Chicago Bears special teams player Jonathan Owens probably won’t have his favorite photographer on the sideline for Saturday’s wild-card game against the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field — at least as a shutterbug.

His wife, 11-time Olympic medalist Simone Biles, was credentialed as a sideline photographer when the Bears visited the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium in Week 17.

“She’ll be on the field pregame,” Owens told the Tribune, “but I’m not sure if she’ll be doing any pictures or anything. “Nah, she’ll just be a spectator (for) this game.”

Ben Johnson says keeping a routine — workout? movie? — is key for Chicago Bears to combat playoff pressure

Owens and Biles were married in April 2023 and had a ceremonial wedding that May, and that fall Owens played for the Packers for a season.

Owens signed with the Bears in March 2024 and has spent the last two seasons in Chicago, bringing his famous Bears fan in tow.

“She’s been at every game, which I love my wife for that, man,” Owens said. “She’s making big sacrifices.

“But (we’re) just embracing the moment and relishing just how special this season is because I’ve been in Arizona, (who) went 3-13 (in 2018). I’ve been in Houston, where (we) had a bunch of success in 2019 when we went to the playoffs. And I was in Houston where we won four games (in 2020 and ’21).

“It’s been a roller coaster of a career, wins-wise. So just realizing how special this season is, it doesn’t happen often. Just being able to have a record like this, a team like, get wins the way that we have. So embracing we’re just embracing the moment, trying to spend as much time as we can together, just because she does have a lot more time now.”

Asked whether they share a favorite play of his, Owens said it came during the season opener, when he wrapped up Minnesota Vikings tight end Josh Oliver short of the goal line during a failed two-point conversion attempt.

“That was a pretty cool moment, just to have my teammates embrace me like that,” he said.

Olympic gymnast Simone Biles watches her husband, Bears safety Jonathan Owens, warm up to face the Rams on Sept. 29, 2024, at Soldier Field. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Their favorite team moment was “probably that play in Vegas when (Josh) Blackwell blocked that (field goal)” to seal a Bears win.

“My wife was there, she’s in the suite just jumping up and down,” Owens said. “They’re stressed out, and to pull out a game like that, it just propels us to where we are now.”

Owens said he also has enjoyed the support of the teammates on his unit, and he has returned it in kind.

“Just trying to be the most selfless person that I can be, bring that energy, be the same person every day, man, and support my guys when they (are) out there,” Owens said.

Snaps have been sparse for the safety on defense, especially compared with past seasons, but he set a goal of making double-digit tackles on teams, and he had 15 total tackles during the regular season, according to NFL stats.

“When my number’s called — kickoffs, punt return, defense, whatever it is — go out there and maximize it. I feel like that’s what makes a good team, you got a bunch of selfless guys that just want the best for the team.”

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Special teamer Elijah Hicks can relate.

“My first three years, I started a lot of games on defense, contributed a lot,” he said. “And so this was one of the years where I was consistently a special teams player and I was able to stack a lot of good games and good plays and (I’m) being recognized for it.

Hicks said he, Owens and Blackwell boost each other by competing with one another.

“We try to see who could go down and make the tackle,” Hicks said. “Who’s going to make the tackle (on) this play? OK, you got it inside the 30, I’m trying to get it inside the 25. We’re thinking like that. We’re competitive. It’s a friendly competition.”

Off the field, he and Owens have a special bond as well.

“On off days, me and JO, or just JO, go to my wife’s Pilates studio,” Hicks said. “So we just have that type of relationship.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/simone-biles-jonathan-owens-chicago-bears/ 

The 2026 IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championship ended Monday with Sweden earning the gold medal after defeating Czechia 4-2 in the final. The young skaters — including the three Chicago Blackhawks prospects — showed what they have to offer their future professional teams.

The Hawks had at least one gold medalist in each of the last five World Junior championships: Connor Bedard, Landon Slaggert, Ethan Del Mastro, Colton Dach, Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar, Oliver Moore, Sam Rinzel and Gavin Hayes. A new name joined the list this week.

Here’s how the three Hawks prospects fared at the World Juniors.

Anton Frondell

Sweden’s Anton Frondell scores the winning goal on Finland goaltender Petteri Rimpinen during the shootout of a semifinal at the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. Sweden won 4-3 and went on to win the championship. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)

For the first time since 2016, neither the United States nor Canada appeared in the World Juniors final. Instead, Sweden reigned victorious thanks to Frondell’s heroics.

The 2025 No. 3 pick scored five goals, the second most on the team. The most important horn sound wasn’t included in that total, though.

In a semifinal against Finland, Frondell scored the winning goal in a shootout on his third attempt to send Sweden to the championship game. The crowd at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn., couldn’t believe what they saw, and the 18-year-old couldn’t believe what he did, either.

“I blacked out,” Frondell said. “It was an amazing feeling.”

He was named the tournament’s best forward and earned a spot on the all-star team. He scored the first goal of the game three times.

Frondell’s motivation to kick things off should be a welcome addition to the Hawks when he skates with Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar and company.

“He’s been really good,” Sweden coach Magnus Hävelid said. “He’s a leader for us on ice, off ice.”

Frondell spent this season skating for the SHL’s Djurgårdens IF. He has 15 points (10 goals, five assists) in 25 games.

AJ Spellacy

U.S. forward Aj Spellacy scores past Slovakia goalie Michal Pradel during the second period at the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship on Dec. 29, 2025, in St. Paul, Minn. (Abbie Parr/AP)

Team USA was in a tough spot in a quest for a three-peat with an entirely new roster. Spellacy joined the team with hopes of making his mark in the tournament.

A third-round pick in 2024, Spellacy, 19, was the fastest skater at the World Juniors, revving up to 23.7 mph. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound right winger showed his strength on the penalty kill too.

The U.S didn’t win a medal for the first time since 2022, but Spellacy represented the Hawks well, totaling four points (one goal, three assists) in five games.

Spellacy has spent the last four seasons with the OHL’s Winsdor Spitfires, compiling 17 points (nine goals, eight assists) this season.

Václav Nestrašil

Czechia forward Vaclav Nestrasil passes the puck against Canada defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson during an IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship semifinal Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (Matt Krohn/AP)

Picked in the first round at No. 25 in 2025, Václav Nestrašil chose the college path after two years skating for the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks. He’s learning a thing or two from the Minutemen.

The UMass freshman was an offensive anchor for Czechia, setting up teammates with scoring chances. His eight points (two goals, six assists) lifted his country to the final before losing to Frondell and Sweden. The future teammates had a nice moment in the handshake line after the final.

In 18 games with UMass, the right winger has 20 points (10 goals and 10 assists).

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/chicago-blackhawks-world-juniors-prospects/ 

Did Gen-Z Just Get A Taste For Fancy Used-Watches

Tyler Durden
Fri, 01/09/2026 – 06:55

https://www.zerohedge.com/personal-finance/used-luxury-watch-prices-are-ticking-higher 

Por NICOLE WINFIELD

CIUDAD DEL VATICANO (AP) — En su crítica más contundente a las incursiones militares de Estados Unidos, Rusia y otros países en naciones soberanas, el papa León XIV denunció el viernes el uso de la fuerza por parte de algunos gobiernos para afirmar su dominio en el mundo, “socavando completamente” la paz y el orden legal internacional posterior a la Segunda Guerra Mundial.

“La guerra vuelve a estar de moda y el entusiasmo bélico se extiende”, dijo el pontífice ante embajadores de todo el mundo ante la Santa Sede.

El papa no nombró directamente a las naciones que han recurrido a la fuerza durante su larga intervención, que realizó en su mayor parte en inglés, rompiendo con el protocolo diplomático tradicional del Vaticano de usar el italiano y el francés. El discurso se produce en el contexto de la reciente operación militar de Estados Unidos en Venezuela para apartar a su presidente, Nicolás Maduro, del poder, además de guerra en curso de Rusia en Ucrania y otros conflictos.

La ocasión fue la audiencia anual del pontífice con el cuerpo diplomático del Vaticano, que tradicionalmente equivale a su discurso anual de política exterior.

En su primer evento de este tipo, el primer papa estadounidense de la historia ofreció mucho más que el tradicional resumen de los conflictos en el mundo. En un discurso que abordó las amenazas a la libertad religiosa y la oposición de la Iglesia católica al aborto y a la gestación subrogada, León lamentó que Naciones Unidas y el multilateralismo en su conjunto estén cada vez más amenazados.

“La diplomacia que promueve el diálogo y busca el consenso entre todas las partes está siendo sustituida por una diplomacia basada en la fuerza, ya sea por parte de individuos o de grupos de aliados”, manifestó. “Se ha roto el principio establecido tras la Segunda Guerra Mundial, que prohibía a los países utilizar la fuerza para violar las fronteras ajenas”.

“La paz ya no se busca como un regalo y como un bien deseable en sí mismo, sino que se busca mediante las armas como condición para afirmar el propio dominio”, agregó el pontífice. “Y esto compromete gravemente el Estado de derecho, que es la base de toda convivencia civil pacífica”.

León se refirió explícitamente a las tensiones en Venezuela y pidió una solución política pacífica que tenga en cuenta el “bien común de los pueblos y no la defensa de intereses partidistas”.

El ejército de Estados Unidos capturó a Maduro en una redada nocturna sorpresa. El gobierno de Donald Trump busca ahora controlar los recursos petroleros de Caracas y a su gobierno. Washington ha insistido en que la captura del líder venezolano fue legal, alegando que los cárteles de la droga que operan desde Venezuela equivalen a combatientes ilegales y que el país está librando un “conflicto armado” contra ellos.

Analistas y algunos líderes mundiales han condenado la misión en Venezuela, advirtiendo que la destitución de Maduro podría allanar el camino para más intervenciones militares y una mayor erosión del orden legal global.

Acerca de Ucrania, León repitió su llamado a un alto el fuego inmediato e instó a la comunidad internacional “a no flaquear en su compromiso de buscar soluciones justas y duraderas”.

En cuanto a Gaza, reiteró el pedido de la Santa Sede para una solución de dos estados en el conflicto israelí-palestino e insistió en el derecho de los palestinos a vivir en Gaza y Cisjordania “en su propia tierra”.

___

La cobertura de religión de Associated Press recibe apoyo a través de la colaboración de AP con The Conversation US, con financiación de Lilly Endowment Inc. AP es el único responsable de este contenido.

___

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/en-un-importante-discurso-len-xiv-critica-que-los-pases-usen-la-fuerza-para-imponer-su-dominio/ 

The new year means resolutions. One you might consider adding to your list: Frequenting some of the city’s smaller concert venues that help Chicago thrive as a live-music mecca. Since most large-scale tours don’t begin until late spring or summer, now is an ideal time to see artists who might not have household-name recognition.

Of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention a few notable heavy-hitters passing through in the next few months. Brandi Carlile appears on her first-ever arena trek Feb. 20 at Allstate Arena. The ever-dependable Jason Isbell drops by with the 400 Unit on March 6-7 at Salt Shed. Cardi B makes her long-awaited local headlining debut on March 21 at the United Center.

All options whose appeal dovetails with that of these featured shows. The main differences? Each of the 10 following choices offers intimate sightlines and tickets from $61 or less, pricing that speaks to post-holiday budgets.

Cate Le Bon

Reeling from a breakup and bodily ailments, Cate Le Bon poured the hurt into “Michelangelo Dying.” As much a mood piece as a meditative art-pop album, it bathes melancholic lyrics in a thick soup of liquid synthesizers, underwater bass and distant percussion that give the impression time isn’t linear. Using baroque textures and gauzy layers, she cultivates a beautiful, strange language for loss and lamentation whose meanings extend beyond fractured human relationships. At its softest, Le Bon’s sedate echo-chamber fare threatens to vaporize and disappear. Not unlike the key principles of the country she mourns when she sings: “I pledged my love to America / Then I ran so far.” In our current environment, Le Bon’s rejection and isolation beget feelings of collective consolation and warm comfort. Snuggle up.

8 p.m. Jan. 22 at Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport St.; tickets (ages 17+) from $37.68 at ticketweb.com

Perfume Genius

Delicate-voiced singer-songwriter Michael Alden Hadreas has been performing as Perfume Genius for more than 15 years, creating a catalog as sharp, serious and soul-searching as any in the indie-pop canon. The uncertainty, grief and compassion at the crux of many of his frank narratives seemingly reflect the trauma of his adolescence — and, by extension, the stresses of navigating today’s sociopolitical landscape as a gay man. Healing and haunting, Perfume Genius’ wide-ranging oeuvre mines beauty from pain and finds hope in the desolate. His elegantly understated “Glory” (2025) extends his adventurous streak and penchant for fragile, guarded romance. He’ll play here in a duo configuration.

8 p.m. Jan. 22 at Lincoln Hall 2424 N. Lincoln Ave.; 18+; tickets from $60.75 at lh-st.com

Michael Alden Hadreas performs as Perfume Genius during Pitchfork Music Festival on July 21, 2023, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Sprints

Glance at the list of finalists for major awards or spend an hour enduring the stale programming on non-college radio, and you wouldn’t be wrong to think rock has sunk to its lowest point since the end of the 20th century. Though in need of resuscitation, the genre still has a healthy pulse. It just primarily beats underground. Exhibit A: Sprints. The Irish quartet’s arresting “All That Is Over” builds on the promise of its debut album. With the post-punk-leaning group allowing more room for nuance and strain, vocalist Karla Chubb rages against a world she’d prefer not to recognize and, in the process, uncovers reasons to believe. “We have love, and we have art,” she attests. Doubt her and her band if you dare.

8 p.m. Jan. 29 at Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln Ave.; tickets (ages 18+) from $33.25 at lh-st.com

Sudan Archives

What comes to mind when you hear “violinist”? Probably not the sounds of Brittney Denise Parks, aka Sudan Archives. Having learned the instrument by ear, the Ohio native re-imagines it for modern Western music by seizing the energy, abandon and soulfulness with which it’s associated in African settings. Her cutting-edge incorporation of Black traditions, other string-based forms and polyrhythmic loops into hybrid R&B arrangements informs three innovative LPs. The most recent of which, the conceptual “The BPM,” pulses with dancefloor physicality, hip-hop assertiveness and kinetic personality. Intended by Parks to be disruptive, it’s that and more — analog folk and digital futurism bound to blow up on a widespread level.

8 p.m. Feb. 5 at Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport St.; tickets (ages 17+) from $39.96 at ticketweb.com

Shemekia Copeland performs during the “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” event on Wacker Drive on Dec. 31, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Shemekia Copeland

Timing can be everything. Decades ago, when blues reigned supreme, Shemekia Copeland would’ve likely been a celebrity. As it stands, Copeland will settle for her role as the blues’ leading under-50 ambassador. Her 2018-2022 album trilogy ranks among the most fearless, smartest state-of-the-union statements recorded in any genre this century. “Blame It on Eve,” her latest effort for local imprint Alligator Records, dials down social commentary in favor of expanding into country, jazz, funk and more. Graced with a big voice and commanding presence, Copeland shrinks the size of any space she plays.

8 p.m. Feb. 27 at SPACE, 1245 Chicago Ave., Evanston; tickets from $37.69 at ticketweb.com

Margo Price

Margo Price suffers no fools and knows exactly where she stands. The singer-guitarist begins her newest salvo, the excellent “Hard Headed Woman,” with an unwavering proclamation: “I’m a hard-headed woman and I don’t owe you (expletive).” Outlaw country to the core, the Illinois native espouses an uncompromising independence and social-justice righteousness missing from the Nashville mainstream — and feigned for appearance’s sake in related circles. Price’s decision in December to play for women incarcerated in a Tennessee penitentiary underlines her feminist bond with royalty such as Loretta Lynn and June Carter Cash. Her direct storytelling, and firm grasp on gospel, blues, soul and roots styles, confirm her place as a contemporary spitfire.

7:30 p.m. Feb. 28 at Metro, 3730 N. Clark St.; tickets from $37.84 at etix.com

Margo Price performs at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on Dec. 6, 2024. (Troy Stolt / for the Chicago Tribune)

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Medeski, Cline, Moore and Skerik

Keyboardist John Medeski, guitarist Nels Cline, drummer Stanton Moore and saxophonist Skerik haven’t released any music together. Apart from these shows, they have just one other scheduled date. No matter. The improvisational nature of a gathering that unites four versatile instrumentalists who claim hundreds of projects to their collective credit — collaborations with jazz visionaries such as John Zorn and John Scofield, stints with sludge-metal pioneers Corrosion of Conformity and Chicago veterans Wilco included — proves too enticing to ignore. The group might turn overly jammy or lose the thread, yet it won’t hurt for ambition or surprise.

8 p.m. March 13, 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. March 14 at Garcia’s Chicago, 1001 W. Washington Blvd.; tickets from $51.05 at ticketmaster.com

Matt Berninger

As his Dessner brother mates in The National make names for themselves as in-demand producers (Taylor Swift, anyone?) and composers, vocalist Matt Berninger continues to quietly establish his own identity apart from the group. Recovered from a depression that nearly sidelined his career, Berninger’s subdued aesthetic isn’t too far removed from that of the latter-era output of his main band. His signature characteristics — the murmuring baritone, the unhurried deliveries, the simmering ruminations, the deceptively bare backdrops — fill a pair of solo LPs whose wound-tight songs could benefit from the less-constrained interplay that often occurs on stage.

7:30 p.m. March 17 at Riviera Theatre 4746 N. Racine Ave.; tickets (ages 18+) from $54.86 at axs.com

Matt Berninger sings with the band The National at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on May 18, 2023. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)

Anna von Hausswolff

Though “The Phantom of the Opera” leaves in February, another pipe organist prone to eerie soundscapes and gothic overtones arrives the next month. Swedish singer-composer Anna von Hausswolff, whose cathedral melodies, intense vocals and doom-laden dirges share much in common with Nordic heavy-metal culture, specializes in mystery and grandiosity. Her opuses frequently remain shrouded in darkness before they locate splinters of light. As that tension escalates, battles — between good and evil, fantasy and reality, collapse and triumph — ensue. In viewing her shows as rituals, von Hausswolff understands the draw of drama and mayhem. This, her first area date since 2013, has all the markings for becoming one of the Empty Bottle’s “I was there when” evenings.

9 p.m. March 20 at Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave.; (ages 21+) at emptybottle.com

Who’s coming for concerts this summer: 50 shows for 2026, from Rosalía to Guns N’ Roses

The Hives and the Chats

Fans of witty, hot-wired garage rock and brash, no-frills punk might not catch a stronger double bill this year. The egg timer on The Hives’ fame should’ve dinged several mayoral administrations ago. And still the Swedish rabble-rousers endure. Their recent “The Hives Forever Forever the Hives” LP contains one magnetic riff, unison-shouted chorus and sneering one-liner after another. Their irreverent humor revitalized, tongue-in-cheek arrogance intact and reputation as a blistering live act secure, it’s fair to state The Hives hate to say they told us so. The Chats take a loose, DIY approach to buzzing tunes about food, vices, anxiety and being broke. The Aussie trio’s rowdy rants, unpretentious attitudes and pub accents come across as the hyperactive equivalent of chasing a can of Red Bull with a round of Malort shots. Let it rip.

7:30 p.m. March 26 at Salt Shed, 1357 N. Elston Ave.; (ages 17+) at saltshedchicago.com

Bob Gendron is a freelance critic.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/pop-rock-hip-hop-concerts-2026/ 

Long before audiences saw Glinda’s dazzling pink dresses or Elphaba’s dramatic layered ensembles on the big screen, Paul Tazewell was imagining how silhouette, color and texture would bring the witches of Oz to life.

Tazewell, the award-winning costume designer behind both “Wicked” films, the stage musical “Hamilton” and Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story,” will be the focus of a new exhibition opening Jan. 19 at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry.

“Crafting Character: The Costumes of Paul Tazewell,” located in the museum’s Kenneth C. Griffin Studio, will showcase designs from early projects in Tazewell’s career to some of his most recognizable pieces in film, theater, television and the red carpet.

“To allow visitors to engage directly with the work, to see it up close and in person, I’m hopeful that it will be exciting for them,” Tazewell said. “I think overall it would be a very full experience for anybody that chooses to come and see it.”

As the designer’s debut exhibit, Tazewell said being approached by the museum was a blessing. His retrospective is near the museum’s 56th annual “Black Creativity Juried Art Exhibition,” which highlights Black innovators and artists.

“I am so honored that my exhibit sits adjacent to that as a celebration of the artist community here in Chicago,” Tazewell said.

Last year, Tazewell made history as the first Black man to win the Academy Award in costume design for his work on the first “Wicked” movie. As one of many milestones featured in the exhibit, visitors will follow a multimedia journey through Tazewell’s three-decade-long career and meticulous creative process. Each room will be accompanied by his audio narration, along with behind-the-scenes videos, original sketches and photographs.

The exhibition opens with a room centered on Tazewell’s inspirations, bringing together family photos, artwork by his mother and costume sketches from his college years. Janelle Monáe’s viral 2025 Met Gala look, created by Tazewell in collaboration with designer Thom Browne, anchors the space, but a photo of Tazewell as a junior in high school marks the true beginning of his Ozian trajectory.

As a child growing up in Akron, Ohio, he was captivated by the shift from sepia-toned Kansas to vibrant Technicolor in the 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz,” a scene that still inspires him. At 16, he designed costumes for his high school production of “The Wiz.” He would later win an Emmy in 2016 for costume design for “The Wiz: Live!” before moving on to the screen adaptation of the stage musical “Wicked.”

As the retrospective continues, viewers will see the intricate engineering behind Tazewell’s designs.

While Anita’s yellow dress from “West Side Story” appears to ripple effortlessly as Ariana DeBose spins during the film’s “America” sequence, Tazewell said numerous technical decisions went into achieving the effect.

“There’s geometry that goes into the pattern making. There are choices about fabrics that are specific to textile fibers and what those different aspects bring to manifesting costumes,” he said.

Costumes by Paul Tazewell in a scene from the 2021 movie “West Side Story.” (20th Century Studios / Provided by MCA)

Other signature pieces of the exhibit include costumes from Broadway’s “Hamilton,” from Thomas Jefferson’s purple suit to King George III’s royal ensemble and the Schuyler sisters’ Winter Ball gowns. Tazewell won his first Tony Award for the musical’s costume design, though he emphasizes the contributions of the artisans who were on his team, such as tailor Artur Allakhverdyan.

In a room dedicated to collaboration, the exhibition spotlights the craftspeople behind Tazewell’s designs, including Miodrag Guberinic, who assisted him on the “Wicked” films, and Mark Zappone, who collaborated on “The Sleeping Beauty” ballet production for Pacific Northwest Ballet last year.

“There are many minds behind creating and realizing a costume,” Tazewell said. “I’ve had the privilege to design alongside incredibly skilled makers.”

The Oscar-winning costume designer Paul Tazewell stands outside his upcoming exhibit “Crafting Character: The Costumes of Paul Tazewell” at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, 5700 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Jan. 7, 2026. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

The final room of the exhibit is devoted to Tazewell’s work on the film  “Wicked: Part 1.” His most ambitious project to date, he designed more than a thousand pieces for both movies. In the first film, there were 25 costumes for Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba and another 25 for Ariana Grande’s Glinda.

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As the main characters of “Wicked,” Tazewell said he wanted to capture the personality of Elphaba and Glinda in what they wear, as he aims to do with all of his projects.

“There is an intention behind both conceptually what the costume is and how the character will be represented in the costume,” he said.

Glinda’s effervescent pink bubble dress is not only a nod to the original “Wizard of Oz” dress, but it’s also meant to reflect an archetype of goodness. Made of layered nylon and silk organza, the dress comprises 137 pattern pieces and approximately 20,000 beads.

On the other hand, many of Elphaba’s dark ensembles, such as the one she wears while singing “Defying Gravity,” have mushroom-inspired micro pleats and layered textures that reflect her affinity to nature and animals.

For Tazewell, the exhibit is about more than seeing his designs up close.

“I hope it inspires young people to want to be a costume designer, and at the very least, that it inspires creativity,” he said. “To be that kind of inspiration is really, I think, a big part of why I’m here, why I’m here on Earth.”

“Crafting Character: The Costumes of Paul Tazewell” runs Jan. 19 to Sept. 8 at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry Chicago, 57th St. and DuSable Lake Shore Drive; 773-684-1414 and msichicago.org

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/tazewell-museum-exhibit-chicago/ 

Por OMAR ALBAM

ALEPO, Siria (AP) — El Ministerio de Defensa de Siria anunció el viernes un alto el fuego después de tres días de enfrentamientos entre las fuerzas gubernamentales y combatientes kurdos en la ciudad de Alepo, en el norte del país, que causaron miles de desplazados.

Las Fuerzas Democráticas Sirias, lideradas por kurdos, no respondieron públicamente al anuncio, y un consejo local kurdo rechazó los llamados a la evacuación de los combatientes.

El ministerio explicó en un comunicado que el alto el fuego entró en vigor a las tres de la madrugada en los vecindarios de Sheikh Maqsoud, Achrafieh y Bani Zaid, y dio a los grupos armados seis horas para abandonar esas zonas.

Además, indicó que a los insurgentes que se retirasen se les permitiría llevar “armas ligeras personales” y se les escoltaría hacia el noreste del país, controlado por las FDS.

El gobernador de Alepo, Azzam al-Gharib, recorrió los barrios en disputa con una escolta de fuerzas de seguridad durante la noche.

Pero en las horas posteriores al anuncio ningún combatiente dejó su posición. Los autobuses que esperaban alineados para evacuar a los insurgentes seguían vacíos horas después de que venciese el plazo.

Un consejo local que representa a los barrios de Sheikh Maqsoud y Achrafieh señaló en un comunicado que “No aceptaremos las presiones que se nos imponen ni los llamados a rendirse”.

“No confiamos en que el gobierno de Damasco nos garantice nuestra seguridad, y hemos decidido permanecer en nuestros barrios y defenderlos”, agregó la nota.

El enviado de Estados Unidos a Siria, Tom Barrack, celebró el anuncio en un comunicado en X y expresó su “profundo agradecimiento a todas las partes: el gobierno sirio, las Fuerzas Democráticas Sirias, las autoridades locales y los líderes comunitarios, por la moderación y la buena voluntad que hicieron posible esta pausa vital”.

Barrack afirmó que Washington estaba trabajando con las partes para extender el alto el fuego más allá del plazo de seis horas.

Unas 142.000 personas se han visto obligadas a abandonar sus hogares debido a los combates, que estallaron el martes con intercambios de bombardeos y ataques con drones.

Cada bando acusa al otro de iniciar la violencia y de atacar deliberadamente a vecindarios e infraestructuras civiles, incluyendo ambulancias y hospitales.

De acuerdo con las fuerzas kurdas, al menos 12 civiles fallecieron en zonas de mayoría kurda, mientras que funcionarios gubernamentales reportaron la muerte de al menos nueve civiles en las áreas circundantes controladas por Damasco durante los combates.

Decenas de personas han resultado heridas en ambos bandos. La cifra de bajas entre combatientes de las dos partes no estaba clara.

Los choques se producen en medio de un estancamiento en las negociaciones políticas entre el gobierno central y las FDS.

El liderazgo en Damasco, bajo el presidente interino Ahmad al-Sharaa, firmó en marzo del año pasado un acuerdo con las FDS, que controlan gran parte del noreste, para que se fusionaran con el ejército sirio a finales de 2025. Pero ha habido discrepancias acerca de cómo sucedería.

Algunas de las facciones que componen el nuevo ejército sirio, formado después de la caída del expresidente Bashar Assad en una ofensiva rebelde en diciembre de 2024, eran grupos insurgentes respaldados por Turquía con un largo historial de enfrentamientos con las fuerzas kurdas.

Las FDS han sido durante años el principal socio de Estados Unidos en Siria en la lucha contra el grupo extremista Estado Islámico, pero Turquía considera que son una organización terrorista debido a su asociación con el Partido de los Trabajadores del Kurdistán, o PKK, que libró una larga insurgencia contra Ankara. Ahora hay un proceso de paz en marcha.

A pesar del prolongado apoyo de Washington a las FDS, el gobierno del presidente Donald Trump también ha desarrollado estrechos lazos con el gobierno de al-Sharaa y presionó a los kurdos para implementar el acuerdo de marzo.

___

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/siria-anuncia-un-alto-el-fuego-tras-das-de-enfrentamientos-con-combatientes-kurdos-en-alepo/ 

Four Investment Themes For 2026

Tyler Durden
Fri, 01/09/2026 – 06:30

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/four-investment-themes-2026 

The south and southwest suburbs saw a 35% decrease in homicides in 2025 compared to 2024, according to tracking by the Daily Southtown, reflecting a continuing downward trend in recent years.

The same trend is apparent in numbers for Chicago and greater Cook County, according to a preliminary analysis published by the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

According to that report, there were 541 homicides in Cook County as a whole last year, down from 792 in 2024 and 850 in 2023. Last year was the first year since 2014 that the medical examiner’s office handled fewer than 600 homicides in a year, the report said.

Dolton and Harvey tied for the most homicides in the south suburbs, with seven each, according to Southtown tracking. In 2024, Harvey and Dolton each had nine homicides, the Daily Southtown reported.

Homicides in both Cook County and Chicago have been on a steady decline since 2021, when they peaked with 1,094 homicides in Cook County, 839 of which were in the city of Chicago, according to the medical examiner’s office. Homicides peaked nationally in 2021, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

In Chicago, gun violence fell to lows not seen in a decade last year, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Homicides in the south suburbs in 2025 were nearly halved compared to 2023, according to tracking by the Daily Southtown.

The first Southland homicide of 2025 was in Harvey, when Eric McCann, 22, was shot on New Year’s Day.

One high-profile shooting unfolded in Harvey when an August house party turned deadly, leaving seven people injured and one man dead. Two men opened fire on partygoers. One man, Charles Lipsey, 24, of Richton Park, was shot and killed when a party attendee licensed for concealed carry returned fire.

Another man killed the next day in Harvey, Jeremiah Adtutubofuh, 28, of Chicago, was thought by police to have been shot in retaliation for the party shooting.

Ford Heights saw four homicides in 2025, according to Daily Southtown tracking. Two of the victims were killed in the same shooting July 5: Michael Agee, 32, of Lynwood, and Rayquan Dixon, 31, of Hammond, Indiana. A suspect, 31-year-old Detrion Anderson of Chicago, was arrested Jan. 1 and has been charged with first-degree murder.

Hazel Crest, Riverdale, South Holland and Chicago Heights each had three homicides reported last year, according to the data.

Riverdale had six homicides in 2024, and Chicago Heights had five, according to prior reporting.

In South Holland, 16-year-old Davell Holden, a Thornwood High athlete, was killed Aug. 2 outside his girlfriend’s home in what officials later said was a case of mistaken identity. Holden’s girlfriend had lived on the same street as the intended victim, who Holden resembled, village officials said.

Murder charges were filed last month against three defendants in Holden’s death: 21-year-old Javan Moore, 20-year-old Demon Smith and a 16-year-old.

One of the final homicide cases of the year was a double homicide in Richton Park Dec. 27. Nivia Phillips, 38, and her boyfriend, Marcus Jones, 45, were killed. Phillips’ 21-year-old son, Javonte Morris, was later charged with the crime. No other homicides were reported in Richton Park last year.

The Daily Southtown also tracked two homicides each in Glenwood, Markham, Matteson and Lansing in 2025.

In May, Charlotte Love, 23, was killed in a murder-suicide by Kash Wakefield, 37, in May. Police said the two had been dating. On May 13, Wakefield shot Love multiple times, then shot himself in the head, according to police. Love died of her injuries early the next day.

Worth, Crestwood, Park Forest, Oak Forest, Robbins, Crete, Steger, Calumet Park, Evergreen Park, Chicago Ridge and Blue Island all had one homicide each in 2025, according to Daily Southtown tracking.

In Chicago Ridge, Alaa Edeen Qouqazeh, 27, was charged with murder in the Dec. 8 death of his father, Mohammad Qouqazeh, 59. In court filings, prosecutors said Alaa Edeen Qouqazeh thought his father was poisoning him and using “dark magic” against him.

Calumet City had no homicides reported for 2025. The Daily Southtown previously reported that it had eight in 2024, and six in 2023.

According to the medical examiner’s office, 73% of Cook County homicide victims last year were Black, and 18% were Latino. 83% were men.

elewis@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/homicide-drop-south-southwest-suburbs/ 

In February 2011, I was hospitalized with meningitis. It was scary and painful and it left me with lasting heart damage — a pericardial effusion, specifically, which means there’s a sac of fluid around my heart.

Apparently when you develop a dangerous infection, your body deploys fluid to surround and protect your organs. (What a design!) In some cases, like mine, the fluid fails to absorb back into your system and you’re left with an effusion.

It’s a minor nuisance, all things considered. An internal scar that reminds me to be gentle with my beat-up heart.

My children were 5 years old and 18 months old when I was hospitalized. The whole ordeal was humbling and perspective-giving, and leaves me feeling a lot of things. The main thing is grateful.

Grateful for the doctors who saved my life in 2011. Grateful for the science that guided their knowledge. Grateful for the compassion that guided their care.

Grateful for the heart specialists who monitored me closely for the ensuing years. Grateful for their help returning to normal life, including running — slowly, at first, and now full steam ahead. (Going for my second marathon this fall!)

And grateful, above all, that my kids are protected against the disease by a vaccine the Centers for Disease Control first started recommending for adolescents in 2005 — the year my daughter was born. Since then, the incidence of meningococcal disease in adolescents has decreased by more than 90%, according to CDC data.

Now, under a dramatic overhaul of the childhood vaccine schedule, the CDC will no longer recommend universal vaccination against meningitis — nor against rotavirus, hepatitis A or influenza.

The changes take effect immediately.

“At a time when parents, pediatricians and the public are looking for clear guidance and accurate information, this ill-considered decision will sow further chaos and confusion and erode confidence in immunizations,” American Academy of Pediatrics President Andrew Racine said in a statement. “This is no way to make our country healthier.”

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana who leads the Senate’s health policy committee, had this to say on X:

“As a doctor who treated patients for decades, my top priority is protecting children and families. Multiple children have died or were hospitalized from measles, and South Carolina continues to face a growing outbreak. Two children have died in my state from whooping cough. All of this was preventable with safe and effective vaccines.” (Paradoxically, Cassidy voted to confirm the appointment of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the vaccine overhaul’s architect.)

“The vaccine schedule IS NOT A MANDATE,” Cassidy continued. “It’s a recommendation giving parents the power. Changing the pediatric vaccine schedule based on no scientific input on safety risks and little transparency will cause unnecessary fear for patients and doctors, and will make America sicker.”

The words “no scientific input” should send a chill down our spines.

“One CDC scientist who works on vaccines said career staff were ‘blindsided’ by Monday’s announcement of a revised schedule,” the Washington Post reported. “Another CDC scientist who works on vaccines said ‘none of us had any idea this was happening yesterday, and only learned when we heard people had been invited’ to an HHS briefing for reporters to explain the new vaccine policy.

“The new vaccine recommendations also came without consulting the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices,” the Post continued. “That panel of medical professionals and experts outside the government is supposed to evaluate vaccine safety and effectiveness data to inform recommendations. It typically holds days-long public meetings and, in coordination with CDC staff, conducts extensive reviews of benefits and risks before voting to change a recommendation for a vaccine already on the schedule.”

America has a complicated relationship with expertise. A life devoted to acquiring knowledge isn’t celebrated the way a life devoted to acquiring, say, wealth or followers or Super Bowl rings is. To specialize in a field of study is to invite a fair bit of skepticism and scorn.

Now, I fear that skepticism and scorn have been elevated to the upper echelons of power. To the seats at the tables where so many decisions are made — decisions that dominate our days and dictate our health and determine our fates.

Now, I fear we’re witnessing the unraveling of a pretty key component of the American Dream — the part where you give your children a better life than the one you had.

What a waste that would be. What a squandered opportunity. What a slap in the face to the folks who’ve studied, who’ve researched, who’ve invented, who’ve saved lives, who’ve fought for their lives, who’ve lost their lives, who’ve devoted their lives to keeping that last group as small as possible.

We know better than this. We can do better than this.

Join the Heidi Stevens Balancing Act Facebook group, where she continues the conversation around her columns and hosts occasional live chats.

Twitter @heidistevens13

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/09/heidi-stevens-vaccines-science/