I was at the 1964 New York’s World Fair with my family. I was 9 years old, and remember It’s A Small World, Carousel Of Progress, The Ford Motor Co. ride through, the Sinclair Dinosaurs, the giant US Royal Tire Ferris Wheel, the dual log flumes , sky ride buckets, and the monorail that when you exited the Aston Martin DB5 from James Bond’s movies was on display. I had my photo taken on the wall of the pond around the Unisphere globe. Great memories. I was lucky we got to experience all of that in one day !
Adam--born in 1956, I (twice) visited the 1964-65 New York World's Fair as a child who traveled to Flushing Meadow Park from upstate New York where my family lived (near Oneonta). Since you wondered about it, let me fill you in with what the fair was like because I experienced it in full swing firsthand. The Fair was well publicized and I remember studying the layout of the place and learning the locations of all the various pavillions in NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC magazine in advance. A science fiction fan, my favorite pavillion before ever arriving at the fair was the General Motors Futurama. I remember hand-drawing sketches of it following photographs I'd seen. The main facade was a curved, forward-leaning, fan-like shell that framed a water fountain display. My mom, born in 1919, had attended Mills Teachers College in NYC and had seen the 1939 NY Worlds Fair ahead of the 1964-65 'reicarnation.' She talked enthusiastically about 'The Trylon and Perisphere' from that previous fair, and I well remember her possessing the same nostalgia for it even as she and our family acquired the experiences of the later fair that I'm similarly nostalgic for now. NYC and Queens/Long Island were just over-the-top bigger, bustling, and more crowded with people and cars than I had ever seen growing up in rural upstate NY. Even the parking lot for the fair was sprawling and you could EASILY tire trying to walk around one section of the fair to another, plus on the summer days when we attended the fair the weather was HOT. I remember the smells of different dining areas/restaurants spread around the fair, everyone hand-carrying maps or guidebooks of the fair and cameras with them, people wearing hats and sunglasses, and 1-2 hour waits in long queues where people stood in line under the hot sun to be admitted to popular pavillions. The Unisphere was surrounded by extensive water fountain displays that spread cooling mists in the wind over spectators who gathered around it. It was not only an adventure to experience each new pavillion--many of which had sit-down rides inside them--but their air-conditioned interiors were a welcome respite from the hot weather outside. There were smoky fireworks displays over the Unisphere near the General Electric pavillion at night. The pavillions were themed by countries, states, and corporations and there was a heavy emphasis on the future and progress. This was the era of the Apollo program and there was a section of the bottommost portion of a Saturn V rocket booster, with its five gigantic engine nozzles situated above your head, mounted outdoors somewhere near the Ford pavillion. AT&T had an early version of a video phone on display. An animatronic Abe Lincoln delivered The Gettysburg Address to the audience in one pavillion. A gigantic inlaid map of New York State was on the floor of its pavillion and people from NYS found and stood on their home towns to have their pictures taken doing so. You could smell/eat hamburgers, hot dogs, cotton candy, Belgian waffles, Polynesian food, soft drinks, ice cream cones, on and on and on. There was a monorail system interconnecting the different sections of the fair and it served both the practical function of saving you steps plus it gave you a higher vantage point above the ubiquitous crowds of people to see more of the fair. One part of the monorail actually passed THROUGH one of the pavillions, I think (the Futurama?). The fair was dotted with those color-coded futuristic-looking street posts and most of the buildings and pavillions were architecturally stunning and avante garde in design. There was lots of color in the buildings and surroundings, and not much in the way of shade trees--a big contrast with the sedate, grown-up placidity of the park now. Now, the park seems like an abandoned home that a family has long since moved out of and the Unisphere, the heart of the fair, strikes me as 'lonely' because it was meant to be seen and appreciated. Most of the fair was intended to be torn down afterward, although we knew the USS (United States Steel)-made Unisphere was intended to remain a permanent fixture that would survive the fair. By way of mixing old with new, Michaelangelo's Pieta was on display at the fair; you stood on a sideways-moving trackway that let you view it through a protective glass wall. The atmosphere the fairgoers experienced was the historical and cultural richness of the world and the promise of foreseeable technological wonders that the future would bring along in the decades ahead. The fair was predominantly optimistic and forward-looking, with an emphasis on American patriotism, know-how, industry, and inventiveness. Americans in those days were by and large comfortably middle class and more or less united in our values. The Beatle era had just begun and America had not yet felt most of the violence and social upheaval that became more prominent during the second half of the 1960s. Our counrtry was prosperous and customer service was outstanding in most respects. Consumerism was a prominent part of life and the fair reflected all of this. After a day at the fair you felt exhausted, sensory-overloaded, crowd-weary, and dazzled by the era and nation/world the fair celebrated and by the future it had let you glimpse. If you had taken in enough, you would have seen Disney wonders, taken in glimpses of prehistoric times with dinosaurs, seen envisioned model moon colonies, witnessed spectacles of architecture, art, and commerce, and been shown cities and projected technologies of the future. You might have bought and brought home with you any number of (either worthwhile or touristy-cheap) souvenirs of cultures from around the world. It was a wonderful, imaginative, magical and audaciously large-scale exposition of past, present, and the envisioned future blended with just about any refreshments you might have wanted, and you could probably have afforded them in that era.
I immediately hit play as soon as I saw what todays video was. I’m a Queens girl and I live super close to Flushing Meadow Park/Citi Field, and sometimes I take for granted that I am so close to such iconic sites. I am so happy you got to experience these places on your trip! Fun story: my mom grew up here too, and she went to the worlds fair! My grandmother volunteered there (not sure if it was for the Disney specific attractions or others), but my mom cannot stand Small World anymore because she rode it SO MUCH as a kid. I’ll troll her whenever I go on the ride in the parks and send her a video clip of the ride 🤣.
Wow!! Memory Lane for me today. I attended the NY World's Fair many times as a 13 year old New Yorker. I even performed there with my Junior High orchestra. I was also a huge Met fan in the Shea Stadium days. Enjoyed this vlog so much! Thank you, Adam.😮
The “stadium” you called it was the Tent of Tomorrow. That geodesic dome you noticed in the zoo was part of the 64 fair as a small pavilion for the United Kingdom and was moved after the fair and turned into an aviary for the Queens Zoo. The Rocket Thrower statue was a part of the 64 fair. And unfortunately y’all missed the Time Capsule and column of jerash the second oldest object in an NYC park… Ah well Next Time! 🗽
Hello Adam. To think that I have past just walking around those structures, the metal posts and fences on my way up and down those streets and, never in my mind thought that they belonged to places that no longer exist that people went and found joy and entertainment. Thank you Adam! The more you know!! 🎆
I was there in 1964, as a young man it was really something to see. GE carousal of the future that went to WDW in 1971. Which I was also there in 1971 3rd day WDW opened free for serviceman. Thanks for showing it.
OMG.... Memories. Ridding the Ford convertibles watching the Disney Dinos. The Indiana Pavillion and robot Abe. Small World. Carousel of Progress. Belgium strawberry waffles,.😎 I still have a Worlds Fair '64 license plate a bought there. It was magical. A few years later it was all in my home state California Disney. That trip is up there with my first visit to Disneyland July 30th 1955. 🧐 I was taking pix back then and today I am an architectual photo/videographer in Silicon Valley. Thanks Adam for this' memory lane' adventure. 😎
Hello Adam and Jay. Went to the World's Fair with my Mom and Grandmom. I was five at the time. Still have a book, pamphlet and small plastic kids purse. Been back to the area once to attend the US Open a few years ago. Thanks for taking me back again.
I really enjoyed this vlog, especially the World's Fair site. I think it would be cool to go there with all the 1964 World's Fair View Master reels and stand at the location of each pavillion and be able to view how it looked in '64. Added to the bucket list!
Don’t forget that Flushing Meadows Park was also the site of the 1939-40 World’s Fair. The Unisphere is now on the site of where the Trylon and Perisphere stood for the 39 fair.
My mom and her best friend brought both families to the Worlds Fair. All of the older kids went to Shea Stadium to see the Beatles perform but they were so far back they could barely see them. My friend and I were deemed to young to go so we sat with our moms on some benches to pout about not getting to go. Suddenly several limos screeched up, stopped and the Beatles hopped out about 50 feet from us. They waved at us, went into the building, went to the top floor to get in the helicopter to get them out of there! We practically got to “meet” them but the older kids barely saw them! Sweet justice!
Disney was at the 1939 NY World's fair too. The National Biscuit company sponsored a "Mickey's surprise party" cartoon. People were able to watch it in an A/C auditorium.
Rolly Crump said after the fair his Tower of the Four Winds in front of it's a small world was cut up and tossed into one of the rivers. It's probably still rotting away somewhere. Walt asked Rolly what he thought of the tower once it was completed and saw it in person, and Rolly's reply was "I think it looks like a piece of sh*t." Walt responded "Rolly, it can't be a piece of sh*t, it cost me one hundred and fifty thousand dollars." Imagine having a casual conversation with Walt like that at the 1964/65 NY World's Fair.
I was so happy that you mentionned my all time favorite baseball player Gary Carter ... I got to see him play as a little girl when he was an Expos quite a few times living very close to Montreal... he was an amazing player and human being . This grown man was my first crush as a little girl ... him and John Ritter lolllll
Adam, I was the one that said hello to you inside the stadium a few times and mentioned the Beatles ar Shea. Nice to meet you. Tough loss for the Mets. Glad you enjoyed the ballpark.
@@TheDailyWoo A few more Beatles points of interest to visit while in NYC is the Ed Sullivan Theater located on Broadway and 53rd Street. That is where The Beatles performed on the Ed Sullivan Show. The Plaza Hotel on 5th and 59th is where The Beatles stayed while in New York. And if you are flying out of JFK Airport, that is where they arrived to the US for the first time. The exact location of their arrival is the current terminal 4 right around where the control tower is.
In my only visit to New York (when I was 8), we went to the World’s Fair. I rode the giant Uniroyal Tire Ferris Wheel, which now resides next to I-94 near Detroit airport. There is a famous photo of Paul McCartney and Wings standing in front of it. Imagine driving alongside the freeway and seeing Paul McCartney! You could say I Saw Him Standing There
Really enjoyed this video. My mom and brother attended the 1964 NY Worlds Fair. I was only 3 so was left home with my grandparents. My brother was 16. He still remembers being there. I still have a double deck of playing cards my mom purchased. My mom loved the Carousel of Progress and my brother loved the Ford Bldg, people mover and the Sinclair dinosaurs. Another great job. You and Tampa Jay make a great team.
Hilarious Beatles reference, sir! 😂 That big ass tire near the airport in Romulus - such a landmark of my childhood. Had no idea it started as a Ferris wheel at the world’s fair!
I'm so glad you got to go to Queens and the World's Fair grounds. One fact you might like to know is that the towers at 6:18 held the secret UFO from the first Men in Black film. Also, that Tennis court you passed by is The Billie Jean King Tennis Center used in the US Open. Thanks for sharing this incredible video.
Adam this was a day of incredible historical goodness a lot you showed I’ve never heard of or seen and I actually got goosebumps with all that you showed and talked about because everything you covered was so incredibly interesting and a part of me didn’t want this video to end also the stadium was quite beautiful and again it was nice to see your team the Rays win yet another game now I’ve gotta say I love the heck out of New York so keep bringing on the New York adventures because they’re awesome now with that peace ☮️ love ❤️ and happiness to you Adam and I’ll see you on the next Adam the Daly woo adventure peace ☮️ out ✌️
I went to the fair twice in 1964. I was barely 8 years old, but I remember it being fascinating. The Travelers Insurance exhibit was my favorite, and I still have the program and record for it. It was sort of a Spaceship Earth, before Spaceship Earth.
I was at the 64 worlds fair when i was 6. Remember most the future cars of GM, huge Goodyear ferris wheel shaped like a tire, and sinclair dinosaur land. Dont forget Jerry Grote, catcher of the 69 amazin mets. WOR-9 mets radio with Lindsey Nelson iconic with flashy sportcoats. Good memories brought back. Thanks Adam.
Gosh...this was awesome. I think about the World's Fair every single time I'm on It's A Small World, and the beautiful message of that simple song, and now today I got a visual of where it all originally existed. Man! I want to picnic right there at that little corner of grass, play Sherman Brothers songs, and just take it all in for an entire afternoon! That unisphere is simply magnificent, and it's giving me the feels... ---Also fun fact, Jon Favreau's Fairview Entertainment logo features that very unisphere, because he grew up right there in Queens and that globe was his beloved view of the fair every day of his childhood... 💚 You really hit this one out of the park today Woo, thank you :)
Adam you are so interesting and full of facts and history I lived in New York City when I was a teenager I never knew anything about the Flushing Meadows but of course I was young this is the reason why I love your channel keep it enjoyable I enjoy your channel Adam enjoy your visit to NYC
I was a senior in high school in Connecticut and did many dates to the World's Fair in 64 and 65. Saw all the Disney attractions meant times among the others that made up the fair. Many fond memories. My moms friend worked at the fair and served coffee to Walt Disney. Wish the fair was still there but the buildings were not made to last. Thanks for bringing back the memories .
Loved this...I'm so nostalgic about the World Fair locations. I've been dreaming of going back and researching the New York World Fair area. I've searched and watched so many of the old footage of the WF back in the day. Really enjoyed this one! Thank You!
The original home of the United Nations was also in the park before moving to Manhattan. Now it's the Queens Museum & it has a diorama of all the Queens streets & buildings in miniature form as well as a wonderful exhibit of Tiffany stained glass
I remember taking rides around the miniature Manhattan model when I was 7 or 8 years old! We sat in a tiny little cabin, two seats facing each other and the cabins were connected to each other like a caterpillar like train. The train rode around the perimeter, the model of the city was to scale, lights in the windows, and a helicopter suspended on a wire that moved through the air. One of my favorite memories of that park.
@rattlecat5968 yes the ride went around the whole exhibit. It's been taken down now bcuz it reached its "life exoectancy" but toy can still see the tracks. They redesigned it so walkways mimic the cup & down helicopter feeling you would have gotten
I was there twice and it was an amazing place! Brings back many great memories! Thanks for sharing and bring back all the wonderful many thing I forgot about! 😊
1986 was a tough World Series to get over, as a Red Sox fan, for a long while. But the '86 Mets were a great team and deserved to win. They've definitely earned my respect.
My family attended that World's Fair! I was very young. I definitely remember the globe and the crowds, but very little else. We just might have seen the Disney attractions first hand, but I guess I'll never know for sure! Very cool to see those relics again! 😀
I am a huge NY Mets fan who has never been there YET! I will one day and explore all of this. Thanks for this wonderful video showing the 1964 World's Fair history!
Awesome vlog. I went to the '64 Worlds Fair with my school. I will never forget it. In addition to COP and Small world they even had an early version of the People mover. Thank you so much for a trip down memory lane.
This vlog gave me the chills! Loving it! Thanks for your excitement for life. I hope I have a chance to travel in my life time but I’ll travel vicariously through you for now.
Thanks for this Adam! My husband and I grew up in Middle Village Queens and Flushing Meadows Park was our dating destination in our teen years! It was so great to reminisce through your video. Safe travelers and thank you for bringing back great memories!
Baseball stadiums are truly sports cathedrals. Each one is so unique (except in the 80's when they were all round and concrete). Thanks for another great vlog! Also, I'm pretty sure if I lived in NYC, I'd be a Mets fan. Great stadium and vibe!
I’m so glad you did a video on this! My parents lived in Forest Hills so my mom told me they walked over to the worlds fair in 64 with my brother who was only a baby at the time (years before I existed). I was still young when we moved to Long Island but my HS prom was at the Terrace on the Park which is right there at that park (you can see it in that areal photo you show) the unisphere can be clearly seen from the terrace because it’s so massive. there’s some cool videos about how they constructed it and then it was restored in the 90s. I agree that anyone visiting NY should visit the park. It’s definitely a cool piece of history.
Hello Adam and Tampa Jay! This episode was great to watch before I set out to work. Thanks for sharing this! Definitely an interesting walk through the history of where Disney was displayed ! The walk around the Stadium and seeing some of the artifacts is great that they are still there for fans to see! What a awesome experience for you two! ❤Bizebeegranny Jeanne Rose from Wickenburg Arizona ❤
Hello Mr. Woo! ☕️ You two fellas are becoming city dwellers, aren't ya'll? LOL Love the collab, the video, and of course, the game! Go Rays, Go! 👏 Stay safe, and God bless 🙌
Pretty cool to see the site of the 1964 New York worlds fair! Also really cool to see the site of home plate from Shea stadium! Fun fact about Shea stadium, second base was where The Beatles stood when they gave their famous concert at Shea stadium. Adam, you got to stand near an extremely historic Beatles site!
Adam, awesome and cool video and really enjoyed it! That's cool of seeing NY Mets Citi Field! I'm rooting for your Rays! Thank you for taking me along with you and Tampa Jay! Looking forward to your next vlog.
We went as a family in 1965 I was 7 years old then. Memories galore. My favorite was the GM exhibit also the Sinclair dinosaurs, Ford, the of course Unisphiere. I remember the small world and Quaker Oats shooting a man out of a canon. We didn't eat in the big tower/observation building. Lots of other memories.
My day can’t start until I have a piping hot caffeinated beverage with Adam the Woo. Glad you got to see the Citi Field! Would say LGM, but I’m almost tapped out for the season.
Wow, those are some excellent seats u had at the game. Must have cost a pretty penny. The whole video was awesome! I loved seeing the Men in Black filming site. Thanks!
Super cool! My 8yr old son is doing a project on Walt Disney and this is mentioned in what we researched, very interesting to see the real location!!!! Rays Up!
My mom and Aunt to the 1964 World's Fair, she was 11. She said there were so many people you could hardly move, and she remembers It's A Small World, which is still a favorite!
Those early 60’s were a heyday for NYC. Jets and Mets in 62. The worlds fair. I’m not a baseball fan but learned the colors of the Mets came from: the blue from Brooklyn Dodgers and orange from New York Giants both who they lost in the 50’s. Great vlog woo
Hey Adam and Jay.loving your New York videos.Todays video very interesting and amazing I had no idea Disney started there.I love your enthusiasm and excitement of exploring all those things.Keep them coming Adam.From Universal Jamie.
Great video Adam. I grew up about 5 minutes away from shea Stadium in Queens and my dad had a business across the street from shea. Brought back a lot of memories of the both the ballpark and flushing meadow.
