Century 21 : Seattle's Tomorrow

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Century
21
For pomp and pageantry, fun
and tingling excitement, there is
nothing like a world's fair. Fortunately for American fair-lovers,
their homeland is the reigning
champion sponsor of these international epics.
Some 20 great world's fairs have
been held since the British first
broke the ice with the "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry
of All Nations" in 1851, and the
United States has been host to
nearly half.
In the 20th Century the American record is even more impressive. Ten first-rank international
expositions have been held since
the Paris fair in 1900, and six took
place on U.S. soil.
As the 1960's unfold, American
supremacy in this highly challenging field of enterprise will reassert
itself with vigor, for two of the
next., decade's., three., scheduled
world's fairs will be held here:
Seattle's "Century 21" Exposition
in 1962 and the New York World's
Fair of 1964-65.
Not long ago the Soviet Union
announced it would play host at a
world's fair in Moscow in 1967.
The Kremlin said the fair will be
open to all nations "regardless of
their government and social systems."
Although world's fairs are a
fairly recent invention—the idea
was born in the mind of Queen
Victoria's consort, Prince Albert,
in the mid-19th Century—fairs of
lesser dimensions have thrilled
mankind since the Middle Ages.
Fairs originated as gatherings
of pilgrims at sacred sites. Canny
merchants found these ideal places
to exhibit their wares. This in turn
attracted entertainers and convivial crowds, with prince and peasant rubbing elbows in a spirit of
festivity.
Gradually, as their popularity
spread across the Old World, fairs
shed their early emphasis on wor-
A 550-FOOT "SPACE NEEDLE" observatior
tower topped by a revolving restaurant is
planned as one of the feature attractions o,
Century 21 Exposition in Seattle in 1962. The
$2,500,000 structure will be located on the
highest ground of the 74-acre exposition site.
Two high-speed passenger elevators will carry
visitors to the top, or to the intermediate platforms at the 100- and 200-foot levels. The
observation platform and 220-seat restaurant,
which will make a complete revolution each
hour, will afford a panoramic view of the lakes,
mountains   and   salt   water   surrounding   Seattle.
Seattle*
s
1 ommorrow
ship and became attractions of fun
and commerce.
When European fair-goers emigrated to the New World, they
brought their fondness for these
periodic festivities with them.
Young America's fairs pulsed with
exciting contests of marksmanship, foot-racing, tug-of-war, cooking and other homemaking skills,
all in an atmosphere, of carnival
gaiety.
Then, little more than a century
ago, Prince Albert launched a new
era of super-fairs with the first
world's fair, a sensational exhibition staged in London's glittering
Crystal Palace.
The great fair jammed England
for months with visitors from
every corner of the world. The
success assured the repeat performances that have delighted mankind ever since.
Paris was first to follow suit
with a world's fair in 1855.
(French enthusiasm for world's
fairs is second only to our own;
from 1855 to 1925 Paris was the
scene of five international fairs.)
London hosted another fair in
1862 (but hasn't held one since).
Paris staged its second fair in
1867. Vienna joined the circle in
1873, and three years later the
world's fair crossed the Atlantic to
thrill throngs of Americans and
foreign visitors at the Centennial
Exposition in Philadelphia.
Outstanding among subsequent
international spectacles were the
Paris Exposition Universelle of
1889 (for which M. Eiffel created
his fabled tower,) the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in
1893, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition at St. Louis in 1904, Chicago's Century of Progress in
1933-34, the New York and San
Francisco fairs of 1939-40, and the
Brussels fair of 1958 which drew
a record 40 million paid admissions.
Now the world awaits its next
super-fair in 1962—the first Space
December,  1960
WASHINGTON  PURCHASING AGENT & MANUFACTURER
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