Curious City Podcast
1) Chicago’s Tornado-Proof Delusion
Yes, tornadoes can hit Chicago. Why do so many people think otherwise?
2) ‘Weather is cool’: Weird Chicago weather, from northern lights to water spouts
Thanks to the powerful force that is Lake Michigan and the urban heat island that is Chicago, the city has witnessed some unusual and extreme weather events. Last episode was about lake-effect sn...Show More
3) When is it no longer ‘cooler by the lake’?
You’ve heard it in the Chicago weather forecast time and time again: “cooler by the lake.” But how close to Lake Michigan do you need to be to feel that dip in the temperature? And why doesn’t Chicago...Show More
4) ‘It felt like a secret’: Remembering Chicago’s Berlin nightclub
Berlin nightclub in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood closed permanently in November 2023, after four decades in business. The closure happened amid stalled negotiations between the bar’s owners and its...Show More
5) What’s the story behind Berlin nightclub’s huge mural?
The large mural hung over the main bar at Berlin. Painted in the Art Deco style, the masculine and feminine figures in the painting watched over the nightly revelry at the storied nightclub until it c...Show More
6) Krampus is coming: The Christmas demon’s Chicago connection
On the morning of St. Nicholas Day, good kids rush downstairs to see what kind of gifts might be in their shoes. The bad kids? Unfortunately they might get a visit from Krampus, an ancient monster tha...Show More
7) “A Christmas Carol”: An amateur actor’s journey into a Chicago holiday tradition
The Christkindlmarket, the CTA holiday train and “A Christmas Carol” at the Goodman Theatre. Chicago is full of holiday traditions. In this episode, we get an intimate look at the annual theater produ...Show More
“A Christmas Carol”: An amateur actor’s journey into a Chicago holiday tradition
08:03 | Dec 17th, 2025
8) The first Black-owned airport in the U.S. was in Robbins, Illinois
The Robbins Airport, just southwest of Chicago, was the first Black-owned and -operated airport in the country. Its founders were pivotal to Black aviation.
9) A museum, a mayor and a road: How Lake Shore Drive became a runway ... intentionally
Lake Shore Drive has served as a makeshift runway for emergency landings. But it’s also been an *intentional* runway for planned arrivals. We go back to 1983 to get the story of how a Chicago institut...Show More
A museum, a mayor and a road: How Lake Shore Drive became a runway ... intentionally
06:27 | Dec 10th, 2025
10) How one organization is transforming Englewood’s vacant lots
The city of Chicago owns thousands of vacant lots, and more than 80 percent of those parcels are in communities where the population is at least 80 percent Black. That’s according to a report from the...Show More