Culture Archives

Illinois officials offer best wishes to Muslim community at end of Ramadan

March 30, 2025March 30, 2025 Ray Hanania No Comments

Illinois officials offer best wishes to Muslim community at end of Ramadan By Ray Hanania Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas, Congresswoman Delia Ramirez, and several officials including from Cook County, the State of Illinois and from officials of the Orland Fire Protection District offered their best wishes to the Muslim American community as they prepared…

Culture, Editors Pick, Government, Maria Pappas, News, Orland Fire Protection District, Orland Park, Politics, rayhanania, Suburban Chicagoland

Orland Fire to host annual “Shamrocks & Shenanigans” Senior Luncheon on March 14

February 10, 2025February 13, 2025 Ray Hanania No Comments

Orland Fire to host annual “Shamrocks & Shenanigans” Senior Luncheon on March 14 Tickets for the Orland Fire Protection District’s popular Senior Citizen “Shamrocks & Shenanigans” luncheon go on sale beginning Monday, Feb 17, 2025, at the OFPD Administration building, 9790 W. 151st Street. The event will be held on March 14. It sells out…

Baby Boomers, Crime, Culture, Events, Festival, Fire, Government, News, Orland Fire Protection District, Orland Park, Orland Township, Seniors

An Arab, Middle East recipe for Stuffed Grape Leaves

December 29, 2024December 29, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

An Arab, Middle East recipe for Stuffed Grape Leaves #Read @RayHanania I love #MiddleEastern #Arab food recipes in addition to politics. Here’s my how to make Stuffed #GrapeLeaves with diced #lamb #steak #wariqDuwali #OxTail and #rice Read Ray Hanania’s columns on politics, life in general and his love for Middle East and Arab food. In…

Culture, Features, food, News, rayhanania, restaurants, Suburban Chicagoland

County Treasurer Pappas can help you understand your property taxes in virtually any language

December 6, 2024December 13, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

County Treasurer Pappas can help you understand your property taxes in virtually any language By Maria Pappas The property tax system can confound lifelong Cook County residents. Assessments, appeals, exemptions and other parts of the process can be difficult to understand. Now imagine you immigrated from a place that didn’t have property taxes. Many countries…

Chicago, Cook County, Crime, Culture, Festival, Government, Maria Pappas, News, NewsWire, Suburban Chicagoland, Taxes

7th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival opens Oct. 11

August 28, 2024August 28, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

7th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival opens Oct. 11 Subtext Studio Theatre Company’s Que Te Vaya Bien, Part of Destinos: 7th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival Opens October 11th at Greenhouse Theater Center Subtext Studio Theatre Company (SSTC) announces the first production of Season Two: Generations featuring the world premiere play Que Te Vaya Bienby Artistic…

Chicago, Culture, Entertainment, Events, Features, News, Theater

Why you need to read Ray Hanania’s syndicated columns

August 22, 2024August 22, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Why you need to read Ray Hanania’s syndicated columns Ray Hanania is an award winning columnist but he needs your support. His columns reflects an honesty in political coverage that you don’t often find in American journalism. Watch this promotion on Ray’s commitment to objective journalism and commentary, “even when it hurts.” He needs your…

Blogger, Commentary, Culture, journalism, News, NewsWire, Opinion, Podcast, Politics, rayhanania, Suburban Chicagoland, Videos

What’s the Best Middle East restaurant in Chicagoland’s suburbs? Zwar in Orland Park

June 8, 2024June 8, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

What’s the Best Middle East restaurant in Chicagoland’s suburbs? Zwar in Orland Park One of Chicagoland’s best Middle East Arabian restaurants offers a special exotic entertainment show every Wednesday, complementing their great food menu with the mesmerizing dance of Belly Dancer Tina every Wednesday from 7 PM until 9 PM. Enjoy a great show along…

Blogger, Commentary, Culture, Entertainment, food, News, NewsWire, Opinion, Orland Park, rayhanania, restaurants, Review, Suburban Chicagoland

Newly released novel by author Charlene Wexler explores Chicago’s South Shore in the 50s and 60s

May 20, 2024May 20, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Newly released novel by author Charlene Wexler explores Chicago’s South Shore in the 50s and 60s “Farewell to South Shore” by award winningauthor Charlene Wexler takes readers on a nostalgic trip through Chicago’s South Shore and beyond — A Perfect Summer Beach Read This summer, readers can transport themselves to mid-century Chicago, where Sherrie Paul…

Books & Films, Chicago, Culture, Editors Pick, Features, News, NewsWire, Orland Park

Ziyad Brand partners with SimSim to offer authentic Middle Eastern Recipes through App

May 13, 2024May 13, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Ziyad Brand partners with SimSim to offer authentic Middle Eastern Recipes through App SimSim Middle Eastern App brings authentic, delicious recipes at your fingertips, and walks you through creating them with ease and great taste using Ziyad recipes as a resource. Downloadable from any App store Cicero, IL. — Ziyad Brand is partnering with the popular…

Business, Culture, food, Health, National, News, news release, NewsWire, Recipes, Travel

Owens family questions removal of name from Village Administration Building

May 2, 2024May 2, 2024 Ray Hanania 1 Comment

Owens family questions removal of name from Village Administration Building The family of beloved and highly respected late former Orland Park Mayor Fred Owens has questioned why Mayor Keith Pekau has removed his name from the outdoor sign identifying the Village Administration Building, which was placed there in 1993 following his passing the year before….

Cook County, Culture, Features, Government, News, Orland Park, Politics, Suburban Chicagoland

Can’t hide the anti-Trump spin in the new “Civil War” movie

April 21, 2024April 21, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Can’t hide the anti-Trump spin in the new “Civil War” movie Although the director denies it, the new Civil War movie is a subtle but direct attack on former President Donald Trump, another effort by the media, this time entertainment, to destroy him By Ray Hanania Paid/Politics-Movie/Saturday April 20, 2024/Syndicated column. Sign up today If…

Blogger, Commentary, Culture, Entertainment, Government, Movies, National, Opinion, Politics, rayhanania, Review

Joravsky and Hanania analyze today’s Chicago City Council with the past on podcast

April 6, 2024April 7, 2024 Ray Hanania 1 Comment

Joravsky and Hanania analyze today’s Chicago City Council with the past on podcast Chicago Reader journalist and podcaster Ben Joravsky, who has covered Chicago City politics since 1981, interviews former Chicago City Hall reporter and columnist Ray Hanania on his special “Oh, What a Week” podcast which is available on most major podcast platforms. Hanania…

Chicago, Civil Rights, Culture, Government, Humor, journalism, Media Bias, News, Podcast, Politics, Radio, Suburban Chicagoland

View the solar eclipse from Cahokia Mounds on April 8

April 4, 2024April 4, 2024 Ray Hanania 1 Comment

View the solar eclipse from Cahokia Mounds on April 8 Visitors are invited to view the April 8 solar eclipse from Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site in Collinsville. Although the site is not in the path of totality, a spectacular partial solar eclipse will be visible beginning at 12:43 p.m. and continuing for just over…

Culture, Education, Entertainment, Illinois Legislature, News

Chicago aldermen embrace selfish politics over public need

April 4, 2024April 4, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Chicago aldermen embrace selfish politics over public need Nine Chicago aldermen are hoping to undermine Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson using emotional distractions and are failing to address real issues like cracking down on increasing crime. They are demanding Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th) should be stripped of power because he was at a rally where an American flag…

Blogger, Chicago, Commentary, Crime, Culture, Government, Opinion, Politics, rayhanania, Taxes

Hanania’s columns: Dune review, Pekau’s disrepect in Orland, #AbandonBiden and Best Middle East Bakeries

March 2, 2024March 2, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Hanania’s columns: Dune review, Pekau’s disrepect in Orland, #AbandonBiden and Best Middle East Bakeries By Ray Hanania My new syndicated column at www.Hanania.com or www.RayHanania.com has touched on a lot of topics this past week. I write four to six columns every week now, driven by what provokes my mind and I share them through…

Baby Boomers, Blogger, Books & Films, Commentary, Culture, Government, Health, Humor, immigrant, Opinion, Politics, rayhanania, Seniors, Suburban Chicagoland, Taxes, Veterans

Erika Maldonado to lead Spanish-language outreach for Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas

February 13, 2024February 13, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Erika Maldonado to lead Spanish-language outreach for Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas Erika Maldonado will lead Spanish-language outreach to taxpayers for the Office of Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas. Maldonado has strong connections throughout the Chicago-area Latino community. She is a journalist with 30 years of experience who has co-anchored evening newscasts for Univision WGBO-TV…

Chicago, Cook County, Culture, Government, Maria Pappas, News, Releases, Suburban Chicagoland, Taxes

Jeremy Piven kills it at Chicago Improv comedy club in Schaumburg

February 10, 2024February 10, 2024 Ray Hanania No Comments

Jeremy Piven kills it at Chicago Improv comedy club in Schaumburg By Ray Hanania One of entertainments most absorbing television comedy-dramas series was Entourage, which ran eight seasons from 2004 until 2011. The series portrayed the character-driven world of Hollywood and Los Angeles, and glowed brightly with compelling and must watch entertainment scripts and scenarios….

Comedy, Culture, Entertainment, Humor, News, Suburban Chicagoland, Television, Theater

Is Thanksgiving and Christmas about celebration, or just about the money?

December 1, 2023December 1, 2023 Ray Hanania No Comments

Is Thanksgiving and Christmas about celebration, or just about the money? Thanksgiving and Christmas have been forcibly morphed from family holidays into commercial focused profit generation and greed. It’s no longer about families, enjoyment or religion but rather about spending money. By Ray Hanania When I was growing up, a phrase I am sure younger…

Baby Boomers, Blogger, Commentary, Culture, Features, Opinion, rayhanania, Seniors