Stories by WTTW News

Steve Harvey was just one of the comedians who made All Jokes Aside one of the most influential black comedy clubs ever. We talk with the club's owner, who tells his story in a new book.  

The city's move to dismiss a case against the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art was thrown out Thursday in federal court, paving the way for a longer fight and potentially delaying the museum's spring construction plans. 

Peggy Lipschutz is passionate about painting. She is perhaps best known as a painter of social and political causes. This past fall an exhibit at the Noyes Cultural Center showcased her decades-long career. We revisit Jay Shefsky's tour of the exhibit and talk with this prolific painter.

Hear what viewers had to say about Illinois Comptroller Leslie Munger’s warning about state taxes, Carol Marin’s interview with CPS CEO Forrest Claypool and Chicago’s high-rise boom when we read feedback from the "Chicago Tonight" website, and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool on Wednesday spoke passionately about the need for education funding reform, calling the current system by which CPS is funded "separate but unequal." Watch our full interview.

Watch the February 3. 2016 full episode of Chicago Tonight.

A museum in Wauconda has the privilege of being the only institution in the state to exhibit a rare copy of the First Folio, a 400-year-old collection of 36 plays by Shakespeare.

Gov. Bruce Rauner says he believes the General Assembly will pass his proposed legislation to have a state takeover of Chicago Public Schools and to enable them to declare bankruptcy. This, as CPS finally completes its delayed $875 million borrowing deal. Paris Schutz has more.

A four-part film series kicks off Sunday at the Spertus Institute, a Jewish museum and education center in the downtown area.

In a report released last month, researchers say they have no consensus over whether local control of a school district is any better for student performance or financial management than state control of a school district. Brandis Friedman takes a look at one district where the state is in charge to see how its schools are faring.

The Eisenhower Expressway runs underneath the Old Main Post Office, causing one viewer to wonder which came first. Geoffrey Baer delves into the history of these interlinked landmarks and answers other viewer questions in this week’s edition of Ask Geoffrey.

Chicago may be home to many Fortune 500 companies, but are corporate headquarters here shrinking? We get the latest from Crain's Chicago Business.

The new, original PBS show “Mercy Street” is a sprawling Civil War drama set in a hotel in Alexandria, Virgina that has been commandeered by the Union Army as a hospital. The six-episode series blends fiction with historical settings in a town where Confederate and Union soldiers mingled with a slaves and free people. We talk with two of the show's producers. 

A decision this week by a federal judge could green-light plans for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, the futuristic-looking proposal from film mogul George Lucas currently facing a lawsuit over its proposed lakefront location.

Watch the the February 2, 2016 episode of Chicago Tonight.

Just a day after the Chicago Teachers Union rejected the school board's latest contract offer, Chicago Public Schools is announcing cuts. CEO Forrest Claypool says the district is still working to avoid teacher layoffs, but some staffers will lose their jobs in order for the district to save money.

The Chicago Teachers Union is fighting mad and pursuing legal action to strike immediately. We get the latest from CTU vice president Jesse Sharkey.

On Monday, the World Health Organization declared the Zika virus an international public health emergency. Dr. Allison Arwady, chief medical officer of the Chicago Department of Public Health, joins us to discuss the virus and the risk it poses to Chicago jet-setters.

The cost of Illinois’ budget impasse? The income tax would have to go up 100 percent if the state’s debt is to be paid off through revenue alone, according to state Comptroller Leslie Munger. How much longer can the state teeter along without a budget? Paris Schutz has more.

Michigan Gov. Rick Synder is facing calls to resign over his administration's bungled handling of the contaminated water crisis in Flint. A former high-ranking official at the Environmental Protection Agency tells us what she thinks went wrong.

A yearlong international arts festival underway in Chicago celebrates the legacy of William Shakespeare and commemorates the 400 years since his death. Barbara Gaines of Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Anthony Freud of Lyric Opera Chicago join us to discuss the festival and the Bard’s legacy.

Watch the February 1, 2016 full episode of Chicago Tonight.

White House hopefuls are getting their first test with voters tonight in Iowa, where caucusing is in full swing. Joining us from Des Moines, Iowa to talk about that and more is "Chicago Tonight's" Carol Marin.

Members of the Chicago Teachers Union bargaining unit say they spent hours and hours considering the school board's "serious" contract offer. But on Monday, the group announced that they could not accept it.

A recent Chicago Tribune investigation revealed that just 1 percent of Chicago police officers are responsible for almost a third of all misconduct lawsuits. Joining “Chicago Tonight” to discuss what it will take to hold police officers truly accountable are Lori Lightfoot and Sergio Acosta.

Seven years ago, the Illinois Senate voted to impeach and remove Rod Blagojevich. Senate President John Cullerton, Republican leader Christine Radogno and the author of a new book are here to talk about that political crisis as well as the state's current budget mess.