The Museum of Broadcast Communications

Flat Sarnoff and I went to check out The Museum of Broadcast Communications next!!
The above picture is one of David and an old RCA television!! To the left is a selfie style picture of us (there were not many people around on a Tuesday morning) with memorabilia from Bozo, Bozo's Circus, The Bozo Show and Bozo's Super Sunday Show. The show ran (with those various names) from 1960 to 2001 on WGN!

Sarnoff even found a his own photo and the details in his posthumous induction to The Radio Hall of Fame in 1989. We also saw some very cool out microphones from various broadcasting networks.

 Above is a picture of Harry Caray and Jack Brickhouse who Caray succeeded as the cubs announcer! The museum's 2nd floor is dedicated to radio and the 3rd Floor to Television. To the left is an interactive exhibit from the 3rd floor where you can choose programs by year, genre, etc and discover more about them.

Above are some vintage microphones from the News Caster section of the Radio Floor. There is also a studio, a variety of vintage radios to check out and profiles on famous radio personalities old and new. They sections are divided up talk, news, drama, comedy, etc. Below is a sculpture made from decommissioned broadcast studio equipment called the "Media Tower". To check out more about the museum you can visit their website.

Harpo Studios

Flat Sarnoff and I visited Harpo Studios this morning and got a kind stranger to snap a picture of us!! Harpo Studios was made famous as the home of the The Oprah Winfrey show from 1990 to 2011 (Harpo is Oprah spelled backwards). The Rosie Show, was also filmed there in the 2011-2012 television season and aired on Oprah's OWN television network.Though there seemed to be a good amount of hustle and bustle going on around the entrance and garage area, it seems that Oprah is in fact selling Harpo Studios to a developer. According to this variety article the building housing the studio may only be there for two more years! Go check it out while you have a chance!

Webster's House

When Flat Sarnoff and I left the Playboy Mansion we walked down the block to Webster's House at 1432 N State Parkway! Here's a picture of us out front. We felt a little awkward snapping the photo as the front door was wide open!! Webster ran on ABC from 1983-87, the in first run syndication from 1987-89. The show stared Emmanuel Lewis as Webster, an orphan adopted by a white family. The show was often compared to Diff'rent Strokes. You can see a pan down to the front of the house just after the credits in the clip below.

The Playboy Mansion

 The original Playboy Mansion at 1340 N. State Street looks very pretty lit up at night! Flat Sarnoff and I had to swing by a little late, but you can see a picture of us below! Hugh Hefner filmed Playboy's Penthouse in Chicago in 1959. I tried to find a clip with the house on YouTube, but didn't find one. You can check out Playboy's Penthouse below for some cool old footage of Lake Shore Drive. After Hef moved out the Mansion was temporarily used as a dorm for students from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. 1993 it was gutted and turned into Condos. We did not see any bunnies.

The Nieslen Building

The Nielsen Building in Chicago is located just a few blocks from Downtown DePaul at 200 W. Jackson Boulevard. Flat Sarnoff and I took a bit of an action shot in front of the Nielsen building. This had partly to do with strong winds and partly to do with the colorful language of character that thought we were trying to snap a picture of him. We were also asked if we could trade American for Canadian money.Since the days of radio, The Nielsen Company has measured audience ratings. On their website they list ratings for many things including: Prime Broadcast Network TV, websites and video games (Check out a screen grab from Nielsen's website below).

Newton Minow Way!

Newton Minow Way is an honorary block located at 42 S. Dearborn Street in Chicago. It was dedicated to Newton Minow who has had a long history with Chicago and with television. Minow graduated from Northwestern University School of Law in 1950. He went on to serve on the board of the Corporation of Public Broadcasting and is famous for his 1961 "Vast Wasteland" Speech delivered while he was Chairman of the FCC. According to Wikipedia, also while at the FCC put in place, "the All-Channel Receiver Act (ACRA) of 1961, which mandated UHF reception capability for all television receivers sold in the United States. This legislation sparked an increase in the number of television stations and helped launch non-profit educational television stations (now PBS) throughout the country" (Newton N. Minow). He currently resides in Chicago.This is a picture of me and Flat Sarnoff trying not to blow away!

Family Matters House

The Family Matters House is located at 1516 W. Wrightwood only a few block from DePaul's Lincoln Park campus. Family Matters aired on ABC from 1989-1998. Over the course of its nine seasons America got to know the Winslow Family and their lovable by annoying nerdy neighbor Steve Urkel. Here are a picture of the house and a picture of me and Flat Sarnoff (he's wearing his gold hat and mittens because it's chilly) in front of the house. I also added a YouTube clip of the intro for Family Matters where you can see the house for a few seconds!