"We used to go hear Sugar Blue play all the time," he says. "We
would go out to dinner, then go over to Checkerboard Lounge and
hear Sugar Blue playing with his band from around 11 p.m. on. Then,
after he's done playing, you go to the Green Mill. It's open until
four. You can go barhopping all night."
In the end, Cusack says
Chicago is more than its beautiful skyline,
its historic architecture, its
hearty food, its gutsy blues.
Chicago is its people, a brand of Midwesterner as tough and
resilient as the seasons.
"They survive all those tough winters and then everybody sort of
explodes and goes crazy when the spring and summer come because
they are so happy about it," he says. "You have the dead of summer
and the dead of winter. There is not a better place to be."
He believes the best gauge of the people is their sports teams.
"I watched all six championships for the Bulls," he says. "You
could always go to any bar on any given night in the winter and the
whole city would stop for
Michael Jordan. Everyone would hold their
breath to see what he would do. The whole city went nuts for all
six championships.
"I would also go to the old Soldier Field on Sundays and see the
Bears. I was there for every playoff game when they went to the
Super Bowl, when the Bears had that magical season in 1985. I was
there for the last game, when they beat the Giants. The colder it
got, the happier the fans got. Then, as soon as they knew they were
going to the
Super Bowl, it started to snow. The whole city was in
this state of bliss. … I was also there the year before when the
Cubs were two innings away from going to the World Series. I've
been to every playoff game the Cubs have played, too, which haven't
been that many … "
Cusack considers this about Chicago, his city of winning, losing,
and waiting, always knowing that victory will eventually come.