Today's POD

[ptcruiser51]

I notice at the bottom of the ad it mentions the "Festival of Gas" at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. Although it does sound like a "chili cook-off" competition >smirk< I do remember seeing it. The appliances were displayed on a huge ferris wheel. Impressive, but you weren't able to touch or interact with the displays.

My sister has taken an interest in the Fair. She was a child at the time and remembers absolutely nothing about it, not even that super-annoying "It's A Small World" song from the Disney exhibit. You couldn't get it out of your head nohow! I found her a guidebook from the Fair, and a few other trinkets. I was a teenager, so I remember most of the things, but thinking now with a different view I can't remember a couple exhibits at all.

General Motors, of course had the "Futurama", but the book mentions a large display of operating Frigidaire appliances. Don't remember that. Ford had similar for Philco, again - zip. General Electric had one of the noteworthy shows: a circular auditorium with rotating appliance vignettes from the 1900's, 1920's, 1940's and current (mid-60's) complete with faboo avocado appliances and color console TV. It was quite remarkable, using Disney-inspired robotic figures. Also it was, thankfully, air-conditioned!

There was a pavillion called the "Better Living Center" that did have many displays from different manufacturers. GE had a separate display there, one of the things introduced was "Trimwall" insulation which made for thinner fridge frames allowing for more capacity. I don't know why I was impressed by this, perhaps an inkling of things to come?

Westinghouse had an exhibit, but it was just for their "Time Capsule" feature, I don't recall anything there with appliances.

RCA had a studio promo-ing color TV, still a relative novelty at the time.

I realize it was 40+ years ago, can anyone fill in any blanks?

 

[blackstone]

IBM Building

Not exactly an appliance, but how about a typewriter? The IBM building was introducing their Selectric typewriters with the replaceable character ball. I remember inserting the one with Cyrillic characters and typing my name on a postcard.

 

[hydralique]

GE Exhibit

There was a similar rotating stage exhibit showcasing GE appliances through the ages at Disneyland in the mid to late '60s. I saw it at least a couple of times as a child, and remember how well it was done. Probably some Disney aficionado could give the years it was operating; it may very well have been the same exhibit moved from New York to Disneyland after the fair was over.

 

[polkanut]

My Mom and a girlfriend took a trip to the '64 World's Fair, Niagra Falls, Pennsylvania Amish country, and Washington D.C at cherry blossom time. She has great scrapbook of the trip. I'll have to see if I can find it up in the attic.

 

[classiccaprice]

Here's a Frigidaire clip about our 'future'. it looks like it's from the world's fair... Appliances start about 4:10 in the film.

 

[ptcruiser51]

Oh, wow!

Thanks, ClassCap! I'd kill for that kitchen! Notice how nicely dressed and coiffed everyone is at the fair. All my photos from there reflect the same. We were so tasteful in those days...

I have a VCR tape of the fair, narrated by Judd Hirsch. In retrospect, it's amazing how many of the exhibits were crass commercialism.

 

[jeffg]

I love how they tried to capitalize on the JFK/NASA/sci-fi crazes of the early 60's. The opening theme is something right out of Outer Limits or Twilight Zone. Klaatu! Barada nikto Frigidaire!

 

[JerseyMike]

Follow the blue arrows for trains to the World's Fair sa

My family went the World's Fair fairly often.

Among the many things that I remember, was that the pay phones (that was way before cell phones) had buttons instead of dials. They also only had 10 buttons, the # and the * hadn't been added yet.