With sitcom stars Betty White and John Mahoneyon hand to help founder Bruce DuMont cut the ribbon, Chicago's Museum of Broadcast Communications officially re-opened its doors Wednesday, 8 1/2 years after it left its previous, Cultural Center location.
The long-delayed new building, at 360 N. State St., features one floor of national and Chicago TV artifacts, plus multiple video screens and a history of television told via wall placards. Below the TV exhibitions, on the building’s second floor, is the National Radio Hall of Fame Gallery (open since December). Adult admission is $12.
"The importance of our past is often overlooked,” said veteran newsman Hugh Downs, also at the ceremony. “It’s a challenge to do it right."
Said White, "You walk in there, and the memories just jump out at you."
Steve Johnson
Tribune reporter