Famous dollhouse receives $200,000 renovation

It is the ultimate enchanted castle: lush gardens, sumptuous rooms, decorated with precious furniture and priceless art. There are glowing chandeliers and elegant bathrooms. Not bad, for a dollhouse. Rita Braver reports on Colleen Moore's Fairy Castle, recently renovated at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry.

[@jelsner5077]

A trip to Chicago is never complete without seeing Colleen Moore's Fairy Castle and the Miniature Thorne Rooms.

[@nyc757]

I was given a book about this Castle when I was a young girl. I can't wait to see it in person one day. Grateful it is still around.

[@Art_and_Anxiety]

The Miniature Rooms are magical. Seeing them never gets old.

[@marthaross6301]

Totally agree

[@onlycat5132]

Jokes on me, I’ve lived in the Chicago metropolitan my whole life, but I’ve never seen this portion of the museum!

[@jkjk8]

Wow, how wonderfrul. This dollhouse has got to be the dumbest use of human life moments ever.

[@thecuriousmeow2776]

I remember seeing this at the museum for the first time,as a little girl! I was really into doll houses and wanted one so badly! I loved them so very much! I still do now as an adult. And I've even recently been considering building a wooden doll house and it would be so much fun designing each room!

[@DARWINZOO]

I suggest starting with a room box. You learn lighting et ali

[@nbenefiel]

Do it. While you can still enjoy it.

[@babyblue5503]

I've seen this in person and boy does it not disappoint. Now I'll have to go back and look out for the books. 😍

[@lisaflint7027]

Growing up in Chicago the MSI was like my home away from home, and any visit had to include a stop at the Castle! My love of miniatures started with Moore's Castle! My other favorite miniatures were the Thorne Rooms at the Art Institute. My father started to build architectural models, he gained recognition for his skill and attention to details, he was contracted to make repairs and improvements to the Thorne Rooms, that was a big thrill for me! Great memories that I will always cherish.

[@DARWINZOO]

Wow! There's a wall at the back that's an incredible explanation of the original crafts "men" What a cool fact!!!

[@victorbuendia8306]

I wish I can live in it its simply amazing

[@elisabethclancy3949]

This is the first dollhouse I seen as a child ! I would go to see the dollhouse as much as I can . I would spend hours just looking at it . It started my love of miniatures !

[@steelman86]

Her Father had it made for her in Hollywood and, yes, jewels from family heirloom jewelry was used. Colleen lived in Paso Robles and was a board member of the now defunct Pioneer Players theatre group started by Frances Rafferty Baker. I have a personally autographed copy of the dollhouse book she signed to me in her home here.

[@kathryncarter6143]

Wow, how cool!

[@SB4E.2]

I must have watched this 10 times! Takes my breath away!!!

[@AmandaLeigh1004]

She took it on tour to raise money for children's charities and met her husband while doing so...I swear that brought a tear to my eye, she sounds like such a delightful person!

[@reganpierce7267]

I grew up in Chicago and I have seen the castle many times. It is gorgeous! I have never gone to the museum without walking around it. I wish I had been there when it was being renovated so I could have seen some of the furniture up close.

[@stellaanam731]

I adore Colleen Moore, and even more I love the Fairy Castle -but, she *did NOT* design it herself. In fact, she had over 100 people working on it at once, including a famous architect , a set-designer from her film studio and the designer of her own real house! The tiny cradle "rocking" in the wind-blown tree-top was made from her grandmother's jewels which Colleen inherited upon her birth, as she never was able to meet the grandmother who passed away before she was born.

[@tahabenchrifa155]

Stella Anam waw😋😋😋😋😋😋😋

[@rongablue]

Stella Anam. I believe it was a Christening Font that was made from her grandmother's jewels.

[@Dahlia22273]

The story said she had over 100 people assist her.

[@jeremydavidtarrant7053]

According to an interview with Colleen Moore, it was her grandmother who accompanied her to Hollywood.

[@philipmarsh2801]

Yes they said that

[@hangin-in-thereawesome4245]

Many years ago my mother bought me a pamphlet of College's doll house. I was mesmerized by it as I was only about six. My grandfather built me a doll house but not on that scale. I'm 80 now and I love her doll house just as much now as I did then. I had always wanted to visit Chicago just to see it!

[@macpduff2119]

1949 when I was 5 years old, I had a copy of the Dollhouse Tour Book. My parents bought it when the dollhouse came to Manhattan NY. I was in love with the pictures and desperately wished that I could make myself tiny enough to live in the castle. Thank you for presenting this story.

[@ezragonzalez8936]

A piece of the actual cross wow! perfect for this fairy tale setting! wonderful masterpiece Queen Mary's doll house is its only other contender!

[@TheTonialadd]

The history behind each tiny piece is amazing! This is a dollhouse for us grown ups. ❤️

[@TheJoyfulEye]

I never heard of this before. Absolutely amazing.

[@greeneyedwarlock882]

Absolutely FABULOUS!! Moore sounded like a Wonderful Woman and Humanitarian. Three Cheers for her and the Castle Doll house is INCREDIBLE and worth every penny of it’s 200K restoration.

[@frankievalentine6112]

Thank you CBS Sunday Morning for teaching me about this!! And this amazing star I would never have heard of!

[@Sills71]

Rick from Pawn Stars would give her $500 for it.... "it is gonna take up a lot of space in the shop and it is gonna take a long time to sell... I am takin all the risk... "

[@DickWigglin]

Plus, Chum still works here.

[@lindaclark1406]

I have never seen anything like this. The detail is fabulous.

[@kathryncarter6143]

I've seen this at least a half dozen times & never tired of it. I remember being told of the rare gems used in its making. I actually hurt not to be able to play with it. I wanted to do that so bad & still would if I had a chance. Hard to believe how it could breakdown just sitting there, but I know it did. So glad they restored it & kept it looking beautiful. It really is a sight to behold.

[@MicaRayan]

Astounding.... she has great taste and so bohemian.... it's great that his legacy lives with her grandchildren

[@TestTubeBabySpy]

I remember going to the museum of science and industry on a filed trip in 1988. I think I had the flu because when we got to this dollhouse, I threw up on the floor. They brought me to some room where I passed out. Cool model, crazy memory of it..

[@DbDb-pn4fu]

Wow a doll house that is a mansion and also cost as much as one true art and dedication

[@evah5997]

I wounder if she saved any of the 1920s clothing of her grandma that. Would b something

[@ifloatupwards]

One of my favorite exhibits at the museum. My childhood home is 20 miles South-west of chicago. On a clear day you can see the skyline from the town's bluff. I have taken many train trips into the city. Never a dull moment.

[@AHD2105]

She's probably a fairy now living in the castle😲

[@josephconsoli4128]

Miniatures always fascinated me. Just stunning.

[@Luboman411]

I keep forgetting that anything built in the 1920s will soon be 100 YEARS OLD! This dollhouse will soon reach its centenary, and is looking mighty good for being so old. Wow, how time passes...

[@jeansiegel4128]

Saw this several times as a child in Chicago. Back then there’s were no lines to see it.

[@greyeaglem]

I saw it once in the late '80s. I could have looked at it all day but we only had an hour or so to spend at the museum. I wish I could have seen the display of the pieces from the house up close when they were restoring it. I did buy the book they had about it at the museum.

[@LvurenDvvis]

I knew what this was the moment I scrolled past it ! First thing I said “museum of science and industry” ; grew up in this museum, the school field trips. Chicago is home ❤️

[@iyannaharrison4707]

im only here cause i wanna watch dollhouses

[@daveroberts2296]

Nice short segment. It was interesting to learn about Colleen Moore, but I would've preferred it if they had dedicated 95% of the footage to examining the dollhouse. Incidentally, I didn't even know about the dollhouse being in the Chicago Science and Industry Museum. I wish that it would've been promoted more prominently when I last visited it. Anyone else go there and miss seeing the Dollhouse?

[@032319581]

I have heard about this doll house. So glad this video came up on my feed.

[@kingfisher9725]

This is just wonderful. What a treasure!

[@jamesfox2579]

I remember seeing this many years ago!❤️

[@CozyGameJunkie]

So beautiful 😍😍😍

[@johnwheet7037]

always a favorite at the museum

[@carolhodson6353]

Beautiful and a clever lady.

[@ewsophia2907]

I LOVE THIS

[@Placebo201]

Gorgeous

[@yourmom1764]

I saw that at the museum of science and industry one time I thought it was really cool

[@user-ll7zc4hw6g]

I grew up in Chicago, and between school trips and YMCA outings, I would get to the Museum of Science and Industry at least once a year. The highlight was always visiting Colleen Moore's Doll House (as it was called back then). There were two tiers to walk around it, and never enough time to absorb even a fraction of its wonders while in an always-moving group. I went back I think while I was in college on some week day and was able to spend far more time in it. Absolutely magical. The other great wonders for those who love miniatures were the Thorne Rooms at the Art Institute - miniature rooms that evoked a more reality-based world, a vision of shops and homes from the turn of the century to maybe the 1920's. There was always one Thorne room on display next to where the line would form for Colleen Moore's doll house. Cross promotion at its finest.

[@hollyw9566]

I saw it on my first trip to Chicago, back in 1983, I think. Anyway, yes, it's delightful. See it if you can. My then boyfriend also bought me the book that day. I still have it and can see it on my shelf as I write this. It's a treasure.

[@alivc2458]

Amazing!!!

[@lesleydickson7746]

It's amazing! I'd love to see it.

[@olee1990]

I LOVE this l would want this

[@foxsykitten]

so beautiful

[@miranda23ize]

This is absolutely incredible. And a cross made from the actual cross that Jesus was crucified on? I mean come on...thats insane. I would love a dollhouse like this!

[@marilynthomas8036]

It's beautiful

[@hellosunshine305]

WOW, that transition at 6:24 shows how much she looks like her grandmother.

[@AllenManor]

I agree there is a resemblance but actually they were not genetically related (Colleen Moore was her father's adopted mother).

[@scarpettaT]

WOW LOVE IT.

[@claudermiller]

I saw this in 1969 then I showed it to a friend several years ago who grew up in Chicago who had never heard of it. Lol.

[@nightengale7163]

What a fun story!

[@barbarakaywhite5166]

amazing

[@Yappipo4520]

Somehow the interior reminds me of Yubaba's Penthouse in Spirited Away

[@debbiemorgan6701]

Very pretty.

[@nikimuhlfeld7202]

very nice

[@jamellenariggsbee5474]

Oh my god that is nice

[@bayoen9819]

God, what is that intro music? It sounds unbelievably familiar, I know I heard it on the radio. QXR

[@maxcovfefe]

It's hard to fully appreciate this. I want to be enchanted, but it's nearly painful to see this in 2021's pandemic with people losing their jobs, their medical insurance, waiting for a measly $1400 stimulus check that probably won't even cover 1 month of rent, dying of illness... It's a fabulous, magical thing juxtaposed to modern troubles. This kind of lavish frivolity seems almost a little heartbreaking and even careless. I won't deny it's wonderful and made with overwhelming beauty. I just wish it wasn't so difficult to relate to right now.

[@nhblackdc5]

So no one is gonna point out that right before she died she looked like Edna Mode from The Incredibles?

[@cliffashley7230]

fabulous,i could play some music there.............

[@aLiEnNaTiOnGirL]

what scale would this castle be?

[@cibiraj1275]

1:12, typically dollhouses are made in this scale, for every 12 inches, there will be 1 inch

[@trgoohileshea2820]

@@cibiraj1275 Exactly, it's an inch to a foot.

[@shirleyjhaney1041]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@JesusChrist-sq8qw]

They messed up with those fancy new LED lights.

[@Haunter994]

Can anyone help me with the song in the first 15 seconds? I should know it but I can’t remember

[@bluehammy1]

It’s “The aquarium” from st-saens Carnival of the Animals. I used to play it for my preschoolers!

[@onelove6177]

I wonder if this inspired Walt in any way?

[@variegatus]

Easily the most creative and beautiful dollhouse in the world. Leave it to Hollywood. Enjoyed it a few times when I was a kid. Disappointed the dubious curators dumbed down the experience by replacing real running water in the bathrooms and weeping willow pond with plastic water. Hopefully this will be restored at some point.

[@pinguaina]

So kids can play with this or is this just some display?

[@donn372]

A life size dollhouse would be better

[@harperwelch5147]

Who paid for this?

[@MileyonDisney]

Announcer sounds like Brenda Vacarro from the old Tampax commercials. How did she ever get a voice job???

[@anntully-crook2430]

£20000 on a thing!

[@T-Rexzilla]

$200k on renovations?!? And kids around the world dying of starvation....

[@venicebringas1891]

oh yeah i so a dollhouse with 28 pleses cool

[@leewhite-graham753]

Wow

[@rondarawson6236]

I hope people live in this for 200,000...that's crazy.....people are homeless but let's just put 200,000 into a dollhouse....am I missing something????😳

[@AllenManor]

Yes, you are missing something...

[@andyschwartz8808]

WiFi?

[@claudinebarrabes1776]

Magique

[@sophiechandler955]

Gorgeous but the narrator 🤦‍♀️

[@meredithr9824]

That could've bought a real house for a homeless person

[@breemoore6166]

me and her have the same last name and it's spelled the same

[@brandyyolidio4213]

Why do we want to touch what we are not suppose to touch? I want to touch those little books soo bad I'm twitching 🤤

[@harperwelch5147]

Seriously the Science Museum paid for this?? Wow. Serious problem with priorities there evidently.

[@mangoloverprincess33]

...14...feet...tall...

[@raymondturpin3265]

$200k to renovate?

[@richardmckrell4899]

I hope no taxpayer money was spent.

[@srkh8966]

It wasnt

[@richardmckrell4899]

@@srkh8966 whew thank god

[@lindsaydeclute714]

Wood from the cross that Jesus Christ was crucified on?!? Omg how do you top that lol?! WOW

[@Muerteblanc]

I disagree. That is likely a royals dollhouse

[@camillewilson2003]

Meanwhile there's world hunger and homelessness. But yeah let's build a house no one can live in.

[@marinagarcia3453]

At least its in a museum where a bunch of kids and people can enjoy getting to see it

[@maroulio2067]

the house went on tour throughout the US w. a crew of 10 at Colleen's expense, and all revenue was donated to children's aid during the years of the Depression

[@rozenstarzfallz]

It’s everything not worth giving for when you can buy the real thing

[@travellingonuptozion5658]

I want that doll house .. give it to me Mommy!!!!!!!!!!!😅😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑🤑

[@venicebringas1891]

and there are lots of things haha you lorers

[@gamingplayx6253]

If I was a millionaire I would rather buy this dollhouse to having jk

[@EyeLean5280]

This sort of news item puts me in mind of pre-revolutionary France, tbh.

[@Sam-cg6rv]

Just imagine how many homeless people this money could have helped.

[@watermelonlalala]

Sounds like Peppermint Patty narrating this. Not a good match.

[@robinburn4974]

What a women

[@ericdavids9667]

#DEFUNDtheMedia