The Lasting Influence of the 1939 World's Fair

The 1939 New York World's Fair painted a picture for Americans of what they future would look like that continues to influence how the country develops. Wired has a photo-essay.

1 minute read

May 2, 2010, 1:00 PM PDT

By Tim Halbur

General Motors' Futurama exhibit was particularly influential, with its enormous diorama showing smoothly-flowing highways and suburban life.

Wired writes, "What people saw at the fair, they wanted for themselves. And when World War II ended, the American consumer machine began giving them what they wanted, or at least what they thought they wanted, or maybe even what the marketers thought the public thought they wanted."

FULL STORY: 1939's 'World of Tomorrow' Shaped Our Today

Friday, April 30, 2010 in Wired

History / Preservation New York 1939 World's Fair Futurama

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