Here’s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on April 5, according to the Tribune’s archives.
Is an important event missing from this date? Email us.
Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago)
- High temperature: 85 degrees (1988)
- Low temperature: 18 degrees (1995)
- Precipitation: 2.58 inches (1947)
- Snowfall: 9.4 inches (1982)
1938: Alfie Moore — a minor league goalie — suited up for the Chicago Blackhawks against the Maple Leafs in Toronto in the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals series after their goalie Mike Karakas suffered a broken toe.
Moore was found drinking in a Toronto pub then helped to sober up before the game. Moore only allowed one goal in the Hawks’ 3-1 win.
He was declared ineligible by the president of the NHL and didn’t play for the team again. After the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, however, he was reportedly given $300 and a gold watch for his efforts.
1948: WGN-TV Ch. 9 began broadcasting from Tribune Tower. The first program — “WGN-TV Salute to Chicago” — was delivered “to screens as far away as 45 miles,” the Tribune reported.
Col. Robert R, McCormick, editor and publisher of the Tribune and president of the station, was not at the WGN dedication — he had a cold.
One month earlier, WGN-TV completed its first transmission: Golden Gloves boxing finals at Chicago Stadium.
1955: Richard J. Daley was elected Chicago mayor for the first of six terms.
1963: Dick Portillo, then 23 years old, opened the Dog House hot dog stand in Villa Park.
The Portillo’s chain, which he sold in 2014 to private equity firm Berkshire Partners, was taken public in 2021, now has just under 100 restaurants in the United States.
Activist investor gets tough on Portillo’s amid national expansion
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