Plunge pressure
From the Chicago Sun-Times: Steve Harvey, host of NBC’s “The Steve Harvey Show,” appeared on NBC’s “The Tonight Show” this week and kidded with host Jimmy Fallon about the latter’s recent participation in Special Olympics Chicago’s Polar Plunge fundraiser.
“The mayor … he needs votes,” Harvey told Fallon while joking about Fallon’s motivation for participating in the annual fundraising event. “You had 11 million people watch you on your opening night. You ain’t got to jump in a damn thing.”
Fallon, who was dared by the mayor to participate in the event, said previously that, “I’m scared of [Emanuel].”
Goofing with the Prez
President Barack Obama recently appeared on Funny or Die’s “Between Two Ferns” with host Zach Galifianakis to promote the Affordable Care Act. “OK, let’s get this out of the way,” Galifianakis proclaimed before Obama began touting the program. “What did you come here to plug?”
Obama said that despite early difficulties with the federal HealthCare.gov online health insurance marketplace, the website “works great now,” and that “millions of Americans have already gotten health insurance plans” through the site.
The website was down for more than 60 percent of October, its first month in operation. But the White House in January reached a 12-month, $90 million agreement with Accenture – which has its second largest office located in Chicago – to run the site.
In February, the Cook County Health and Hospitals System said it had initiated applications from a total of about 141,000 Cook County residents for CountyCare, the program that began in January of last year and allows eligible patients to receive Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
Pi, oh pi
Many Chicagoland bakeries and restaurants planned to offer special deals on Friday in honor of Pi Day, an annual commemoration of the number “3.14” held on March 14. DNAinfo published an interactive map of participating establishments and what they planned to offer.
A Hawk-heavy ‘Chicagoland’
The Chicago Blackhawks’ 2013 championship season was the focal point of the second episode of CNN’s eight-part “Chicagoland” docu-series on Thursday, according to the Chicago Tribune.
A stark contrast to the Hawks’ triumphant season and the “sun-splashed” Grant Park celebration that took place afterwards, the episode also featured Chicago Police Commander Leo Schmidt patrolling the violence-ridden Englewood neighborhood. “Nothing will shock you after a while,” Schmidt said of working in Englewood.
The second episode also provided more camera time to Fenger High School Principal Liz Dozier – a fixture of the first episode of “Chicagoland” – as she fought Chicago Public Schools budget cuts.
The second episode of “Chicagoland” is scheduled to re-air on CNN at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Saturday, at 9 p.m. and midnight Sunday and at 3 a.m. Monday.
-Tom Butala