'The Blob' Taking Over North Side Man's Front Yard
CHICAGO (CBS) -- We expect springtime to bring new growth, but something bizarre has sprouted in a North Center neighborhood family's yard.
Years ago, there was a mulberry tree in Larry Bartoli's front yard in the 2100 block of West Montrose Avenue. It died, and when he had it removed, something starting oozing out of the ground.
"So I remember the movie, 'The Blob,' with Steve McQueen, and I put the sign up, 'The Blob' – I don't know how many people know about Steve McQueen and 'The Blob' – and it constantly keeps growing," Bartoli said.
In the 1958 cult classic, McQueen's character described the blob as "a mass that keeps getting bigger and bigger."
"There's no stopping 'The Blob' as it spreads from town to town," according to the narrator of the film's trailer.
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Bartoli wasn't 100 percent sure what his own blob is, but he has a pretty good idea.
"This is a fungus, I guess. I can't figure out what else it could be," he said. "I figure that's what killed the tree."
He said it's been growing for more than 15 years.
"Will it ever stop? I have no idea," Bartoli said.
