{"id":490100,"date":"2026-06-13T00:02:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T00:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/490100\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T00:02:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T00:02:12","slug":"ferris-buellers-day-off-still-makes-chicagoans-proud-40-years-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/490100\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Ferris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u2019 still makes Chicagoans proud, 40 years later"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forty years ago this month, \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u201d immortalized Chicago on film when the fictional teen skipped school and spent the day in the city with his girlfriend and best friend.<\/p>\n

Their adventures showcased iconic sites such as the Art Institute of Chicago, the Flamingo sculpture in the Loop and the Willis Tower \u2014 or Sears Tower, as it was known in 1986.<\/p>\n

TV and movie tour company On Location Tours held a Downtown walking tour tracing the steps of Ferris and friends on Thursday to mark the movie\u2019s June 11 release date. On Location also offers Downtown and suburban Chicago tours highlighting films<\/a> such as \u201cThe Blues Brothers,\u201d \u201cThe Fugitive,\u201d \u201cThe Breakfast Club\u201d and \u201cHigh Fidelity.\u201d<\/p>\n

But its \u201cFerris\u201d tour particularly resonates with locals, said Dan Goldrosen, who leads On Location\u2019s Chicago tours.<\/p>\n

\u201cChicagoans feel a sense of pride. In those days, not a lot was filmed here. It was a novelty,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The film\u2019s director, John Hughes, grew up in Northbrook and called the movie his \u201clove letter\u201d to Chicago, Goldrosen said. In the movie, \u201che used the city as a character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Goldrosen is also an actor who has appeared in \u201cThe Bear,\u201d \u201cShameless,\u201d \u201cChicago P.D.\u201d and other productions. The Morton Grove native recalled taking the Skokie Swift, also known as the Yellow Line, to Wrigley Field when he was 12, so he especially loves the baseball scenes in \u201cFerris.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben Stumpe was one of more than 30 people who joined Thursday\u2019s tour. \u201cFerris\u201d is his mother\u2019s favorite movie, and he also fell in love with it at age 9. Stumpe grew up in Missouri, and the film inspired him to move to Chicago and attend DePaul University.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Ben<\/p>\n

Ben Stumpe and Meghan Callaghan take part in Thursday\u2019s \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off ” walking tour. The movie inspired Stumpe to move to Chicago from Missouri.<\/p>\n

Victor Hilitski\/For the Sun-Times<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought Chicago would be a fun time,\u201d he said. In the movie, Chicago seemed \u201cdreamy.\u201d Stumpe was captivated by \u201cits architecture, Downtown and energy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tour\u2019s first stop was the steps of the Art Institute. The movie features indelible scenes in the museum of Ferris and friends admiring Georges Seurat\u2019s pointillist masterpiece and Marc Chagall\u2019s stained glass<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While growing up, Hughes regularly visited the Art Institute, and the director featured his favorite artworks in \u201cFerris,\u201d Goldrosen said.<\/p>\n

On its website, the Art Institute even introduces Seurat\u2019s \u201cA Sunday on La Grande Jatte\u201d by referencing the 1980s teen film. \u201cIn \u2018Ferris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u2019, Ferris\u2019s best friend Cameron Frye intensely studies this nearly ten-foot-wide painting,\u201d the museum\u2019s website says.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Ferris<\/p>\n

A group with On Location Tours gathers in front of Alexander Calder\u2019s Flamingo sculpture at Federal Plaza. The bright red landmark was a prominent backdrop during the parade scene in \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Victor Hilitski\/For the Sun-Times<\/p>\n

The tour continued into the Loop to Alexander Calder\u2019s crimson Flamingo sculpture at Federal Plaza. Then the group made its way down Dearborn Street toward Daley Plaza, where Ferris joined a real parade, the city\u2019s annual Von Steuben German Day Parade.<\/p>\n

During filming, Hughes caught shots of real window washers and construction workers grooving as Ferris infectiously lipsynced the Beatles\u2019 version of \u201cTwist and Shout.\u201d<\/p>\n

New York-based On Location started offering Chicago tours in 2023. Its \u201cFerris\u201d tour is normally for private groups of at least three people for $65 each. But one day every year, On Location offers it as a public tour. This year, the company will likely offer several public \u201cFerris\u201d tours each week because of more interest<\/a> sparked by the movie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe anniversary has given the city a great pop culture moment to rally around,\u201d said Erin Miller, On Location\u2019s marketing manager.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Dan Goldrosen leads a group across Michigan Avenue from the Art Institute to start the \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u201d tour.<\/p>\n

Victor Hilitski\/For the Sun-Times<\/p>\n

The increased interest comes as international tourism to the U.S. drops overall. In 2025, visitors to the U.S. fell 5.5%, compared to 2024, and international visitor spending fell 4.6%, the World Travel & Tourism Council said. The figures marked the first time international visitors to the U.S. decreased since 2020, according to the International Trade Administration.<\/p>\n

But across the board, On Location is getting more inquiries for film and TV-themed experiences, rather than general vehicle and walking tours, Miller said.<\/p>\n

Xiao Stroming, originally from China, also joined the \u201cFerris\u201d tour. Around 1989, she watched a pirated VHS copy of the movie in Beijing, since movies were restricted in her country. Stroming saw \u201cFerris\u201d again in the 1990s while in college in the U.S. She had not yet been to Chicago but thought, \u201cThat place looks really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stroming eventually attended graduate school at the University of Chicago and now lives in Kildeer, north of Chicago. She is a 1980s and \u201890s film buff who \u201cknows literally everything about every film.\u201d But even Stroming learned something new on the tour.<\/p>\n

In the movie, Ferris parks the red Ferrari at a Loop garage, where two valets borrow it for a joyride across the city. It turns out the garage, at 172 W. Madison St., is where Stroming regularly parks when she\u2019s Downtown.<\/p>\n

The anniversary tour let her \u201cdiscover new things,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s really special to do it today.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Tours<\/p>\n

Tours guide Dan Goldrosen (left) talks to participants, including Xiao Stroming, outside the Broadway Cafe in the Loop during Thursday\u2019s \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u201d 40th anniversary walking tour.<\/p>\n

Victor Hilitski\/For the Sun-Times<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Forty years ago this month, \u201cFerris Bueller\u2019s Day Off\u201d immortalized Chicago on film when the fictional teen skipped…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":490101,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[146,85,46,397],"class_list":["post-490100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-movies"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=490100"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490100\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/490101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=490100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=490100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=490100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}