The Controversial History of the 1964 New York World's Fair

This is not the 1964 New York World’s Fair you thought you knew. This wasn’t even a World’s Fair - It just used the name. It was officially disendorsed by the Bureau of International Exhibitions, plagued with controversy, mismanagement, and financial concerns... This is the true story of the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

[TheMotz]

For those who experienced the World's Fair, it wasn't a failure at all. I was 9 and 10, lived in city housing just a bus ride away. I went at least a dozen times over 2 years. Apart from the stand out pavilions, Belgian waffles, and the Pieta, I remember amphibious cars, early flat screen TVs and video phones! There were visitors from all over the world, many dressed in cultural attire. The World's Fair inspired us to believe in what the future could be if we all worked together. For a kid from a housing project, it was all pretty remarkable.

[steviea]

I went 16 times in 64/65, as a 14 year old cutting school.
The fountain with the fireworks was an incredible experience and my favorite thing there.
I'm 69 now, and can't believe how time flew by.

[mmsmith]

I loved it unabashedly. I lived in New Jersey in 1964. I knew a lot of folks who went and loved it too. I still have a Korean doll my father bought me at the Korean pavilion. I felt like I had traveled the world, I saw so many countries' pavilions. We saw dinosaurs and the world's biggest cheese. It was fantastic. It's a Small World, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, and the Unisphere. It was fabulous, just fabulous.

[kindredtheembraced]

My parents took us to the 1965 World's Fair, we had relatives in Flushing. This was and still is one of the happiest memories I have. It was magical in all ways.

[Marchant]

The 1964 NY World's Fair may not have been a success, but it was a hulluva success in terms of entertainment. Even by today's standards, that fair was incredible.

[whiteelectricwind]

This piece of history very helpful to me. I was there at age 9. Grew up with Disneyland since the '50s in L.A. And always had looked back at the New York World's Fair as a vast landscape I had no time to explore in that one day. Now I know I did experience the best parts of the event and my childhood questions are fulfilled! All 4 Disney Pavilions were a mid-'60s joy and I especially appreciate the fortune of having seen his "City of the Future" model upstairs in one of them. And Yes! The Belgian Village's Waffles were the highlight of the evening. Thank you.

[johnsain]

I went as a 6 year old, ....nothing in my memory has since made such a magical impression on me.

[jcsgodmother]

I was there as a small child. And I returned 50 yrs later. Love Flushing meadows Park. Love the Unisphere and the carousel.

[uss_]

I love how Captain America/ Iron Man 2 got the Worlds Fair talked about for a while

[pdute]

I was 11 then, and I thought that it was wonderful. I loved most the IBM and the Bell pavilions. I knew nothing about the controversies. As a kid, I had a wonderful time, I also particularly remember "the Pieta" on display from the Vatican, and the Belgian Waffles!

[danielobregon]

I almost skipped this video because of the clickbaity title, but I found it to be informative and well-balanced. Excellent production values.

[jeff__w]

This video was an odd take on New York's 1964-1965 World's Fair. My family lived about 15 minutes from the fairgrounds and we must have visited it at least five or six times, if not more, over the two seasons. I was five and six at the time. We never thought of it as a "Disney" event, although I _did_ know that Pepsico's "It's a Small World, " GE's "Carousel of Progress" and the "Great Moments with Mr Lincoln" were Disney attractions (or, for the latter two, at least Disney-inspired)—the animatronics of Disney were unmistakable.

I recall, even now, over half a century later, the "It's a Small World" pavilion (I have the official LP somewhere), the New York City pavilion which featured a simulated helicopter ride over a huge scale model of New York with seemingly _every_ building (we _could_ pick out our own apartment building), the Ford Motor "Magic Skyway" (we got little glow-in-the-dark Ford logos), GE's "Carousel of Progress" (I recall the shaggy animatronic dog but I think what impressed me most as a five-year old was that _we_ moved around the stage, a fact that became apparent only when the exit escalator rotated into view), the tire ferris wheel (which we never rode), the Bell System pavilion (people remember the picture phones but I seem to recall some demonstration of how fast "dialing" with the push button phones was as compared to dialing with the rotary ones), the Coca-Cola pavilion which featured a walk through some international locales (I remember the Alps and a very fragrant Hong Kong market), the Unisphere, of course, and more. It felt, to me, as a little kid, like what it was: the optimistic, forward-looking ethos of mid-20th-century America—a heady mix of technology (developed by benevolent corporations) and understanding would lead, ineluctably, to peace and progress. (The fair theme was, in fact, "Peace through Understanding.")

I became dimly aware, later on, that the fair was not "official" and that it was, in fact, a financial failure—and this video did a great job of explaining that—but, to me, as a five- and six-year old, it was the quintessential world's fair experience. I loved every minute of it.

[seanalanmorris]

I attended the World's Fair in New York as a 2-year old, but have absolutely no memories of the event. As a Disneyphile from an early age. I was told by my mother that I absolutely gorged my little self on the Belgian waffle they purchased that day, and generally spent the day with wide eyes and pointing fingers. I'm sure I would have enjoyed those memories had I been a little older. Thanks for a great video, I enjoy your manner of presentation.

[MyEyesBled]

I was there as a kid, I thought I was in a future dream... having a great time... then I got food poisoned from some real bad KFC (new at the time) that made me throw-up inside the GM Pavilion all over the floor... The End.. time to go home and to bed... my parents refused to take me back to my disappointment...

[JeffFrmJoisey]

I was 7 and lived a 22 mile car ride from the NY Worlds Fair when it opened. I collected lots of info. We even ordered 2-Sided Worlds Fair Puzzles from Post Cereals! At 7, the NYWF was the most magnificent thing ever; I studied it and learned it and collected stuff about it. Walt Disney's involvement wasn't really mentioned in our home, though we experienced 3 of his attractions. To me, it was all just Spectacular!! I was lucky enough to go to the Fair 3 times, 1st time was June 1, 1964. Then August 64 and July 65.

[SymphonyBrahms]

The Crystal Palace in London isn't just in ruins. It caught fire and burned to the ground in 1936. It was completely destroyed. The spot where it stood in the park is now a lawn.

[cqholt]

Carousel of Progress is the best WDW ride.

[jackgrattan]

I was eight when my family went, and my most vivid memories were for something that you didn't mention.
None other than the souped-up Aston Martin automobile from the James Bond blockbuster GOLDFINGER!
We stood in line all day for that one.

[jefftube]

my parents took my sister and I to the 64' /65' fair. I still have memories of it today.

[thegerm]

Been on that chair lift ride it now sits at Six Flags in NJ.