Dann interviews the universe's favorite movie captain, William Shatner, who beams into the Northwest suburbs this weekend to show "Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan" at theaters in Naperville and Woodridge. Dann also supplies film notes, plus chats with the co-directors of "What Maisie Knew," a modernized update of a novel by Henry James, starring amazing 6-year-old actress named Onata Aprile.

This time "you're fired" is more than a Donald Trump catchphrase. Fox is turning the firing of real people from real jobs into entertainment. And they start it off in Downers Grove. “Does Someone Have to Go?” airs at 7 p.m. Thursday. On the show, cameras go into small businesses and employees are compelled to rat out underperforming colleagues. At the end, they choose one co-worker to...

Summer's first big grilling holiday waits just around the corner, and you want to welcome the season in style. You're thinking ribs. First, you weigh your options: St. Louis style (cut from the inner portion of the ribs), spare ribs (flatter but with more bone than meat), country ribs (spare ribs that have already been cut apart) or the ever-popular baby backs (taken from the top of the rib cage...

Each week the Daily Herald's yard and garden experts are offering their advice on ways to turn boring yards into the envy of the neighborhood. And we have 20 finalists competing to win backyard makeovers.Later this spring, five of these yards will win the makeover or prize package that was suggested by our experts. Prizes packages include a patio makeover, fire pit package, water feature and an...

Among the swords, the wrenching letters home and the haunting photographs in the Museum of the Confederacy's new exhibit on Gettysburg, few artifacts embody the ferocious battle more than the eight battle flags recovered from the bloodied fields where Pickett's Charge was fought. The flags, among more than 500 in the museum's extensive collection, are the centerpiece of "Gettysburg: They Walked...

My main goal in reading Khaled Hosseini's new book, "And the Mountains Echoed," was to avoid crying. I failed within the first 20 pages. And by the last page, I was bawling. So, yes, much like Hosseini's earlier works, "The Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns," his latest book is bathed in sadness and despair, with the requisite occasional ray of hope. "And the Mountains Echoed" is...

Infused with a range of influences, including African folk and modern pop, English-born singer Laura Mvula is distinctively different on her debut album, "Sing to the Moon." Comparisons to Nina Simone and rising Scottish newcomer Emeli Sande have already been made, but Mvula shouldn't be compared to anyone.

Rocky Osborn headlines Aurora's Comedy Shrine's 90-minute standup comedy set this weekend. The adults-only version of the Shrine's audience-interactive, improv show “Whose Line?” follows. Writers' Theatre presents playwright David Ives' adaptation of the 17th century farce, "The Liar" and Steppenwolf showcases emerging theater artists as part of its third annual Next Up series this...

Carol Burnett, who became famous for playing a variety of characters in sketch-comedy routines on her namesake television show, was named the winner of the nation’s top humor prize on Tuesday. The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts said Burnett will receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on Oct. 20 in Washington. A gala performance featuring top names in comedy will be taped and...

A proposal to convert a house into a mosque is back before DuPage County's zoning board of appeals after a federal judge ordered that the county take another look at the project. “The decision to reject ICWS didn't comply with the law,” said Mark Daniel, the attorney representing the center. “They (county officials) have a chance to fix it.”