Are we scammed into thinking Hollywood parties are even important?

No, at least I never pay any attention to them...

More importantly to me was the discussion of "Chicago Style Hot dogs" that nobody knew how to make... So... How DO you make them? Does the lettuce and tomato go in the bun with everything else? Please enlighten me.

I'm serious about this, this sounded like the most interesting part of the party and it was just glossed over.

Z. (Never been to Chicago, never likely to go, but if the hot dogs are good then I might aim to get there...)

Lettuce on a hot dog? You must be kidding. That sounds like some sort of European misapplication of ingredients on American food, like putting corn on a pizza!

I've been to Chicago a few times, but what sort of tube-steak innovations did I overlook by avoiding the dog carts? I must consult the Hitchhikers's Guide on this!

Daniel Pinkwater did a rant on Chicago dogs once. Pickles, lettuce, hot pepper . . . odd stuff, but I'd like to try one.

Agreed: the most interesting part of the party sounds like the hot dogs... so, what's a dog gotta do to be Chicago-style?

OK, I disagree with the list of ingredients at /m3. A true Chicago dog has:

1. Steamed bun
2. Beef hot dog
3. Chopped onions
4. Unnaturally screaming-green pickle relish (that I can't find anywhere else in the stores)
5. Pickled, green, hot peppers - long, thin ones that look like tabascos (and might be)
6. Yellow American-style mustard (i.e., the bland stuff)

The mix of flavors gets my mouth watering, just thinking about it...

YMMV, of course (ingredients & salivation factor).

Wow, We have "Daniel Pinkwater" /m4 HHG /m3 and a completely offtopic discussion on Chicago dogs rather than Hollywood parties. This is a truly enlightened crowd. :-)

So, I have 2 collections of Daniel Pinkwater (4 stories and 5 stories, I can't remember the names of the books, but the numbers are REALLY big on the cover) are there any that I HAVE to find as well... (I should actively look, but the ones I've read so far are good.)

Corn on a pizza.... I hate Corn... But European misapplication sounds like it's the wrong way round... Aren't hot dogs really German? In which case I'd blame the Americans for getting it wrong. The only "misapplication of ingredients on American food that I've heard rumours of are the suggested origin of Pasta Carbonara, which allegedly came from Americans asking Italians for "Ham and Eggs" and getting, Ham, Eggs, Pasta and Parmesan mixed together...

Z.

Broom left off a very important ingredient of the Chicago Style (tm) hotdog. Celery Salt.

I don't know what it even is (crushed up celery seeds and salt?), but it definitely goes on a chicago style dog and it brings together the tastes quite nicely.

They way I've seen them served is with onions, the weird relish, mustard (no ketchup). Then each side is filled with a longway slide of tomoato and a pickle (in alternation) and then either a pickle spear on top, or a thin piece of lettuce. All of this is then liberally doused with celery salt.

It may sound like corn on pizza, but it ain't.

Corn on a pizza I can deal with... it's odd, but I can deal with it. What really squicks me out with Japanese pizza is the mayonaisse. Mayo does not belong anywhere near pizza, dammit.