Silke Jasso
In 1933 Chicagoans celebrated the city’s centennial with the Century of Progress International Exposition World’s Fair and now they can celebrate again with a short film made 84 years ago.
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Not only was this short made during the time of the fair, but it was also made in color as the theme for that year’s fair was technological innovation. The short was recently rediscover and brought to the attention of the public when the Forgotten Chicago Facebook Page posted it, according to DNAinfo.
Tom Hagglund, the Facebook user who shared the video, posted the short saying “the fairground buildings were more colorful than I had ever imagined.”
Since the post, the video has received over 20 shares with viewers speculating on what Chicago must have been like in 1933.
The multi-colored buildings shown in the video have now become Chicago’s Museum Campus, a vibrant place to find life in the city. Graham McNamee, who narrated the 1994 short, describes the buildings as having been “visual music with chords of rainbow hues; the dream of the artists come true, the hope of design made real.”
Millions flooded the streets of Chicago that year to experience the spectacular sights and attractions. Chicago native Walt Disney was never shy about the fact that the world’s fairs inspired him to build his own dream-like theme parks, something the city can be proud of, according to DNAinfo.
McNamee details the architecture and technology presented at the fair as the camera pans across the view showing present-day city goers what their city was like during this time.
“The north end of the fair presents a vista of sheer beauty,” McNamee narrates. “A glamorous setting for that galaxy of architectural gems.”
While the world’s fair may be a thing of the past, the beauty of Chicago hasn’t gone far as people continue to come in from around the globe with hopes of seeing the city’s beautiful skyline and more.
