PM Photo - 1939 NY World's Fair & More

World's Fair Project - ReactionGrid for 2012

2012-01-01T17:06:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year

2011 was a slow year for progress on the Restoration Project - but things were still accomplished. View the current gallery of photos on the Grid and don't forget to check on the NYC Building and a few short film clips of the Grid

We don't know what is next, but a couple contenders would be Sweden or Italy.

Dr. Flavia Marcello, Lecturer in Architecture at Deakin University in Australia has sent me the floor plans for Italy and has promised to send more information once his paper is published.

We are also hoping to receive a paper and slide presentation from Matthew A. Malina on the NYC Building display about the New York water system.

Visit the our other 1939 NY World's Blog.

Sign up for the World's Fair Newsletter on the web site's home page

If you want to help with the Restoration Project on ReactionGrid, contact me for more information.

New Statues Pages Added to the World's Fair Site

2011-09-27T16:48:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all the hard work by the New York Public Library on their digital collection, I have been able to add 7 new pages to 1939 New York World's Fair Web Site ... all statues. Here's the list and the links:

Fountain of the Atom by Wayland de Santis Gregory, Community Interests Zone
I found Earth, but am missing Fire, Air, and Water and also one of the male elements. If you have a photo of the missing statues, please send it to me so I can complete the page. Be sure to include the source for the image. e-mail: Paul@1939nyworldsfair.com

The Hunter by Elfriede Abbe, Communications & Business Zone

The Runner & The Stone Cutter by Joseph E. Renier, Communications & Business Zone

The Crest by Brenda Putnam

The Astronomer by Carl Willes, Theme Center

Spirit of Florida by George Etienne Ganiere, Amusement Zone

Sea Maid by Raymond Barger, Food Zone

Fountain of the Atom by Wayland de Santis Gregory, Community Interests Zone

I found Earth, but am missing Fire, Air, and Water and also one of the male elements. If you have a photo of the missing statues, please send it to me so I can complete the page. Be sure to include the source for the image.

February 23, 2011: What is the World's Fair Project

2011-02-23T09:07:00.000-08:00

Many people who are not familiar with the Virtual World have wanted a way of seeing what our project is all about. So I thought that making a series of short videos may help. here is the first one. It's our introduction to the Fair.
Our hope is that this and future videos catch the attention of people who would like to join us in the Virtual World of Reaction Grid and contribute to the 1939 New York World's Project.
Our next in-world meeting in on Friday, March 4th, at 10am EST (7am PST) on 39FairHQ in ReactionGrid.
Visit the ReactionGrid web site and click on REGISTER to get your FREE Opensimulator Avatar. Use the Contact link on their page if you have questions about the grid or which viewer to use with your operating system.
If you have questions about the project, contact me by visiting the 1939 New York World's Fair Web Site and click on the contact page to send me your question.

World's Fair / ReactionGrid Tour gets a voice

2011-02-14T21:12:00.001-08:00

Last year a self-guided tour was added to view those parts of the Fair that were on the Grid. Today, that tour is being re-written and expanded. So far, only the first stop is finished and I am hoping for feed-back and suggestions.

At each tour stop, when the visitor touches the Tour Stop Stand, they are presented with a Notecard which can be saved to their inventory or just simply read and not saved. Once saved, the text can be copied and pasted in to any word-processing program or text editing program and saved to compile a synopsis of the Fair for later use.

In addition to the Tour Notecards, there are also Educational Stands whose Notecards tell about specific events or displays.

The Tour begins in front of the most familiar part of the Administration Building where both a Tour Notecard and Educational Notecard are presented. The Educational Stand also has a "Touch for audio presentation" button which when touched plays "Dawn of a New Day".

Here's what's new: On the Tour Stand is another audio presentation button which gives the option to open a browser window and plays an mp3 audio version of the entire Notecard text. The audio was created using a program called Natural Reader.

Here is a link to the Tour audio file: Notecard 1 audio file. Let me know what you think.

More to come...soon!

The 1939 World's Fair Project

2011-02-12T10:57:00.000-08:00

Thanks to the team at ReactionGrid the sim containing the Westinghouse Pavilion has been moved next to our other two sims.

As was mentioned previously, the goal now is to recreated some of the more interesting pavilions of the Fair and add as much information as we can obtain so that visitors can get a "feel" for the building and learn about what was on the display.

So far, we have:

The Trylon and Perisphere with Democracity inside.
The New York City Building with displays about the building, Grover Whalen, Fiorello LaGuardia, and models of the Fair.
The Belgium Pavilion with some information about the building, the diamond exhibit, and the bell tower. We also have information and a link to Bells for Peace, the project to replace the bells in the tower of the Belgium Pavilion located in the Virginia Union University, Richmond, Virginia.
The NCR building with its cash register, (working and counting visitors). Unfortunately, at the current time the NCR building lacks any information about NCR and its displays.
Westinghouse with the Time Capsule and a lot of information about what was on display.
A beautiful recreation of the Star Pylon. (Thanks to Joey.)
The Zone Walk, this building was constructed so that visitors can get a synopsis of the Fair. Within are models of the zones, and information about many of the pavilions within each zone.

We are still seeking people to help build in-world and those willing to share photos and information about the contents of the Fair pavilions.

Our next in-world meeting is Saturday, February 19th, at 10am EST in the Underground meeting room on 39FairHQ.

If you would like to join us contact me by using the contact form on the the 1939 New York World's Fair Web site.

Feb 4, 2011 - A Great day on Reaction Grid

2011-02-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

February 4, 2011 was a wonderful day for the Fair Project. We had some new people in attendance at the meeting and after being dormant for eight months, the project is moving ahead, albeit with some changes.

We will be conducting in-world meetings ever other week, alternating between Fridays and Saturdays so that hopefully everyone wanting to join in can.
The schedule is as follows:
Saturday - February 19th, 10:00am EST
Friday - March 4th, 10:00am EST
Saturday - March 19th, 10:00am EST

Originally the plan was to lay out the Fairgrounds map and build. This however would be too expensive in computer resources and not practical at this time. What we will do now is to consolidate the sims into one area, and construct various pavilions with as much information about that pavilion as we can obtain. Additional sims will be added as necessary. When the time comes that we have enough pavilions built, we can then move them to a location that matches the Fairgrounds.

There will be one or more "self-guided" tours of what exists of the Fair, with notecards that can be saved by the visitor and even compiled into a complete story about the Fair. We hope to add audio narration tracts, some videos, and more. The main focus is on Education and the history of the Fair.

Stay in touch with the World's Fair Website, the Project, and ReactionGrid

1939 New York World's Fair Web Site: A website devoted to the 1939 NY Fair
1939 New York World's Fair Blog: (on Wordpress) A Blog for things about the '39 Fair, new acquisitions for the site, new stories, etc.
PM Photo - 1939 NY World's Fair & More: (This Blog on BlogSpot) Primarily for the activities on the World's Fair Project on RectionGrid
1939 New York World's Fair on FaceBook: The FaceBook page hopefully will gather more people to contribute to the web site, get involved with the Grid Project, and in general, share information and comments about the Fair.
39NYWorldsFair on Twitter
Official ReactionGrid Blog: (BlogSpot) News from virtual world developer ReactionGrid Inc.

Micha Becker created and posted a Democracity video on YouTube: Thanks Micha, a job well done.

February 2, 2011: Meeting on ReactionGrid

2011-02-02T07:03:00.000-08:00

There will be a meeting about the World's Fair Project on Friday, Feb 4 at 9:30am PST in the new (but unfinished) underground room on 39FairHQ on ReactionGrid.

In the large grassy area on the property, you'll see an area with a small version of the Trylon & Perisphere. In front of that display you will see a sign that by touching will open the portal to the meeting room.

Once it's open, you have about 15 seconds to enter. Yeah, it's under water, but you won't get wet.

The discussion will be about the best way to continue to expand the Fair, assign specific projects to interested people, and ways to offer educational material to visitors of the Grid.

I hope to see you there. If you have any question e-mail me at: Paul@1939nyworldfair.com

New Address for the Fair

2011-01-07T08:26:00.000-08:00

During the closing days of 2010 the World's Fair Web site was moved to a new domain name. It now resides at www.1939NYWorldsFair.com
The old site address www.pmphoto.to can still be used since I set up a permanent 301 redirect to the new site. However, if you have linked to the Fair site, it would be better to change your bookmark.
The new Fair site is strictly for things related to the '39 World's Fair. Originally PMPhoto.to housed the Fair, my business, and a lot of personal pages. The business site URL is www.PMPhoto.us and you can find my non-Fair antiques and collectibles at www.antiques.pmphoto.to
I wish you a very Happy New Year.

For World's Fair Fans ... The Fire Dept at the '39 World's Fair

2010-04-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

This has nothing to do with the reconstruction project, but is wonderful for all you Fair enthusiasts. ...

During the last 10 years I have watched the 1939 New York World’s Fair part of www.PMPhoto.to grow from my father’s 271 photos to more than 700 photos and stories about the Fair.

The latest addition to the site comes form Gary Urbanowicz, a New York City Fire Department Historian. Gary has sent in photos and information about a part of the Fair that I have not seen on any other World’s Fair site, and honestly, never even thought about it. Here is a little of what you’ll find at the New York Fire Department at the World’s Fair:

“Initially, the New York World’s Fair Corporation planned to establish its own fire department at the fairgrounds in Flushing Meadow Park. They hired Thomas F. Dougherty to lead this department. Dougherty, a member of the FDNY from 1888 through 1932, was a former Assistant Chief, a Bennett Medal Winner, and the namesake of an FDNY valor medal. The Corporation purchased five pumpers from the Ahrens-Fox company. At some point, the New York World’s Fair Corporation decided not to man the equipment with its own firefighters. In September 1938, the FDNY 55th Battalion was formed and stationed at the Fair to man the apparatus.”…

I believe this to be not only a wonderful addition to the site, but a tribute to the men of the New York Fire Department who did such a marvelous job protecting the people and structures at the Fair.

The second page on the site for the Fire Department is the “Record of the 55th Battalion” which is an article that was published in the July 1941 issue of the NY Fire Department magazine “WNYF”.

I would like to hear your comments on this addition to the site. I also ask readers to look for, and submit similar information about the police and security force at the Fair, I believe their story needs to told as well.

ReactionGrid on Treet TV - Designing Worlds

2010-03-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

Episode 80, aired on March 23 and can be viewed at http://treet.tv/shows/designingworlds. If it is not at the top, just scroll down a bit and watch the video.

On March 17, Saffia Widdershins and Elrik Merlin of Designing Worlds and a few other wonderful people filmed a show on ReactionGrid. The final 15-minute segment was an interview about the World's Fair project.

Whether you are Gridizen of ReactionGrid or not, the hour-long show is worth watching. Kyle G. (ReactionGrid creator) and Chris Hart (Chief Technical Officer) discussed the many aspects of ReactionGrid: its growth, potential for education, and goals for the future. In between the studio discussion various projects on ReactionGrid were shown. The first segment was "My Michigan" a sim run by Haley Dunning, where school children from 2nd to 8th grade learn history, math, and social interaction while working together in a virtual world. The second segment was the sim owned by Wizard Gynoid, where multidimensional math is used to create amazing displays. Following that was the land of Viv Trafalga with its unique textures and rather large flowers. Lastly was the segment on the World's Fair project.

I recommend that you view this show and others that are available. These shows are professionally created and show a side of the Virtual World that many of you many not even know exist.

Railroads on Parade Poster

2010-03-15T11:38:00.000-07:00

Suzanne in New Hampshire sent this image of a Railroads on Parade poster from the Fair.

She writes:
" I have a rare poster and am looking for information about it as far as the worth and rarity. My hobby is researching and I am good at it but so far there just isn't any information or photos of this poster anywhere on the internet."

"It is a Railroads on Parade original Masters poster that is stamped "Remove Nov. 1, 1939." (One day after the close of the first season.)

The Railroad Poster appears to have be created by hand and then sent to the printers. I have never seen anything like this and thought it would be worth sharing.

If you have any information that may help Suzanne, you can contact her at: ibovnu@comcast.net

You can see a larger image of the poster at: www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/rr_on_parade_poster.htm and I'll be adding the image to the Gift Shop in the New York City Building in ReactionGrid.

Evolution of a Project - Self-Guided Tour on ReactionGrid

2010-03-09T21:44:00.000-08:00

It's only a beginning, but visitors interested in the Fair Project can now take a self-guided tour.

Starting on 39FairHQ, the first "Tour Guide Post" is at the corner of the NYC Building and the Administration Building. These "Tour Guide Posts" have a proximity sensor which displays part of the notecard contained in the prim. Touching the prim will reveal the notecard and afford the opportunity for the visitor to save it to their inventory. If so desired, the text can be copied and pasted into a program like Word, or even Notepad.

Each of these Tour Notecards has some information about the Fair, and instructions how to proceed to the next stop on the tour. The tour takes the following path: Administration building, Zone Walk, NYC Building, Belgium Pavilion, past NCR and over to the Trylon and Perisphere. After strolling down the Helicline the visitor can pick up a teleport to WF1 and the Westinghouse Pavilion.

Along the tour visitors can pick up Educational Notecards with information and references about the subject. There are also displays which can be touched for additional notecards.

There are a total of twelve "Self-Guided Tour Posts", twenty-four "Educational Stands", and many other sources of information.

The Tour is new and there are probably many corrections and changes that need to be made. I am hoping that those of you on Reaction Grid, will stop by and take the tour. Then contact me with corrections, changes, and suggestions to make it better. Of course, as the 1939 New York World's Fair Project grows, the tour will change. At some point, we hope to have several tours, possibly one for each Fair Zone.

We are still looking for photos, information, and people to help out, both in-world and in real life. Hope to see you on ReactionGrid. Sign up for FREE at www.ReactionGrid.com

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 7

2010-03-03T17:22:00.000-08:00

While we are still waiting for a couple "straight-on" photographs of the Belgium Congo reliefs, I managed to take the images I had, which were badly "keystoned" and make them usable.

The other, larger relief, was moved to the inside of the patio area where I believe it should have been in the first place.

Thanks to Noël Hostens of Belgium for photos and text relating to the Belgium Pavilion. The text which is an extract of the speech addressed to the Mayor of New-York by the late King Albert, on October 4, 1919, reads:

“ I THINK THAT THERE IS NOT, IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD, ANOTHER EXAMPLE LIKE THAT OF THE CITY OF NEW-YORK WHICH, BORN NOT THREE CENTURIES AGO, HAS BECOME, IN THIS SHORT SPACE OF TIME, ONE OF THE CENTRES OF UNIVERSAL ACTIVITIES. NEW-YORK IS, INDEED, WORTHY TO BE THE COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL METROPOLIS OF THAT ADMIRABLE AMERICAN DEMOCRACY WHICH SHOWED ITSELF TO BE AS GREAT IN WAR AS IN PEACE AND ALWAYS GENEROUS TOWARDS THOSE WHO ARE SUFFERING.”

We want to be sure that everybody who helps gets credit. Starting with the Belgium Pavilion, we'll add a plaque thanking all the contributors for their help to the interior of each building.

I'm sure that we'll miss a few along the way, and we will correct those oversights as we find them.

Well, there's certainly a lot more coming for the Belgium Pavilion ... and the rest of the Fair.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 6

2010-02-28T13:09:00.000-08:00

Haven't had much time since the last post on February 18, but today I was able to spend a couple hours adding the black marble texture to the walls of the main hall and to put some tile down on and get rid of that basic wood floor.

Unfortunately, the only photo I have is one from the "Architect's Digest" which was scanned and sent to me this past week. As you can see, there is not a lot of detail in the photo.

I took some liberties (as usual) with the floor but did try to make something that looks like the center design walkway.

I sent an e-mail to one of the museums in Belgium hoping to find a lead on the tapestries that hung in the Pavilion. I'm sure that someone, somewhere has color photos of them.

Perhaps they are still around, possibly hanging in a museum somewhere in the United States or Belgium.

For those of you on ReactionGrid, there is a World's Fair meeting on Friday, March 5, at 2pm (PST) in the upstairs East meeting room in the New York City Building.

... much more to come.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 5

2010-02-18T16:43:00.000-08:00

February 18, 2010. Even though the restaurant will not be part of the building, the outside deck was added as well as an entrance to the theater (also not present in the building). However the added feature does bring the building a little closer to what it looked like in 1939.

For now, the awning is green, we know that is was actually several colors, but since we only have black and white photos to work from, we don't know what the colors were.
If you have a color photo, or know the colors of the awning, we would really like to hear from you. Contact me at 1939NYWF@pmphoto.to

Inside the main area a photo of architect van der Velde and been placed on the wall. Below it is Educational Stand #24. Visitors to the Pavilion can click on the stand and receive a text Notecard containing information on all three of the architects and references to the information source. These Notecards can be saved to the visitor's computer by doing a copy and paste.

In the front of the building you'll find Educational Notecard #23. View and save information for the Belgium Pavilion. The text was extracted from the Official 1939 hardcover edition of the Fair.

We are still looking for information on the interior of the building, especially photos of the decorations, and exhibits. If you have any information, we hope you will share it.
With permission, information and photos would also be added to the appropriate section of my '39 World's Fair Web site.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 4

2010-02-06T13:32:00.000-08:00

Feb 6, 2010

As you can see, a number of changes have occurred. Some tweaking and landscaping need to be added but for the most part, the exterior of the building is done.
The working map has been removed, curbing and the walkway installed, and for the time being, a water fountain has been installed in the patio area. It will remain there until we are able to obtain some photos of what it actually looked like.

Outside is a sign for the "Bells for Peace" project. Clicking on the sign will open a browser window and take you to the Bells for Peace web site so you can learn more about their mission to put bells back in the tower of the Belgium Friendship Building (which it is now called.)
We hope that this additional exposure to Bells for Peace will encourage visitors to donate to their project so that the tower once again "sings".

The restaurant patio is there, but it is not in use. The second floor restaurant will not be added to the building due to size and avatar movement constraints.
We feel at this time, having a building which is recognizable, and good information about it at the Fair is enough. The great thing about the Grid is that if and when something needs to be changed, it can be altered or modified without much trouble.

The final picture is of the inside of the large hall. Except for a Gevaert Film ad, a little information about the Pavilion, and a poster for Bells for Peace (not shown in the picture), the walls are bear.
We so hope to find photos of the interior decorations, exhibits, flooring, and all things related to the building as it stood in 1939.
If you have photos you would be willing to share, please contact me.
In a week or so, we will be conducting school tours through the introduction area to the Fair, and the more information available, the more enjoyable the tour.

So, help if you can, all it may cost is a little of your time but the information you share may help this project and the memory of the Fair live on for future generations.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 3

2010-02-04T12:07:00.001-08:00

January 30, 2010 - Building continues...

Most of the building is in place although far from being finished.

So far nothing has been done to the interior and several parts of the exterior as well as the grounds around the Pavilion still need to be done.

In the rear of the building, where the restaurant patio would go, the surface is still plywood.

In the working photos, it appeared that an exit to the theater was directly below the end of the restaurant patio, but for now it is unfinished.

The bell tower is in place, but I noticed that some adjustments will need to be made. That will happen soon.

In the first picture, there are no doors, but in the last two, they have been added.

The door texture was added to a prim and then a script was added so that as a person approaches, the doors swing open. But just in case the avatar move faster that the doors open, they were made "phantom". This means that you can walk right through the doors even if they remain closed.

It was noticed that I put doors at the back of the large section leading to the common patio area. There were however, no doors there, just a floor to ceiling window. I'll change that out in a couple days when time permits.

Well, as you can see, the building is taking shape and does resemble the actual Belgium Pavilion.

That was all there was time for on the 30th of January, more to come in the next several days.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid - Part 2

2010-02-03T08:03:00.000-08:00

January 27 was spent adding a few more walls and creating the window textures. as seen in the following two photos.

Working on buildings, objects and texture is somewhat time consuming, but the time passes so very quickly.

The nice thing about building on the Grid is with a small amount of effort, things can be changed if they don't look right.

Photos of the models of the Belgium Pavilion found on the New York Public Library's site were used as a guide in for the general look of the building.

Other sources were postcards and photos found on various web sites.

If you have photos you would like to share, especially of the interior, please contact me.

Evolution of a Project - Belgium Pavilion on ReactionGrid

2010-02-01T16:45:00.000-08:00

On January 26, 2010 we "broke ground" and started the Belgium Pavilion in ReactionGrid on 39FairHQ. For those of you who don't know, there are 2 regions (sims) that have been set aside as an introductory area to the Fair, not the Fair itself but a smattering of what was at the Fair in 1939.

With a floor-plan and some photos of the pavilion from the Fair in hand (or rather in the computer), work was begun.

Images in the computer are cropped and sized, and then uploaded to the Grid where they are saved as textures and placed on prims (geometric objects: cubes, spheres, cylinders, etc.). The first texture was the floor plan. The floor-plan scale was in feet and had to be converted into meters. A cube prim was rezed (created) and stretched to about 70M x 47M, set on the ground and building commenced.

As you can see, the basic building material is plywood. The few walls you see in the photo consist of cubes that have been sized, and 1 cylinder which has been sized and hollowed out to form the curved corner.

A texture for the red-tile walls was created from editing a photo of the Belgium Pavilion found on the Bells For Peace web site.

The day ended with a few more walls and the beginning of the bell tower in place.

Bear in mind, work was being done from a rather crude drawing and not a set of blueprints. And, as I have said before, due to the difference between the virtual world and the real world, even if we had accurate dimensions, we could not follow them.

It's true that we take many liberties with the buildings and while our original intent was to recreate the Fair exactly, I am afraid that reality set in and our mission now is to capture the essence of the Fair and pass along as much information as possible.

Over the next few weeks, I'll try to catch this blog up with real time so you can see where we really are.

Till next time ... Cheers

World's Fair / Reaction Grid Meeting - Friday, Jan 8

2010-01-06T20:15:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.

Friday, January 8th is the next meeting on ReactionGrid. The meeting is at 2pm PST in the East upstairs meeting room in the NYC building on 39FairHQ. If you have an interest in the Fair why not stop by. Oh, no Avaitar ... well, that's not a problem. You need to have two things; first the Hippo viewer which you can download for free at http://forge.opensimulator.org/gf/project/opensim-viewer/frs/ and then a FREE account on ReactionGrid which you can get at http://www.reactiongrid.com/Default/Register.aspx

If you have never been in-world it may take a bit to get used to moving, flying, and just getting around, but there are many of us who will happily help you.

Depending on the size of the group, we will try to use Skype to communicate, or simply use the text box ... or both

The goal of this meeting is to attempt to get some commitments for information gathering and building on the Grid. In addition, we'd like to put forth a "game plan" for 2010. Even if you don't want to build, or help with some research, we are always looking for ideas on how to proceed. Trust me... there's a lot to do and a lot of opportunities to learn both about the Fair and the Virtual World.

If you have a questions contact me by e-mail 1939NYWF@PMPhoto.to or look for me on Skype at Paul@pmphoto.to.

Hope to see some new faces on Friday ... maybe even yours.

World's Fair Project -- The Second Year -- 2010

2009-12-28T22:04:00.000-08:00

In just a couple days the new year begins. During 2010 are goal is to complete the 4 sims that house a major part of the Production Zone, and to expand towards the center of the Fair with additional sims. However, expansion will not proceed until what we have already started is near the end of completion.

So far, most of the construction has been done by only a couple "gridizens." We need the help of others. Builders or people who want to try and learn how to build in the virtual world, artists to help with textures to represent the many murals at the Fair, and so much more. There are plenty of projects and absolutely no demands. Spend whatever amount of time you can ... try it, you may enjoy it, and what you do will help keep the '39 Fair alive and more importantly, will teach and show others the just how much the vision of the Fair influenced the 20th century and beyond.

If you enjoy the Fair, get involved ... In-World or Real World your help will be greatly appreciated. Contact me for more information at Paul@pmphoto.to

Happy New Year to everyone.

Mineral Day at the World's Fair

2009-12-15T08:25:00.000-08:00

Monday, June 17, 1940 was Mineral Day at the New York World's Fair.

Mineral Day at the 1939-40 New York World's Fair by Mitchell Portnoy of New York.

This 49-page paper is an essential guide to the mineral displays of various countries at the New York World's Fair and is available for FREE. Visit http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/index.htm to download the file.

World's Fair / ReactionGrid Newletter - now on-line

2009-11-02T23:04:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween and have recovered from all those parties. Now rest up for Thanksgiving, and all the great food.

The mailing list for the World's Fair / ReactionGrid newsletter is now 50 strong and growing. I've noticed that since this blog was started that traffic to my WF site has increased by about 2,000 visitors a month. Some are Virtual World fans, some Fair Fans, and others are both. In any case, I want to make the newsletter available to everyone so as of the November 1 newsletter, I am posting it to my web site: http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/wf_rg_newsletter.htm

I've also added a quick sign-up form for those of you who would like to receive the newsletter.

Stay tuned in ... there's more coming soon.

Two World's Fair Blogs

2009-10-28T08:07:00.000-07:00

Starting November 1st, 2009 there will be two Blogs for the 1939 New York World's Fair.

PM Photo - 1939 NY World's Fair & More, this one, hosted on Google's Blogspot will be primarily for the World's Fair Project on ReactionGrid, while the new 1939 New York World's Fair on WordPress (http://1939nywf.pmphoto.to/) will be for activities on the Web Site (www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/index.htm) and other information, links, and events.

There is a semi-monthly newsletter which is for updates and information about the Virtual World project in ReactionGrid and other Real World Fair information. To be added to the mailing list, send me an e-mail (1939NYWF@pmphoto.to) with your name (real-world or in-world) and the e-mail address you want it sent to. The newsletter is sent out on the 1st and 15th of each month.

If you have information about the Fair, either Real World or In-world, send me an e-mail and I'll add it to the appropriate blog or the newsletter.

Luxembourg at the Fair

2009-10-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

I received an e-mail from Anny Bastian of the Luxembourg Museum, in her e-mail she wrote:

"The Luxembourg exhibit which included sculptures and paintings have somehow been lost. The last letter we found is dated November 27, 1940 addressed by our Consul in New York to our Ambassador in Washington. The letter states that

"All our assets in the pavilion are "frozen" the same as the property of any Luxembourg people in this country"

In this country meaning of course the US since at that time Luxembourg had already been invaded by Germany. I am informing you of the above just hoping that perhaps you had a suggestion whom we could contact."

I have sent her the link to the NYPL section on their site containing 17 photos and suggested she contact the NYPL in an "official museum" capacity to possibly obtain whatever records they may have. Also, suggested contacting Time-Warner Corp. since they own LIfe magazine and may have additional material.

If you have any ideas or material about Luxembourg at the Fair, contact Ms. Bastian at bastian@pt.lu I mentioned to her that if she wanted to have any information she obtains placed on my WF web site, I would be happy to do so and let everyone share in that part of Fair History.

Life mag goes online through Google scan project

2009-09-23T17:59:00.000-07:00

I was just sent a link to an AP article by Anick Jesdanun, AP Technology Writer that appeared in the SFGate (San Francisco Chronicle) today (9/23/09)
Link to the SFGate article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/23/financial/f132607D43.DTL

"Decades of Life magazine have been scanned and posted online, giving the public the first comprehensive electronic access to the iconic publication's archives." ...

..."The archives cover the magazine's main run as a weekly, from 1936 to 1972 — more than 1,860 issues in all. After the weekly ceased publication in 1972, it was resurrected as a monthly in 1978 and ended again in 2000. From 2004 to 2007, Life appeared as a weekly newspaper supplement."

This is a wonderful boost to the research for the World's Fair, as well as other past information. Here is a link to the Life Magazine collection on the web: http://tinyurl.com/kq8g9g

Be prepared to spend a few hours of reliving some of the events that happened over the past 73 years. Best part is that it is all free to view and copy for personal use.

"Life already has made images available through the Life.com Web site and a partnership with Google Inc."

Is it really any wonder why Google is #1 ... at least in my computer.

Enjoy!!!

Back on the Grid

2009-09-09T16:56:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe that it's been a month since my last blog post, , time seems to move ahead much faster these days.

This past month I've been able to spend a lot of time on Reaction Grid working on the Fair. I've totally rearranged 39FairHQ and added the NYC Building. Now before any of you "Fair Experts" start jumping up and down telling me "that's not was inside", "that's not the way it was", I already know that, and my reply is: "This building is part of the welcome area, a place for visitors to get their Fair feet wet, have a good time and pick up some information."

The building has two floors, with the center of the second floor open affording you the ability to look down and see the wonderful models of the Fair and the T & P (both built by Joey Chernov). Upstairs has two meeting rooms, the West Meeting Room is almost finished with a capacity for 20 to sit around a "World's Fair" table, watch a slide presentation, listen to a lecture, or just have a plain-old meeting. There is a dais with a podeum and seats for 4 guest speakers. The East Meeting Room has a table and chairs, and will be decorated soon.

Downstairs, in the four corners of the building are 3 shops and a bar. (all of which are being worked on.)

The Bar is a wonderful social gathering place for avatars to chat about the Fair, the Grid, or some aspect of RL.

Just across from the Bar is the Gift Shop. Stop by and pick up a World's Fair t-shirt for your avatar, they come in red, green, blue, and grey each with a picture of the T & P on the front. If you are decorating your office on the grid, you can get 4 Fair Cups. Or perhaps you'd like a vintage Coke machine. These are the beginning of what will be available in the Gift Shop ... and they are all FREE,

At the other end of the building there's the "Facts and Information" room. Here you'll find various sources of information about the Fair. Right now, there is a display of some Fair books that are available in the RL (real world). Clicking on the book will give you a notecard with information about the author, publisher, ISBN, etc. More books will be added. If you have suggestion for which books to add, drop me an e-mail with a cover photo and all the pertinent information and I'll add it.

The other display is a list of Fair prices taken from the New York Times, March 11, 1939. I have added the "adjusted for 2009" prices thanks to the government inflation calculator.

Across from the Fact's room is another area. We haven't decided what will be in there, perhaps a Fair Photo Gallery ... we're not sure yet.

To get a better idea of what is going on, visit the Photo Gallery for the NYC building on my web site.

If you visit the NYC building, and I hope you do, you'll find 2 mail boxes where you can send me an e-mail by typing in the Chat window, or just drop a notecard in the box and it will be sent to me.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome, but I'd really like to see more people become involved with the project. Builders, scripters, landscapers, information-gathers, and idea people are all welcome.

New Additions to the 1939 NY Fair Web Site

2009-08-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

Only a few additions this week...

In the Hall of Nations (Government Zone) I've added Lithuania, Luxemburg, (Luxembourg), and Mexico.

In the Production & Distribution Zone, Eastman Kodak has been split into several pages. On page 3 you'll find 2 Kodak brochures: "Your KODAK at the NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR", and "Cine-Kodak at the Fair." These flyers are courtesy of Eric Beheim. It's thanks to people like Eric who help make the history of the Fair continually grow.

Clicking on the cover images will open a new window and load a PDF version of the entire brochure which can even be saved and printed for your own enjoyment, or to fill in a gap in your World's Fair collection.

On Reaction Grid: The World's Fair Project in the Virtual World
Thanks to Joey Chernov, work on the Trylon & Perisphere's Democracity continues as Joey adds more detail to the model.

The "Battle of the Dishwashers" movie has been added to the Westinghouse building and soon other movie "shorts" will be scattered about in the pavilions.

more soon ...

A few more photos

2009-08-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let those interested know about a few new photos... In the Hall of Nations, I've added Luxembourg, Lithuania, and Mexico. In the statues area of the web site, in Zone 5, "Dolphin" has been added to the list.

Just visit the "World's Fair Tour" on PM Photo

More coming soon...

1939 Westinghouse Time Capsule

2009-07-30T14:41:00.000-07:00

Three new main pages have been added to the Westinghouse page sub-menu:

1. The Time Capsule: This is a brief description of the capsule along with a photo of the contents of the replica capsule.

2. Capsule Contents: An accordion panel expands to show the contents of the Capsule in the 5 major categories:

Small Articles of Common Use
Textiles and Materials
Miscellaneous Items
An Essay in microfilm
Newsreel

There is an icon on 37 of the items which when clicked will pop-up a window containing a photo and more information about that item.

3. The Display Case: This is a re-creation of one face of the Time Capsule Case and contains many of the items that were on display. Hover over the item for a short item ID. Both the alternate tag and title tag were used in the code so the ID should show in all browsers.

Clicking on the object will open a window with an image and more information about that item. We have tried to obtain photos of the actual items from the case, but when that wasn't possible, we used items that were similar and from the same time period.

Anyone with better photos or additional information is welcome and encouraged to contribute to this part of the project. Please contact me at 1939NYWF@pmphoto.to

More will be added in the coming weeks.

Extending the Fair

2009-07-24T08:46:00.000-07:00

The web site www.pmphoto.to has recently been growing and hopefully, with the contributions of stories and photos from others, will continue to grow for many more years. Currently with the help of Ms. S. Manning, we are adding a large section about the Westinghouse Time capsule including links, photos, and information. This will hopefully be complete the first or second week of August.

Complete is a poor choice of words since there is a constant search for additional information for all the sections of the site. People from all over the world have been contributing to the site and I hope this continues ... so much is still missing.

Then there is the "Fair Reconstruction Project" on Reaction Grid which for the moment has been a bit slow. Time, information, and help are the key factors in the reconstruction and right now, all three are at a premium.

In the coming weeks, I am going to turn this blog into one that is for the "Fair Reconstruction Project" on Reaction Grid and will be starting another blog using WordPress. Having the two blogs I hope will increase the exposure for the web site and the Virtual World project.

If you would like to contribute to the web site, work on the virtual project or both, contact me at Paul@pmphoto.to

The Fair is a part of history that needs to be preserved and shared.

Statues and Sculptures at the '39 Fair

2009-07-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

It was a busy weekend. By Sunday night, the Statues section of the World's Fair Tour was expanded from 12 pages to 28 pages and from 17 images to 47. Unfortunately at this time, many of the pages have minimal textual information. Most of the additions have text taken from the Hard Cover first season Fair Guide and more information about the sculptures, statues, and artists is needed. If you would like to contribute to these pages, with information or additional photos, please send me an e-mail: 1939NYWF@PMPhoto.to

There are still many more works to be added to the site, and I will continue to do so as time permits and material is available.

Here's a link to the main statue page: http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/wf_tour/statues/statues.htm

More World's Fair Photos from Robert Martens

2009-07-17T13:58:00.000-07:00

This month keeps getting better. Received permission from Robert Martens to capture some stills form his Grandfather's (Gustave Martens) 16mm Kodachrome World's Fair movies. I have added 25 more color photos of the fair on various web pages.

Photo additions can be found on the following pages:

That's it for today ... more coming soon.

Third Round of New World's Fair Photos

2009-07-13T14:21:00.000-07:00

Well, it was a long weekend but the third set of photos has been added to the web site. This brings the total of new photos to 85 thanks to the generous contribution of Michael Ott.

In time, many of these photographs will be restored and offered for sale in the World's Fair Gallery.

Here is the list of pages for the 3 round of photos. You'll see some of the same pages listed as before because more photos were added.

Next will be an update and new additions to the section on Fair Statues ... enjoy the Fair.

More '39 World's Fair Photos

2009-07-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

The bell has rung ... round two has begun!!!
Below are the most recent updated pages with new COLOR photographs of the Fair. There's a bunch yet to go so look for more in the coming weeks.

I would really like to hear your comments on the new photos. Drop me an e-mail: 1939NYWF@PMPhoto

Kodachrome Photos of the Fair

2009-07-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

I am very pleased to announce that some wonderful color photos of the Fair have just been added to the Web site. To save you some time, here is a list of the pages with one or more newly added pictures:

These photographs were taken by Mr. John Ott and sent to me by his grandson, Michael. Thanks to Michael and many others who have shared their family's memories the World's Fair Tour now contains more than 750 images of the Fair spread out over 300 web pages.

This is a far cry from my father's original 271 with which the site was started.

The good news is that there are more to come ... check them out ... enjoy the Fair.

The Trylon & Perisphere on Reaction Grid

2009-06-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the hard work of Ruud Lathrop of the Netherlands and Joey Chernov of the United States, the Trylon and Perisphere once again proudly stands for visitors to admire in the Virtual World of Reaction Grid.

Considering the lack of detailed information available and the limitations of building in a virtual world, these two builders have given others the opportunity to experience the size and magnificence of an event in history that has been gone for almost 70 years. Through the front doors you enter a "gift shop" at the base of the Trylon. Here your avatar can obtain a free World's Fair t-shirt and view representations of post cards and miniatures on display. From here you proceed to one of two escalators (currently walkways) which take you to the upper or lower levels inside the Perisphere. In 1939 you would have stood on a moving floor called the "magic carpet" which took you around the inner circumference of the Perisphere. In the reconstruction, the avatar must walk around.

Looking down over the railing, you will see the reconstruction of Democracity ... "symbol of a perfectly integrated, futuristic metropolis pulsing with life and rhythm ..." Upon completing the walk-around you exit the Perisphere onto the bridge which takes you back to the Trylon and onto the Helicline, an elevated circular walkway leading back to the ground level.

Future plans are to continually add more details to the structures and have audio and video presentations as well as additional historical information in the form of photos and hand-outs that visitors can take with them.

Visit http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/WF_RG_01.htm to see additional photos of the 1939 New York World's Fair reconstruction project.

Notice from the New York Daily News

2009-04-21T16:03:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, April 26, the Queens Historical Society will unveil an exhibit on sites featured in the Daily News' History in Peril series. Highlights include a bus tour to some of the borough's most noteworthy sites, including the New York City Building from the 1939 and 1964 World's Fairs, and a lecture by World's Fair historian Pierre Montiel. To reserve a spot on the bus, or for more information, please contact the historical society at (718) 939-0647 ext. 17. The Queens Historical Society is located at 143-35 37th Avenue in Flushing."

2009-04-13T08:39:00.000-07:00

This month is the 70th anniversary of the opening of the 1939 New York World's Fair.

"Did you attend the 1939 World's Fair or know someone who did? The New York Daily News wants to hear your story for a special anniversary package about the fair!

Please contact reporter Nick Hirshon at 718-793-3328 or nhirshon@yahoo.com to share your story."

Westinghouse - a start

2009-03-19T12:18:00.000-07:00

We need some help. The Singing Tower is complete, the Time Capsule area and the first part of the Westinghouse building is up but we are in need of more interior photos of the building, and good clear photos of the contents of the Time Capsule display case. If you have photos you are willing to share please contact me at 1939NYWF@pmphoto.to

If you would like to help with this all volunteer project, let me know. There lots of work and research that needs to be done both in-world and real-world. For more information about this 5 to 6-year project, visit www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/index.htm

To learn more about Reaction Grid visit: www.reactiongrid.com

The Progress of the Fair

2009-02-20T08:51:00.000-08:00

The NCR Building has been added. While the building itself is done, the exhibits have not been added.

For any World's Fair purists, yes we know that what we have is not an exact replica of the building. There are limitations in the Virtual World. Unlike real people, avatars can be 10 feet tall, and they don't "see" through their eyes, they see from an invisible camera that floats behind and above the avatar. So when creating the buildings we need to take some liberties. However, bear in mind that we are trying to capture the essence of the Fair to the best of our abilities.

The inside of the NCR building is bear, we need your help with photos and information of what was on display.

As we continue to build the Fair, it will become a storehouse of information about the history of companies, people, and a time long past. But we also want to offer information on where those companies are today, their products and their vision for tomorrow.

The reconstruction of the 1939 NY World's Fair is only a small part of what is to come on the Reaction Grid. Unlike many of the Virtual Worlds, Reaction Grid is a PG/PG-13 world that is dedicated to education and technology. For more information about Reaction Grid visit www.reactiongrid.com

'39 World's Fair Re-construction Update

2009-01-29T18:14:00.000-08:00

The Fair reconstruction project is moving ahead but at a rather slow pace. A bridge between "39FairHq" and "TrylonAndPerisphere" sim is up with a few of the nation's flags flying proudly.

Building of the Westinghouse and NCR pavilions should start by mid-February. Westinghouse has granted us access to all of the Fair's archive records at no cost. We thank them for their generous offer especially since this is an all-volunteer project and we have no budget to purchase photos and information. There is a 2 minute silent film on Westinghouse in front of the Production Zone area on the "zone walk". The film is several clips taken from the Medicus collection which is available at http://www.archives.org. We will be adding more film shorts as time goes by.

One of the members of the group is in possession of 8mm and 16mm films of the Fair which need to be transfered to a digital DVD format. If you have the capability of doing digital transfer and would be willing to donate your time, please contact me at 1939NYWF@pmphoto.to

Hopefully by the next blog, we'll have some new photos of the project to share with you. To see all the current photos visit: www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/WF_RG_01.htm.

2008-12-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone has a Happy New Year.

Building on Reaction Grid is going well. There is now a "Zone Walk" behind the Administration Building. The "Zone Walk" is intended to visitors to the Grid an introduction to the Fair. In 2009 as the Reconstruction of the Fair begins, there will be "Teleport" links to the actual areas in the Fair.

To see all the current photos visit: www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/WF_RG_01.htm. On that page you will find links for registering on the grid and connecting to Reaction Grid.

We are in need of help both In-world and real life. If you live in Dayton, Ohio, please contact me if you would be willing to visit the NCR Archives and take some photos of information we need.

Virtual World Information on PMPhoto.to

2008-12-14T14:46:00.000-08:00

Added new pages to the web site concerning the World's Fair in the Virtual World.
http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/index.htm This is the main page describing the World's Fair Project.

Getting your Reaction Grid Virtual World Registration can be found at: http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/Register.htm

Connection to the Grid instructions for both the Second Life viewer and Hippo viewer are on http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/viewers.htm

Hopefully this will help all those interested in the Fair and the Restoration Project.

If you have any information or photos of the interior of the various pavilions at the Fair, please share them with me so we can use the information in the Project.

New additon to site: Frank Buck's Jungleland

2008-12-04T11:23:00.001-08:00

Thanks to Eric Behiem of California for the story, photos, and ads about Frank Buck's Jungleland at the Fair.

Also, thanks to Randy Richter of the World's Fair Preservation Society for the photo of Frank and the elephant.

It's because of the contributions from people like Eric and Randy that I am able to add more information about the Fair for you to enjoy for years to come.

If you have something you would like to contribute, please send it to me. Thank you

WF Update - A Change in Plans - Building Continues

2008-11-30T08:58:00.000-08:00

A change in plans: Reaction Grid is growing so fast that the Plans for the Recreation of the 1939 New York World's Fair has been modified a bit.

Kyle and Robin Gomboy, owners of G2-Reaction Grid (http://www.reactiongrid.com) have created the Reaction Grid which will focus on high technology and education using in part , the 1939 New York World's Fair as a back-drop. Currently several companies are building their facilities "in-world", and a major east-coast university is planning to use an area for teaching children on-line. A grand opening to the public of the Grid is scheduled for January 1, 2009.

A “Theme Park – Welcome Area” with some of the buildings and features from the Fair is under construction. The area I am working on (39 Fair HQ) will house the main part of the Administration Building, and some other interesting sections from the Fair as well as information about PM Photo.

In 2009 a complete re-creation of the ’39 Fair will be started. This re-creation will show visitors the history and importance of the Fair and afford companies that had pavilions then, and are still in business today, to demonstrate their products, offer customer training, and hold virtual trade shows.

A Work-in-Progress: Here are the latest photos from the work being done on the Admin building and the 39 Fair HQ area:

(top left) The entrance to the Administration Building.
(top right) The interior, partially decorated
(left) Entrance area to "30 Fair HQ"

For more photos of the current status of this area visit http://www.pmphoto.to/worlds_fair/WF_ReactionGrid/WF_RG_01.htm

Rebuilding the '39 NY World's Fair

2008-10-12T13:15:00.000-07:00

A project to re-create the 1939 New York World's Fair is currently underway in Virtual Reality. Although not open to the public yet, building of the Fair's Theme Center, the Trylon and Perisphere is under way.

We are looking for help with any photos, plans, or other information about the T & P, and the show held inside the Perisphere titled, "Democracity". If you have something and would like to contribute to the project, please e-mail me at 1939NYWF@PMPhoto.to

The Administration Building is well underway, hopefully this will be used as a temporary meeting place for the people from all over the world involved in the re-construction of the Fair.
(left) is a photo of the Admin. Building at the Fair. There were some offices to the left-rear and there was a restaurant to the right, which was used by the public after Perilon Hall was closed.

Here are some photos of what has been constructed in the Open Simulator. The building is not complete but close enough to share.

The exterior is to the left, and two interior photos are below. The six white panels tell the story of the Theme Center and a little about the Fair, while the remaining panels show several of the posters used for advertising.

As the project continues, I will post additional photos here on the blog.

Again, if you have something about the Fair you would like to share, please contact me. Thank you.

World's Fair Coffee Cups

2008-09-05T07:11:00.000-07:00

1939 New York World's Gift Shop

PM Photo is now offering 4 different 1939 NY World's Fair Coffee mugs. These mugs are an exclusive product and are available ONLY through PM Photo.

Each coffee-mug has an original photo of the Fair: The Trylon and Perisphere at night with the silhouette of George Washington's statue, the bridge between the Trylon and Perisphere, the Trylon and Perisphere during the day, and the Crystal Palace.

Choose your favorite, or buy the set of 4 and save. For more information and to order, visit the 1939 New York World's Gift Shop and order your's today.

To New Horizons - GM Futurama (1940)

2008-08-24T11:22:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the 1939 New York World's Fair Blog.

Most of what I add to the blog will relate to what's going on with the World's Fair Tour on my site. If you haven't visited, I hope you do and then let me know if you enjoyed it, and what I can do to make it better.

In 1940 General Motors released a film titled "To New Horizons". It was filmed inside the Futurama exhibit, and as with the exhibit, it looks to the future of "1960". I have added a link on the main General Motors page so you can view the free film on the Archives.com site. Here is link to my General Motors page.

I am hoping that in 2009 the site grows - offering more for everyone to enjoy. If you have photos, stories, or information about the 1939 NY World's Fair, I hope you share it with me so I can in turn, add it to the web.

I make no money from the site, except for the sale of one of my books or items in the Gift Shop, so I can't pay you for your submission. However, I will give credit to the source of the photos and stories.

There are some exciting things in the wind and I'll post updates to this blog as develop.

My intention is make the site one of the best resources for the 1939 NY World's Fair and in doing so, preserve the photos and stories for future generations.

Why the 1939 New York World's Fair

2008-07-28T11:15:00.000-07:00

Childhood Memories

It was 1951, World War II had been over for six years, Shell gasoline was 23 cents per gallon, cigarettes were 25 cents a pack, minimum wage was 90 cents an hour. The 1939-1940 New York World's Fair had been over for a little more than a decade, the next one in New York (although unsanctioned), was twelve years in the future, and I was part of the Baby Boom generation.

My bedroom was in the finished attic of our northern New Jersey Cape Cod house. If you are familiar with this style of home, you know the attic stairs usually go up near the center of the house. My room had three built-in bookcases filled with books by authors like Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Edgar Allen Poe, and others. Most of these were read once and retired to the attic to be dealt with sometime in the future.

The bookcase located over the stairs was about three feet deep. Behind the shadow of the books was where memories were stored; a collection of war medals, theater playbills, the family photo albums, old books like Scott's Lady of the Lake, and a leather-bound edition of A Christmas Carol, but best of all were two albums of photos of the 1939 World's Fair. That was my room for 12 years, until I turned 17, graduated from high school, and moved out. During those 12 years, I would dig out the World's Fair photo albums from time to time, and spend hours looking at them. After leaving home, I forgot about the Fair pictures for more than 35 years.

The Photos Travel About

The albums and some of the books moved with my parents, first to Florida in 1976 and then to Nevada in 1990. Mom passed away in 1993 and Dad moved into a smaller apartment. The books and albums, all neatly boxed, were moved into my garage for storage. After the death of my father in the Spring of 2000, I had to go through all the boxes and decide what to do with the contents. In doing so, I came across the two albums of the 1939 New York World's Fair. Once again, after 30 some years, I spent hours visiting an era almost a decade before I was born.

Preserving the Photo Collection

The archival properties of black and white photos are around 75 years if the photos were processed properly. These were. After 60 years, except for some yellowing of the paper, these pictures were almost as good as the day they were first viewed. But what about the future, how much longer would they last? I decided to preserve the photos digitally. After scanning 400 photos, I sorted and indexed them. The two albums contained many of the same photos. The result was 271 different photographs. I wondered if others might enjoy seeing these photos. I thought they would.

In 2001, I sold a CD containing 271 photos in various file formats and included several indices. The response from the purchasers was very positive, but most wanted more information about each of the photos and about the Fair itself. Almost a year later, I decided to start over. I re-scanned the original photos at a higher resolution, spent almost a year doing research, and with a lot of help from others, I produced a Limited Edition Coffee-table book (1,000 copies) and a much more informative and enjoyable CD. (CDs are sold out, but I will make them upon request.)

More about "Why the 1939 New York World's Fair" next time.

The First Blog ...

2008-07-26T08:51:00.000-07:00

If you have stumbled upon this blog, you'll notice there's not much here. Well, it's not only the first day, but it's my first blog so please be a little patient.

I have been creating web sites since 1995 and recently divided my site into two sites: One for the business; www.pmphoto.us and the other; www.pmphoto.to for the 1939 New York World's Fair, Antique & Collectibles, and some other "odds-n-ends."

My intended use of this blog is let anyone interested in the 1939 New York World's Fair to quickly know what has been added to my web site, see new links to other World's Fair sites, and to invite anyone who wants to share photos or information about the Fair to be able to do so.

If you haven't already taken the tour of the Fair you can do so by clicking on this link World's Fair Tour. The World's Fair Tour consists of around 300+ web pages with more than 600 photos and stories about the Fair.

I hope you enjoy the Tour and if you have anything you would like to contribute, you can always contact me via the web site or by e-mail at 1939NYWF@pmphoto.to

.