Mayor Emanuel is a gambling man.
This time, it paid off ... again.
More than 83,000 children in Chicago read a collective total of 2.7 million books this summer as part of the free Rahm's Readers Summer Learning Challenge, Mayor Emanuel's office is set to announce Monday.
That's more than the goal of 2.4 million Emanuel set when he raised the stakes in June with late night TV host Jimmy Fallon that if Chicago's kids read that many books this summer that Fallon would tape an episode in Chicago.
It would be the first time the "Tonight Show" would come to Chicago since 1998.
Fallon tried to up the goal to 11 million books but the mayor stuck to 2.4 million, joking that a local accounting firm would tabulate the results. Finally, Fallon said, "I love to go to Chicago," and shook Emanuel's hand to seal the deal.
There was no way the mayor was going to lose that bet. And the kids backed him up and exceeded the goal. They were encouraged to spend at least 20 minutes a day reading and together racked up a total of 66 million minutes reading over the summer months.
"It's time to pick a venue, Jimmy," Emanuel said in a news release. "And we have plenty of places in Chicago that would be perfect for your show."
Attempts to reach the "Tonight Show" for comment were unsuccessful.
That deal came on the heels of a Twitter dare with Fallon to take the Polar Plunge in March to benefit Special Olympics. Fallon suited up and ran into the frigid Lake Michigan. In return, the mayor accepted Fallon's invite to appear on his show.
Emanuel initially signed up to jump in the lake after he issued a challenge for children in the Rahm's Readers program to read two million books in the summer of 2013. Well, they did and so he did.
"We set high expectations last summer for the kids of Chicago, and we have seen time and again that our children not only meet the challenge but go above and beyond the goal," Emanuel said.
Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye's Facebook page.