Stories by Christine Hurley

Janice Reiff has compiled essays about the city's emergence as a commerce hub in the book, Chicago Business and Industry: From Fur Trade to E-Commerce. Read an excerpt and view a slideshow.

Teenagers from the northwest side create a play about the foreclosure crisis and the various ways activists are fighting to keep people in their homes. We preview the Albany Park Theater Project’s I Will Kiss These Walls. Read an interview with a community leader who helped bring these stories to the stage and watch a web extra video.

Blues singer Bobby Bland died at age 83. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and recipient of a lifetime achievement Grammy Award, Bland had a memorable performance in WTTW studios back in 1977 on Soundstage with B.B. King. Watch the web extra video.

Gov. Pat Quinn set a July 9 deadline for a pension committee of lawmakers to come up with a compromise. We check in with two of the members to see what the likelihood of comprehensive reform is. See how House and Senate members voted on pension bills.

The Supreme Court punts a case on affirmative action in college admissions back down to the lower court. Read the decision.

Just as Waukegan Harbor’s decades-long cleanup project comes to an end, low water levels and the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy keep the commercial harbor closed. Read an article.

Players and executives from the White Sox and Bulls are part of a new series of PSAs to promote Becoming a Man, the school-based anti-violence program. Bulls forward Jimmy Butler, White Sox executive vice president Ken Williams, and University of Chicago Crime Lab co-director Harold Pollack join us with more on their collaboration. Watch the video and read an article.

The Art of Migration, a new book by Peggy Macnamara, animates the journey birds and insects embark on during migration in her vibrant watercolor illustrations.

We hear what you had to say about our Neighbor Carts story in tonight's viewer feedback.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss the week's top headlines.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss the political ramifications of Mayor Rahm Emanuel accepting $10,000 in campaign contributions from the spouses of top executives of long-time city contractors. Also, they delve into the correlation between hot weather and rising crime statistics. And, sports reporter Chris Boden explains why Patrick Sharp is the most fun Blackhawk to interview. Watch the web extra conversation.

The city invites you to Movies in the Park; the Chicago Cultural Center celebrates artists Alfonso and Margaret Iannelli; and advance to the frontlines in a Civil War re-enactment; Chicago Tonight knows what's going on this weekend.

Markets react negatively to Chairman Ben Bernanke’s remarks that the Federal Reserve may taper bond buying in the next year. We take a closer look at the fluctuation in the stock and bond markets, the state of the economic stimulus and recovery, as well as Bernanke’s future.

The Blackhawks survive a wild night in Boston, emerging with a 6-5 overtime victory. What's next in this back and forth Stanley Cup Finals series? We preview Saturday's Game 5 at the United Center.

The last time an American president asked Congress for a declaration of war was in 1941, after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Longtime CBS and NBC News correspondent Marvin Kalb says this new normal undercuts Congress' constitutional authority and undermines America's reputation worldwide. Read a Q&A with Kalb.

Jay Shefsky introduces us to a suburban fisherman who began carving fish out of wood when his taxidermy collection filled his entire basement.

Alfonso and Margaret Iannelli were a husband and wife design team who worked with Frank Lloyd Wright and then struck out on their own. Chicago cultural historian Tim Samuelson joins us to talk about this artistic power couple, and a new show of their work at the Chicago Cultural Center. View a slideshow, read a book excerpt and watch a video.

This week, we gave you a sneak peek at the city's next beautification project. Originally known as the "The Bloomingdale Trail," the giant abandoned railway on the northwest side will soon get a major facelift and new name - "The 606." We have some of your thoughts about the changes to a piece of the city's history in tonight's Viewer Feedback.

The one-day Springfield special session comes and goes with the fate of pension reform now in the hands of a committee. Find out who is on that committee.

Dozens of Chicago Public Schools close for the last time -- and hundreds of teachers may not return. Read a report on national teacher quality.

Neighbor Carts hires workers with pre-existing barriers to employment, while simultaneously working to eradicate the city's vast food deserts. Jay Shefsky explores the company's innovative business model. Read an article and view a slideshow.

A gas station owner in the South who becomes one of the strongest advocates for green energy. A one-time aide to Joe Biden-turned-lobbyist, who now says the system is hopelessly corrupt. Their stories--and a half dozen others--document what author George Packer says is a dissolution of American institutions. Read an excerpt from Packer's book.

A new book called How We Do It: The Evolution and Future of Human Reproduction explores the science of sex and childbirth. Read an excerpt.

Citing the state’s inability to deal with a crippling financial crisis, Bill Daley is stepping into the governor’s race. We talk with the former White House Chief of Staff. View a timeline of Daley's career.

Sources tell Chicago Tonight that a long-awaited deal on a gaming bill was reached last month -- until a clerical misunderstanding killed it. Paris Schutz has details, and what it says about the current state of dysfunction in Springfield.

What happens when a bunch of housing activists decide to seize some vacant homes and take the foreclosure crisis into their own hands? We take a look at a guerrilla group called the Anti-Eviction Campaign that has people rethinking their ideas on housing and homelessness in Chicago. Read an article.