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!

Discover two landmarks etched into a bronze cow outside the Chicago Cultural Center Photograph it, ride it, or hug it: either way, be sure to learn the story of Chicago's bronze cow. 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. A bronze plaque below the cow tells you the story. 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! Watch a Video on Chicago's Bronze Cow What do a bronze cow, a Picasso statue, and a historic water tower have in common? Let's find out—in 60 seconds! 👇

Take a quick look—then and now—at Chicago's Central Park Theatre. Around this time in 1917, a theater opened at 3535 W. Roosevelt Road in Chicago that would "change the moviegoing experience, in Chicago and the nation" ( Chicago Tribune , 2012). Our video below offers a quick look—then and now—at this industry-changing movie palace, the Central Park Theatre.

Technology, giving movie audiences trouble since 1920... "The Boy Scout leaders did not mess up your movie!" This was the cry heard 'round Chicago's Hamilton Park 100 years ago today. On July 2, 1920, Chicago-area Boy Scouts were having a delightful Field Day. Exhibit tents that explained their work were a highlight as was the day's schedule of events. Less successful was the evening screening of Knights of the Square Table , a movie Thomas Edison made with the Boy Scouts of America in 1917. ⁣ ⁣ According to suburban reports, the screening "was marred by the inability of the operators of the machine to produce sufficient power." What a nice way to say the New Era Film Company was incompetent!⁣ Further throwing the business under the bus, so to speak, the scout leaders exclaimed they "were in no way responsible for the disappointment" of the evening and it was those that "furnished the picture, machine, and operators" who failed to do their job.⁣ ⁣ Oh, movie technology, giving us trouble since 1920... Sources "Scouts Big Field Day at Hamilton Park." Suburbanite Economist (2 Jul 1920).

In 1896, a newly established movie company made its way to Chicago. Brothers Auguste and Louis Lumière are two of the first men whom film history students learn about. Because the brothers were, by all accounts, the first to screen films to a large paying audience, they are generally considered the fathers of modern cinema. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ In 1896, the Lumière company made its way to Chicago to film this massive Ferris wheel, which served as the centerpiece of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. The ride took about 20 minutes to make two revolutions, but based on the speed of this footage, you’d think the rotation would take a couple of days! ⁣ Learn more from us about the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.