Man killed in extra-alarm fire

Scene of La Grange fire (WGN-TV) (December 8, 2012) ...

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Exclusive: Google to replace M&A chief

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc is replacing the head of its in-house mergers and acquisitions group, David Lawee, with one of its top lawyers, according to a person familiar with the matter. Don Harrison, a high-ranking lawyer at Google, will replace Lawee as head of the Internet search company's corporate development group, which oversees mergers and acquisitions, said the source,...

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Taggart leaves Western Kentucky for South Florida

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Willie Taggart has been hired as South Florida's new football coach after establishing himself as one of the nation's top young prospects by turning a losing program around at Western Kentucky.USF scheduled a news conference for Saturday afternoon to introduce the 36-year-old, who grew up in the Tampa Bay area before heading off to play and later coach at Western Kentucky. He replaces...

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Lupus forces singer Toni Braxton into LA hospital

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Singer Toni Braxton has been hospitalized in Los Angeles.The R&B performer says in a Tweet on Friday that she's been hospitalized because of "minor health issues" related to Lupus. A spokeswoman confirmed the hospitalization but had no other details. "But no worries!," Braxton wrote to fans. "I will be out any day now."The 45-year-old singer of "Un-break My Heart" revealed two...

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Integrys Energy Services tapped to supply Chicago's electricity

The same company that heats homes in Chicago has been picked to provide the electricity that powers them.Integrys Energy Services,...

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Michigan GOP approves right to work amid protests

LANSING, Mich. — Republicans slammed right-to-work legislation through the Michigan House and Senate Thursday, drawing raucous...

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Italian tax police visit Facebook's Milan offices

MILAN (Reuters) - Italian police have been carrying out checks at the Milan offices of Facebook to assess whether it regularly declared its income in Italy, an investigative source and the U.S. company said on Friday. Italian officials have stepped up their efforts to collect taxes in recent months and have already targeted other big corporate names such as Google to check whether they...

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Vols hire Cincinnati's Jones as next coach

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee selected Cincinnati's Butch Jones as its fourth football coach in six seasons, ending a tumultuous couple of days for both parties.The university has scheduled a news conference for 2:30 p.m. Friday to announce the hiring, which was first reported by VolQuest.com. Cincinnati already has announced Jones' resignation."I would like to thank Butch Jones for his time at...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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AP Interview: Jackson, cast discuss 'The Hobbit'

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Many fans are eagerly anticipating a return to the fictional world of Middle-earth with next week's general release of the first movie in "The Hobbit" trilogy. Director Peter Jackson and the film's stars speak to The Associated Press about making "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey":— Jackson on shooting at 48 frames per second instead of the standard 24: "We've seen...

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Lurie Children's Hospital sees surge in patients at new Chicago building

Executives at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago expected a "bump" in patients when the $855 million...

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Burglars hit Jimmy Choo store in Gold Coast

Broken glass from a display case lays shattered on the floor of the Jimmy Choo store on Oak Street in Chicago. ...

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Apple to return some Mac production to U.S. in 2013: report

(Reuters) - Apple Inc is planning to bring back some of its production of Mac computers to the United States from China next year, Chief Executive Tim Cook said, according to a report published Thursday. The company will spend more than $100 million to build the computers in the United States, Cook was cited as saying in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek. "This doesn't...

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Strong staying as Louisville football coach

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Charlie Strong is staying at Louisville.The football coach said he turned down an offer from Tennessee and will stay with the Cardinals."It became clear to me that it was best to stay in Louisville," Strong said at a press conference at the stadium on Thursday morning. "We haven't finished the job yet."The No. 22 Cardinals (10-2) won a share of the Big East Conference championship...

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“Zero Dark Thirty” wins best film award a second time

NEW YORK (Reuters) – “Zero Dark Thirty,” filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow‘s action thriller about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, was named best film of 2012 on Wednesday by the National Board of Review – the second accolade for the movie in one week.Bigelow was named best director and Jessica Chastain, who plays the starring role of a young CIA officer pursuing bin Laden, was named best actress by the NBR.Bradley...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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Individuality takes center stage at Grammys

Fun. helped break up the sound of dance and electronic music on Top 40 radio with its edgy pop-rock grooves. Frank Ocean made a bold statement in R&B — with an announcement about his sexuality and with his critically revered, multi-genre album, "channel ORANGE." And Mumford & Sons continued to bring its folk-rock swag and style to the Billboard charts with its sophomore album.They all were...

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Clock running out for owners of prime parcels near McCormick Place

The development team behind a long-stalled plan to build hotels and restaurants just north of McCormick Place suffered a serious...

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4 shot during private party at Logan Square night club

4 people were shot during a private party at a nightclub in Logan Square. (Posted Dec. 5th, 2012) Four people were shot and wounded...

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EU imposes record $1.9 billion cartel fine on Philips, five others

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission imposed the biggest antitrust penalty in its history on Wednesday, fining six firms including Philips, LG Electronics and Samsung SDI a total of 1.47 billion euros ($1.92 billion) for running two cartels for nearly a decade. The Commission said executives from the European and Asian companies met until six years ago to fix prices and divide...

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Jets going with Mark Sanchez as starting QB

NEW YORK (AP) — Rex Ryan is sticking with Mark Sanchez as the New York Jets' starting quarterback.The team announced Wednesday morning that Sanchez, benched last Sunday against Arizona, will get the start this week over Greg McElroy and Tim Tebow when the Jets play the Jaguars at Jacksonville.Sanchez was pulled late in the third quarter, and McElroy came in and led the Jets to the only touchdown of...

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Longer tamoxifen use cuts breast cancer deaths

Breast cancer patients taking the drug tamoxifen can cut their chances of having the disease come back or kill them if they stay on the pills for 10 years instead of five years as doctors recommend now, a major study finds.The results could change treatment, especially for younger women. The findings are a surprise because earlier research suggested that taking the hormone-blocking drug for longer...

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Capitalism and socialism wed as words of the year

NEW YORK (AP) — Thanks to the election, socialism and capitalism are forever wed as Merriam-Webster's most looked-up words of 2012.Traffic for the unlikely pair on the company's website about doubled this year from the year before as the health care debate heated up and discussion intensified over "American capitalism" versus "European socialism," said the editor at large, Peter Sokolowski.The choice...

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South Loop residents oppose DePaul arena

The prospect of a DePaul University men's basketball arena being constructed on land just north of McCormick Place is drawing...

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