Robert Quinn is ninth in the NFL with 5.5 sacks. | Kirk Irwin/AP

Quinn is having one of the best seasons of his career with 5.5 sacks in the first six games.

Bears outside linebacker Robert Quinn is having a tremendous comeback season, but that’s on hold after the team put him on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday after testing positive for the virus.

While it’s not definitive because teams don’t disclose a player’s status, Quinn appears to be vaccinated based on not wearing a mask for press conferences at Halas Hall. If he is vaccinated, the return-to-play protocol is simple: Quinn is eligible to return once he has two negative tests that are 24 hours apart. That would give him a chance to play against the Buccaneers on Sunday.

Quinn, 31, has been essential to the resurgence of the Bears’ pass rush and is ninth in the NFL with 5.5 sacks. He is second only to Khalil Mack (six) on the Bears, who lead the league with 21.

Last season, after signing a five-year, $70 million contract, Quinn had just two sacks.

Read More

A person walks though the dust cloud in Little Village after the botched implosion of the Crawford Generating Station smoke stack in April 2020. | Tyler Laiviere/Sun-Times file

The discipline recommendations come in a critical report by the outgoing inspector general about the demolition that left a community covered in dust.

Three city officials should be disciplined, including a possible firing, for the botched implosion of a former coal power plant that left Little Village covered in a massive blanket of dust on Easter weekend last year, Chicago’s watchdog said in a new report.

In his final public report, former Chicago Inspector General Joe Ferguson said his office forwarded the discipline recommendations to City Hall. A full report is expected to be released in the coming months once Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration has a chance to respond and either accept the recommendations or propose its own course of action.

The implosion April 11, 2020 showed the city did not adequately prepare for the dust storm created when an almost 400-foot chimney came crashing down at the Crawford Generating Station at West 36th Street and South Pulaski Road. Caught on video, the dust cloud coated homes, cars and yards. At the time, Lightfoot echoed residents’ outrage.

The procedure was planned, overseen and executed by multiple city departments, including the Department of Buildings and the Department of Public Health. While the full details of Ferguson’s report are not yet public, the report singles out individuals from both departments and even suggests a possible “discharge” of an unnamed public health official.

The recommendation includes “discipline against two Department of Buildings officials commensurate with the gravity of their violations” and “discipline up to and including discharge against one Department of Public Health official,” the inspector general’s quarterly report stated.

“That’s exactly what should have happened,” said Kim Wasserman, executive director of Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, which has criticized the city’s oversight and response to the incident. The Department of “Buildings and [the health department] signed off on this.”

Two months after the implosion, Buildings Commissioner Judy Frydland announced she was leaving the city, citing a desire to spend time with family.

Citing “personnel matters,” a city spokesman declined to comment. The city is required to provide the inspector general a written response within 30 days, though Lightfoot officials can ask for an extension.

Wasserman criticized the lack of transparency at City Hall more than a year and a half after the event and said city officials ignored repeated community pleas to hold off on the demolition at the time.

The Crawford plant was demolished throughout 2020 to make way for a new warehouse development for Hilco Redevelopment Partners, which is now leasing the building to retailer Target. The smokestack incident led to a change in the way the city approves implosion demolitions and Hilco was issued multiple citations.

The development continues to be a major source of concern and anger in the Little Village community. After fighting for years to get the Crawford coal plant shut down, which occurred in 2012, community activists said they were promised to be included in city planning discussions about what would replace it. A warehouse that draws hundreds of diesel-fuel trucks to the neighborhood was not what most of the community wanted, Wasserman and others said.

Late last year, Hilco and a pair of contractors agreed to pay $370,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by the state over air pollution violations related to the chimney demolition. Community advocates have called the dollar amount and penalty disappointing.

Brett Chase’s reporting on the environment and public health is made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust.

Read More

Nick O’Brien with a big lake trout caught on Migrator Charters out of North Point Marina. | Provided by Rich Anzalone

The opening of Illinois’ fall inland trout season, crappie fishing building inland and big lake trout on Lake Michigan lead this sprawling raw-file Midwest Fishing Report.

The opening of Illinois’ fall inland trout season, crappie fishing building inland and big lake trout on Lake Michigan lead this sprawling raw-file Midwest Fishing Report.

Rich Anzalone emailed the photo at the top and this:

Dale,

Family friend Nick O’Brien caught this 24 lb 12 oz, 38″ Lake Trout while in town last week for a wedding. We went out of Winthrop Harbor with Migrator Charters on Thursday. Captain Caleb said it was the biggest Lake Trout catch of the season.

Rich Anzalone

Lemont

TROUT SEASON

Click here for the FOTW with a big trout caught by Jesus Arellano.

Provided by Jason “Special One” Le
A limit of trout from opening weekend of Illinois’ inland trout season.

Jason “Special One” Le texted the photo above and this from a suburban lake:

I got my limit before the sun up lol

Smoke em

Victor Blackful emailed today:

I just saw your article on this year’s trout. The trout in green lake this year are very small. I have been out the last three days and they are all the same size. Small. Mepps rooster tail is the bait of choice.

Victor Blackful

Capt. Dan Leslie at the Salmon Stop in Waukegan had a bit of surprise note that small spoons, such as Little Cleos, seem to be working better than PowerBait or minnows at Sand Lake.

Steve Palmisano at Henry’s Sports and Bait texted that lots of people are fishing trout inland.

I’ve seen crowds at the spots I have driven by.

Dicky’s Bait Shop in Montgomery reported fatheads seemed to be the ticket for the inland trout.

Daily bag is five; those 16 and older need a fishing license and an inland trout stamp. Nearby sites include in Cook County (Axehead, Belleau, Busse North, Green, Horsetail, Sag Quarry East, Wolf), DuPage (Grove, Pickerel, Silver); Kankakee (Bird Park Quarry, Rock Creek); Kendall (Big Lake at Silver Springs SFWA); Lake (Sand Lake at Illinois Beach SP); McHenry (Spring Grove Hatchery Pond); Will (Lake Strini, Van Horn Woods).

Click here for the statewide release.

LAKEFRONT PARKING

Chicago Park District’s parking passes for the fisherman’s parking lots at DuSable and Burnham harbors are on sale at Henry’s Sports and Bait in Bridgeport and Park Bait at Montrose Harbor.

Readers suggest SpotHero app downtown. Otherwise, here are some basics: Foster (free street parking or pay lot); Montrose (now a mix of metered and free street parking); Belmont (pay lots on north and south sides); Diversey (pay lot or street parking); DuSable Harbor (pay lot or fisherman’s lot); Northerly Island/Burnham Harbor (meters, pay lot or fisherman’s lot); 31st/Burnham (meter parking between McCormick Place and 31st Street Harbor); Oakwood/39th (meters); 63rd Street/Casino Pier (pay lot); Steelworkers Park (free street parking at east end of 87th); Cal Park (free parking).

AREA LAKES

Provided
Rudy Radasevich with a nice crappie on a special weekend.

Rudy Radasevich tweeted the photo above and this on Sunday:

Dale, I did a little crappie fishing this morning on my birthday weekend. 65 ain’t that bad.

Crappie fishing should keep improving.

Plus, I just love that note.

Provided
Ken “Husker” O’Malley with a good local-lake largemouth bass.

Ken “Husker” O’Malley emailed the photos above and below and this:

Hey Dale,

Here is a recap of this past weeks fishing.

Area lakes-water temps are slowly getting down into the low 60’s with the colder overnight temps. Another week and the typical fall bite will start.

Crappie are still scattered in the main basin. Best baits have been minnow baits or small Mepp spinners. Any part of the day can pick off the active biters.

Bass have been better during evening hours on chatterbaits or topwater poppers. A few smaller bass can be caught on minnow baits while fishing for crappie. Always fun on ultra-light tackle.

Here [below] is the nature pic of the week courtesy of Vickie O’Malley. Backroad travels during the fall.

TTYL

—

Ken “Husker” O’Malley

Husker Outdoors
Waterwerks fishing team

Vickie O’Malley
Nature photo of the week for a fall scene.

BRAIDWOOD LAKE

Closed for the season.

CALUMET SYSTEM

Provided by BoRabb Williams
Calumet system crappie.

BoRabb Williams posted the photo above and messaged:

….. we killing the Crappie in the Calumet system

CHAIN O’LAKES AREA

Art Frisell at Triangle Sports and Marine in Antioch said crappie are the top bite, on gold hooks with small minnows fished around channel mouths in 8-12 feet; white bass are very good on wind-blown shorelines with waxies or spikes and jigs; bluegill are good, especially shallow, on waxies or spikes on ice jigs; for walleye, use split-shot rigs with small roaches or large fatheads, best on Marie; muskie are fair, best are suckers or small Bull Dawgs, try Petite or Fox.

NOTE: Check updates on water conditions at foxwaterway.com or (847) 587-8540.

NOTE 2: The Stratton Lock and Dam is open 8 a.m.-8 p.m. through Oct. 31.

CHICAGO RIVER

Provided
Jeffrey Williams with his PB carp, caught from the Chicago River.

Jeffrey Williams messaged the photo above and this:

new PB

26 lbs 35 in

he made no attempt to let me know he was on, didnt take line, didnt make the pole move, nothing. I only knew cause the line was in a different spot

tht pumped me up, day started real slow

biggest i ever seen caught out of the main branch of the river

my good ol Ugly Stick GX2 got the job done, had 30 lb braid on the reel, hardest part NOT LETTING HIM GO UNDER THE RIVERFRONT

DELAVAN LAKE, WISCONSIN

Dave Duwe emailed:

Delavan Lake 10/18/21 through 10/26/21

This week saw fishing very good in the early part of the week but by the weekend the fish shut down.

Bluegills and perch have moved slightly deeper. The bite has been sporadic however you can still catch a few nice fish. The best depth seems to be the 25-27 ft. range. Most of the fish are being caught on leaf worms or wax worms. Most of the success has been coming on small ice jigs and slip bobbers. Look for the fish down the west end by the Island or by the weed point by the gray condos.

Walleye fishing has been average. The numbers of fish have decreased due to the turnover of the lake. This past weekend, I was still able to find a few legal fish. The best bite is now on fat head minnows. I’ve been fishing them either with a lindy rig or a small lead head jig, color doesn’t seem to matter. The best depth has been in the weed line in 15-17 ft. of water. The best success I’ve had were on the main lake points.

Northern pike fishing has been good. A lot of large fish are being caught in the 9-10 ft. range in the shallow weeds. Large bucktails or spinner baits have been catching most of the fish. I like either white or black for lure color. The northern fishing has been best by the weed flat by Browns Channel or by the Viewcrest Bay.

Bass fishing has been good. The fish have moved back into the shallows off the deep weeds. Most of the fish are now in 9-10 ft. or off of docks. The best baits have been either tube baits or small plastic pre-rigged worms, black and purple seem to be the best colors.

Good luck in your fall fishing. For guide parties next season please call Dave Duwe at 262-728-8063.

DOWNSTATE

POWERTON: Winter hours–8 a.m.-4 p.m.–are back. Last day for boat fishing is Oct. 24. Bank fishing runs through Oct. 29. SPRING LAKE: Oct. 22 is the last day for boaters on the main lake; boat fshing is allowed from the Sky Ranch Road ramp to Maple Island buoy during waterfowl seasons. Bank fishing along South Lake Road is not allowed until after 1 p.m. during waterfowl season. EMIQUON: Access permits and liability waivers are again required. They are available Tuesday to Saturday at Dickson Mounts Museum, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. SHELBYVILLE: Check with Ken Wilson of Lithia Guide Service. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS: Check with Jason Johns of Boneyard Fishing. HENNEPIN-HOPPER: Closed for the season. Check regulations at http://www.wetlands-initiative.org/dixon-paddling-fishing.

FOX RIVER

Dicky’s Bait Shop in Montgomery reported a couple 20-pounder flatheads caught in Aurora.

Pete Lamar emailed:

Hi Dale,

Things picked up a little bit this week with the cooler weather and some rain. I practiced a couple of times with the two-handed rod on the Fox and it was prime. Water levels had come up with the rain late last week, but it was still clear and there was decent current. Far better conditions than we’ve faced the past few months. Smallmouths were active, including near the surface. There were some who didn’t get hooked on their first attempt at eating the fly but came right back on the next cast. They seem to be enjoying the cooler water. Same goes for the tributaries: water is up a little and the fish have moved back to their usual Fall locations, at least for now. Big temperature drops are forecast for later in the week: that could make for some productive crappie fishing.

. . .

Pete

GENEVA LAKE, WISCONSIN

Dave Duwe emailed:

Lake Geneva 10/18/21 through 10/25/21

Hurry, the fall colors are outstanding, which makes the fishing experience all that much more special.

Large mouth bass fishing has been up and down, some days there are good catches and the next it’s a struggle. I have been fishing a lot of shallow weeds with a close proximity to hard (sand) bottom. The fish I have been catching all are quality fish with several 3-4 pounders. I still have been using the night crawler single split-shot rig. The depth of water I have been working is 6-12 feet. The best locations have been by Knollwood, Geneva Bay and Fontana Beach.

The majority of the quality smallmouth bass are still in 20-23 feet of water and can be caught using lindy-rigs. (1/8 oz weight and single hook with minnows) The small mouth fishing will continue to get better as the water cools. They will be able to be caught in shallow rock points in a couple of weeks, if the water continues to cool as it has been. Once the fish move shallow, I like the Kalin’s grubs or Arkie Crawlin’ grubs. Root beer or pumpkin are the best colors. Smallies are being caught near Coleman’s Point, Black Point and Rainbow Point.

Bluegills and Pumpkin’ seeds are being caught throughout the lake in the same locations as the largemouth bass. I have been using the night crawler/split-shot rig for them also. I have been catching a lot of quality fish, very few small ones. Crappie fishing is sporadic. I have received some good reports of quality fish off the Fontana Beach. They are being taken in 12-15 feet of water on slip-bobbers and small minnows. Tube jigs 1/64 or 1/32 shouldn’t be overlooked and are also a deadly method on most occasions. Try smoke or red/white.

You can’t go anywhere on the lake right now without catching perch. The hard problem is to find the quality perch. I like the Belvidere Park flat or Knollwood. Try slip-bobbers with small minnows.

Northern Pike fishing has been fantastic. Numbers of legal fish are being taken. Chubs on slip-bobbers have been producing fish. The quality fish are being caught in 20-24 feet of water in the deep weeds. With the cooling water, the fish will be moving shallow, making the catch even easier. Look for the better fish in the Fontana Beach area. It is the classic fall spot on Lake Geneva. Trolling can also be an effective approach. I like the large husky jerks, blue/silver or the Berkeley Frenzy stick bait. Enjoy the fall colors, winter is near.

For Guide Parties next season call: Dave Duwe 262-728-8063

GREEN LAKE AREA, WISCONSIN

Guide Mike Norris emailed:

Fishing Report – 10/18/2021

Mike Norris

Big Green Lake – Nighttime temperatures fallen into the upper thirties and Big Green Lake is starting to heat up. Both large and smallmouth bass are feeding on crayfish which have migrated to deep weed beds. I am also catching bass on offshore rock piles. Try tube baits or a jig and minnow in pockets of gravel and rock found in and around standing green weed beds. Lindy rigging with larger sucker minnows is also coming into play. Do not be afraid to go shallow. Perch in the 9 to 11-inch range and bluegills up to 9 inches have moved in shallow and the bass are right behind. I am finding panfish in bays in 1 to 2 feet of water. Try casting a red worm threaded onto a small hook.

Fox Lake (Dodge County) – Bass fishing is decent on Fox Lake. I am still finding them shallow and Senko’s cast in and around docks is my lure choice. Walleyes are eating medium-sized shiners hung below a float in 12 – 15 of water, though some are still shallow though, as evidenced by a 31-inch walleye caught by an angler fishing for bass with Senko’s in four feet of water. Last week a homeowner fishing off his dock caught at 51 3/4 inch muskie with a sucker beneath a float.

To book a guide trip reach out to me via my Facebook page at mike.norris.7773 or email me through my website at www.comecatchsmallmouth.com

GREEN/STURGEON BAYS, WISCONSIN

Click here for the Wisconsin DNR weekly report.

HEIDECKE LAKE

Closed for the season.

LAKE ERIE

Click here for the Ohio DNR Report.

LAKEFRONT

Stacey Greene at Park Bait at Montrose Harbor texted:

Good morning Dale,

Most of last week’s weather was unstable with rain so not as many were fishing. The few reports I have had still have a few kings being caught around the harbors mostly still on spoons and crankbaits with a few starting to hit spawn. Reports of Steelhead and a few Coho being caught on the Horseshoe and surrounding harbors on largefatheads, medium roaches, spawn and crawlers. No Brown Trout reports yet.No Smallmouth reports.

have a great week

Capt. Bob Poteshman of Confusion Charters said off Chicago fishing is tough, bite is really far out, better bet is making the long ride to Julian’s Reef for lake trout; out of North Point, focus on or around the reefs, especially Waukegan Reef, for lakers with a few big kings, too, big plastic attractors seem to be doing better than the metal ones. Poteshman noted that a lot of little lakers are being caught around the reefs.

Capt. Dan Leslie at the Salmon Stop in Waukegan said some kings are being caught on spoons and spawn sacs; snaggers are doing OK.

SALMON SNAGGING: Here are the details from the IDNR:

4) Snagging for chinook and coho salmon only is permitted from the following Lake Michigan shoreline areas from October 1 through December 31; however, no snagging is allowed at any time within 200 feet of a moored watercraft or as posted: A) Lincoln Park Lagoon from the Fullerton Avenue Bridge to the southern end of the Lagoon. B) Waukegan Harbor (in North Harbor basin only). C) Winnetka Power Plant discharge area. D) Jackson Harbor (Inner and Outer Harbors).

d) Disposition of Snagged Salmon and Paddlefish. All snagged salmon and paddlefish must be removed from the area from which they are taken and disposed of properly, in accordance with Article 5, Section 5-5 of the Fish and Aquatic Life Code.

LaSALLE LAKE

Closed for the season.

MADISON LAKES, WISCONSIN

Click here for the update from D&S Bait.

MAZONIA

Closed, but Monster stays open all year.

NORTHERN WISCONSIN

Kurt Justice at Kurt’s Island Sport Shop in Minocqua emailed:

Getting some of what we anglers have been asking for. Colder temps and wind have lake surface readings in the 50’s. So, what’s with the fish we ask? High pressure, full moon…, could point to all types of excuses (and we usually do)! Fishing, with a few exceptions, has remained sub-par for this time of year. Participation seems light also.

Musky: Fair-Good – In my boat “POOR”, but a few anglers reported seeing fish and a few upper 40″ fish (46, 47 & 48″ ers) reported. Mixed reports, one large fish on top-water, though that will probably end as water temps dip into mid-50’s. Gliders, Jerks and twitch baits preferred, with suckers producing some of the best fish of the week.

Walleye: Fair-Good – Wind made for tough boat control. Anglers able to find fishable fish found them in gravel/mud transition fish in depths of 20-34′ using 1/4 – 3/8 oz jigs tipped with black chubs or large fats. On lakes less deep, work 12-15′ weed edges, wind-blown, with 1/8 oz weedless jigs and fats

Smallmouth Bass: Fair-Good – Same with Walleye, wind made locations tough to fish. Drop-shotting 3″ minnow imitations best near drowned timber.

Crappies: Fair – No reports of numbers, but fish running large – 10-12″ eaters and 13-15″ slabs not uncommon. Lakes in warm, calm bays over weed tops in 9-12′. Flowages near drowned wood in 12-18′

Northern Pike: Fair – Few targeting. Pike still relatively shallow on jig/chub combos.

Due to wind and time of year (lack of participation) reports on Gills, Perch and Largemouth lacking.

While forecast of high 60’s temps early in week, night time temps in low 30’s and highs of low to mid-40’s by the weekend will put lakes in or at the brink of turn-over. Check water clarity before launching.

Kurt Justice

Kurt’s Island Sport Shop – Like us on Facebook

NORTHWEST INDIANA

Capt. Rich Sleziak at Slez’s Bait in Lake Station texted:

Lots of fisherman out and fishing everywhere.

Best thing going has been catfish on triple s stinkbait at rosser lake in New Chicago.

Stone lake in Laporte giving up nice gills for boat fisherman using jumbo reds.

Still lots of fisherman fishing the tributaries but the action has slowed way down.

Slezs bait is on fall and winter hours now 5 to 5 daily.

Christina Petrites at Stan’s Bait & Tackle Center in Hammond emailed:

Hi, Dale. The weather had certainly cooled off this past week. With the recent fluctuation, here’s what’s been happening around here:

Lake Michigan trolling has slowed right down in the last week. Anglers are waiting for the water to cool & the fall Steelhead to run. River fishing is slow with just a few Coho & Kings being caught.

Walleye, Smallmouth, & Catfish are still active on the rivers.

Inland lake Bluegill & Crappie remain steady.

ROOT RIVER, WISCONSIN

The Wisconsin DNR report on today, Oct. 19, included this:

The Root River experienced a sizeable increase in angling activity this week despite already high angling effort over the previous few weeks. Anglers are now being seen fishing from the mouth all the way up to the dam, whereas previously anglers were crowding around the Steelhead Facility. All anglers are continuing to target coho or chinook salmon as the run progresses.

Click here for the full update from the Wisconsin DNR, usually on Tuesday or Wednesday.

SHABBONA LAKE

Adam Honiotes at Boondocks reported some success trolling for walleye, no reports of muskie; crappie are being caught in the trees; panfish are good. The concessions will close Oct. 31, reopening April 1.

Site hours through Oct. 31 are 6 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.

SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN LAKEFRONT

Click here for the southern Lake Michigan reports from the Wisconsin DNR.

WISCONSIN RIVER

Rob Abouchar
An October night on the Wisconsin River.

Rob Abouchar emailed the photo above and this:

Hi Dale,

The first real cold front came through Merrill on Saturday and the Bass fishing cooled a bit on the Wisconsin River. Sunday morning brought the first frost of the season emphasizing the fact that only a few weekends of fishing remain on the river. There were reports of Muskie starting to be caught. My Senko was getting some bites but only some small Northern and a little smallmouth were landed. Joe The Grasseater Schatz continued to catch nice fish on his Handmade Schatzee chatterbait in Ghost Minnow color, tipped with a kalins jerk shad. The best colors now seem to be white or black and orange. There were lots of shotgun blasts ringing out early in the day as many waterfowl are migrating as the season changes. Next trip on the river we will be floating suckers. And possibly a Senko.

Tight Lines and Good Health

Rob

WOLF RIVER, WISCONSIN

Guide Bill Stoeger in Fremont texted:

Water temp down to 54 degrees this morning. White bass action still good, fishing sand bars and current breaks. As the river cools, more walleye are showing up. Fish deeper holes and channels

Read More

Actor-singer Jamie Foxx poses with his daughters Corinne Foxx (left) and Anelise Bishop at the 26th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles on Jan. 19, 2020. | Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Jamie Foxx shares the good, the bad and the embarrassing in his memoir “Act Like You Got Some Sense: And Other Things My Daughters Taught Me.”

NEW YORK — While traveling with his family during the filming of the 2012 movie “Django Unchained,” Jamie Foxx allowed his then 18-year-old daughter, Corinne, to share a room with her boyfriend. He was proud of his decision, feeling evolved and cool and anointed himself New Dad for handling the situation with a level head.

New Dad became Self-Doubt Dad at 4 a.m. when he lay awake questioning his decision. Foxx decided he needed to barge into the room to see what was happening, with no plan on what to do next.

“I knock and open the door and my heart sinks because the boy, the kid, is on top of the covers, fully-clothed and my daughter fast asleep under the covers and I said, ‘Oh, man’.”

Jamie Foxx shares that parenting misstep in his new book “Act Like You Got Some Sense: And Other Things My Daughters Taught Me” from Grand Central Publishing.

Foxx, 53, was committed to writing about moments where he got it right and wrong, in his manner of speaking.

“My voice is exactly the way I want to talk. It’s no preservatives. I’m really proud of that,” he said.

The Oscar and Grammy award winner also shares his own backstory. He was adopted by his mother’s adoptive parents. He didn’t have a lot of contact with his birth parents as a child but worked to reconnect as an adult.

Foxx talked with The Associated Press about being a dad of two daughters, Corinne, now 27, an actor and producer, and 13-year-old Anelise, and preparing to portray boxing icon Mike Tyson.

Q. You write about going to therapy with your older daughter and realizing some hard truths, like times when she says she didn’t like you.

AP
This cover image released by Grand Central Publishing shows “Act Like You Got Some Sense: And Other Things My Daughters Taught Me,” by Jamie Foxx.

A. I’m sitting there and I found out that I was the Disneyland Dad. Every emotional pothole, I was just going to fill it up with a Disney ride or something fluffy. And I hear my daughter say to the therapist, ‘I don’t like my dad.’ And she said, ‘Dad, you don’t need all of that. You’re covering. Just come talk to me.’ And so those moments were important.

Q. It sounds like you’ve learned that even though you have the perks of being a celebrity, it matters most to be there.

A. I want them to know that dad is there, no matter what. I might be tired or might be sleepy. And even then, they may hold me accountable even more. But I wanted to be there. I want them to be able to beat on my chest and tell me anything. And I got to learn about my parents’ experiences, that they had someone who didn’t show up, so I wanted to stop that emotional domino.

Q. The term Girl Dad is used a lot. What does it mean to you?

A. What I say to my dads who have girls who are afraid to talk about certain things is talk about them and talk about them early. Talk about it now because if you get that uncomfortable situation out of the way to where you’re comfortable at 10, 11, 12, by the time they’re 15, 16 and they have real matters, you’ve already laid that foundation down. That’s the true essence of a Girl Dad.

Q. Your daughter Corinne works in the entertainment industry and your younger daughter Anelise loves music. Do you want them to conquer showbiz?

A. I want them to do even better, and I constantly give them examples of the disciplines of what you need to do. My youngest daughter is funny. She was telling me, ‘I want to win a Grammy but I’ve got competition. My cousins can rap. And then there’s you, dad. I’ve got to beat you.’ I love the fact that they want to do more.

Q. You’re gearing up to play Mike Tyson on film. What has that process been like?

A. It’s a journey getting that done, but it’s been a wonderful journey. I cannot wait for people to see when I make the transformation. I’ll literally be able to walk into Mike’s house and say, ‘I’m home’ and nobody will flinch. So it’s going to be beautiful and it’s going to have some surprises in it that are going to be some soft touches that I think you’re going to really be like, ‘Wow, I didn’t know that.’

Q. What about Tyson’s voice? Have you mastered that?

A. When he was young it was high-pitched. But now in our development, I called Mike one day and I said, ‘Mike, how are you feeling?” ‘I’m feeling good. So happy.? I said, ‘Why are you happy?’ ‘Because I don’t have any money anymore.’ ‘Why? Why would that make you happy?’ Because I don’t have any vultures around me taking money and that would make me mad.? And so it’s those moments that I think people understand, because if we do an impersonation, we die. But if we’re quiet and it’s just him basically looking in the camera, talking about his life, I think that’s where the — sorry about the cliche — but that’s where the magic happens.

Read More

Justin Fields is showing promise, but the Bears are still the worst passing team in the NFL. | Jeffrey Phelps/AP

They’re off-script, but extended or broken plays could turn into big gains for the Bears with Fields’ strong arm and their wide receivers’ speed

One of rookie quarterback Justin Fields’ best assets is his ability to scramble — not necessarily to take off running, but to roll away from a crowded pocket and buy time for a downfield shot. Those are precious opportunities for the Bears to take advantage of having a wide receiver corps they believe is the fastest in the NFL. By the time Fields gets out of the pocket, it’s no longer about the original play call or routes. The game shifts into something more like recess, and that should be a good thing for the Bears given his arm strength and their receivers’ speed.

“You can get a lot of big plays like that,” wide receiver Allen Robinson said Tuesday. “Some explosive plays [come] when the pocket breaks down or it just being a five-, six-second play.

“If a defense is in zone, their eyes are on the quarterback, so once he scrambles out, the defenders now have to figure out where everybody is. As he starts to scramble, all those zones shift.”

And if they don’t shift quickly and smartly, any receiver could be running free in an instant. It’s also a long time to hold the coverage, and it’s more difficult to account for everyone in that scenario no one is running conventional routes.

No one’s running routes at all, actually.

Receivers must improvise in those situations, but it’s more like a jazz ensemble than a stand-up comedian. If Robinson, Darnell Mooney or Marquise Goodwin makes a move, it doesn’t do any good if it’s not in sync with Fields.

That’s a different way of playing for Robinson and Mooney after working with Andy Dalton, Nick Foles and Mitch Trubisky over the last two seasons.

Their ultra-reliable route running becomes irrelevant. It’s about chemistry at that point, and the Bears’ top receivers are still working on it with Fields. He practiced mainly with the second team until taking over as the Bears’ starter in Week 3. Even then, the Bears haven’t worked on scramble drills much, in part because coaches typically blow the play dead quickly in practice to prevent quarterbacks from getting hit.

“That’s still somewhat of a work in progress,” Robinson said of learning Fields’ tendencies on broken plays. “It’s hard to script it because [every play] is so different.”

Robinson and the other receivers have been studying film of Fields’ scrambles to figure out where he’s usually looking based on which direction he runs and where they need to go to take advantage of the chaos.

That’s vital for an offense that ranks last in the NFL in passing yardage at 117.2 per game and third-from-the-bottom in scoring at 16.3 points per game. They’re also last in the league with nine pass plays of 20 yards or more.

Bears coach Matt Nagy indicated he thinks the best way to get deep shots is off play action since the team has established a run-heavy offense, and he’s probably right. But these extended plays provide great opportunities, too, and it allows Fields to utilize one of his strengths.

Read More

Marist High School in Mt. Greenwood. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

We need all parents in America to teach their children that America’s diversity is its greatest strength, and no American deserves to feel lesser than for any reason.

I am writing in response to letters published in the Sun-Times last week titled, “An unfair allegation of racism at Marist High School.” What happened at the dance wasn’t just students disliking music. The proof is seen in a video circulating on Instagram.

It’s disappointing, having grown up as a Mexican student in a mostly white school in the area, having experienced racism and bigotry myself.

SEND LETTERS TO: [email protected]. Please include your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes. Letters should be approximately 350 words or less.

No student should go to school and be made to feel like an “other.”

Yet for many like myself who are of a different ethnicity, race, sexuality, etc., “othering” is part and parcel of everyday life at school. Day in and day out, we hear jokes and overtures about our lives and cultures, and we’re told to suck it up and take a joke, from students and from teachers alike. My culture was being knelt against, not just over a song, and it’s part of everyday life in schools and in workplaces in America.

America loves to take and borrow from the best of all cultures and races in her borders, but when it comes to the people who have brought their culture’s best, now we aren’t deserving of the same respect as the majority. We are made to feel lesser than others, instead of feeling included as equals.

We need all parents in America to teach their children that America’s diversity is its greatest strength, and no American deserves to feel lesser than for any reason.

That goes against everything America stands for.

Chris Marquez, Andersonville

History deniers

Holocaust deniers are among the most ignorant and hateful people on our troubled planet. Apart from much photographic evidence — hard to fake back in the day — thousands of American, British, French and Russian soldiers witnessed the horror firsthand, many of them haunted by it for years.

Denying the Holocaust is like saying that the sinking of the Titanic or the San Francisco earthquake were just filmmaker spectaculars. From now on, whenever I hear one of these dolts spouting their Holocaust denial I am going to say, “You don’t really exist. You are just a weird figment of my imagination.”

Dan McGuire, Bensenville

Read More

Former CPS chief and U.S. education secretary Arne Duncan now has a nonprofit that works with at-risk youth. | Sun-Times file

The former U.S. Education secretary and CPS CEO didn’t totally rule out a 2023 campaign, but clearly wanted to change the subject from the rampant speculation that he is being urged to challenge Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

Former U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said Tuesday he loves the violence prevention work he is doing and he is “not interested” in running for mayor.

The former Chicago Public Schools CEO didn’t lock the door and swallow the key to a 2023 campaign for mayor after joining the men he called “my teammates, my brothers” for a panel discussion before the City Club of Chicago.

But Duncan clearly was trying to change the subject from the rampant speculation — on social media and in political circles — that he is being urged to challenge Mayor Lori Lightfoot by those dissatisfied with her leadership style in general and with the continued surge in homicides, shootings and carjackings in particular.

“I’m 100% focused on doing exactly what I’m doing. It’s where I’ve been focused for five years and where I’m gonna continue to focus. What I want is for people to really listen to these men. These are the guys with PhD’s in this work,” Duncan said of the street outreach workers at his side, including former gang members who have turned their lives around.

Does that mean “no, never?”

“I’m not interested,” is all he’d say.

HIs current anti-violence work is “the hardest thing I’ve ever done. It’s the most impactful thing I’ve ever done. It’s the most important thing I’ve ever done. … I love what I’m doing. … I want to keep doing this work. We’ve got a long way to go.”

Duncan runs a non-profit for at risk-youth known as Chicago CRED, which stands for Creating Real Economic Destiny. It operates in 15 of the city’s most violent neighborhoods.

Chicago CRED is working with roughly 500 young men, ages 17 to 24, disconnected from work and school and most in danger of being victims — or perpetrators — of gun violence.

The painstaking process starts with what Duncan has called “street outreach teams with tremendous credibility with different cliques.” They approach young men who are justifiably cynical because “they’ve been lied to so many times” and had so many programs give up on them. They ask these forgotten young men to “give us a chance.”

Those who agree are “surrounded by a team of adults totally focused on their long-term success” with counseling, education, job training and job placement. Some of the “life coaches” are ex-offenders themselves.

The success rate has been great. Some young men who never thought they would graduate from high school — and some who left school before they even made it to high school — are getting high school diplomas. Some are now in college.

Program participants now work in health care, manufacturing, hospitality, culinary and construction jobs. Some are at downtown law and accounting firms.

Duncan appeared before the City Club 13 months ago to proposed a $150 million-to-$200 million-a-year expansion of his violence prevention efforts bankrolled by shrinking the Chicago Police Department through attrition and eliminating vacancies.

Urging Chicago to “lead the nation in reimagining public safety,” Duncan argued then that CPD could be reduced to 10,000 sworn officers and still have enough officers to safely patrol the city and improve a 45% homicide clearance rate — but only if violence prevention were a key component of the city’s strategy.

On Tuesday, Duncan returned to the City Club with the men he called “my teammates, my brothers” in violence prevention to deliver a similar message.

“Chicago is six times more violent than New York, three-to-four times more violent than L.A. So we are absolutely the anomaly. We don’t have to be this way. Other cities have figured this out,” Duncan said.

“People often think, ‘More violence. We need more police.’ New York has the same number of police-per-citizen than us and is six times less violent. And L.A. has significantly less police than us and is significantly less violent.”

Duncan noted Chicago violence is up 50% while “randomized control trials” coming out of Northwestern University of the violence prevention work he is doing shows just the opposite — a “50% reduction in victimization” of the men he’s working with, as well as a “48% reduction in arrests.”

“City up 50%. We’re down 50%. There’s never one easy answer,” he said.

“But the fact that, as a city, we’re choosing not to scale the kind of work that these men are doing across the city is a little stunning to me.”

Read More

Chicago Sky players celebrate their WNBA Championship title Tuesday at Pritzker Pavilion. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

Since 2006 the Sky have fought to gain a foothold in Chicago’s basketball space to no avail. Tuesday, Chicago celebrated its first professional basketball championship since 1998 marking a turning point in the Sky’s pursuit.

Silver anniversaries deserve sterling silver hardware and the Sky understood that assignment.

In the WNBA’s 25th anniversary season, the Sky made a playoff push that had them knocking on their first WNBA Finals door since 2014. They busted that door down, winning the franchise’s first-ever title on Sunday.

The celebration Tuesday fit the historic moment.

When the team met the thousands of fans who awaited them at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion after a championship parade up Michigan Avenue, Sky coach/general manager James Wade had a message.

“Remember the seat you’re sitting in,” Wade said standing at center stage. “We’re gonna make sure you’re sitting in the same one next year.”

Courtney Vandersloot walked into Wintrust Arena Tuesday morning with black sunglasses on and a boot on her left foot. The sunglasses were maybe a style choice or maybe part of a hangover cure. The boot she wore as a precaution for her plantar fascia.

She looked tired but joyful from the celebrating and the Sky’s first-ever WNBA Championship clinching win over the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday evening that led to it.

Candace Parker walked in side by side with her daughter, Lailaa, and WNBA Finals MVP Kahleah Copper was right behind them.

Two short days ago, Wintrust Arena was getting prepped to welcome 10,378 fans who would bear witness to the Sky’s 80-74, come-from-behind win over the Mercury.

“It still hasn’t set in that we won a championship,” Copper said.

When Parker won her first title with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2016, the team held a massive celebration at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles. There was no parade.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Monday that the Sky would not only have a rally but would parade up Michigan Avenue in a five-bus championship motorcade similar to the city’s previous sports champions — all men’s teams.

Parker’s parents, Sara and Larry, said it isn’t special the team is being celebrated with a parade, it’s what should be expected.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
Candace Parker and Kahleah Copper cheer as Chicago Sky players celebrate their WNBA Championship title Tuesday at Pritzker Pavilion.

Lightfoot, a Sky season ticket holder with her wife, Amy Eshleman, since the franchise’s inaugural season, said she feels lucky to be Chicago’s mayor at this moment.

Chicago has long been viewed as a basketball city with a rich history in the sport that includes elite high school competition and the Bulls’ two three-peats for six NBA titles.

Since 2006 the Sky have fought to gain a foothold in Chicago’s basketball space to no avail. Tuesday, Chicago celebrated its first professional basketball championship since 1998, marking a turning point in the Sky’s pursuit.

“It’s been our dream all along to see this city embrace this team as they’ve embraced all those men’s teams forever,” Sky majority owner Michael Alter said. “We’re here to stay, and Chicago has fallen in love with this team.”

As the Sky walked out of Wintrust Arena’s loading dock and boarded buses bound for Millennium Park, different chants erupted from the hundreds of fans who lined the street.

“Sky in four!”

“C-P-3!”

“Let’s go Sky!”

One fan threw his Bulls hat up to Parker on the double-decker bus for her signature. With an ear-to-ear grin, she signed it in permanent marker.

As the buses loaded up, the chants grew.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
Thousands cheered as Chicago Sky players celebrated their WNBA Championship title at Pritzker Pavilion.

Parker squeezed by passengers and made her way to the front where the cooler was.

“I need to speak past you to get my point guard some alcohol,” Parker said. “Yo, Sloot, you want an Angry Orchard?”

Vandersloot and Quigley played a significant role in Parker’s decision to play for the Sky.

Texts were sent, Portillo’s was mailed to Los Angeles and conversations were had about this exact championship moment. When the buses finally departed Wintrust Arena all three of them were wide-eyed, taking in the fans along the route.

Vandersloot stood facing east on bus No. 2. She was hunched over the rail, staring out, waving at the people who lined Michigan Avenue when she let out a deep sigh.

“I truly can’t believe this,” Vandersloot said.

There were few breaks in fans that lined the street and as the team drove by they connected with as many as they could.

They noticed jerseys, posters and even recognized some fans from the team’s early days. “From the beginning,” Quigley yelled to them.

When they finally arrived at Pritzker Pavilion the welcome was captivating. Fans from those early days were mixed with new ones.

Parker took the stage and addressed her home crowd, talking about the grit, grind and blue-collar values that she admires about the city.

In one season, she accomplished what she had set out to when she signed in February.

“Hey, guess what?” Parker asked the audience. “Sky in four!”

Cheers and applause rang out.

Read More

Image of video released by COPA showing a fatal police shooting on Sept. 19, 2021, in the 6500 block of South Harvard. | Civilian Office of Police Accountability

Police encountered Turrell Brown, 28, while answering a domestic call on the morning of Sept. 19 in the 6500 block of South Harvard Avenue.

The agency that investigates use of force by Chicago police released body camera video Tuesday showing an officer fatally shooting a man who refused to drop a knife in an Englewood apartment last month.

Police encountered Turrell Brown, 28, while answering a domestic call on the morning of Sept. 19 in the 6500 block of South Harvard Avenue, according to the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.

Two officers were called to the apartment by a woman who said she was hit in the face by her boyfriend who was also armed with a knife, according to a 911 call released by COPA.

After the officers arrived, the woman tells them her boyfriend had hit her all over her side and face. “He pulled a knife on me too,” she says, adding that he is still in the apartment with a knife, according to body cam video.

As the officers walk through the apartment, Brown can be heard yelling at them and the officers pull out their guns and retreat just outside of the apartment, the video shows.

Brown emerges from a room waving what appears to be a knife in his right hand. “Put it down, put the knife down, put it down,” an officer yells.

Brown is obscured by a wall for a brief moment, and when he reemerges he doesn’t appear to be holding anything in his right hand, but his left hand is obscured, the video shows.

Brown slowly steps closer to the officers and appears to extend his right arm toward the door of the apartment to try to close it. An officer again tells him to put the knife down before firing three shots, striking him.

A knife appears to fall from his left hand, according to the video.

“Officers gave verbal commands to drop the knife, which resulted in an officer discharging his firearm, fatally striking the individual,” COPA said. The agency, which also released documents and other recordings, said it is continuing to investigate the shooting.

Two weeks after the encounter, police fatally shot another man in a domestic call under similar circumstances. Police responded to a “domestic disturbance” the morning of Oct. 4 and saw a man and woman fighting inside a second-story apartment in the 7700 block of South Carpenter Street in Gresham, police said.

Police fatally shot Michael A. Craig, 61, and said they recovered a knife, although police would not say if Craig was holding a knife when he was shot. Video of the shooting has not been released yet.

Read More

Need a quick way to impress your friends? These off-menu beverages include a kombucha blend and a canned hurricane.Read More