At the end of this month, the owner of an iconic Northwest Side Chicago newsstand will close its doors after 82 years.

The newsstand is located at the corner of Northwest Highway and Oliphant Avenue in the Edison Park neighborhood — steps away from the Edison Park Station on the Union Pacific Northwest Metra Line.

For 64 of the 82 years Kaage's Newsstand has been around, Mike Kaage has been the man propped up in front from 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. each day.

"Ever since day one when it was seven below zero, which is still a record low for that date, we've been here every day," Kaage said.

Kaage has seen every headline, heist, and historic moment unfold in front of him. He fondly remembers the day after the Cubs won the 2016 World Series — a relatively recent event as the history of the newsstand is concerned.

"That day, I sold over 5,000," Kaage said. "It was nuts up here!"

Kaage's Newsstand opened March 8, 1943. Mike Kaage himself started there in 1961 when he was 5 years old — making a quarter an hour.

Kaage's dad, Irv Kaage, eventually bought the newsstand from his own father. Mike worked there with his brother, also named Irv.

It was a time when newsstands were found on every corner. Mike Kaage wanted to keep that tradition going, so his dad handed over the stand to him in the 1990s.

"I think loyalty to my dad and my customers, because I certainly appreciate them," said Kaage, "because without them I wouldn't have a business."

Mike Kaage treats his 75 daily customers like family. He remembers all their names.

"I told them my name and they never forgot it," said customer John Evanoff.

Kaage also remembers which papers his customers each get, and he always hands them the right amount of change.

Some customers say Kaage makes Edison Park feel like Mayberry.

 "It's almost like Floyd's Barbershop from 'Andy Griffith,'" said customer Rickey Fitzpatrick. "You know, everybody is there."

Or maybe it's Bedford Falls.

"He's like George Bailey in 'It's a Wonderful Life,'" said Mike Kaage's brother, Irv. "He's the richest man in town."

But even with a compliment like that, Mike Kaage knows nothing can last forever.

"Under these circumstances, it's time to end the era," he said.

Family was the reason Kaage took over the newsstand years ago, and it is the same reason he is deciding to close up shop in a few short weeks.

 "My wife passed away in February, and previous to that, we were babysitting our granddaughter two days a week," said Kaage. "Now with her gone, it's really up to me."

Kaage's granddaughter, 3-year-old Cora, and his grandson, Mac, are his retirement plans.

It is a chapter the Edison Park community never saw coming.

"I thought he would just die here one day," said Evanoff. "He wears that little apron with the money, and when he goes home, he doesn't take it off all day."

Everyone says how much they're going to miss Kaage's Newsstand.

Kaage said the stand should have closed decades ago, but his loyalty to his community and his dad kept him going.

"That's what's going to be missed when we close the doors for the last time on June 29 at 10:30," said brother Irv Kaage.

Added Mike Kaage, "Like I've said to other people, I've paid my dues and then some."

Kaage has no doubt put in the work. His own headline is his labor of love.

"I know I'm going to miss it," Kaage said, "but it's a new chapter in my life — and hopefully it's a huge book."

Kaage said he is not going to sell the newsstand or give it away. What is next is still to be determined, but he is talking with the neighborhood chamber of commerce.

• Northwest Side