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Our five favorite Chicago gangster nicknames
1. Ralph “Bottles” Capone
Your younger brother’s nickname is “Scarface,” but you get saddled with “Bottles”? That’s gotta hurt. Ralphie was for the most part a legitimate businessman. Brother Al, however, who set him up with a soda-bottling operation—hence the name—made sure that besides Coca-Cola, Ralphie’s beverages were the only ones sold at the 1933 World’s Fair.
2. Jake “The Barber” Factor
This sobriquet supposedly referred to his days as a chore boy in a shop on Halsted Street—owned, not coincidentally, by his now-legendary brother, beauty magnate Max Factor.
3. Joey “The Clown” Lombardo (a.k.a. Lumpy)
“Lumpy” for the lumps this 1970s and ’80s mob boss left on the heads of his enemies; “The Clown” for his penchant for corny jokes. Among the zingers he’s quoted as delivering during his 2005 indictment: He told baffled reporters that a piece of his jewelry was made of “canarly” stone—“You ‘canarly’ see it!”
4. Sam “Teets” Battaglia
No, “Teets” did not boast massive manboobs. Rather, this high-ranking Chicago Outfit member once told a fellow mobster to “Shaddup, or I’ll bust ya in da teets!” Ouch.
5. Sam “Golf Bag” Hunt
One of Capone’s best shooters, “Golf Bag” valued the element of surprise. Rather than tote his machine gun around strapped to his shoulder, this mobster concealed his weapon in an innocuous-looking duffer’s bag.—Martina Sheehan
Chicagocentric tattoo we love
“I call it ‘California Nightmare and Sweet Home Chicago.’ One part has a scene of California, and it’s all gray and depressing-looking, and there’s a tornado in the middle, then mountains, then rain, then a sunset view of Chicago. I lived in San Diego and had lots of bad luck there.”—Merrick (no last name)
Our five favorite scribblings on the greenroom wall at Second City
1. Bernie Sahlins
2. Jim Zulevic
3. Liz Cackowski
4. Tim Meadows
5.Tina Fey—Steve Heisler
Pivotal nonsports sports moments in Chicago history
September 22, 1959: Some North Side residents seek shelter as Hizzoner Mayor Richard J. Daley sets off the city’s air-raid sirens when the White Sox clinch the AL pennant.
July 12, 1979: Riot cops are called in at old Comiskey Park when thousands of fans storm the field during Steve Dahl’s “Disco Demolition Night” at a doubleheader between the Sox and Detroit Tigers.
January 15, 1997: After attempting to corral a loose ball, Bulls resident loon Dennis Rodman kicks cameraman Eugene Amosin in his man parts. Rodman ultimately settles with the cameraman for $200,000 and is suspended by the league for 11 games.
May 16, 2000: One minute, Los Angeles Dodger Chad Kreuter is chilling in the Wrigley bullpen. The next, someone steals his hat. Kreuter chases, his teammates follow, punches are thrown between Dodgers and undoubtedly sober fans, and the game is delayed.
September 19, 2002: The shirtless duo of William Ligue Jr. and his 15-year-old son bum-rushes Kansas City Royals 54-year-old first-base coach, Tom Gamboa. “He got what he deserved,” the elder Ligue said afterward.
June 3, 2003: Slugger Sammy Sosa is booted from a game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for using a corked bat. But that would be cheating, and we’re sure Sosa has never, ever done that.
June 19, 2003: Jay Williams, a guard from Duke University whom the Bulls nabbed with the No. 2 pick in the draft, is seriously injured after he steers his Yamaha motorcycle into a pole on the North Side. Sadly, he has yet to make a return to the NBA after the Bulls generously bought out his contract.
October 14, 2003: With the Cubs just five outs away from the World Series in the National League Championship Series, nerdius maximus Steve Bartman tries to grab a Luis Castillo foul ball down the left-field line. Bartman’s efforts prevent Cub Moises Alou from catching the ball. We could go on, but it’s just too depressing.
July 2, 2006: Barry Anderson, dressed as Benny the Bull, is involved with a police chase after he is told by an off-duty cop that he can’t ride his motorcycle through the grounds of Taste of Chicago. Fisticuffs ensue, though no charges are filed after Anderson agrees to replace Johnny Law’s broken glasses.
November 25, 2006: Recently acquired center Ben Wallace is forced to leave a game against the New York Knicks for sporting a headband, a uniform infraction according to coach Scott Skiles and GM John Paxson, despite the fact that much of the Bulls promotional materials, including pocket schedules, feature images of Big Ben with a headband.—Tim McCormick
Barbara (Wills) Campbell
Fri, Apr 11, at 11:28am
Dear Diane Hunt (Sam Golfbag Hunt's daughter): Please contact me if you are alivel My Aunt Pat died last August, 2008. You and I played and stayed together at the Whispering Pines in Houghton Lake, MI. Just want to say "hello" and let each other know what we have done with our lives. Thanks.
Barbara (Wills) Campbell
Thu, Feb 21, at 01:34pm
Im looking for Sam Hunt's daughter, Diane. We use to play together. Please let me know if you are still alive. I am 70 now.
