A Nice Place to Live
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“A study of a community changing from white to black and the struggles of its residents to keep it a nice place to live.” — Maria Moraites
Credits
Maria Moraites (director); Donald Digirolamo (sound); Oshun Mugwana (sound); Curt Peterson (sound); Carol Neagle (contributor); Chris Sirotiak (contributor); Zachary West (contributor); David Morrow (contributor); Norbert Szczygiel (contributor); Howard F. Sandroff (music); Masato T. Shinsako (production assistant); John Hogan (production assistant); Dave Moyer (production assistant); Stanley M. Newman (contributor); Mary Pat Kelly (contributor); G. Richard Sato (cinematographer); G. Richard Sato (editor); Maria Moraites (writer); Richard K. Sato (production assistant); Lorenzo Harbin (interviewee); Gale Cincotta (interviewee); West Side Coalition of Chicago (participant); Austin United Presbyterian Church (participant); Waller Street Block Club (participant)
Complete catalog record
Cfa collection: Maria Moraites Collection
Notes: Maria Moraites’ National Endowment for the Humanities-sponsored documentary, A Nice Place to Live (1974), examines neighborhood roots, property values, urban revitalization, and Black and White race relations from the perspectives of established and incoming residents of Chicago's Austin community area. Her observations come amidst a rapid demographic turnover propelled by the Federal Housing Authority, real estate interests, mortgage lenders, and insurance companies’ redlining and blockbusting tactics imposed upon the neighborhood through the early 1970s. Despite a significant variation in resident sentiment regarding neighborhood identity and race relations, the film’s story passes from one testimony to the next with unfaltering cohesion. This may be due in part to Moraites’ uncanny ability to consistently elicit honest responses from her subjects, or it may draw from a relative anonymity afforded to nearly all of the participants--those interviewed are rarely introduced by name. One exception is Lorenzo Harbin, representative of the West Garfield Urban Progress Center and a Waller Avenue apartment resident, who guides the camera on a tour of neighborhood blight and also spearheads his apartment complex’s list of grievances for court intervention. The other exception is Gale Cincotta, co-founder of Organization for a Better Austin, who delivers a fervent speech at the 1972 National Housing Conference held inside St. Sylvester Catholic School. Harbin and Cincotta both observe grassroots organization as the viable countermeasure towards the presented housing crisis. Footage includes shots of Grocerland, 5920 W Division St; Supreme Cleaners, 429 N Laramie Ave; Jim Moy Laundry, 427 N Laramie Ave; Washington Liquors, 425 N Laramie Ave; Austin United Presbyterian Church, 5720 W Fulton St; New Apege Club, 3124 Roosevelt Rd; the future Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza near Madison St & Kedzie Ave; Acorn Neon Sign Co., 3846 W Madison St; Midwest Chop Suey, 3854 W Madison St; Crest Hotel, 1519 W Adams St; St. Sylvester Catholic School, 3027 W Palmer St.
Sponsor: Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) Department Of Learning Services; National Endowment for the Humanities
Subjects: Racism; African Americans; Chicago (Ill.); Civil rights; City and town life
Places: North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Austin; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Logan Square; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Near West Side; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > North Lawndale; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > East Garfield Park; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > West Garfield Park
Language: English
Cfa elements: Reversal Positive Print, 1,915 feet; Originals, 100 feet; Originals, 25 feet; Originals, 20 feet; Originals, 675 feet; Originals, 500 feet; Originals, 550 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/44012; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46086; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46087; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46132; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46137; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46144; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46145
Notes: Maria Moraites’ National Endowment for the Humanities-sponsored documentary, A Nice Place to Live (1974), examines neighborhood roots, property values, urban revitalization, and Black and White race relations from the perspectives of established and incoming residents of Chicago's Austin community area. Her observations come amidst a rapid demographic turnover propelled by the Federal Housing Authority, real estate interests, mortgage lenders, and insurance companies’ redlining and blockbusting tactics imposed upon the neighborhood through the early 1970s. Despite a significant variation in resident sentiment regarding neighborhood identity and race relations, the film’s story passes from one testimony to the next with unfaltering cohesion. This may be due in part to Moraites’ uncanny ability to consistently elicit honest responses from her subjects, or it may draw from a relative anonymity afforded to nearly all of the participants--those interviewed are rarely introduced by name. One exception is Lorenzo Harbin, representative of the West Garfield Urban Progress Center and a Waller Avenue apartment resident, who guides the camera on a tour of neighborhood blight and also spearheads his apartment complex’s list of grievances for court intervention. The other exception is Gale Cincotta, co-founder of Organization for a Better Austin, who delivers a fervent speech at the 1972 National Housing Conference held inside St. Sylvester Catholic School. Harbin and Cincotta both observe grassroots organization as the viable countermeasure towards the presented housing crisis. Footage includes shots of Grocerland, 5920 W Division St; Supreme Cleaners, 429 N Laramie Ave; Jim Moy Laundry, 427 N Laramie Ave; Washington Liquors, 425 N Laramie Ave; Austin United Presbyterian Church, 5720 W Fulton St; New Apege Club, 3124 Roosevelt Rd; the future Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza near Madison St & Kedzie Ave; Acorn Neon Sign Co., 3846 W Madison St; Midwest Chop Suey, 3854 W Madison St; Crest Hotel, 1519 W Adams St; St. Sylvester Catholic School, 3027 W Palmer St.
Sponsor: Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) Department Of Learning Services; National Endowment for the Humanities
Subjects: Racism; African Americans; Chicago (Ill.); Civil rights; City and town life
Places: North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Austin; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Logan Square; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > Near West Side; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > North Lawndale; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > East Garfield Park; North America > United States > Illinois > Chicago > West Garfield Park
Language: English
Cfa elements: Reversal Positive Print, 1,915 feet; Originals, 100 feet; Originals, 25 feet; Originals, 20 feet; Originals, 675 feet; Originals, 500 feet; Originals, 550 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/44012; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46086; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46087; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46132; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46137; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46144; https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/46145
Sources
- Chicago Film Archives · record ↗ — title, year, creator, format, color, sound, genre, description, credits, catalog record, video
Record added 2026-11-08 21:24:49