John Philip Sousa who recruited him for the famous Sousa Band. Kuhn was with the Sousa Band from 1915 to 1919. In 1920 he joined Isham Jones' Rainbo Orchestra in Chicago and played the Sousaphone for Isham Jones during the early 1920s. Tom Lord's jazz discography credits Kuhn with 41 recordings between 1920 and 1929. He was also noted for authoring music instruction methods for the tuba, some which are still being sold. I could not find any biographical information beyond 1930.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
LinkWithin