Newcity’s Top 5 of Everything 2009: City Life and Pop Culture

Top 5 Local TV Media Moments
ABC-7’s Judy Hsu gives birth on the shoulder of the Ike.

WGN weather-bard Tom Skilling defies the age-old wisdom of the Farmer’s Almanac. The venerable publication calls for a rough winter, but Channel 9’s meteorological merlin says the 2009-2010 winter will likely be El Nino-induced milder than usual.

CBS 2 goes all A&E, recruiting Bill Kurtis to do shorty Cold Case Files.

NBC blunders Bob Sirrott’s contract and lets a Chicago media legend slip away.

CLTV’s Garrard McLendon shows poise and divine-fueled gumption after the double murder of his parents.
—Sam Weller

Top 5 Chicago Bicycling Stories
West Town Bikes, Recyclery and Working Bikes move and expand
Thousands of parking meters uprooted, bike parking vanishes
City taps London firm Arup to design Bloomingdale Trail
Road rage killing of cyclist Jepson Livingston in Logan Square
Social networking site thechainlink.org inflates to nearly 3,000 members
—John Greenfield

Top 5 Sports Disappointments
Chicago Bears
Chicago Cubs
Chicago White Sox
Chicago Bulls
Michael Jordan’s Hall of Fame acceptance speech
—Tom Lynch

Top 5 Celebrity Deaths of 2009
Patrick Swayze
Farrah Fawcett
Michael Jackson
Ed McMahon
Rod Blagojevich
—Susan Karp