Inside the Forgotten House of Tomorrow: A Journey Back to the Future!

[@sergpie]

It’s interesting that in their view of the future, they created what is essentially a California-modern home from the 1969s/1970s. Aside from a few furnishings, the interior looks straight out of a chic pad from a 1960s movie set.

[@datsun210]

This 'House of Tomorrow' reminds me of the Monsanto House of the Future that was built in Disneyland in 1958. That is an idea for a future video for you!

[@Gizathecat2]

My mom went to the 1933 Worlds Fair. She never said anything about that house, which I love! You mentioned a television demonstration. My mom was eleven at the time and was pulled from the audience for a demonstration! She was on television! Her parents said she was barely recognizable! 🙂

[@sherryseckler3494]

God no, I wouldn’t want to restore or live in such an antiseptic house! Sherry/Illinois

[@powlperc]

It fell into disrepair 😕 Such an interesting piece of history….

[@CoffeeKing1]

I've been inside "this house" and the other 4 that were relocated to Beverly Shores, IN. It was pretty much gutted and the other 4 were almost completely finished and lived in by people who open them once a year for a guided tour. Happens in October usually. I really enjoyed these tours, been here about 4 times

[@williamkazak469]

Many times I have photographed the houses in Beverly Shores. Only the exteriors.

[@CoffeeKing1]

@@williamkazak469 if you ever want to see the inside of the 5 homes here's more info.

[@mitchellbarnow1709]

@@CoffeeKing1 I do not see the extra information.

[@CoffeeKing1]

@@mitchellbarnow1709 I sent another comment with a link. I can see it right now under your original comment

[@GrandmaDee]

I live about a mile away from the 5 houses. I go to the open houses every year. They are fascinating!

[@Mark723]

Always a pleasure to watch a This House video. Thanks, Ken.

[@CoffeeKing1]

Also, the state is supposed to be refinishing "this house" bc no one wanted to spend the money. I haven't seen it in a couple years I live in the next town over. I should go check the progress.

[@tarareads23]

This has to be one of my favorite houses that I’ve seen on your channel. It’s a shame that it was basically left to rot and now it cost in the millions to restore it. Hope somebody does continue the work to get it done. Thanks for sharing!

[@gmanette188]

Thank you

[@monthandley3979]

Know this and the other World's Fair houses in Beverly Shores well. I wondered if you would ever do a video on them. Thank you.

[@StamperWendy]

It's too bad they couldn't keep up with it. What an interesting idea!

[@erikaquatsch2190]

I feel great hope when people imagine a prosperous future. This house is a symbol of hope for humanity's future.

[@leslie-anneblake6000]

You should showcase the “House of Tomorrow “ in palm springs built for the Alexanders who were well known builders in Palm Springs- also known as the “Elvis Honeymoon House”. The new owners have restored it and opened it for tours during modernism week back in February- really beautiful!

[@wdjones4735]

Having owned old houses in the past I would have to pass on this one.

[@jamesslick4790]

My current house was built 60 years BEFORE this one was! So, yeah. I know a thing or two about owning old houses. LOL.

[@crystalpoole1560]

Seeing that picture on the wall at 2:09 bearing the words Stratford Festival was very cool, because I live 20 minutes away from Stratford! ( Not the Stratford in England, the one in Ontario, Canada. ) And when you showed the live shot of the people walking around the Chicago World Fair, all I could think of was HH Holmes possibly among the crowd. Great video, as usual.

[@calvinsaxton9925]

Tex Avery and the MGM animators satirized this in their cartoons, esp. The House of Tomorrow. Two suggestions for future videos-the Everett Hosmer Barney house which is now a park in Springfield Mass. It was an important influence on Dr. Seuss. Also, there are still many fine mansions in St. Joseph, Missouri. It once boasted more millionaires than any city west of the Mississippi.

[@heatherabusneineh6281]

My dad’s family drove from Eugene Oregon to Chicago to visit the 1933 World’s Fair. Their mother died on that trip and the six kids (age 22 and down) had to return home to Eugene without her. Thanks for the info about what they saw there.

[@JeanJean1]

Oh no ! What happened to her? What a terrible way to end a vacation

[@sergpie]

A road trip through that period of time in Americas history must’ve been quite something. We’re the interstates even built back then??

[@stevevice9863]

As an Architect I have designed countless homes over the last 45 years, and I have to say that is one of the worst floor plans I have ever seen. If you are in the bedroom and wish to go to the bathroom, you have to walk through the dining room, around the sharp, acutely angled wall of shower, through the kitchen, to arrive at the door to the bathroom that will only swing halfway open before it hits the wall of the shower. Well planned homes generally create zones that separate the "public" areas from the "private" areas so that you don't get these awkward overlaps between the two. Opening a bedroom into a dining room and placing a full bathroom in the middle of the kitchen, dining, living area is a big "no no" in the design world. Wedge shaped rooms create odd angles that can make it difficult to arrange furniture, and also create small useless corners like the one in the workroom. Poor design like this has given Architects a bad name over the years, and rightly so. I don't have anything against clean elegant modern design, but this is a bit of a mess.

[@sharksport01]

It was a concept. I've seen many great houses by Keck, never heard your name.

[@stevevice9863]

@@sharksport01 I'm familiar with some of Keck's work. He was a pioneer of passive solar design, and I designed a passive solar house years ago, so I was interested to watch the video. I've seen photos of this house, but not the plan. Let's just say it's not his best effort.

[@toastnjam7384]

One of my favorite old time modern homes is The Barcelona Pavilion by Mies van der Rohe, built for the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona.

[@purplebutterfly7257]

OK this was a unique home definitely something different thank you for putting it out

[@garryferrington811]

What an interesting concept house for the late '30's. It's obviously a bit over the top, but it's amazing how many of the ideas first seen here blossomed into reality. In just the last few years, for example, spiral staircases have become a desirable feature, while the living room dominated by a television exploded after the war and is with us today. And I have seen McMansions with built-in airplane hangers!

[@MissRB03]

LOVE the Beverly Shores area where this home is located. Went on a road trip with a good friend and ended up checking out all the houses that were floated over from Chicago. All so fascinating, never got to see inside as many are being preserved.

[@jennyskeen3826]

With a few adjustments my cats & I would love to have it,IF MONEY WERE NO OBJECT... ❤️🐾🐾🐾👣🐾🐾🐾 ✌️

[@pnkldy74]

You might check out The R. Buckminster Fuller and Anne Hewlett Dome Home in Carbondale IL. Not huge but very interesting. It just went through some renovations few years back. Also, check out the car that Bucky Fuller evented…interesting also!

[@ThisHouse]

Thank you for the recommendation, cheers!

[@robertfontanelli7662]

Some of the furniture from it's original 1933 inauguration was designed by Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller. I have that exact dining table; it comes up from time to time at auction and it is not too expensive. The streamlined Rohde/Miller bedroom set still can be found at auction as well, but is sometimes very pricey. I hope they restore the house, and maybe the state should subsidize or restore it as a tourist attraction. I'd certainly pay to visit, as would most architectural and design history buffs. I once visited the 1930's pioneering Aluminaire House; which has now been gifted and moved to the Palm Springs museum. It was a sad, unrecognizable wreck when i saw it in it's former college campus location on Long Island.

[@michellesthilaire7364]

You should do a video on Clingstone in Rhode Island

[@johnje4285]

I would love it

[@wirebrushofenlightenment1545]

The house may be futuristic, but the decor? - a suit of armour? That weird wheeled cart thing in the kitchen? And there appears to be a little harmonium snuggled up next to the stairwell? It's a crazy house, but , yeah - I'd live in it.

[@skpjoecoursegold366]

I like.

[@PSPguy2]

I hope it can get restored but I do see an issue hoping to get someone to invest in the restoration in order to live in it. I live in a town with many famous houses, some notable because of their mid-century modern historical value (several have been mentioned on this channel) and others as former homes of famous "Hollywood stars". It's difficult to find anyone who wants to live in them full time because of the lack of privacy. There are always good intentioned people stopping to look, take photos and even trespassing. Sort of like house paparazzi. 😳

[@nickie9332]

You're allowed to say master bedroom!

[@danielintheantipodes6741]

I rather like it, but not enough to pay the cost of the renovation. I would prefer a Victorian era treasure, which is more my thing. But it is lovely, within the idiom of its day. Thank you for the video. It looks very 1950s to me.

[@MandieTerrier]

If I could afford 3 million for restoration. No doubt I could pay someone to do the restoration

[@skyedog24]

The kitchen looks quite a bit like a modern kitchen that I would wire

[@GrandmaDee]

50 year lease is not long enough

[@badbiker666]

One of the problems of asking architects or designers to envision a home for the future is that neither architects nor designers build homes for the masses. They only work for the very wealthy, which make up a miniscule portion of the population. This house will cost $2 million to restore. Just imagine what it must have cost to build in 1933. The architects or designers who do build houses for ordinary folks are more concerned with cost savings and practicality, like multi-use spaces. Ken, you know what would be a great side project for your channel? Aside from looking at the grand houses of the past (which you should definitely keep doing), why not spend a little time looking at current trends in house building, or even what today are being seen as designs of the future? Like the "little house" craze. I couldn't live in one myself, but it would be cool to talk to those who do and the people who build them. Well, maybe that's just not the point to your channel. But of all the people on KZbin, you are the one who could do this best, I think!

[@jamesslick4790]

I'm not really into "modern" architecture, but this IS a historically important house. I hope it will be restored as close as possible to its original state. Yes, If I had a few million in "mad money", I'd damn sure fund this project. I'd prefer to live in a "modest" (LOL) Second Empire "villa", If I were very wealthy, But I think such a fairly accurate "prediction" that this house presented is too valuable to lose. I'd be doing stuff like this if I had Bezos or Musk kind of dough!

[@JeanJean1]

A 50 year lease for 3 million dollars!? Worst deal I’ve ever heard. What happens if you outlive the 50 year mark lol. Idk just seems like a terrible offer.

[@stevedallas4942]

Does it have the little gnome that turns off the refrigerator light and the special medicine cabinet for the mother-in-law?

[@ohmoflife1]

I would only “invest” in that house for the fifty year lease if I could then use it as a VRBO.

[@savagecub]

I don’t see where they come up with 2.5 million dollars to renovate a house that size. Sounds like BS to me.

[@TR-507]

Why would any one agree to that restoration fee only to never own it?? 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@davidmckinley5343]

Cluttered

[@josephfitzgeraldnsw5794]

How come it looks nothing like the picture

[@sharksport01]

The houses from that fair now sit on government property, so you can't own them outright. That's why the place fell into disrepair.

[@getintothewildwithjeffruma8777]

$2.5 million to restore that house is completely ridiculous.

[@peterfordyce7003]

Interesting video, but I think perhaps you should have been clearer that most of the photos you showed of the interior were taken in the 1990s, and are not at all representative of the original furnishings. It confused me for a bit, at least!

[@antonfarquar8799]

$2,000,000.00 - and a 50 year lease pass.

[@johngibbs799]

An architect designed that???

[@johngibbs799]

I would buy it for $1. Make it a patsonsge. U am an ordained minister. Does it still have the suit of armor??! 😛

[@zovalentine7305]

Fast forward to 2023 It is still NOW The gift of the present Past: gone Future: not here

[@dalbianco]

Vermiculite…. Aka asbestos

[@edcomedian357]

id call an ugly house of the past

[@guystevens5429]

$3m to restore? You could build it from scratch for less.

[@WilldoAldone]

Horrible terms for restoration. The terms should be buy it and if you can restore it to original condition in a certain time frame its yours. Like the $1 homes in Italy or the grade 2 listed historic homes in England.

[@darlamcfarland3323]

Too bad, but probably too late.

[@TheAnimeist]

$2 million for a 50 year lease is $3333 per month. Reasonable.

[@marquiesriley6479]

50 year lease?!….naw, hard pass on that..😂

[@garygloska7396]

Sorry I do like octagon houses during Victorian era but not this cold hard sharp design

[@myperspective5091]

They could talk to Kanye West for for his patronage. He likes interesting architecture.

[@jamessullivan9992]

Far out man.

[@danielmorris7648]

"Owners suite" is such a stupid term.

[@amandab.recondwith8006]

It took a world war to spare us from such a monstrosity!

[@garywait3231]

I can hardly imagine a more sterile, unlivable, or unattractive house. For me, I heartily rejoice that my comfortable home looks much more like "the home of yesterday". I suppose that the building deserves to restored and maintained as a historic curiosity, but I can think of a host of things I'd sooner spend my $ 2 - 3 million on (if I had it!🤔🙄). Oh, and I can hardly imagine centering any room around today's ad-bound travesty TV !

[@WitchKing-Of-Angmar]

Why on earth are you so angry over this home?

[@garywait3231]

@@WitchKing-Of-Angmar: Angry!!?? You've the apparently "angry" one. I merely expressed my opinion of a building I'm extremely grateful I never had to live in. Isn't that what the "comments" section is for? But you address a mean spirited ad-hominem argument to me??!! So, of course, now I am angry. Oh, and by the way, I gave the video a "like", as it was, typically a very good presentation. And, it seems to have escaped your attention that, while I disliked the house, I expressed the opinion that it should be saved and restored -- just not with my money🤔🙄.

[@WitchKing-Of-Angmar]

@@garywait3231 I presented 11 words to you none the amount to presume anything from then except that I am in complete bewilderment that you are so pissed off over a house. Calm the hell down, its a home not a burglary.

[@garywait3231]

@@WitchKing-Of-Angmar : Cool off yourself. After all it was you who baseless branded me as angry, but offered no constructive comment as to why you apparently like the building. Had you done so I would have considered it respectfully, as any gentleman should. Enuf said!!

[@danielmorris7648]

​@@WitchKing-Of-Angmar its a very ugly house. Art deco is a terrible style.

[@ritahealy6757]

That is a really ugly house

[@mariakettlehut7399]

Uh no thanks