Rick Kogan

"Soapy" Smith's Roulette Table and Wheel, George Mason & Co., circa 1890. Full-size roulette layout, table and wheel owned and used by notorious con man "Soapy" Smith. From Potter & Potter Auctions' Ricky Jay collection sale.

With some of his collection on auction, remembering the amazing Ricky Jay and the magic he made

February 9, 2023 at 5:15 a.m.

Even in death, Ricky Jay continues to amaze. The actor, author, scholar and fabled magician who died in 2018 was a popular visitor on local stages and an energetic collector...

Photographer Suzanne Seed takes pictures from a window of her 75th floor apartment on Jan. 31, 2023.

Feeling trapped in her high-rise after her husband’s death, she returned to photography by looking out the window

February 2, 2023 at 5:15 a.m.

Suzanne Seed is moving, downsizing it is called, as she transfers from one large apartment to a smaller one on the same floor of the downtown high rise in which...

Publisher Haki Madhubuti, left, and the author Patrick T. Reardon at Third World Press Foundation in Chicago on Jan. 26, 2023. Reardon has written a new book titled "Puddin': The Autobiography of a Baby — A Memoir in Prose Poems," published by Madhubuti and his Third World Press.

A former Tribune writer’s new book ‘Puddin” is told by a baby, but was inspired by a brother’s suicide

February 1, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

During the more than 30 years that Patrick Reardon worked at the Tribune, he wrote thousands of stories about politics, crime, transportation, neighborhoods, people, and all the other joys and...

What is the Great American Novel? Here’s a local writer’s pitch for ‘Gatsby’

January 25, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

Read any good books lately? Any great books? Any books that you might consider for the title Great American Novel? It's a frequent game in the book world, this Great...

Lou Manfredini and Lin Brehmer at the Chicago Auto Show's First Look For Charity at McCormick Place on Feb. 9, 2018.

Chicago radio’s Lin Brehmer, a longtime WXRT DJ, has died at 68

January 23, 2023 at 7:04 a.m.

Sunday morning came with snow, and with sorrow, in the form of the news of the death of Lin Brehmer, the hugely popular, buoyant and beloved host on Chicago radio's...

An image from the Allan Lee Koss book "Fares: Chicago Taxicab Portraits."

Have camera, will travel: A Chicago taxi driver took pictures of his passengers for years. His new book is titled ‘Fares’

January 18, 2023 at 5:00 a.m.

The Checker taxi garage was a massive place, just to the north of North Avenue and stretching from Wells Street west to North Park Avenue. It was a wild and...

All Stories

With some of his collection on auction, remembering the amazing Ricky Jay and the magic he made

Feeling trapped in her high-rise after her husband’s death, she returned to photography by looking out the window

A former Tribune writer’s new book ‘Puddin” is told by a baby, but was inspired by a brother’s suicide

What is the Great American Novel? Here’s a local writer’s pitch for ‘Gatsby’

Chicago radio’s Lin Brehmer, a longtime WXRT DJ, has died at 68

Have camera, will travel: A Chicago taxi driver took pictures of his passengers for years. His new book is titled ‘Fares’

Puppets are back in town for the largest puppet fest in the country, in all their creative and colorful glory

Busy crooning almost every night, singer Tony Ocean may be the hardest working man in old-school showbiz

Carl Kozlowski, who was once named America’s funniest reporter, has a new book ‘Dozed and Confused’

‘A Game Maker’s Life’ explores how Jeffrey Breslow made it into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame