New York World's Fair (1964)
The New York World's Fair of 1964-1965 was a significant event aimed at showcasing "man's achievements on a shrinking globe in an expanding universe." Organized by Robert Moses and spanning over six hundred acres, the fair featured around one hundred and forty pavilions, with a central visual theme represented by the Unisphere, a towering steel globe. Although the fair was not officially sanctioned by the Bureau of International Expositions, it included contributions from various countries and highlighted technological advancements. Notable exhibits included artworks from renowned Spanish painters and the Vatican's display of Michelangelo's Pieta. The fair also featured innovative attractions designed by Walt Disney, such as the iconic "It's a Small World" ride, which later moved to Disneyland. Despite strong corporate sponsorship and a range of attractions, the fair did not meet its ambitious attendance goals and incurred significant financial losses. The event reflected a mix of cultural, technological, and religious themes, alongside a shift towards more family-friendly entertainment compared to previous fairs.
New York World's Fair (1964)
Date: April 22-October 18,1964; April 21-October 17, 1965
A showcase for technology. Held in conjunction with the city’s three-hundredth anniversary, the 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair transported an empty Flushing Meadows field into the future.
Origins and History
The idea to hold another world’s fair in New York came from lawyer Robert Koppel, who felt that such an event would teach children in the United States about other nations. In May, 1960, Robert Moses, New York City’s park commissioner and a veteran of the 1939-1940 New York World’s Fair, replaced Koppel as the Fair Corporation president.
The Bureau of International Expositions did not sanction the New York World’s Fair because world fairs are limited to one-year runs, and the United States had just hosted a world’s fair in Seattle in 1962.
The Fair
Dedicated to “man’s achievements on a shrinking globe in an expanding universe,” the fair covered more than six hundred acres and featured one hundred and forty pavilions. The visual theme of the fair was the Unisphere, a 140-foot-high, 900,000-pound steel globe encircled by three giant rings. Viewed from the edge of the structure’s pool, the Unisphere had the dimensions Earth would have if viewed from a height of six thousand miles.
Because the Bureau of International Expositions did not sanction the event, most European and Communist bloc countries did not participate. Those that did included Belgium, whose pavilion replicated a walled nineteenth century town built out of stone, and Spain, which exhibited paintings by Francisco de Goya, Diego Velázquez, El Greco, Joan Miró, and Pablo Picasso.
Concern about the lack of religion in the 1939-1940 New York World’s Fair led Moses to offer rent-free pavilions to religious groups of all denominations. Fifteen accepted, including the Vatican, which displayed Michelangelo’s Pieta for the first time outside of St. Peter’s Church in Rome.
Strong corporate involvement created a showcase for new technology. Primitive computers matched first-time users with foreign pen pals and helped them choose colors for redecorating their homes. The two-acre United States Space Park featured the Mercury capsule flown on the second U.S. manned orbital flight and full-scale models of other U.S. spacecraft and satellites. The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission took visitors to Atomsville, USA, where they could test remote “hot cell” manipulators for handling radioactive materials and run a simulated reactor.
Moses recruited Walt Disney to design major displays for four commercial pavilions, including Pepsi Cola’s tunnel-of-love-style water ride. It’s a Small World A Tribute to UNICEF featured animated figures in global settings, all singing in different languages. When the fair ended, the small world pavilion was moved to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and opened there in 1966.
Impact
The 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair lost nearly as much money as the 1939-1940 fair had and did not reach its attendance goal of seventy million people. Moses’s conservative tastes dictated that the amusement zone would feature culturally oriented entertainment instead of the thrill rides and risqué amusements of years past. After suffering losses in the first year, Moses relented, and sixty-nine bars and nine “go-go” (dance) clubs were added for the 1965 season.
Additional Information
For an overview, see the Official Souvenir Book of the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair (1964), published by Time-Life books.