This image is the cover for the book Jazz Age Chicago

Jazz Age Chicago

When people imagine 1920s Chicago, they usually (and justifiably) think of Al Capone, speakeasies, gang wars, flappers and flivvers. Yet this narrative overlooks the crucial role the Windy City played in the modernization of America. The city's incredible ethnic variety and massive building boom gave it unparalleled creative space, as design trends from Art Deco skyscrapers to streamlined household appliances reflected Chicago's unmistakable style. The emergence of mass media in the 1920s helped make professional sports a national obsession, even as Chicago radio stations were inventing the sitcom and the soap opera. Join Joseph Gustaitis as he chases the beat of America's Jazz Age back to its jazz capital.

Joseph Gustaitis

Joseph Gustaitis is a Chicago-based freelance writer and editor. He received his AB from Dartmouth College and his MA and PhD in history from Columbia University. He is the author of many popular history magazine articles. After working as an editor at Collier's Year Book, he became the humanities editor for Collier's Encyclopedia. He has also worked in television and won an Emmy Award for writing for ABC-TV's FYI program. His previous books are Chicago in 50 Objects, Chicago's Greatest Year, 1893: The White City and the Birth of a Modern Metropolis and Chicago Transformed: World War I and the Windy City.

The History Press