Curious City

Chicago-style hot dogs are a beloved culinary masterpiece: A snappy all-beef wiener, steamed poppy seed bun, yellow mustard, chopped onions, neon-green relish, two slices of tomato, a dill pickle spear, two sport peppers and a final whoosh of celery salt. But how did that unique mix of ingredients come to be? In a special Curious City presentation, Chicago’s premier hot dog expert breaks down the...

Coffee shops, hospital waiting rooms and train cars are a few of the places Chicago’s homeless go to escape the cold.

After her neighbor adopted five goats, Jeanne Cuff wondered about Chicago's livestock laws.

We explore a phenomenon called “cuffing” and the (short) lengths Chicagoans will go for love.

Sidewalk grates make people feel uneasy. An anxiety expert said this uneasiness is rooted in something much deeper.

Two Albany Park chefs fused Chinese and Korean flavors, giving birth to the chicken lollipop.

We uncover the history and bask in the glow of a ubiquitous Chicago bar sign.

Complete with video and archival images, we track down the offensive phrase’s roots and consider whether it’s time to retire it.

How bubblers, boats and brawn keep the city safe each winter.  

In this special podcast episode, Curious City presents three Chicago disaster stories as told at the Old Town School of Folk Music on March 30, 2016. Inspired by questions posed from Chicago-area residents, the tales range from the practically comical Loop flood of 1992, to a terrifying tornado that struck the region, to the city’s infamous Iroquois Theater fire.  If you didn’t get your fill of di...

The area’s premier airport sports Terminals 1, 2, 3 and ... 5. What gives?

What will happen to the Willis Tower in 150 years? In this special Curious City presentation, producer Jesse Dukes and the Chicago Architecture Foundation’s Jen Masengarb envision three future scenarios for the iconic skyscraper, and for the Chicago of 2166.   Click here for the full story .  

Pop-up tree lots sprout up on every Chicago corner during the holiday season, only to disappear. Who are the people who make these happen and what's the business like? As one operator says it, "It’s fast, it’s furious and it’s over in about three and a half weeks."

Aurora leads council meetings with prayer, and it sometimes raises eyebrows. But would a judge ever smack it down?

Murals beautify some viaducts, while others are left bare and dirty. Why the disparity?

The city's top recipe sleuths share their secrets as we recreate a divine, but elusive, fried chicken dish .

Tempted to ignore the revolving door? Here are the revolutions that made the city a magnet for this seemingly simple device.

Schools are really crimped for cash. Hold up, wasn’t the lottery supposed to help with that?

There was a time Chicago gave New York a run for its money. How did we end up the Second City?

Minneapolis and San Fran do it. Even Oak Park’s got a program. What gives? Photos of how municipal composting works in Oak park, interviews and the prospects for change in Chicago.

That sorry-looking bike on the curb could end up in the hands of a local kid or even a family overseas. Full story with additional interviews and photos: http://wbez.is/2dgqDAf 

Why did Richard J. Daley push for the UIC campus to rise from the heart of a long-standing ethnic neighborhood? In this special Curious City presentation, reporter Monica Eng examines the pervasive suspicion that the mayor’s choice rose from a political spat or — even worse — from disdain for the Italian-American community.  Click here for the full story.

As The 606 stokes fears of economic displacement, the city wants to repurpose more rail lines. What's the state of research on this?

This Curious City special mini-documentary answers how the Polish became one of Chicago’s largest and most influential ethnic groups. And, come to think of it, is there anything to the claim that the city has the most Poles outside of Warsaw?

Craftsmanship and economics combine to keep the city's tradition of distinctive hand-painted signs alive in the digital age.