NEWS FROM : Art & Heritage  

Every city has its own traditions, customs and superstitions, and Chicago is no exception. But it can be difficult to explain to an out-of-towner the street etiquette of “dibs,” the rivalry between the North and South sides, why ketchup on the Chicago hot dog is frowned upon and why anyone would ever drink Malort on purpose. Also, the importance of...

Can't get enough of the Italian festivals in the Mahoning Valley? Well, another one is just about to begin on Thursday. The 32nd Annual Brier Hill Italian Festival kicks off Thursday, August 15 at 4:00 p.m. and will last until the end of Sunday at the corner of Calvin and and Victoria Street in Youngstown, OH.  Festival hours are 4:00 p.m. to midni...

The Italian American Cultural Club held its annual Una Serata Italiana event Aug. 2 in Steubenville, OH. Hundreds throughout the community gathered inside Froehlich’s Classic Corner, which had been transformed into an Italian display, featuring four food and dessert stations, each representing an Italian city. Guests visited Rome, Venice, Florence...

The Warren (OH) Italian-American Heritage Festival brings back former residents and attracts out-of-town guests every year. One visitor isn’t welcome this year (or any year) — rain. After heavy storms affected last year’s event, Corey Hovance, president of the festival’s board, referred to this weekend’s event as its “redemption year.” “Being the p...

Little Italy’s Feast is the celebration heard all around Northeast Ohio. The iconic, weekend-long event is known best for its spectacle of Italian cuisine, turning Mayfield Road into a vendor market of pasta, pizza, cannolis and Italian treats in town. Games, casinos and music keep the entertainment alive, but its reason for the season makes the fe...

Cook County Circuit Court Justice Regina Scannicchio has been elevated from acting presiding judge to presiding judge of the Domestic Relations Division by Chief Judge Timothy Evans. Scannicchio was named acting presiding judge on Sept. 23, 2022. She was first appointed to the bench by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2011 after 23 years as a private...

Italian Fest will return to Iron Mountain (MI) on Aug. 10. Attendees can sample Italian cuisine and wines or join in on the Italian dinner toss and grape stomp. Kids will have inflatable bounce houses and can watch a showing of the Pixar movie Cars 2. First National Bank & Trust Veteran Outreach Committee Chairman Matt Donovan said the bank has par...

Amaseno Lodge No. 3 of Chicago Heights will host its 50th anniversary Feast of San Lorenzo and San Rocco from Aug. 9-11. The lodge was formed in 1913 by immigrants from Amaseno, a small farming village 60 miles south of Rome. Settling in Chicago Heights’ Hungry Hill Italian enclave, they brought with them a deep devotion to San Lorenzo, an early Ch...

A young woman on a scooter lobbed a verbal hand grenade at a tour group on a hot summer night in Cleveland’s Little Italy two weeks ago. “This neighborhood is gentrified!” she yelled as she zoomed past 65 people on Random Road who were enjoying a two-hour “Take a Hike" walking tour of local history and culture. It wasn’t clear why the woman used th...

Nestled away in the northwest suburbs lies one of Chicagoland’s most peculiar tourist attractions, the Leaning Tower of Niles. Given its rather mundane surroundings, the tower sticks out like a decorative sore thumb. So just how did this ode to Italy come to be in the heart of the Midwest?  A half-sized replica of Italy’s famous Leaning Tower of Pi...

Festa Italiana is one of the many great traditions here in Rockford and this year they are celebrating 45 years of the festival! Mike and Paul Maffioli are with us tonight to show off some of the food that will be available at Festa Italiana as well as talk about some of the entertainment. Festa Italiana is sponsored by the Greater Rockford Italian...

The 24th annual Our Lady of Mount Carmel Italian Festival began Thursday in Youngstown, OH. This year, organizers have added some new things. There are new foods to try and vendors to check out, like Yosteria, a popular eatery. “People can expect traditional Italian food from cavatelli to pizza, to braciole sandwiches. We’ll have Italian cocktails...