In yet another gem from Modern Mechanix, folks from 1932 ponder "How Much Longer Will Our Big Cities Last?" Photos of subway tunnels collapsing and apartment fires in New York set the apocalyptic tone for the piece which claims "scientific prophets" see the mammoth cities becoming obsolete. We're to pictured a cobweb-enshrouded Empire State Building and dandelions overtaking Wall Street after "exhaustive studies" concluded that we're pretty much, well, screwed.
According to such writers as Stuart Chase, when man built the city he built a Frankenstein monster which would eventually turn and try to destroy its creator. The city, Mr. Chase believes, has grown so intricate and unwieldy that it now dominates its helpless inhabitants, rather than being dominated by them.
It will be the intense congestion and mechanical complexity of the city that will bring about its destruction. Little does the city dweller realize the extent to which his life depends on the fragile arteries by which he is supplied food, gas, electricity, water, milk, fuel, and communication with his associates.
Well, so far so good (though they do raise a valid point about the streets exploding). And everything (utilities included) seemed to work just fine in I Am Legend! Read more about yesterday's doomed future, here.
