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Passenger arrested after doing the unthinkable

<p dir="ltr">A plane full of passengers have been left in shock after a man randomly got up and jumped out the emergency exit.</p> <p dir="ltr">The man was on board a United Airlines flight which just landed on the tarmac at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, USA on May 5 when he opened the emergency exit door and walked out on the plane’s wings.</p> <p dir="ltr">The plane was still moving, making its way to the gate for passengers to get off safely when the man did the unthinkable. </p> <p dir="ltr">"I think everybody on the plane was just surprised and kind of shocked. As he was going out, I heard everybody yelling, 'No, no, no!' and he went out the exit door and onto the wing," witness Mary Ellen told WGN TV.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Even the stewardess came back and said, 'What just happened?' And you could see the open door to the plane and we weren't even to the gate yet."</p> <p dir="ltr">The man had managed to slide down the wing and onto the runway and was luckily unharmed.</p> <p dir="ltr">Police were however called and they arrested the man with charges yet to be laid.</p> <p dir="ltr">"This morning United flight 2478 was taxiing toward the gate at Chicago O'Hare when a passenger opened an aircraft door and exited the plane,” United Airlines said in a statement.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Our ground crew stopped the individual outside of the aircraft, and the person is now with law enforcement. </p> <p dir="ltr">“The plane then arrived at the gate and all passengers deplaned safely. The safety of our customers and crew is our highest priority."</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

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From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

<p>The second half of 2021 is proving to be a peak time for movie musical-goers, with the release of critically acclaimed In the Heights, disastrously received Dear Evan Hansen, and Steven Spielberg’s hotly anticipated West Side Story.</p> <p>These films lead to reflection on one of the stranger sub-genres of film history — the musical stage-to-screen adaptation. To film a stage show (as in the recent professionally shot films of Hamilton and Come from Away), or merely to create bigger stage sets in a studio (there are many examples of this, from Guys and Dolls to The Producers) is not truly to adapt a musical to film.</p> <p>Instead, adaptors should use the tools unique to film to re-interpret the musical in this different medium.</p> <p>To help us through the vicissitudes of adaptation, here is an idiosyncratic list of a few DOs and DON’Ts.</p> <h2>DO use real locations creatively</h2> <p>Location shooting is a frequent tool used to enhance the realism of film musicals, but placing the un-realism of song and dance in a real place can backfire and create an uncanny valley. Locations are best used in a super-realistic way.</p> <p>A successful recent example of this is In the Heights. Director Jon Chu and his production team shot much of the film in Washington Heights in Manhattan, but in a way that the neighbourhood seems a natural place for music-making: very careful lighting, colour-timing, and the occasional unobtrusive effects shot lift the story out of the mundane.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">In The Heights (2021) is a love letter to the Washington Heights area of NYC.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></p> <p>In the number When the Sun Goes Down, lovers Benny and Nina begin singing naturalistically on a fire escape, but then a set on hydraulics, green screen, and “magic hour” lighting come together to enable a gravity-defying dance across the rooftops and walls of the apartment buildings.</p> <p>See also: Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar, On the Town</p> <h2>DON’T ghettoise all of the musical numbers to a stark dreamland covered in artistic scaffolding</h2> <p>Counter to the previous guideline about using real locations for musical numbers, some film musicals go too far in the opposite direction.</p> <p>Two musicals directed by Rob Marshall, Chicago and Nine, puzzlingly use the same solution to try and hedge their bets: the dialogue scenes happen in realistic locations (1920s Chicago and 1960s Rome, respectively) but the musical numbers are relegated to their characters’ internal fantasies, which in both cases means studio-like settings that allow for dancers to be placed in aesthetically pleasing formations.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">Chicago (2002), features musical numbers entirely set within the character’s internal fantasies.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></p> <p>This strategy gets the filmmakers out of having to bridge the gap between speech time and music time, but the narrative innovations of both shows are smoothed out on screen. That makes for a less interesting filmgoing experience.</p> <p>The exception that proves the rule here is Cabaret, in which director Bob Fosse removed all of the “book” songs and kept only those performed in the titular cabaret.</p> <p>Through innovative intercutting and montage the cabaret songs pervade the whole texture of the film, however, resulting in one of the most “musical” of all musicals.</p> <h2>DO fix problems with the dramatic unfolding of the source material</h2> <p>Show Boat was the first stage musical to attempt a truly epic form, covering twenty years of story time and locations all along the Mississippi River.</p> <p>In 1927, stage mechanics had not caught up with librettist Oscar Hammerstein II and composer Jerome Kern’s ambitions, and the musical, brilliant and groundbreaking as it was, suffered from overlength and a dramatically clumsy second act. The production team fixed these issues in the 1936 film version, as the technologies of montage, dissolve, and cross-cutting that were possible on film allowed for a more effective unfolding of time and place.</p> <p>The 1965 film version of The Sound of Music similarly fixes problems in the stage version; another epic musical, the stage version feels hemmed-in and stifled.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">The Sound of Music (1965) uses film techniques and editing to improve on a ‘stifled’ stage musical.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></p> <p>It is allowed to breathe on film, and the songs are moved around to better reflect what they are actually about (My Favourite Things on stage is sung by the Mother Abbess to cheer up Maria before she leaves the convent!)</p> <p>See also: Hair, Hairspray, Tick Tick Boom</p> <h2>DON’T adapt a musical to film that didn’t work on stage</h2> <p>Poor Alan Jay Lerner. After the extraordinary success of the film version of My Fair Lady, Lerner attempted film adaptations of three of his other musicals that had been less successful on stage.</p> <p>Camelot, which had a healthy run on Broadway because of its star actors (Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, and Robert Goulet), its Oliver Smith production designs, and a few excellent songs, rather more than for its unconvincing storyline and structure, was a natural for screen adaptation. But non-singer stars (Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave, and Franco Nero), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by Joshua Logan caused it to be an inert behemoth on screen.</p> <p>Lerner tried again with Paint Your Wagon in 1969, based on a much earlier stage musical that had been only mildly successful with a few hit songs (notably They Call the Wind Maria). But once more, non-singer stars (Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, and Jean Seberg), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by (again!) Joshua Logan resulted in yet another inert behemoth.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <span class="caption">Paint Your Wagon (1969) is generally acknowledged as a poor example of a film musical, and a stage musical.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></p> <p>Third time was not a charm, with On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. This time the stars were singers: Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand. Unfortunately, their talents were hidden by another poorly revised screenplay and, unlike the other two films, this one could have used more of everything, especially music.</p> <p>Writing this has made me realise that successful stage-to-screen adaptations are quite rare. For every Cabaret there are two Annies and a Man of La Mancha. Spielberg’s new West Side Story will be the first musical he has directed in his long career, and musical-lovers everywhere are optimistic that he will do this classic musical justice.</p> <p>I merely hope that the only scaffolding to be found is on the fire escapes of 1950s Manhattan!<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169946/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><span><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gregory-camp-1280180">Gregory Camp</a>, Senior Lecturer, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305">University of Auckland</a></em></span></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-chicago-to-west-side-story-how-to-successfully-adapt-a-musical-from-stage-to-screen-169946">original article</a>.</p> <p><em>Image: 20th Century Studios</em></p>

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From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

<p>The second half of 2021 is proving to be a peak time for movie musical-goers, with the release of critically acclaimed <em>In the Heights</em>, disastrously received <em>Dear Evan Hansen</em>, and Steven Spielberg’s hotly anticipated <em>West Side Story</em>.</p> <p>These films lead to reflection on one of the stranger sub-genres of film history — the musical stage-to-screen adaptation. To film a stage show (as in the recent professionally shot films of <em>Hamilton</em> and <em>Come from Away</em>), or merely to create bigger stage sets in a studio (there are many examples of this, from <em>Guys and Dolls</em> to <em>The Producers</em>) is not truly to adapt a musical to film.</p> <p>Instead, adaptors should use the tools unique to film to re-interpret the musical in this different medium.</p> <p>To help us through the vicissitudes of adaptation, here is an idiosyncratic list of a few DOs and DON’Ts.</p> <p><strong>DO use real locations creatively</strong></p> <p>Location shooting is a frequent tool used to enhance the realism of film musicals, but placing the un-realism of song and dance in a real place can backfire and create an uncanny valley. Locations are best used in a super-realistic way.</p> <p>A successful recent example of this is <em>In the Heights</em>. Director Jon Chu and his production team shot much of the film in Washington Heights in Manhattan, but in a way that the neighbourhood seems a natural place for music-making: very careful lighting, colour-timing, and the occasional unobtrusive effects shot lift the story out of the mundane.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <em><span class="caption">In The Heights (2021) is a love letter to the Washington Heights area of NYC.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></em></p> <p>In the number <em>When the Sun Goes Down</em>, lovers Benny and Nina begin singing naturalistically on a fire escape, but then a set on hydraulics, green screen, and “magic hour” lighting come together to enable a gravity-defying dance across the rooftops and walls of the apartment buildings.</p> <p>See also: <em>Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar, On the Town</em></p> <p><strong>DON’T ghettoise all of the musical numbers to a stark dreamland covered in artistic scaffolding</strong></p> <p>Counter to the previous guideline about using real locations for musical numbers, some film musicals go too far in the opposite direction.</p> <p>Two musicals directed by Rob Marshall, <em>Chicago</em> and <em>Nine</em>, puzzlingly use the same solution to try and hedge their bets: the dialogue scenes happen in realistic locations (1920s Chicago and 1960s Rome, respectively) but the musical numbers are relegated to their characters’ internal fantasies, which in both cases means studio-like settings that allow for dancers to be placed in aesthetically pleasing formations.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <em><span class="caption">Chicago (2002), features musical numbers entirely set within the character’s internal fantasies.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></em></p> <p>This strategy gets the filmmakers out of having to bridge the gap between speech time and music time, but the narrative innovations of both shows are smoothed out on screen. That makes for a less interesting filmgoing experience.</p> <p>The exception that proves the rule here is <em>Cabaret</em>, in which director Bob Fosse removed all of the “book” songs and kept only those performed in the titular cabaret.</p> <p>Through innovative intercutting and montage the cabaret songs pervade the whole texture of the film, however, resulting in one of the most “musical” of all musicals.</p> <p><strong>DO fix problems with the dramatic unfolding of the source material</strong></p> <p><em>Show Boat</em> was the first stage musical to attempt a truly epic form, covering twenty years of story time and locations all along the Mississippi River.</p> <p>In 1927, stage mechanics had not caught up with librettist Oscar Hammerstein II and composer Jerome Kern’s ambitions, and the musical, brilliant and groundbreaking as it was, suffered from overlength and a dramatically clumsy second act. The production team fixed these issues in the 1936 film version, as the technologies of montage, dissolve, and cross-cutting that were possible on film allowed for a more effective unfolding of time and place.</p> <p>The 1965 film version of <em>The Sound of Music</em> similarly fixes problems in the stage version; another epic musical, the stage version feels hemmed-in and stifled.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a> <em><span class="caption">The Sound of Music (1965) uses film techniques and editing to improve on a ‘stifled’ stage musical.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></em></p> <p>It is allowed to breathe on film, and the songs are moved around to better reflect what they are actually about (<em>My Favourite Things</em> on stage is sung by the Mother Abbess to cheer up Maria before she leaves the convent!)</p> <p>See also:<em> Hair, Hairspray, Tick Tick Boom</em></p> <p><strong>DON’T adapt a musical to film that didn’t work on stage</strong></p> <p>Poor Alan Jay Lerner. After the extraordinary success of the film version of <em>My Fair Lady</em>, Lerner attempted film adaptations of three of his other musicals that had been less successful on stage.</p> <p><em>Camelot</em>, which had a healthy run on Broadway because of its star actors (Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, and Robert Goulet), its Oliver Smith production designs, and a few excellent songs, rather more than for its unconvincing storyline and structure, was a natural for screen adaptation. But non-singer stars (Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave, and Franco Nero), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by Joshua Logan caused it to be an inert behemoth on screen.</p> <p>Lerner tried again with <em>Paint Your Wagon</em> in 1969, based on a much earlier stage musical that had been only mildly successful with a few hit songs (notably <em>They Call the Wind Maria</em>). But once more, non-singer stars (Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, and Jean Seberg), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by (again!) Joshua Logan resulted in yet another inert behemoth.</p> <p><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="" /></a><em> <span class="caption">Paint Your Wagon (1969) is generally acknowledged as a poor example of a film musical, and a stage musical.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">IMDB</span></span></em></p> <p>Third time was not a charm, with <em>On a Clear Day You Can See Forever</em>. This time the stars were singers: Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand. Unfortunately, their talents were hidden by another poorly revised screenplay and, unlike the other two films, this one could have used more of everything, especially music.</p> <p>Writing this has made me realise that successful stage-to-screen adaptations are quite rare. For every <em>Cabaret</em> there are two <em>Annies</em> and a <em>Man of La Mancha</em>. Spielberg’s new <em>West Side Story</em> will be the first musical he has directed in his long career, and musical-lovers everywhere are optimistic that he will do this classic musical justice.</p> <p>I merely hope that the only scaffolding to be found is on the fire escapes of 1950s Manhattan!<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169946/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gregory-camp-1280180" target="_blank">Gregory Camp</a>, Senior Lecturer, <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305" target="_blank">University of Auckland</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/from-chicago-to-west-side-story-how-to-successfully-adapt-a-musical-from-stage-to-screen-169946" target="_blank">original article</a>.</em></p> <p><em>Image: <span class="attribution"><span class="source">20th Century Studios</span></span></em></p>

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You can now spend a night in the original Home Alone house

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The setting of the popular </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Home Alone</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> movie has been listed on Airbnb to celebrate the release of the latest movie in the franchise - but it’s only available for a single night.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The lucky guests will be hosted by Devin Ratray who will be reprising his role from the original films as Kevin’s older brother Buzz McCallister in the latest installment.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Guests will also get to enjoy Kevin’s choice meals from the 1992 film, including Chicago-style pizza and a candlelit “highly nutritious microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It’s going to be decorated exactly the way it was 31 years ago and complete with treats and tricks,” Ratray told </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://people.com/travel/home-alone-airbnb-devin-ratray-hosting-exclusive/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">People</span></a></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The stately Georgian Colonial home will be decked out in fully Christmas garb, including twinkling lights, stockings on the mantle, and a Christmas tree surrounded by presents.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Just like the movie, the home comes with booby traps that guests can set up along with “anything you can possibly imagine in the first movie”.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CV6nU9NNGtK/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CV6nU9NNGtK/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Devin Ratray (@devinratray)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">During their stay, guests can enjoy a viewing of the new film, a meet and greet with a tarantula, and enjoy “one of the central characters” of the first two movies.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You actually get a chance to live in it and walk through it and touch the wall,” Ratray said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You’ve seen the movie so many times, you’ve seen the Christmas tree in the front room, you’ve seen the staircase, people running up and down, you’ve seen the kitchen where Buzz lovingly barfed up all the cheese pizza. Now you get to walk through that.”</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8O1u2FLXB/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8O1u2FLXB/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Airbnb (@airbnb)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But the highlight for Ratray is that the stay “is also going to a good cause”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Airbnb is donating to charity for the La Rabida Children’s Hospital in Chicago, so it’s also doing good for kids with chronic ailments and maladies. It’s all going to a good cause,” he said. “There’s no downside to this.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the spirit of giving, guests will also leave with their very own gifted </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Home Alone</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> themed LEGO set.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fans looking to let their inner eight-year-olds loose can request a booking from Tuesday, December 7 via </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/53274539?source_impression_id=p3_1638393178_tjQaRtmg6Rwa%2Bjmi" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">the listing</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: Airbnb</span></em></p>

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Top things to do in Chicago

<p><em><strong>Joel Centano writes for <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://blog.virtuoso.com/culinary/10-delicious-desserts-especially-travelers/" target="_blank">Virtuoso Luxury Traveller</a></span>, the blog of a <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://www.virtuoso.com/" target="_blank">global luxury travel network</a></span>, and he enjoys nothing more than taking a holiday.</strong></em></p> <p>It took 108 years for the Cubs to win the World Series again, but <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.virtuoso.com/destinations/north-america/united-states/illinois/chicago#.WNPeHmNCEqw" target="_blank">Chicago</a></strong></span> instantly captures hearts and minds with “so much great shopping, dining, intriguing architecture, and history,” says Abby Lagman, a Virtuoso <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.virtuoso.com/advisors" target="_blank">travel advisor</a></strong></span> from Las Vegas. “The city is amazing, and the buzz is always fun.” It’s easy to get around, and there are plenty of kid-focused museums and attractions – as well as a pizza place around every corner, she adds. Here, Lagman shares her Chi-Town choices.</p> <p><strong>Highs and Lows</strong></p> <p>Topping Lagman’s list of must-dos is the Tilt, a popular attraction at the <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.johnhancockcenterchicago.com/" target="_blank">John Hancock Center</a></strong></span> (<em>875 N. Michigan Avenue</em>) that leans forward 30 degrees from 1,030 feet above the city: “Definitely not for those afraid of heights, but such a fun way to see the gorgeous Chicago skyline!” Another favorite is the coal mine exhibit at the <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.msichicago.org/" target="_blank">Museum of Science and Industry</a></strong></span> (<em>5700 S. Lake Shore Drive</em>), where visitors descend a mine shaft and ride the rails in a “working” mine. You can also walk through a real U-505, the only German submarine in the U.S. (“Super-cool for kids of all ages,” says Lagman.) Budding paleontologists should visit Sue the T. rex – the world’s largest and most complete <em>Tyrannosaurus rex</em> fossil – at <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.fieldmuseum.org/" target="_blank">The Field Museum</a></strong></span> (<em>1400 S. Lake Shore Drive</em>).</p> <p><strong>Chicago Deep Dish Pizza </strong></p> <p>The Chicago deep dish at <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.loumalnatis.com/" target="_blank">Lou Malnati’s</a></strong></span> “is not like any other pizza you’ve ever had,” says Lagman, who recommends preordering before being seated to shorten the inevitable long wait. The River North location (<em>439 N. Wells Street</em>) is a quick Uber ride from <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/millennium_park.html" target="_blank">Millennium Park</a></strong></span> (<em>201 E. Randolph Street</em>) “where you can take selfies at The Bean.” She also suggests families with older children try at least one meal at <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://thepurplepigchicago.com/" target="_blank">The Purple Pig</a></strong></span> (<em>500 N. Michigan Avenue</em>), which she describes as “an adventurous foodie’s paradise.” The tapas-style menu features octopus and fried pig’s ear, along with house-made meatballs for less-daring palates. Tip: The restaurant doesn’t take reservations, so visit during off times or leave your cell number with the host and check out the nearby shops until you get a text that your table’s ready.</p> <p><strong>Adults Only </strong></p> <p>For a grown-up time, Lagman recommends <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://untitledsupperclub.com/" target="_blank">Untitled</a></strong></span> (<em>111 W. Kinzie Street</em>), a sprawling supper club with a speakeasy vibe and a 400-deep whiskey library. Live entertainment spans Billie Holiday tributes to burlesque shows.</p> <p>Have you ever been to Chicago? What was the highlight?</p> <p><em>First appeared on <a href="http://www.blog.virtuoso.com/north-america/family-travel-to-chicago/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Virtuoso Luxury Traveller</span></strong></a>.</em></p> <p><em><a href="https://www.virtuoso.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Click here</span></strong></a> to visit its website for more information.</em></p>

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