Search Results

The all-white horse breed made its Hollywood debut in 1940 I met new friends at The Tempel Lipizzans stables about an hour outside Chicago. ⁣ The all-white Lipizzan breed apparently made its Hollywood debut in MGM's movie Florian (1940). Based on newspapers of the time, the care and maintenance alone of Florian 's five Lippizan stars—including hay, oats, bran, straw, horseshoeing, vet medicine, a private bungalow, and tail/mane braiding—cost MGM studios $6,745. That translates to roughly $127,000 today.

The "founding father of gay Chicago" documents a one-time sexual encounter with movie star Rock Hudson In the 1940s, Chicago department store Marshall Field & Co. was known as a gay cruising ground. At least that's how author Justin Spring describes it in his book on Chicago cult artist and writer Samuel Steward: Secret Historian: The Life and Times of Samuel Steward, Professor, Tattoo Artist, and Sexual Renegade (2011). As Spring's book title suggests, Samuel Steward was, first, a popular professor. He taught English at DePaul University and Loyola University. He also wrote and published literary fiction and gay pulp fiction. Second, Steward moonlighted as a tattoo artist under the name Phil Sparrow. That's how he was known to the Hell's Angels who befriended him. Finally, Steward was a relatively open gay man during an era when homosexuality could mean jail time. He documented all of his intimate encounters, including those with Thornton Wilder , Rudolph Valentino , and Rock Hudson . Hence, Spring's nickname for him: the " founding father of gay Chicago . " During the 1946 Christmas season, Samuel Steward worked in the bookstore at Marshall Field's, which he describes as "a howling madhouse, a lunatic Sabbath, and a frenzied nightmare of females and squalling brats." (Yikes.) While working at Field's, one day, Steward took interest in a handsome, young male employee wrapping presents. After confirming from his (gay) boss that the handsome fellow was indeed "a club member," Steward approached. A conversation ensued. Shortly thereafter, the two men nonchalantly boarded the store's freight elevator, stopped it between floors, and engaged in a quick sexual encounter. That is, of course, according to Steward's "stud file," a metal box containing index cards that recount in detail all of his sexual relationships. In any event, the Marshall Field's gift-wrapper was named Roy Fitzgerald. Within a few months, Fitzgerald would leave his department store post—and his hometown of Winnetka, IL—for a remarkable career in Hollywood as Rock Hudson.

In educating 1930s Chicagoans about the dangers of syphilis, movies played a couple of roles In the mid-1930s, syphilis was widespread in the United States: Roughly 1/10 Americans suffered from the venereal disease 18% of deaths from heart disease were attributed to syphilis 60,000 children were born each year with congenital syphilis (Brandt 129-30). With penicillin 10 years away, doctors treated syphilis with arsenic, bismuth, and mercury. Treatment was not cheap, costing some patients $300-$1,000! To curb this spreading disease, the New York State health commissioner proposed several plans to enact nationally. Among his suggestions: Offer free testing centers Make blood testing mandatory before marriage and early in pregnancy Educate the public concerning syphilis In educating the public about the dangers of syphilis, movies would play a couple of roles. Syphilis Movies for Doctors In the 1930s, syphilis movies were aimed at doctors . The American Medical Association and U.S. Public Health Service created training films like Syphilis: A Motion Picture Clinic to show doctors, step by step, how to examine patients and test for the disease. These movies offered physicians the latest information about causes, effects, and treatment of syphilis. They also included "explicit images of affected genitalia" and, thus, were not deemed suitable for the general public of the 1930s. (Little did the films' creators know at the time that their work would eventually circulate on something called YouTube!) Syphilis Movies for the Public In the 1930s, syphilis movies—and movie-like propaganda—also targeted the general public , Chicagoans included. As these clippings from the Chicago Tribune and surrounding Chicago newspapers point out, in the late 1930s, Chicagoans could attend free movies and talking-slide films about syphilis. High schools, women's and men's clubs, and parent-teacher associations were invited to view these "clean, educational picture[s]" and slides designed to help eradicate "the menace of syphilis." One talking-slide movie called For All Our Sakes (1936) was reportedly produced in Chicago at Burton Holmes Studios, 459 E. Ontario St. Its first screening took place off Lake Shore Dr. and Superior St. For All Our Sakes featured 100+ projected slides operated in connection with a phonograph disc recording. From 1937-38, it was shown in several states in addition to Illinois. Based on the letter from the American Social Hygiene Association that accompanied For All Our Sakes , Chicagoans were assured they were not watching "a Chamber of Horrors picture ." Rather, the approach to the spreading problem was "sane and enlightening" and designed for mixed audiences. In short, no one would be embarrassed, not even the "most sensitive individual." While we no longer have visual evidence, For All Our Sakes was evidently "attractively photographed" and "accompanied by a voice of unusual variety and vividness" (Pinney 167). In 1936, Dr. Jean B. Pinney writes that social hygiene "naturally lends itself to interpretation through the motion picture." She cites Damaged Goods (1915) as "the first social-hygiene drama film" and similar films that were created during WWI, the latter of which may have kept a low rate of syphilis among U.S. soldiers. We've known from their inception that moving images are powerful and can be used in various ways: to narrate, entertain, promote, scare, express, and persuade. We can add to the list: to educate Chicagoans on the potential dangers of diseases like syphilis. Sources Brandt, Allen M. No Magic Bullet: A Social History of Venereal Disease in the United States Since 1880 . Oxford UP, 1987. Englund, Kristin MD. " Syphilis 100 Years Later: Another lost opportunity? " Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine , 2017. Pinney, Jean B. " The Motion Picture and Social-Hygiene Education ." The Journal of Educational Sociology. Vol. 10, No. 3, The Motion Picture in its Educational and Social Aspects (Nov., 1936). 158-67.

Thank you for supporting Chicago Movie Tours. Here’s to many more! Two years ago today — on April 1, 2020 — I sat on my back porch with my dog Oliver. I made this 2-minute video introducing myself and Chicago Movie Tours . Then, I uploaded that video to YouTube and hoped for the best. Little did I know the COVID-19 pandemic would last nearly 2 years and that it would keep me from running the in-person tours I had so carefully researched and planned for you. But we pulled through — with the help of virtual tours , Zoom programs , and even in-depth online courses ! And I'm happy to say that as of this writing, more than 21,000 movie fans follow my small Chicago-based tour business across social media. What follows is a quick video that recaps the day I introduced myself and Chicago Movie Tours. The video also thanks you for following, engaging with, and supporting Chicago Movie Tours over the last 2 years! Here’s to many more. 🥂 Kelli

Explore 4 reasons the Art Institute scene in Ferris Bueller's Day Off is so memorable In Ferris Bueller’s Day Off , three suburban teenagers skip school, drive into Chicago, and explore well-known sites like the Sears Tower , Wrigley Field , and the Art Institute of Chicago . The scene inside the Art Institute lasts only 2 minutes, but it is arguably one of the most memorable from the 1986 American teen comedy. Here are at least 4 reasons this museum scene is so unforgettable: Showcases a whopping 40 pieces of art Distinguishes the movie from other hedonistic teen comedies of the time Speaks volumes about the film's characters and its director, John Hughes, even though it contains no dialogue Represents a beautiful tribute to the power of art If you want to experience firsthand the artwork and hear behind-the-scenes stories that inspired one of the most famous scenes in Chicago-based cinema, join our guided walking tour The Art of Ferris Bueller . Also, be sure to look for our appearance in The Washington Post alongside three Chicagoans who recreate Ferris, Cameron, and Sloane's famous day off!

Discover two landmarks etched into a bronze cow outside the Chicago Cultural Center In front of Chicago’s Cultural Center sits a 2,500-pound bronze cow. It’s there to commemorate a public art project called Chicago Cows on Parade . In 1999, 320 fiberglass cows were placed around Chicago. In the video below, you can see a few of these statues: Top Cow Tourist Cow Space Cow, who sits appropriately in front of Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry In the fall of 1999, 100 of these cows were auctioned off for charity. Talk show host and actress Oprah Winfrey bought 3 of them. Chicago Cows on Parade was so popular that a bronze replica was placed in front of Chicago's Cultural Center in 2001 to remind Chicagoans of the event. Look Into My Eyes If you look closer at the cow — and into its eyes — you will see two other nods to Chicago’s history with architecture and art. Etched into one eye is a rendering of Chicago’s Picasso statue , which has appeared in movies like The Fugitive , The Lake House , and The Blues Brothers . Etched into the cow’s other eye is a depiction of Chicago's 150-year-old Water Tower , one of the few iconic structures left standing after the Great Chicago Fire . Keep your eyes open when you are taking a Chicago walking tour (or a virtual tour !). You might be surprised what’s hiding in plain sight!

Try your hand at 1 question about Chicago's movie history In this series, Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , we locate a building, an object, or another type of structure in Chicago. Then, with our trusty HD video camera, we zoom in on one section of the item until it is separate from the whole. Next, we create a trivia question about the structure and its links to Chicago and movies. Clues are embedded in the question. Finally, we'll give you the answer to the trivia question — with a fun visual explanation. All of this happens in 60 seconds or less! Ready to play? Now that you know how to play Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , can you identify the above engraving, the object on which it's etched, and perhaps also its link to a movie filmed on location in Chicago in the 1980s? Click on the video below to play!

Try your hand at 1 question about Chicago's movie history In this series, Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , we locate a building, an object, or another type of structure in Chicago. Then, with our trusty HD video camera, we zoom in on one section of the item until it is separate from the whole. Next, we create a trivia question about the structure and its links to Chicago and movies. Clues are embedded in the question. Finally, we'll give you the answer to the trivia question — with a fun visual explanation. All of this happens in 60 seconds or less! Ready to play? Now that you know how to play Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , can you identify the above architectural element in Chicago? And its connection to classic Hollywood (c. 1930-1955)? Click on the video below to play, and at the same time, take a quick virtual walking tour in Chicago!

Try your hand at 1 question about Chicago's movie history In this series, Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , we locate a building, an object, or another type of structure in Chicago. Then, with our trusty HD video camera, we zoom in on one section of the item until it is separate from the whole. Next, we create a trivia question about the structure and its links to Chicago and movies. Clues are embedded in the question. Finally, we'll give you the answer to the trivia question — with a fun visual explanation. All of this happens in 60 seconds or less! Ready to play? Now that you know how to play Bite-Sized Chicago Movie Trivia , can you identify the marquee in the video below as well as a "fox" associated with it? Click on the video below to play!

In a 60-second video, discover murals in Chicago devoted to movies Murals and other forms of street art line the streets of Chicago. As of this writing, FindMASA lists more than 8,000 murals and pieces of street art in Chicago! Perhaps the most photographed is the Greetings from Chicago postcard mural, shown above. If you look closer at the mural's "G," you will spot Chicago-based entertainment in the form of Muddy Waters and the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off . Plenty of other movie-related murals greet you in Chicago too. You can find ones devoted to Hollywood’s silent era, the Blues Brothers , Dolly Parton, Quincy Jones, and Robin Williams, among others. Watch our video below for a sneak peek of Chicago's movie murals, and then locate your favorite in Chicago's Mural Registry .

Before dominating children's television in Chicago, Bozo the clown performed for Hollywood's kids Bozo the Clown’s Chicago franchise on WGN (1960-2001) is one of the most popular children's programs in television history. Less widely known is that Bozo, before starring on TV, was hired by Hollywood stars to entertain at their children’s birthday parties. ⁣ ⁣ In the images below, you can see Bozo at the 5th birthday of Ann Rutherford’s daughter, Gloria. You might know Rutherford as one of Scarlett O'Hara's sisters in Gone with the Wind or as Polly in the Andy Hardy teen comedies, costarring Mickey Rooney. ⁣ ⁣ Note the Bozo placemats, balloons, and party hats among the 67 (!!!) tiny attendees. Pictured with Bozo is Joannie Fink, the photographer’s daughter. — Photoplay , February 1950

Discover three reasons Carl Laemmle is a pioneer in film and Chicago. Born in 1867 in southwestern Germany, Carl Laemmle immigrated to the U.S. in 1884, acquired U.S. citizenship in 1889, and worked in Chicago for more than two decades.⁣ ⁣ In 1906, Carl Laemmle (pronounced LEM-LEE) entered a Chicago nickelodeon, an early storefront theatre that charged guests about a nickel to watch moving pictures. Laemmle watched as customer after customer flowed in and out of the building. With all that traffic, the 40-year-old realized that investing his savings in this new motion picture business might be a lucrative idea. Laemmle was right. ⁣ Three reasons Carl Laemmle is a pioneer in film and Chicago: ⁣ He was among the first to open movie theaters in the city. His first theatre, The White Front, opened on Milwaukee Ave. ⁣ ⁣He opened Laemmle Film Service and rented films to new theaters in major cities in the U.S. and, at one point, was the largest film distributor in America.⁣ ⁣He and other independent film producers founded Universal Pictures, which continues to make films. ⁣ To read more about Laemmle’s life in the movie business — and his complicated relationship between American and German audiences — locate his profile within the German Historical Institute’s biography project .⁣ And to learn more about Jewish pioneers in Chicago, check out our virtual walking tour below!