Pricey Periodical Preview: The Chicagoan Hits Windy City Streets Next Week

copyright  2011 J. CrockerBorrowing its moniker from a cultural magazine published in the Second City from 1926-1935, The Chicagoan hits Chi-town  next week, the Website TimeOutChicago.com reports.

The glossy journal headed by 36-year-old Publisher/Editor-in-Chief J.C. Gabel, will debut with a 194-page issue devoid of ads and carrying a hefty $19.95 sale price. The periodical, which plans to publish twice a year, initially will be available at roughly 50 locations, mostly restaurants, salons and boutiques, the TimeOutChicago article reports.

The magazine's inaugural issue is anchored by a 47-page, 25,000-word piece about the relationship between famed Chicago film critics Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel. The book is divided into three sections: Tales from the City, A Literary Supplement and Into the Great Wide Open: Dispatches from the Midwest, and will be replete with articles, poems, short stories, essays, artwork and photographs.

Without advertising revenues, The Chicagoan will operate as a nonprofit backed by membership fees, donations and subscriptions. Members will pay annual dues of $99, according to TimeOutChicago.

A noble experiment for the culturally rich Windy City, but having formerly resided in Chicago for several years, the homesick staff of  "TUOL" believes Chi-towners won't  fork over $19.95 for a periodical, no matter how literary, unless it comes attached to a half-rack of ribs.