Salute the season with an authentic Oktoberfest celebration, get crafty in Wicker Park, gear up for the Bears, stay up late for an all-night concert of classical Indian music and more this weekend.

A look into the world of art glass paperweights as we preview an upcoming auction from a very famous collection.

Phyllis Schlafly, the conservative leader who helped derail the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s and also fought against communism and abortion rights, died Monday of cancer in Ladue, Missouri, near St. Louis.

Giddy on up to North Avenue Beach this weekend to watch the “sport of kings” at the Qatar Airways Chicago Beach Polo Cup.

Our summer series of politically inspired cocktails has come to an end but goes out with a bang as we look back at a man who encompassed just about everything wrong with Chicago politics – longtime alderman Fred Bruno Roti.

A new gang has surfaced at the Cook County Jail that even the sheriff refers to as “bizarre.” Tom Dart credits members of the gang, called Savage Life, with a hostage incident that occurred at the jail late last month.

Not that long ago, air pollution from burning coal made the Windy City more like the Smoggy City. Geoffrey Baer tells us how Chicago cleaned up its act, and shares other stories about Chicago history in this encore edition of Ask Geoffrey.

Soak up the long summer weekend with cool jazz, world beats, Polish beer and a picnic or two. We've got top picks for city and suburban events this holiday weekend.

What career path to choose, who to marry, whether to have children. A University of Chicago economist tells us how basic economic principles can help you figure out life's biggest decisions.  

For the seventh straight year, children and teens will be guided along their daily commute by Safe Passage workers – community members hired out by CPS to keep watch over students during as they walk to school in the morning and back home in the afternoon.

The saddest ballad of all is the ballad of what never was – like the ballad of Thomas Hoyne, who was elected mayor of Chicago, but never served. Belly up to the bar and get a little taste of Chicago’s spirited history.

Chicago Public School students can kick off their last week of freedom at one of several Chicago institutions. Learn more.

When most people visit a National Park Service site, they visit the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone. Not many realize that there are more than 400 National Park Service sites. But that’s one thing Mikah Meyer hopes to change as he travels cross-country visiting all 412 of those sites.

Brendan Dassey, whose confession to involvement in the murder of Teresa Halbach was depicted in the wildly popular Netflix documentary series “Making a Murderer,” may be released from prison by Thanksgiving. We hear from his post-trial attorney on the judge's ruling.

Cheer on Chicago athletes, shop for fall accessories, take in an outdoor movie, sip sangria on a sprawling lawn, run through mud, watch dashing dogs and more this weekend.