CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - Walk into two new galleries inside the Museum of Science and Industry, and you'll be transformed into the James Bond universe.
"The exhibit is in two sections. The first gallery introduces to the science behind movie making, all the propping and the storyboarding, and then you go into what we call ‘Q's Lab,’ and that's where all the gadgets are, you get to be in somebody's creative workshop," said Kathleen McCarthy, director of collections and head curator at MSI.
The second gallery is where patrons can understand what James Bond does as a spy.
"How does he get in and out quickly? How does he observe? You have to gather information and analyze it. These are things people can apply to their everyday life,” McCarthy added.
The first of its kind exhibit features 13 iconic cars and 90 artifacts.
"We have a real jetpack that was in the movies,” noted McCarthy. “We have a robot dog. We have a car that set the record for the most rollovers, we have a DB5, an Aston Martin sports car from the 1960s that is incredibly beautiful. This exhibit is unique. There's been exhibits about James Bond before but never one focused on science and technology."
The collection is on loan from London, The Ian Fleming Foundation in Kankakee and the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C.
"When you see a movie prop and then you see real spy equipment they are not that different. The movies are really true to form." said McCarthy.
Inside one of the galleries, there are props that even predicted the future of technology in the 21st century.
"Now we have smartphones, but back then we didn't realize how revolutionary this was. This is 1982 and James Bond had a TV on his wristwatch. This was a pager introduced in 1963, and we didn't have these until the 90s. Sean Connery's Bond used the underwater cameras which are standard today." she smiled.
"One of the exciting things about a James Bond movie when it first comes out, you might see technology that you've never seen before that is being introduced to the public through the movie…Some of that original tech that was part of the movie, after it was finished, went back to the company. We have a few things eventually borrowed from companies too. The jetpack concept was eventually used by NASA in their space program."
Chris Corbould created special effects for 15 Bond films.
"I'm looking all around here, and I see different parts of my life. The props take me back. It's definitely a walk down memory lane." he laughed.
He said one of his favorite and complicated stunts and special effects was on the set of "Casino Royale.”
"There was the sinking house which was a massive, 120 ton project. It was modeled after a hotel in Venice, which was four stories high and very wide. The tube train crashing into the underground subway train in "Skyfall" was also spectacular,” said Corbould.
Corbould said movie magic has come a long way since he began in the industry.
"Two things have been the biggest factors, the world of CGI coming in. The other thing is computers for controlling mechanisms and big hydraulic rigs,” Corbould said.
Corbould did two films in Chicago, "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight.”
"We built the Batmobile for Chris Nolan. We did a great car chase through Lower Wacker Drive. We flipped over a truck on LaSalle Street, and we blew up what was a hospital in Cicero. It was very Bondish. The James Bond producers were clever. No other franchise used such groundbreaking props.” said Corbould.
Patrons can also create their own stunts, gadgets and crack secret codes.
"The exhibits are immersive, so people can actually become a spy. It's the first time this side of the movies has ever been exhibited,” said McCarthy.
"What we want people to take away from this exhibit is to see their world in a new way, to see possibilities and to be able to use their ingenuity to address challenges they have personally,” McCarthy said.
"007 Science: Inventing the World of James Bond'' will be at the museum through the end of October.
"Even if you came in not being familiar with the movies, you'll probably leave a James Bond fan," she smiled.
Click here for tickets and more information.
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