1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: The Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,880 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to this Day in History Class, 3 00:00:08,160 --> 00:00:11,520 Speaker 1: a show for those who can never know enough about history. 4 00:00:12,360 --> 00:00:15,880 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Lousier, and today we're taking a closer look 5 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:18,720 Speaker 1: at one of the most popular World's Fairs of all time, 6 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:23,759 Speaker 1: including the weird exhibits, classic attractions, and breakthrough inventions that 7 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:37,479 Speaker 1: they viewed there. The day was April nineteen sixty four. 8 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:42,000 Speaker 1: The second New York World's Fair opened at Flushing Meadows 9 00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:46,200 Speaker 1: Park in the Queensborough of New York City. The sprawling 10 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:51,040 Speaker 1: fair featured dozens of exhibits and attractions, representing eighty nations, 11 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:56,160 Speaker 1: twenty four US states, and nearly fifty corporations. The theme 12 00:00:56,200 --> 00:01:00,560 Speaker 1: of the show was a Millennium of Progress, a cheery 13 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 1: sentiment that was well reflected by the optimistic visions of 14 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:08,320 Speaker 1: the future presented in the exhibits. The fair operated for 15 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: about a year and a half and wasn't anywhere near 16 00:01:11,200 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 1: as profitable as its organizers had hoped, but by most 17 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:18,480 Speaker 1: other measures, the event was a triumph. All these years later, 18 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:22,839 Speaker 1: the nineteen sixty four World's Fair is still fondly remembered 19 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:26,040 Speaker 1: for its space age flair and its unique blend of 20 00:01:26,080 --> 00:01:31,920 Speaker 1: earnest idealism and blatant commercialism. In general, world's fares have 21 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:34,880 Speaker 1: lost a lot of their luster over the years, so 22 00:01:34,959 --> 00:01:37,920 Speaker 1: much so, in fact, that many listeners might not even 23 00:01:37,959 --> 00:01:40,959 Speaker 1: be familiar with the concept. So let's start with the basics. 24 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:45,039 Speaker 1: A world's fair is like an international trade show, but 25 00:01:45,280 --> 00:01:48,280 Speaker 1: not restricted to a single industry, and with much more 26 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:52,600 Speaker 1: public appeal. They feature lavish exhibits hosted by different kinds 27 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: of companies and organizations, as well as countries from around 28 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:59,320 Speaker 1: the globe. The point of the exhibits is to introduce 29 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: upcoming products, demonstrate scientific advancements, or test out ideas for 30 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:09,160 Speaker 1: how to improve agriculture or aviation or whatever else. There's 31 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:12,000 Speaker 1: a commercial aspect to the fairs, to be sure, but 32 00:02:12,080 --> 00:02:15,680 Speaker 1: there are more high minded aspirations as well. In fact, 33 00:02:15,919 --> 00:02:19,600 Speaker 1: world's fairs are sometimes compared to the Olympics in that regard. 34 00:02:20,040 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: They're both inclusive, world spanning events that are meant to 35 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:27,760 Speaker 1: celebrate human achievement in camaraderie and progress. Making a bunch 36 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:30,760 Speaker 1: of money along the way is more of a secondary goal, 37 00:02:31,000 --> 00:02:35,000 Speaker 1: at least in theory. Modern world's fairs got their start 38 00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:38,919 Speaker 1: in eighteen fifty one, when Britain hosted the Great Exhibition 39 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:42,160 Speaker 1: of the Works of Industry of All Nations in London. 40 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 1: It wasn't nearly as catchy a name as World's Fair, 41 00:02:45,800 --> 00:02:49,760 Speaker 1: but most countries actually don't use that term. Great Britain 42 00:02:49,800 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 1: described all the fairs they hosted as exhibitions, while most 43 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:56,800 Speaker 1: of Continental Europe and Asia have chosen to call them 44 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:01,120 Speaker 1: international expositions. It all amounts to the same event in 45 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:04,560 Speaker 1: the end, and there's even a single governing body that 46 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,800 Speaker 1: oversees where and when the events are hosted. It's called 47 00:03:08,840 --> 00:03:12,840 Speaker 1: the Bureau of International Expositions or the b i E. 48 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:17,840 Speaker 1: This Paris based organization has run all the official expos 49 00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:21,280 Speaker 1: since it was established in ninety eight. There are all 50 00:03:21,400 --> 00:03:24,520 Speaker 1: kinds of rules about who can host exhibitions and how 51 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:28,200 Speaker 1: often they're allowed to occur. For example, the current rule 52 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:32,000 Speaker 1: is that one large exposition can be held every five years, 53 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,680 Speaker 1: and one smaller one can be held in between. Another 54 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:39,160 Speaker 1: major rule is that only one event is allowed per 55 00:03:39,240 --> 00:03:43,600 Speaker 1: country every ten years. And here's the thing. In nineteen 56 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:48,800 Speaker 1: sixty four, the United States broke both of those rules. Seattle, 57 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:52,960 Speaker 1: Washington had hosted its own big exposition just two years earlier. 58 00:03:53,360 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 1: That meant it was too soon for New York City 59 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:59,640 Speaker 1: to host its own large scale World's Fair, but infamous 60 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:03,280 Speaker 1: city planner Robert Moses wouldn't take no for an answer. 61 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:07,640 Speaker 1: After the b i E rejected his proposal, Moses said, 62 00:04:07,840 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 1: oh well, and carried on with what was basically a 63 00:04:11,000 --> 00:04:15,680 Speaker 1: rogue World's Fair. Because the fair didn't earn accreditation from 64 00:04:15,680 --> 00:04:18,919 Speaker 1: the b i E, some European countries refused to have 65 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 1: any involvement with the unsanctioned event. This included some heavy 66 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:28,119 Speaker 1: hitters too. For instance, France, Britain and Italy all chose 67 00:04:28,200 --> 00:04:31,560 Speaker 1: to sit out the fair. This forced the organizers to 68 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:35,840 Speaker 1: get a bit creative. They brought in more corporate sponsored exhibitions, 69 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:40,320 Speaker 1: but they also extended an invitation to smaller geopolitical powers 70 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:44,360 Speaker 1: that had been traditionally shut out from such events. This 71 00:04:44,440 --> 00:04:48,159 Speaker 1: was the unexpected benefit of the fair's rogue status. It 72 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:52,640 Speaker 1: allowed nations as diverse as Thailand, Morocco, and Honduras to 73 00:04:52,839 --> 00:04:57,360 Speaker 1: seize the spotlight on the world stage. These international exhibits 74 00:04:57,560 --> 00:05:00,919 Speaker 1: served as an introduction for tens of million of Americans 75 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:04,400 Speaker 1: to the history, language, and food of dozens of less 76 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:09,159 Speaker 1: familiar cultures. Another standout aspect of the nineteen sixty four 77 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:12,680 Speaker 1: World's Fair were the corporate sponsored exhibits that had been 78 00:05:12,720 --> 00:05:16,039 Speaker 1: designed and built by Walt Disney and his freshman crew 79 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 1: of imagineers. Walt had been a lifelong fan of World's Fairs, 80 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:23,960 Speaker 1: and the clearest example of his passion was his Disneyland 81 00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:28,159 Speaker 1: theme park. Roller Coasters and ferris wheels are theme park 82 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:31,440 Speaker 1: attractions that got their start at World's Fairs, but the 83 00:05:31,640 --> 00:05:35,680 Speaker 1: entire concept of highly themed areas filled with different attractions 84 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:40,400 Speaker 1: is lifted whole cloth from World's Fair pavilions. So naturally, 85 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,000 Speaker 1: Walt Disney was thrilled when the nineteen sixty four exhibition 86 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 1: was announced for New York City. He wanted to be 87 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:49,080 Speaker 1: a part of it in any way he could, and 88 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:53,080 Speaker 1: he definitely got his wish, ultimately designing and building not one, 89 00:05:53,400 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 1: but four different attractions for that year's fair, and true 90 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:00,680 Speaker 1: to the fair's theme of Space Age progress Us, the 91 00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:04,440 Speaker 1: focal point of all of Disney's exhibits were robots, or, 92 00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:09,240 Speaker 1: as he called them, audio animatronics. Disney had debuted that 93 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:12,840 Speaker 1: technology a year earlier with the Birds and his enchanted 94 00:06:12,839 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 1: Tiki Room attraction at Disneyland, but it was at the 95 00:06:16,120 --> 00:06:19,599 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty four World's Fair that this new form of 96 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: robotic animation really came into its own. For example, Disney 97 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:28,360 Speaker 1: made a lifelike recreation of Abraham Lincoln for the fair's 98 00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:32,720 Speaker 1: Illinois Pavilion, the state where Lincoln practice law and later 99 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:35,919 Speaker 1: served in government. It was one of the most ambitious 100 00:06:35,960 --> 00:06:39,920 Speaker 1: audio animatronics the company had ever attempted. That was partly 101 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:43,799 Speaker 1: due to the complex hydraulic system that drove the figures movements, 102 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:46,400 Speaker 1: but there was also the fact that the robot was 103 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:49,520 Speaker 1: made to look like an actual person. At that point, 104 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:52,599 Speaker 1: a robot had never been built with the convincing likeness 105 00:06:52,680 --> 00:06:56,320 Speaker 1: of a real human being. Yet when National Geographic took 106 00:06:56,320 --> 00:06:59,080 Speaker 1: an early look at Disney's work in nineteen sixty three, 107 00:06:59,440 --> 00:07:03,240 Speaker 1: they conclude did that the animatronic Lincoln was quote alarming 108 00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:06,880 Speaker 1: in its realism. When the exhibit opened at the fair, 109 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,600 Speaker 1: Disney's take on Lincoln looked so real that a five 110 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:13,080 Speaker 1: year old boy in the audience thought it was the 111 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:17,360 Speaker 1: real deal. He reportedly looked up at his father and shouted, Daddy, 112 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:20,680 Speaker 1: I thought you said he was dead. The artists that 113 00:07:20,800 --> 00:07:24,160 Speaker 1: Disney were able to pull off such a convincing likeness 114 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:27,840 Speaker 1: thanks to the forethought of the real Abraham Lincoln. Just 115 00:07:27,960 --> 00:07:32,040 Speaker 1: two months before his assassination, President Lincoln allowed a sculptor 116 00:07:32,240 --> 00:07:35,160 Speaker 1: to make a life mask of his face, and almost 117 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:38,520 Speaker 1: exactly a hundred years later, that's what Disney used to 118 00:07:38,560 --> 00:07:42,800 Speaker 1: make their version as accurate as possible. The Lincoln exhibit 119 00:07:42,840 --> 00:07:45,840 Speaker 1: proved to be such a hit that the company overhauled 120 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:48,920 Speaker 1: the animatronic to make it even more convincing, and then 121 00:07:48,960 --> 00:07:53,160 Speaker 1: installed it as a permanent attraction in Disneyland the following year. 122 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:57,240 Speaker 1: If you're like me, you're probably wondering about those other 123 00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:01,600 Speaker 1: three attractions that featured audio animatronics. Well, don't worry, I've 124 00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:04,600 Speaker 1: got you covered. First up, there was a charming little 125 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:06,960 Speaker 1: boat ride you may have heard of, called It's a 126 00:08:07,000 --> 00:08:10,560 Speaker 1: Small World. The attraction was originally made as part of 127 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:14,120 Speaker 1: the fair's Eunice Sef Pavilion, which was sponsored by Pepsi 128 00:08:14,240 --> 00:08:18,800 Speaker 1: that year. Next, there was the Carousel of Progress, designed 129 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:22,280 Speaker 1: for the General Electric Pavilion, still running at the Magic 130 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:25,600 Speaker 1: Kingdom in disney World. The attraction is a rotating theater 131 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 1: that switches between scenes of audio animatronics acting out scenes 132 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,280 Speaker 1: of domestic life through the decades and showcasing a bunch 133 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:37,800 Speaker 1: of ge products in the process. Lastly, and probably best 134 00:08:37,800 --> 00:08:40,080 Speaker 1: of all, if you ask me, there was the Magic 135 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:44,320 Speaker 1: Skyway at the Ford Pavilion. Ford debut a brand new 136 00:08:44,400 --> 00:08:48,040 Speaker 1: sports car at the fair that year, the Mustang. To 137 00:08:48,120 --> 00:08:50,840 Speaker 1: help sell the public on the new design, the company 138 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:53,760 Speaker 1: teamed with Disney to build a ride system where fair 139 00:08:53,840 --> 00:08:58,240 Speaker 1: goers could board motorless Mustang convertibles and be slowly pulled 140 00:08:58,240 --> 00:09:02,360 Speaker 1: along a conveyor bell. If that sounds a little dull, well, 141 00:09:02,679 --> 00:09:05,640 Speaker 1: that's where the robots came in. The idea was that 142 00:09:05,679 --> 00:09:08,000 Speaker 1: writers would be sent on a trip back in time 143 00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:11,560 Speaker 1: to the Jurassic Age, where they'd encounter intricate scenes of 144 00:09:11,600 --> 00:09:15,040 Speaker 1: dinosaurs caring for their young or squaring off in battle. 145 00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:19,400 Speaker 1: In other words, Disney basically used the Ford partnership as 146 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:23,440 Speaker 1: an excuse to make awesome robot dinosaurs, and really, who 147 00:09:23,480 --> 00:09:27,440 Speaker 1: can blame him, especially when in the end everyone was happy. 148 00:09:28,040 --> 00:09:31,559 Speaker 1: Disney was able to relocate the dinosaur scenes to Disneyland, 149 00:09:31,679 --> 00:09:34,760 Speaker 1: where they were incorporated as the Primeval World section of 150 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:38,320 Speaker 1: the park's railroad. And as for Ford, it went on 151 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:41,640 Speaker 1: to sell four hundred thousand of the new Mustang model 152 00:09:41,880 --> 00:09:45,120 Speaker 1: in just its first year on the market, four times 153 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:49,360 Speaker 1: the company's initial projections in business. That's known as the 154 00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:54,520 Speaker 1: robot dinosaur effect, or at least it should be. Of course, 155 00:09:54,720 --> 00:09:58,280 Speaker 1: the fair had some other non Disney high points as well. 156 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:01,600 Speaker 1: For instance, there was an exhibition where a person flew 157 00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:04,319 Speaker 1: around wearing a jet pack that was originally built for 158 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:07,760 Speaker 1: the U. S. Army. It could reportedly fly a distance 159 00:10:07,800 --> 00:10:10,880 Speaker 1: of eight hundred and fifteen feet and go as fast 160 00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:14,120 Speaker 1: as sixty miles per hour. The pilot at the fair 161 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:16,880 Speaker 1: didn't get to do anything quite that cool, but he 162 00:10:17,080 --> 00:10:20,400 Speaker 1: was a star performer in the fairs Wonder World Musical, 163 00:10:20,760 --> 00:10:24,120 Speaker 1: and that's nothing to sneeze at. The sixty four fair 164 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:29,360 Speaker 1: was also many Americans introduction to Belgian waffles. Technically, the 165 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:32,360 Speaker 1: waffles made their first state side appearance at the sixty 166 00:10:32,400 --> 00:10:35,559 Speaker 1: two World's Fair in Seattle, but they didn't make much 167 00:10:35,559 --> 00:10:38,839 Speaker 1: of a splash at that one. However, in New York 168 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:42,200 Speaker 1: fair goers couldn't get enough of them, or, as The 169 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:46,920 Speaker 1: New York Times reported in nine six, quote, Belgian waffles 170 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:51,120 Speaker 1: sold like hotcakes at the World's Fair. In fact, they 171 00:10:51,160 --> 00:10:54,400 Speaker 1: were such a hit that waffle makers sales spiked all 172 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:58,280 Speaker 1: across the country. It wasn't the most culturally enriching part 173 00:10:58,320 --> 00:11:01,760 Speaker 1: of the fair, but sparking a nationwide waffle craze is 174 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:04,920 Speaker 1: still another well earned feather in the sixty four fairs 175 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:08,880 Speaker 1: cap Most of the exhibits and attractions featured at the 176 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:12,640 Speaker 1: fair were knocked down by nineteen sixty six, and the 177 00:11:12,720 --> 00:11:16,880 Speaker 1: former fairgrounds are now the Flushing Meadows Corona Park. It's 178 00:11:16,880 --> 00:11:20,200 Speaker 1: a pretty standard city park except for the presence of 179 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:23,560 Speaker 1: a few remnants of the fair, the attractions that were 180 00:11:23,559 --> 00:11:28,400 Speaker 1: too permanent or too unassuming to be destroyed. These leftover 181 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:31,640 Speaker 1: bits are monuments to our past, visions of the future, 182 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:35,400 Speaker 1: and to a sense of curiosity and optimism that both 183 00:11:35,400 --> 00:11:39,200 Speaker 1: our country and the world could stand to remember more often. 184 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:44,440 Speaker 1: I'm Gay Blusier and hopefully you now know a little 185 00:11:44,480 --> 00:11:48,240 Speaker 1: more about history today than you did yesterday. You can 186 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:51,719 Speaker 1: learn even more about history by following us on Twitter, Facebook, 187 00:11:51,720 --> 00:11:56,079 Speaker 1: and Instagram at t d i HC Show. You can 188 00:11:56,120 --> 00:11:59,080 Speaker 1: also rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts, and 189 00:11:59,120 --> 00:12:02,000 Speaker 1: you can write to us directly at this day at 190 00:12:02,040 --> 00:12:05,320 Speaker 1: I heart media dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays for 191 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:08,559 Speaker 1: producing the show, and thanks to you for listening I'll 192 00:12:08,600 --> 00:12:11,400 Speaker 1: see you back here again soon for another day in 193 00:12:11,559 --> 00:12:12,320 Speaker 1: history class.