Mayor Rahm Emanuel joins us for his first extended interview since proposing his so-called "last resort" budget.

The plastic bag ordinance that took effect Aug. 1 may not be having the impact that was intended, as retailers begin to offer thicker plastic bags in place of the older, thinner ones. Environmentalists say that alternatives exist, while retailers insist their customers prefer plastic. However, there may be a way to reduce plastic bag use that both environmentalists and retailers can agree on. Brandis Friedman has the story.

The pilot, which follows the trials of a Chicago actor, will now move forward as an NBC Web series. 

Were you watching this week? Test your knowledge with these nine questions.

A free screening of the 1993 film starring Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker starts at 7:30 p.m.

In this edition of Ask Geoffrey, our local history expert Geoffrey Baer revisits a Streeterville puppet show, examines underground architecture on the Blue Line and digs deep into the history of Montrose Beach.

The city's fall theater lineup has already produced some knockouts, according to Chicago Sun-Times theater critic Hedy Weiss. Here she reviews Paramount's Theatre's "Oklahoma!," Raven Theatre's "Direct From Death Row: The Scottsboro Boys," Timeline's "The Price," and the House Theatre's "The Revel."

We share what you had to say about some of our recent stories when we read viewer feedback from the "Chicago Tonight" website, and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

The return of Redmoon's Great Chicago Fire Festival, an annual Oktoberfest celebration, jazz fest and other weekend events.

Mayor Emanuel unveils his much anticipated doomsday budget proposal. How much pushback will it get from residents and aldermen? We ask four of them.

A promising new treatment for sickle cell anemia, developed by the National Institutes for Health and validated by a new study by the University of Illinois at Chicago, holds out the prospect of a cure for this chronic disease. Dr. Santosh Saraf, one of the co-authors of the UIC study, joins us to discuss these groundbreaking developments.

The former Punk Planet co-editor speaks about the ties between sex trafficking and the fashion industry and laments the state of Chicago's independent publishing scene.

Block 37 has a new attraction, but you'd better stop for lunch before you go. The Foodseum celebrates the city's love of all things edible with an exhibit that highlights hot dogs and encased meats from around the globe. We visited the pop-up museum to learn more.