Big city 1980

In Big City 1980, host Garry Moore presents a discussion on how big cities might be seen in the future by contrasting two cities in the present, Brasilia and the redeveloping city of Philadelphia. The highlight of this program is the amazing futurist city of Brasilia, the capital of Brazil. This instant city was entirely built in a period of 5 years. Every street is an expressway and underpasses eliminate the use of intersections. It is a capital city where government buildings dominate, so this allows a unity in futurist architecture throughout, which looks like a giant set for a science fiction film. Important footage of the city is shown during its development stages. Lucio Costa won the competition for Brasilia’s master plan and Oscar Niemeyer designed the major government building. America’s first planned city of Philadelphia is also profiled along with the controversial plans of redevelopment, which will see the city into the future. Plans made by architects and designers of futurist cities are also shown towards the end of the program. This program was presented on the Tomorrow series by CBS News.