List of fiction set in Chicago

This is a list of fiction set in or near Chicago.

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

File:State and Madison postcard 50433.jpg

1933 postcard showing the corner of State St. and Madison St. in downtown Chicago

Notable novels

• Nelson Algren, The Man With the Golden Arm ISBN 1-58322-008-9
• Sherwood Anderson, Windy McPherson's Son
• Blue Balliett, Chasing Vermeer and The Wright 3
• Saul Bellow, The Adventures of Augie March ISBN 0-14-018941-6
• Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
• Saul Bellow, Humboldt's Gift
• Saul Bellow, Ravelstein
• Charles Blackstone, The Week You Weren't Here
• Fredric Brown, The Fabulous Clipjoint
• Jim Butcher, The Dresden Files series
• Robert Wright Campbell, Jimmy Flannery mystery series
• Willa Cather, The Song of the Lark
• Peter Cheyney, Dark Hero
• Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street ISBN 0-679-43335-X
• Doug Cummings, Deader by the Lake
• Theodore Dreiser, Sister Carrie ISBN 0-451-52760-7 Modern Library's 100 Best Novels
• Theodore Dreiser, The Titan
• Stuart Dybek, The Coast of Chicago ISBN 0-312-42425-6
• James T. Farrell, Studs Lonigan trilogy
• Edna Ferber, So Big
• Joshua Ferris, Then We Came to the End ISBN 978-0-316-01638-4
• John M. Ford, The Last Hot Time ISBN 0-312-87578-9
• Robert Goldsborough, A Death in Pilsen
• Robert Goldsborough, President in Peril ISBN 978-1-59080-616-6
• Robert Goldsborough, Shadow of the Bomb
• Robert Goldsborough, Terror at the Fair ISBN 978-1-59080-672-2
• Robert Goldsborough, Three Strikes You're Dead
• John Grisham, The Litigators
• Aleksandar Hemon, Nowhere Man ISBN 0-375-72702-7
• Ward Just, An Unfinished Season
• Harry Stephen Keeler, The Riddle of the Traveling Skull ISBN 1-932416-26-9
• Adam Langer, Crossing California
• Adam Langer, The Washington Story
• Nella Larsen, Passing ISBN 0-14-243727-1
• Nella Larsen, Quicksand ISBN 0-14-118127-3
• Jennette Lee, Mr. Achilles
• Graham Masterton, Headlines
• Somerset Maugham, The Razor's Edge ISBN 1-4000-3420-5
• Joe Meno, Hairstyles of the Damned
• Chloe Neill, Chicagoland Vampires
• Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife ISBN 0-15-602943-X
• Frank Norris, The Pit: A Chicago Story
• Achy Obejas, Memory Mambo
• Sara Paretsky, thrillers featuring private eye V.I. Warshawski
• Richard Peck, Fair Weather
• Joseph G. Peterson, Beautiful Piece
• Daniel Pinkwater, The Education of Robert Nifkin
• Leonard Pitts, Jr., Grant Park
• Philip Roth, Letting Go
• Veronica Roth, Divergent - #1 on the Children's Paperback list in 2012
• Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson, Illuminatus!
• Upton Sinclair, The Jungle ISBN 1-884365-30-2
• Terrance L. Smith, The Thief Who Came to Dinner
• Scott Spencer, Endless Love
• Chris Ware, Building Stories (2012)
• Chris Ware, Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth
• Richard Wright, Native Son

Short stories

• "Deadly City," March, 1953 issue of If magazine under the pseudonym Ivar Jorgensen (later made into the motion picture Target Earth; the story was about an alien invasion and evacuation of Chicago)

• Chicago Stories: 40 Dramatic Fictions by Michael Czyzniejewski, Jacob S Knabb and Rob Funderburk, 2012

• The Coast of Chicago: Stories by Stuart Dybek, 2004

Musicals and plays

• American Buffalo
• Be Like Water
• Bleacher Bums
• Chicago - musical, won a Tony Award in 1976
• Chicago - play
• Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?
• The Front Page
• Glengarry Glen Ross
• In the Jungle of Cities
• Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
• Proof
• A Raisin in the Sun - nominated for four Tony Awards in 1960
• The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui
• Sexual Perversity in Chicago
• Show Boat
• Superior Donuts

Films

• About Last Night (1986)
• Above the Law (1988)
• Adventures in Babysitting (1987)
• The Adventures of Lucky Pierre (1961)
• Against All Hope (1982)
• Ali (2001)
• Allah Tantou (1989)
• American Gun (2005)
• American Reel (1999)
• Angel Eyes (2001)
• Anything's Possible (1999)
• April Fools (2007)
• August Rush (2007)
• The Babe (1992)
• Baby on Board (2009)
• Baby's Day Out (1994)
• Backdraft (1991) (box office #1 film in the U.S.)
• Bad Boys (1983)
• Barbershop (2002) (box office #1 film in the U.S.)
• Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004) (#1 film in U.S.)
• Beginning of the End (1957) – set in downstate Illinois and Chicago
• Betrayed (1988)
• The Big Brawl (1980)
• Big Shots (1987)
• Blankman (1994)
• Blind (1994)
• Blink (1994)
• The Blues Brothers (1980)
• Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
• Brannigan (1975)
• The Break-Up (2006) (#1 in the U.S.)
• The Breakfast Club (1985)
• Breed of Men (1919)
• Bridesmaids (2011) (partly in Chicago)
• Bridge (1988)
• The Brute (1920)
• Bugsy Malone (1976)
• Butterfly on a Wheel (2007)
• Call Northside 777 (1948)
• Candyman (1992) - based on a book originally set in London
• Carrie (1952)
• Casino (1995) - scenes labeled as "Back Home" are in Chicago
• Category 6: Day of Destruction (2004) - partly in Chicago
• Chain Reaction (1996)
• Chicago (1927)
• Chicago (2002) (Academy Award for Best Picture)
• Chicago Cab (1997)
• Chicago Deadline (1949)
• Chicago Overcoat (2009)
• Child's Play (1988) (#1 in U.S.)
• Child's Play 2 (1990) (#1 in U.S.)
• Chi-Raq (2015)
• City That Never Sleeps (1953)
• Class (1983)
• Code of Silence (1985)
• Colombiana (2011)
• The Company (2003)
• Continental Divide (1981)
• Cooley High (1975)
• Curly Sue (1991)
• Damien: Omen II (1978) (#1 film in the U.S.)
• Danger Lights (1930) (partly in Chicago)
• Death of a President (2006)
• Dhoom 3 (2013) (Hindi film)
• The Dilemma (2011)
• Divergent (2014) (box office #1 film in the U.S.)
• The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015) (#1 in the U.S.)
• Derailed (2005)
• Dick Tracy (1990)
• Dragonfly (2002)
• The Dumb Girl of Portici (1916)
• Eagle Eye (2008) (#1 film in U.S.)
• Eight Men Out (1988)
• The Express (2009)

Film poster for Ferris Bueller's Day Off

• Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
• Flatliners (1990)
• The Fugitive (1993) (#1 film in the U.S.)
• The Fury (1978)
• Girls Just Want To Have Fun (1985)
• Go Fish (1994)
• Guilty as Sin (1993)
• Hardball (2001)
• Harry and Tonto (1974)
• Heaven is a Playground (1991)
• Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986) - partly in Chicago
• Hero (1992)
• High Fidelity (2000) - based on a book originally set in London
• His New Job (1915)
• Home Alone (1990) (#1 film in the U.S.)
• Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) (partly in Chicago) (#1 film in U.S.)
• Home Alone 3 (1997)
• The Homesteader (1919)
• Hoodlum (1997)
• Hope Floats (1998) - partly in Chicago
• The Hunter (1980) - partly in Chicago
• The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
• I Love Trouble (1994)
• I, Robot (2004) (#1 in U.S.)
• I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With (2007)
• In the Depth of Our Hearts (1920)
• It's the Rage (1999)
• Judgment Night (1993)
• King of the Rodeo (1929)
• Kissing A Fool (1998)
• The Lake House (2006)
• A League of Their Own (1992) (#1 in the U.S.)
• Light It Up (1999)
• Little Fockers (2010)
• Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977)
• Love and Action in Chicago (1999)
• Love Jones (1997)
• Lucas (1986)
• The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
• Mean Girls (2004) (#1 film in U.S.) - set in Evanston
• Medium Cool (1969)
• Meet the Parents (2000) (#1 in the U.S.) - partly set in Chicago
• Mercury Rising (1998)
• Message in a Bottle - partly set in Chicago
• Michael (1996) - partly in Chicago
• Mickey One (1965)
• Midnight Run (1988) - partly in Chicago
• Miracle on 34th Street (1994) - partly in Chicago
• Mo' Money (1992)
• Monkey Hustle (1976)
• Music Box (1989)
• My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
• My Bodyguard (1980)
• National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989) (#1 film in U.S.)
• National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985) - starts in Chicago
• National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) - partly in Chicago
• Natural Born Killers (1994) - partly in Chicago
• The Negotiator (1998)
• Never Been Kissed (1999)
• Next of Kin (1989) - set in Chicago and Kentucky
• A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988)
• Nothing in Common (1986) - partly in Chicago
• On the Line (2001)
• Only the Lonely (1991)
• Opportunity Knocks (1990)
• Ordinary People(1980) (Academy Award for Best Picture)
• The Package (1989)
• Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)
• Poltergeist III (1988)
• Prelude to a Kiss (1992)
• Primal Fear (1996)
• Proof (2005)
• Public Enemies (2009)
• Raisin in the Sun (1961)
• Random Encounter (1998)
• Rapid Fire (1992)
• Raw Deal (1986)
• Red Heat (1988)
• The Relic (1997) - based on a book originally set in New York City
• Return to Me (2000)
• Ri¢hie Ri¢h (1994) - scenes filmed in Chicago
• Risky Business (1983) - set in the North Shore
• Road to Perdition (2002) (#1 film in the U.S.)
• Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)
• Roll Bounce (2005)
• Rookie of the Year (1993)
• Running Scared (1986)
• Save the Last Dance (2001) (#1 film in the U.S.)
• Shall We Dance? (2004)
• Sheba, Baby (1975) - partly in Chicago
• She's Having a Baby (1988)
• Silver Streak (1976) - partly in Chicago
• Sleepless In Seattle (1993) - partly in Chicago
• Slim (1937) - partly in Chicago
• Some Like It Hot (1959) - partly in Chicago
• Somewhere in Time (1980) - partly in Chicago
• Soul Food (1997)
• A Sound of Thunder (2005)
• Source Code (2011)
• Spider-Man 2 (2004) (#1 film in U.S.) - partly in Chicago
• The Sting (1973) - partly in Chicago; Academy Award for Best Picture
• Stir of Echoes (1999)
• Stolen Summer (2001)
• Straight Talk (1992)
• Stranger than Fiction (2006)
• Strawberry Fields (1997)
• Streets of Fire (1984)
• Surviving Christmas (2003)
• That Royle Girl (1925)
• Thief (1981)
• Three To Tango (1999)
• Tommy Boy (1995) (#1 film in U.S.) - partly in Chicago
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
• Two Fathers: Justice for the Innocent (1994)
• Ultraviolet (2006)
• The Unborn (2009)
• Uncle Buck (1989)
• The Untouchables (1987)
• U.S. Marshals (1998) - partly in Chicago
• Vegas Vacation (1997) - starts in Chicago
• V.I. Warshawski (1991)
• Wanted (2008)
• The Watcher (2000) (#1 in the U.S.)
• Wayne's World (1992) (#1 film in the U.S.) - partly in Chicago
• Wayne's World 2 (1993) (#1 in the U.S.) - partly in Chicago
• The Weather Man (2005)
• A Wedding (1978)
• What Women Want (2000) (#1 in the U.S.)
• When Harry Met Sally (1989) - partly in Chicago
• While You Were Sleeping (1995) (#1 in the U.S.)
• The Whole Nine Yards (2000) (#1 in the U.S.)
• Wicker Park (2004)
• Wildcats (1986)
• Within Our Gates (1920)

Chicago destroyed on film

• In Old Chicago (1937) - destroyed by the Great Chicago Fire
• Independence Day (1996) - mentioned
• Chain Reaction (1996) - parts of the city destroyed by an explosion caused by a hydrogen reactor
• Category 6: Day of Destruction (2004) - destroyed by a series of tornadoes and a category 6 hurricane over the Great Lakes
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) - seriously damaged by the Decepticons' assault on the city as well as the final battle between the Autobots and Decepticons (#1 film in U.S.)
• Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) - the city was rebuilt five years later, where it was used for KSI first (#1 in U.S.)

Although not set in the city's limits, the late John Hughes films Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink (1986) (#1 film in U.S.), and Weird Science take place in the fictional town of Shermer, Illinois, which is loosely based on Northbrook, Illinois.

In the #1 box office film The Matrix (1999), the subway sets were based on the CTA. One of the trains is clearly a Brown Line train, which in reality, barring construction, never goes underground.

TV shows

• According to Jim (2001–2009)
• Against the Wall (2011)
• Barbershop: The Series (2005)
• The Beast (2009)
• Betrayal (2013-2014)
• Biker Mice from Mars (1993–1995)
• The Bob Newhart Show (1972–1978)
• The Boondocks
• Boss (2011–2012)
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979–1981) - in its first season (1979–1980), "New Chicago" functioned as Earth's capital city
• The Building (1993)
• Charlie & Co. (1985-1986)
• The Chicago Code (2011)
• Chicago Fire (2012–present)
• Chicago Hope (1994–2000)
• Chicago PD (2014–present)
• Chicago Sons (1997)
• Chicago Story (1982)
• Coupling (2003) - US version only
• The Crazy Ones (2013-2014)
• Crime Story (1986–1988)
• Crisis (2013–present)
• Cupid (1998)
• The Dresden Files (2007)
• Due South (1994–1996, 1997–1999) - some filming in Toronto, Canada
• Early Edition (1996–2000)
• E/R (1984–1985)
• ER (1994–2009)
• Exosquad (1993–1995) - Chicago, renamed to Phaeton City, was one of the central locations of the show
• Family Matters (1989–1998)
• The Forgotten (2009–2010)
• Generations (1989–1991)
• Good Times (1974–1979)
• The Good Wife (2009–present)
• Happy Endings (2011–2013)
• The Hogan Family (1986–1991)
• It Takes Two (1982-1983)
• Kenan & Kel (1996–2000)
• Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974–1975)
• Lady Blue (1985–1986)
• The League (2009–present)
• Legally Mad (2009–present)
• Leverage (2008–present) - pilot episode only
• Life Goes On (1989–1993)
• Life With Bonnie (2002–2004)
• The Loop (2006–2007)
• M Squad (1957–1960)
• Married... with Children (1987–1997)
• Mike and Molly (2010–present)
• Mind Games (2014)
• Modern Men (2006)
• My Boys (2006–2010)
• Pepper Dennis (2006)
• Perfect Strangers (1986–1993)
• The Playboy Club (2011)
• Prison Break (2005–2009) - partly set in Chicago
• Punky Brewster (1984–1986)
• Revolution (2012–present)
• Roseanne (1988-1997); set in fictional Lanford, Illinois
• Samantha Who? (2007–2009)
• Shake It Up (2010–2013)
• Shameless (2011–present)
• Sirens (2014-present)
• Sisters (1991–1996)
• Soul Food: The Series (2000–2004)
• Special Unit 2 (2001-2002)
• Starting Over (2003–2004 season)
• The Steve Harvey Show (1996–2002)
• Still Standing (2002–2006)
• Terra Nova (2011)
• Traffic Light (2011)
• Trust Me (2009)
• Turks (1999)
• Two of a Kind (1998–1999)
• The Untouchables (1959–1963)
• Webster (1983–1987)
• What About Joan? (2001)
• Whitney (2011–2013)
• Wild Card (2003–2005)

Many considered Hill Street Blues, which never made explicit what city it was in, to be set in Chicago or Pittsburgh.

Chicago was the site of a nuclear detonation in the post-apocalyptic drama Jericho, as well as subsequent food riots in nearby refugee camps.

Reality TV

• The Real World: Chicago (2002)
• Real World: Skeletons (2014–2015)

Video games

File:Chicago, Illinois in SimCity 2000 (1993).jpg

Chicago simulated via the 1994 video game SimCity 2000.

This is a list of video games in which a major part of the action takes place in Chicago, Illinois. This list does not count sports games or flight simulators, save for Pilotwings 64 and Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.

• 18 Wheels of Steel series (PC)
• BattleTanx (N64)
• Blues Brothers 2000 (N64)
• Chicago 90 (Amiga)
• Chicago Enforcer (Xbox)
• The Crew (PC, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox 360)
• Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge (Xbox)
• Cruisin' USA (Midway Games) (arcade/N64)
• Deus Ex: Invisible War (PC/Xbox)
• Double S.T.E.A.L: The Second Clash (Xbox)
• Driver 2 (PS/GBA)
• Emergency Call Ambulance (arcade)
• Grid 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360, Mac)
• Halo 2 (Xbox/PC) - the multiplayer level "Foundry" is based in Chicago
• Hitman: Absolution (PC/Xbox360/PS3)
• I Am Alive (PC/PS3/Xbox360)
• Lethal Enforcers (Konami)
• Michael Jordan in Chaos in the Windy City (SNES)
• Midtown Madness (PC)
• Mob Enforcer (PC)
• NARC (Williams Electronics) (PC/PS2/Xbox)
• Nocturne (PC)
• Perfect Dark (N64)
• Pilotwings 64 (N64)
• Project Gotham Racing 2 (Xbox)
• Rampage 2: Universal Tour (N64/PS1)
• Rampage: Total Destruction (GCN/PS2/Wii)
• Rampage World Tour (N64/PS1)
• Resistance 2 (PS3)
• Rock Band (PS2/PS3/Xbox360/Wii/PSP)
• Stranglehold (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC)
• Tekken (PS1/arcade)
• Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. (PC/PS3/Xbox360/Wii)
• Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist (PC/PS3/Xbox360/WiiU)
• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 (PC/PS/PS2/Xbox)
• US Racer (PC)
• Watch Dogs (PC/PS3/PS4/WiiU/Xbox360)
• You Don't Know Jack (PC) - the host periodically mentions being in or from Chicago

Others (comics, manga, cartoons)

• Blue Beetle
• Cage, volume 1 (April 1992-November 1993) - ongoing series by Marvel Comics featuring the superhero Luke Cage; 20 issues were published
• "C.O.W.L."
• "Ghost"
• Gunsmith Cats
• "Kremin" 1-4 Grey Productions Inc 1991-1992
• Nightwing Vol 3., Issue #18-ongoing
• Plastic Man (DC)
• Riding Bean
• Savage Dragon
• Tintin in America

External links

• City of Chicago's Film Office
• Chicago in Science Fiction bibliography
• Chicago Magazine's Top 40 Chicago Novels