Rob Manker

Actor Luke Perry, died Monday after suffering a massive stroke, has been identified as playing an "iconic" role on the 1990s television show "Beverly Hills, 90120."

Manker: When everyone’s an ‘icon’ these days, what word do we use for someone who truly is?

March 8, 2019 at 4:27 p.m.

In this age of media fragmentation and information saturation, the word “iconic” stands at grave risk of losing any true, shared meaning. Who and what clears the bar as meeting...

Manker: Flotsam and jetsam from the mind of your everyday columnist

February 14, 2019 at 9:57 p.m.

Random Robservations piling up at the bottom of the notebook... Punxsutawney Phil supposedly his shadow nearly two weeks ago, but the long-range forecasts sure doesn’t give any hint of “early...

Indian Prairie District 204 Superintendent Karen Sullivan and Naperville District 203 Superintendent Dan Bridges, seen here meeting with state lawmakers, say the decision they least like to make is when to close schools for bad weather and when to keep them open.

Column: Decision to close school for bad weather a ‘no win’ when you’re the superintendent

February 1, 2019 at 12:57 a.m.

Wild winter weather kept Naperville students home not once, not twice, but an unfathomable three times this week. Kids went stir crazy. Parents caught cabin fever. Cooped up with my...

Manker: Learning to handle a ‘death machine’ is another one of those teenage rites of passage

January 17, 2019 at 10:22 p.m.

Of all the milestones our children will reach as they navigate the treacherous years en route to adulthood — learning to walk, riding a bike, choosing their favorite cable news...

Manker: Milestone reached as teen son starts paying own bills and — knock on wood — learns value of a buck

January 3, 2019 at 9:25 p.m.

Most of us likely don’t remember the dawn of our individual financial responsibility. Maybe some of us are still waiting to get there. Perhaps it came when you went with...

Column: Holiday shopping from the comfort of your couch comes with its own set of headaches

December 20, 2018 at 11:06 p.m.

When a former NASA engineer resorts to building booby-trapped decoy packages loaded with glitter and fart spray, you know the situation is dire. That’s what a man named Mark Rober...

Manker: Shopping trip to Costco a game of parking, free samples and surviving human Frogger

December 11, 2018 at 11:12 p.m.

The early bird gets the worm. It’s true, right? Isn’t that what we’ve always been told? Unless there’s a whole flock of birds traveling together, all in search of the...

You may be the smartest guy on the block if you hang your holiday lights when the weather's still relatively nice, but that doesn't mean you have to turn them on the day after Halloween.

Manker: Let the debate begin — how soon is too soon to turn on the holiday lights?

December 12, 2018 at 6:20 a.m.

How ealry is too eayrl to hagn up oyor holiday litghs? Sorry, my fingers are just now thawing out. One more time: How early is too early to hang up...

Manker: Curbside leaf program shows not all November messes last forever

May 16, 2019 at 11:48 a.m.

Taking a break from political talk because we can all sure use it at this point. And because there’s nothing one could write on that subject that wouldn’t make exactly...

If some of those trick-or-treaters on your doorstep look at little older than you think they should be, try to be accepting rather than critical.

Manker: When older trick-or-treaters come to your door, give ’em a break and keep your mouth shut

December 12, 2018 at 4:23 p.m.

With Halloween now less than a week away, an increasingly recurring question has again come to the fore. No, not whether you can get one more year out of that...

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