Cover Image for Documentary Screening: Drop Dead City
Cover Image for Documentary Screening: Drop Dead City
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Presented by the Chicago Policy Center, Civic Federation, and Better Government Association

Date: Tuesday, July 1, 2:30 pm to 5 pm, Chicago History Museum, 1601 N. Clark 

​General Admission: $10 | Student Tickets: $5 (All proceeds benefit the Chicago History Museum)

​In 1975, New York City stood on the brink of financial collapse.

Drop Dead City is the gripping, award-winning documentary that captures how an unlikely cast of bankers, bureaucrats, and civic leaders—working without pay and under immense pressure—rescued a city thought to be ungovernable.

​Told through electrifying archival footage, firsthand interviews, and a driving ’70s soundtrack, Drop Dead City transforms a forgotten fiscal crisis into an urgent, entertaining, and deeply human drama.

​Winner of the Library of Congress Lavine/Ken Burns Prize for Film.

Why it matters for Chicago

​The same warning signs that flashed in 1970s New York are flashing now in Chicago. This screening is more than a look back. It’s a wake-up call. What New York fixed with courage and oversight, Chicago can fix too, if we learn from history.

​Stay for the conversation.

​The screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring:

  • ​Austin Berg – Executive Director of the Chicago Policy Center and co-author of “The New Chicago Way: Lessons from Other Big Cities.”

  • ​Joe Ferguson – President of the Civic Federation. Former inspector general for the City of Chicago for over a decade, Ferguson leads the Civic Federation, an independent, non-partisan government research organization that provides fiscal analysis, recommendations, and oversight for Chicago, Illinois, and local government. 

  • ​David Greising – President of the Better Government Association. A former Chicago Tribune business columnist and Midwest bureau chief for Reuters, Greising leads BGA’s efforts to expose waste and corruption and bring more accountability to Illinois government.

​Join us for an exclusive screening and a powerful conversation about what it takes to save a city from itself.

​Film details

​Watch the trailer and an interview with the directors.

​Run time: 1h 48m

Location
Chicago History Museum
1601 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60614, USA
The screening will be held in the Chicago History Museum auditorium
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