Art Tour

A view of the Ferris wheel from the Chicago Exposition of 1893, turning slowly.

This short Traveltalk visit to Chicago looks at some hotels known for their evening entertainment and for the rich and famous people who come to their dining rooms. Featured are the Walnut Room of the Bismarck Hotel, the Ambassador Hotel's Pump Room, and the boardwalk at the Edgewater Beach Hotel.

A visit to Chicago, featuring the city's architecture and well-known landmarks.

Winnie, the daughter of a steel worker and a teacher, lives in Gage Park, a Chicago neighborhood that is changing from white to black. Her family struggles with racism, inflation and a threatened strike, as Winnie learns what it means to grow up white, working class, and female.

A feature-length documentary on the 1990s Chicago rock scene.

What Poor Gods We Do Make: The Story and Music Behind Naked Raygun," the 2-disc DVD/CD focuses on the band's history and the development of their music from "Basement Screams" to "Raygun,Naked Raygun" through interviews with the band and many interviews, including Steve Albini, The Lawrence Arms, 88 Fingers Louie, Jake Burns of Stiff Little Fingers, The Effigies and many more. Moreover, the film aspect also focuses on the history and influence of Chicago's independent and punk scene, even though it was often, and still, overlooked by punk historians and more recently, documentary filmmakers. The CD portion of the release will feature live highlights from their shows since Naked Raygun's reunion at Riot Fest 2006, and will include all of the songs most identified with Naked Raygun.

Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.

As Comiskey Park, Chicago's 80 year old ballpark, prepares for its final season in 1990, expectations for the home team, the Chicago White Sox, are very low. Surprising many, the young team becomes a contender, and a bittersweet season becomes an exciting one.

“17 Seconds” provides an all-access pass inside the Blackhawks locker room party in Boston and the airplane ride home with the Cup following Game 6, in addition to insight from the players on the Stanley Cup-winning team and members of the organization. Fans can ride along on the players’ buses during the championship parade and follow the Blackhawks as they spend their Cup days with family and friends, sharing the greatest trophy in sports with their communities. It also includes footage from the opening night banner raising ceremony.

2006 was the Bears' best season in 21 years, as they ended the regular season just one win short of the Super Bowl. Relive every moment of the powerhouse season in which head coach Lovie Smith delivered on his plan to return the team to glory. Rex Grossman led the hard-hitting offense with 23 touchdown passes, while Devin Hester earned an NFL record for most touchdown returns in a single season in his first year with the franchise.

Kenny Wayne Shepherd's reverence for his musical roots are center-stage on Ten Days Out...Blues From The Backroads. The guitar-slinger is featured with the Double Trouble rhythm section of bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton performing with some of the greatest blues players of our time as well as lesser-known but historically significant bluesmen. Traveling to their hometowns to record everywhere from juke joints to front porches, from New Orleans to Kansas, Shepherd celebrates and becomes part of blues history with Ten Days Out...Blues From The Backroads.