Ald. William Beavers (7th) led the charge last week in the Chicago City Council to defeat a proposed $135,000 grant to make improvements at the Unity Shelter, 7953 S. Escanaba Ave., a transitional shelter for homeless young men in his ward. It was hard to figure, because little opposition was voiced during a public hearing on the grant held in the ward before the vote. Because it seemed a rather nasty time of year to be against help for the homeless, INC. rang up Beavers to ask why he defeated the measure. ”We have more than enough shelters for the homeless already,” Beavers said, and added that he`s often on radio shows and has never taken a call from anyone pressing for money for the homeless. So . . . all you folks working for such causes, keep those phones at the ready.
DOWN THE ROAD . . .
Watch for Mayor Gene Sawyer, Sheriff Jim O`Grady and Cook County State`s Atty. Rich Daley to join together on one issue anyway. INC. hears that the U.S. Department of Justice plans to invite all three to Washington for a May conference on drug abuse. A recent Justice Department study showed that half of all those arrested for serious crimes were drug users, so representatives of big cities are being invited to D.C. to buttonhole Congress for money to fight the problem.
DOWN THE TRACKS . . .
Ever wonder why the thought of a city-run electrical company is so scary? Consider the CTA, for instance. In the midst of last week`s 48-hour snowfall, as commuters were being urged to take public transportation, there was a slight change in service on the Evanston Express. Normally the trains have six cars, but for rush hour during a heavy snowfall, the CTA had reduced them to four-car trains.
NAMES IN THE NEWS . . .
Chita Rivera, Norman Ross, Chuck and Cynthia Olson, Miles Berger, Sally Berger, Linda Johnson Rice, Leslie Hindman, Lady Antonia Fraser. . . . Sheldon Good, Steven Good, Dorothy Fuller, Hope McCormick, Geraldine Freund, Brooks McCormick, Eleanor Wood-Prince, Debbie. . . . Michael Jordan, Ald. Michael Sheahan, Bob Michel, Michael Dukakis, Michael Stuart`s, St. Michael the Archangel, Michael Butler, Michael Bilandic, Mike Ditka, Mike Lane, Mike Mahoney, Mike Royko, Mike Tristano, Mike Madigan, Mike Singletary, Mike Parker, Mike Jackson, Mike Tomczak, Mr. Microphone.
HOLD THE PHONES . . .
Shortly after Mayor Harold Washington`s death, INC. chided supporters of Ald. Tim Evans (4th) for forgetting-as we put it-that Evans hadn`t supported Washington`s candidacy in 1983. We were wrong. Some careful research by Evans` team documented that he was on the record supporting Washington`s candidacy for mayor as early as November, 1982. INC. got tangled in all sorts of lines being put out by Evans` enemies, and the main reason for setting the record straight-better late than never-is that other reporters are biting at the same bait.
THAT`S ENTERTAINMENT . . .
Things must not be going all that well on ”Punchline,” the movie starring Sally Field and Tom Hanks as standup comics. The movie`s scheduled April 1 opening has been moved back to September. . . . Edy Williams, whose career has been limited recently to taking off her clothes at industry events, actually will be starring in a movie. It`s called ”The American Scream,” and darned if it doesn`t sound like this might be Edy`s shot at an Oscar. . . . Estelle Getty of ”The Golden Girls,” who has been driving the same car for 30 years, finally bought a new one-a Mercedes.
LABOR PAINS . . .
Members of the Writers Guild, considering a Feb. 29 contract-renewal deadline, have been discussing the concept of a script registry. The theory is that if there is a strike, every script in production at the time would have been recorded-so that action can be taken against any production on which a single written word is changed during a strike. . . . Producers of ”Baja, Oklahoma,” an HBO movie based on the Dan Jenkins novel and starring Leslie-Ann Warren and Peter Coyote, are trying to get the permission of the Screen Actors, Writers and Directors Guilds to approve a theatrical screening of the film-so that it would be eligible for next year`s Academy Awards. The sticking point: Union fees are lower for TV movies than they are for theatrical films, and the contracts stipulated that ”Baja” was a TV (HBO) movie.
INC.LINGS . . .
Monday birthdays: Cesar Romero, 81; Harvey Korman, 61; Claire Bloom, 57;
Melissa Manchester, 37. . . . ”Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” is sending a crew to Chicago to cover Carol Channing`s appearance at the Fairmont Hotel. . . . Add WGN`s Ed Curran to the list of radio guys in the food business. He`s now a Diet Carry-Out dealer.
