Malcolm X: His life and times as seen through Timeline

Malcolm X continues to influence civil rights activists throughout the world. Malcolm, who adopted the Islamic religion while in prison, became a pioneering figure for the American Muslim movement, popularizing that religion in the African-American community. He is best known for his controversial advocacy for the rights of blacks; some consider him a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its crimes against black Americans, while others accused him of preaching violence. But his extreme intelligence and articulation of the rights of African-Americans continues to resonate today. Here is a timeline covering highlights in his life:
 

(Country/State TBD) leads in avocado exports during latter half of 2018

An avocado farm in Jalisco, Mexico (Andres Gonzalez/Pinterest)

(This city/country), despite a slight drop in production, led everyone else in avocado production during the last quarter of 2018, according to information produced by the Hass Avocado Board.

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Cousins, Rodgers are top QBs in NFC North for 2018

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (John Jacobs/NFL)

 

 

 

 

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers recorded eight games each with 100-plus QB ratings in 2018, which allowed them to finish one and two respectively in overall ratings for the 2018 season in the NFC North, according to rating released today by the NFL.

The statistics, seen in the animated graphic above, show that Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky recorded the highest quarterback ratings in one game during the 2018 season -- he had a 154 QB rating in a 48-10 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

A walking tour: My five top entertainment venues in Chicago

The Chicago Theatre in 2012 (Daniel Schwin)

Chicago has always been a home for important entertainment venues. Some of the city's most storied entertainment hot spots can be seen in this walking tour. Click on the icons in the map below to learn more about five of the most important arts & entertainment hot-spots:



We start our walking tour on Chicago’s North Side at the Congress Theatre in the city’s Logan Square neighborhood. This movie palace, which opened in 1926, was once a premier vaudeville house, in addition to showing movies. By the late 20th century, it was a premier music venue. But now it is closed and undergoing a $65 million renovation, with plans to reopen as a 4,900 music venue.

Below is a recent look at a show at the Congress Theatre when it was open. This is from Jan. 1, 2011, when legendary rocker Chuck Berry did his trademark "duck walk" across the stage during a performance that ended earily, after the 84-year-old rock and roll pioneer collapsed on the stage:

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We then proceed south to the Loop, where the legendary Chicago Theatre stands the corner of State and Lake streets. This great theatre featured movies and stage shows from its opening in 1921 until early 1956. It then showed movies only from 1956 to 1985, before being repurposed as one of the nation’s premier live performance venue.

Here is a look at the ornate, beautiful lobby in the Chicago Theatre:

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After that, we head to the South Loop, where Buddy Guy’s Legends nightclub has been the one of the country’s most notable blues clubs. Bluesman Buddy Guy opened the club in 1989, and he still plays there on a regular basis, along with just about every major blues and rock artist in the U.S.

After that, we head south to the Pilsen neighborhood, where Thalia Hall has been a neighborhood institution since 1892. It was first designed as an opera house, and suffered through decades of disrepair, but it’s now a live pop music venue.

Finally, we head south to the Avalon Park neighborhood, to the Avalon Regal Theatre. This beautiful 1927 1,900-seat theatre, designed by John Eberson, looks like a Middle Eastern tent in its auditorium. It started as a movie-and-vaudeville house, known as the Avalon Theatre. But after closing its doors in the early 1970s, it was resurrected as the New Regal Theatre by African-American entrepreneur Edward Gardner in 1987, serving as a venue for black performers. It's been closed and needs $5 million in renovations. Kanye West has pledged $1 million in support of the theatre, although that promise has not yet been fulfilled.

Here’s a split screen image showing the Avalon Regal Theatre in 1927, shortly after its opening, and in 2019:

My walking tour: The Edgewater neighborhood

The scene from Kathy Osterman Beach (Allan Scott Walker)

For over 100 years, the Edgewater neighborhood in Chicago has been one of the city's landmark communities. And in recent years, this lakefront community area has been one of the most diverse communities in the United States, with over 70 ethnic groups living in the area. It's landmarks are represented in my walking tour, as represented by this map:

   
The Swedish-American Museum at 5200 is a special venue, representing the Swedes who founded the Edgewater neighborhood of Andersonville in the late 19th century. King Carl XVI of Sweden was present at its founding. This week, it is being used as a strike camp for Chicago Public School teachers.

Edgewater Beach Apartments is the only remaining part of the Edgewater Beach Hotel complex, started by Marshall and Fox in 1918. This massive, Spanish-style “Pink Palace” was connected to the hotel by a three-block beach promenade for decades.

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