This weekend I had a chance to check out the inaugural voyage of Weird Chicago Tours, and it didn’t disappoint. Between the strange story of Marshall Field Junior’s demise, the House of Crosses over on 1544 W. Chestnut (“For almost 25 years, the owners have been covering the house, lawn, and coach house with hundreds of wooden crosses, plaques, and shields. This isn’t a grotesque fixation on death but an artistic tribute… primarily, to the movies! The names of movie stars, movie characters, and movie titles appear on these colorful structures: Ingrid Bargain, Bing Crosby, Bette Davis, Mickey Rooney, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Tarzan, Buckwheat, the Cisco Kid. Camelot, the Pope, Joan of Arc, and former mayor Jane Byrne are also acknowledged.”), the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre site, the giant Fez at Liar’s Club, the Virgin Mary salt stain, and all sorts of other historical tidbits, movie locations, and a few ghost stories, it was a cool thing to do for an evening, and a nice change from just hitting the bar. Founder Troy Taylor is a fount of knowledge on all things weird, and didn’t mind answering random questions. (And really, what other kinds of questions would he get on such a tour?) Check it out to get into the mood for Halloween, or just because you have an interest in the strange.