Braless Friday

On Friday, September 5, 1969, a crowd estimated at 1,500 – mostly men – gathered on the Marina City plaza to watch 14 women drop their bras into a basket. It was part of a “Braless Friday” demonstration by a local radio station.

It does not sound like any of the women actually took off their bras. They came to the demonstration with bras in hand or in their purse, or in two cases the bras were tossed from a balcony above.

(Left) Chicago Tribune photographer Walter Neals captured the crowd gathered in front of the east tower.

Blowing the whistle 99 times too many

July 12, 1970. A freighter from Thunder Bay, Ontario, was stopped east of the LaSalle Street Bridge near Marina City. The bridge was stuck after expanding due to the heat. The skipper became frustrated and blew the ship’s whistle about 100 times.

Hundreds of Marina City residents called police and the skipper was issued a citation.

(Right) Chicago River bridges getting stuck due to the heat is nothing new. On June 29, 2011, the fireboat Christopher Wheatley was summoned to the State Street Bridge, which would not raise to allow sailboats below to pass. Along with a fire truck from above, the south side of the bridge was doused with water and the bridge finally opened an hour later.