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Ring in the new year with comedy, craft beer, roller skates, wild animals and classic fireworks. Here are 10 ways to kick off 2019 in and around Chicago.

The Illinois Department of Transportation wants people who found brand new drones under the tree on Christmas morning to know that their new toys come with state and federal regulations that have to be followed.

Paris Schutz and guests discuss the Democratic “blue wave” that ousted Republican incumbent U.S. Reps. Randy Hultgren and Peter Roskam in November. 

Mayor Rahm Emanuel hangs it up, J.B. Pritzker defeats Gov. Bruce Rauner, and the Chicago Police Department has a tumultuous year. We recap the top stories of the year and predict the biggest of 2019.

An arrest warrant for murder has been issued for a man in the death of a cabdriver who died after being kicked in the head during a traffic altercation, but Chicago police say the man went to China.

The school district says identification numbers, grades, standardized test scores and the email addresses of numerous Ogden Elementary students were exposed in the latest CPS data breach.

Watch the Dec. 27, 2018 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

On Jan. 1, 2019, more than 250 new laws take effect in Illinois, changing rules related to gun control and public safety to animal welfare, education – and possibly your cellphone. We give you the rundown.

Who were the central players behind America’s U-2 spy program? A new book by Monte Reel tells all. 

Six days of a federal shutdown with no budget deal in sight. What’s happening in and out of the nation’s capital, and what can we expect? Lisa Desjardins of the “PBS NewsHour” joins us.

Are you scared of being separated from your cellphone? You are “nomophobic” – one of 2018’s words of the year. Linguist Jason Riggle gives us the rundown of this year’s top terms.

Local author William Hazelgrove debunks what he calls “the Wright Brothers myth” in his new book about the history-making duo.

With its lushly beautiful, ideally performed production of the Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine musical, Music Theater Works has an instant hit on its hands. But you had better move fast if you want to catch it.

Meet Tom Bachtell, a longtime contributor to The New Yorker whose caricatures of famous people in popular culture go around the world.

New outdoor spaces at a handful of Chicago elementary schools will provide safe play areas for kids in low-income neighborhoods while also mitigating flooding risks, according to program organizers. 

Strawberry Hampton, a 27-year-old transgender woman, said she was constantly harassed and abused by prisoners and corrections officers alike inside various all-male prisons.

Nearly a dozen Chicago police districts this year saw their lowest number of recorded robberies since 2000 as the citywide robbery rate fell by 19 percent year-over-year.

An Australian commodities trader has pleaded guilty to manipulating market prices by placing orders in the millions of dollars on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, then canceling them within milliseconds so that he could sell smaller orders at a profit.

Organizers cited logistical issues in canceling next month’s Women’s March in Chicago as the national movement continues to face accusations of anti-Semitism. 

Catch up on what you may have missed over the holidays – and get a look at what’s to come in 2019 – with our political correspondents in this weekly roundtable.

Watch the Dec. 26, 2018 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

It’s estimated that financial exploitation of seniors may cost as much as $3 billion every year. Joel Levin, director of the SEC’s Chicago regional office, shares tips for avoiding financial scams.

The field of candidates is starting to take its final shape. Who’s in and who’s out in the race for Chicago mayor.

The attorney and former 2nd Ward alderman tells us why he’s running for Chicago mayor – again.

He’s not a household name, but the music executive and producer known as No I.D. is a major behind-the-scenes player. Meet the Chicago music producer who has recorded Kanye West, Jay-Z and others.

Rabbi Seth Limmer joins us to discuss “Moral Resistance and Spiritual Authority: Our Jewish Obligation to Social Justice.”