Updated: November 30, 2023

A painting of the futuristic city "New Chicago," the main setting of the television series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century ( NBC, 1979-1981 ). This vibrant painting is presented in acrylic and gouache on a sheet of artist's illustration board. The image depicts the skyline of New Chicago at sunset from ground level. It is believed that this was concept art.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was the second television version of Philip Francis Nowlan's character after the ABC series that ran from 1950-1951. The character was revamped after the success of Star Wars ( 20th Century Fox, 1977 ) and Universal was looking for their own entry point into the science fiction craze. After viewing footage of the two-part pilot episode of the new series, with its sweeping landscape matte-paintings, Universal decided what they saw was good enough and released the two-part pilot in theaters as a feature film on March 30,1979. The series premiered on September 20, 1979 with the two-part pilot episode slightly altered for television from the theatrical version.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century employed matte painters Syd Dutton, Dan Curry, Scott Squires, and David Stipes. Painting Measures: 48 x 36 inches.

Value: $2,000.