Futurama (New York World's Fair) - Wikipedia

Futurama was an exhibit and ride at the 1939 New York World's Fair designed by Norman Bel Geddes, which presented a possible model of the world 20 years ... Futurama(NewYorkWorld'sFair) FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia Jumptonavigation Jumptosearch Forotheruses,seeFuturama(disambiguation). DetailoftheFuturamadiorama[1] FullsizeFuturamastreetintersection,c.1939[2] IllustrationoftheHighwaysandHorizonsbuildingbyEdwinD.Mott,c.1939[3] ShellOilCityofTomorrowmodel,c.1936/37[4] CoverofMagicMotorwaysbyNormanBelGeddes,RandomHouse,NewYork,1940 Futuramawasanexhibitandrideatthe1939NewYorkWorld'sFairdesignedbyNormanBelGeddes,whichpresentedapossiblemodeloftheworld20yearsintothefuture(1959–1960).TheinstallationwassponsoredbytheGeneralMotorsCorporationandwascharacterizedbyautomatedhighwaysandvastsuburbs.[5] Contents 1Background 2Overview 3Reception 4Legacy 5Seealso 6References 7Externallinks Background[edit] GeddeshadbuiltamodelcityforaShellOiladvertisingcampaignin1937thatwasdescribedastheShellOilCityofTomorrowandwaseffectivelyaprototypeforthemuchlargerandmoreambitiousFuturama.[6][7] Overview[edit] Geddes'"visionofthefuture"wasratherachievable;themostadvancedtechnologypositedwastheautomatedhighwaysystemofwhichGeneralMotorsbuiltaworkingprototypeby1960.[8]FuturamaiswidelyheldtohavefirstintroducedthegeneralAmericanpublictotheconceptofanetworkofexpresswaysconnectingthenation.ItprovidedadirectconnectionbetweenthestreamlinedstylewhichwaspopularinAmericabetween1928and1938,andtheconceptofsteady-flowwhichappearedinstreetandhighwaydesigninthesameperiod.[9] GeddesexpoundsuponhisdesigninhisbookMagicMotorways: Futuramaisalarge-scalemodelrepresentingalmosteverytypeofterraininAmericaandillustratinghowamotorwaysystemmaybelaiddownovertheentirecountry—acrossmountains,overriversandlakes,throughcitiesandpasttowns—neverdeviatingfromadirectcourseandalwaysadheringtothefourbasicprinciplesofhighwaydesign:safety,comfort,speed,andeconomy.[10] Themodeledhighwayconstructionemphasizedhopeforthefutureasitservedasaproposedsolutiontotrafficcongestionoftheday,anddemonstratedtheprobabledevelopmentoftrafficinproportiontotheautomotivegrowthofthenext20years.BelGeddesassumedthattheautomobilewouldbethesametypeofcarrierandstillthemostcommonmeansoftransportationin1960,albeitwithincreasedvehicleuseandtrafficlanesalsocapableofmuchhigherspeeds.[11] Fourgeneralideasforimprovementwereincorporatedintotheexhibitionshowcasetomeettheseassumptions.First,eachsectionofroadwasdesignedtoreceivegreatercapacityoftraffic.Second,trafficmovinginonedirectioncouldbeisolatedfromtrafficmovinginanyother.Third,segregatingtrafficbysubdividingtownsandcitiesintocertainunitsrestrictedtrafficandallowedpedestrianstopredominate.Andfourth,trafficcontrolincludedmaximumandminimumspeeds.Throughthis,theexhibitionwasdesignedtoinspiregreaterpublicenthusiasmandsupportfortheconstructiveworkandplanningofstreetsandhighways.[12] ThepopularityoftheFuturamaexhibitfitcloselywiththefair'soverallthemeof"TheWorldofTomorrow"initsemphasisonthefutureanditsredesignoftheAmericanlandscape.Thehighwaysystemwassupportedwithina1acre(0.40 ha)animatedmodelofaprojectedAmericacontainingmorethan500,000individuallydesignedbuildings,amilliontreesof13differentspecies,andapproximately50,000cars,10,000ofwhichtraveledalonga14-lanemulti-speedinterstatehighway.ItprophesiedanAmericanutopiaregulatedbyanassortmentofcutting-edgetechnologies:multi-lanehighwayswithremote-controlledsemi-automatedvehicles,powerplants,farmsforartificiallyproducedcrops,rooftopplatformsforindividualflyingmachines,andvariousgadgets,allintendedtomakeanidealbuiltenvironmentandultimatelytoreformsociety.[13] Geddes'"future"wassynonymouswithtechnologicalprogressinitssimulatedlow-flyingairplanejourneythroughtheexhibit.Theaerialjourneywassimulatedbyan18-minuterideonaconveyorsystem,carrying552seatedspectatorsatatime,coveringa⅓-milewindingpaththroughthemodel,alongwithlight,sound,andcoloreffects.Theridemovedatarateofapproximately120 ft(37 m)perminuteor1.36 mph(2.19 km/h),allowingspectatorstolookdownthroughacontinuouscurvedpaneofglasstowardsthemodel.Thevirtueofthiselevatedpositionallowedspectatorstoseemultiplescalessimultaneously,viewingcityblocksinproportiontoahighwaysystem,aswellasartificiallycontrolledtreesinglassdomes.Thisscalewasmodeledoff408topographicalsectionsbasedonaerialphotographsofdifferentregionsoftheU.S.providedbyFairchildAircraftLtd..[13] Reception[edit] BeforeGeneralMotorsinvitedBelGeddestosubmitaproposalfortheexhibit,theyhadplannedtoputinanotherproductionlineaswasfeaturedattheirexhibitintheCenturyofProgressExpositionof1933inChicago.However,aftertheyheardBelGeddesoutlinehisprojectallotherplanswerescrappedastheyfavoredhisdesignforitsappealtoabroaderaudience.[12][14]TheFuturamaexhibitionwassubsequentlypresentedasoneofthe1939NewYorkWorldFair'smainattractions,asitwasthe"number-onehitshow".Itwasconsideredhighlyinterestingbythepublicandcriticsalike,withjournalistscompetingtofindadequatewordstoconveyBelGeddes'"ingenuity","daring","showmanship"and"genius".Oneneutralsurveyof1000departingfairgoersawardedtheGeneralMotorsexhibit39.4pointstoonly8.5pointsforsecondplaceFordasthemostinterestingexhibit.[15]BusinessWeekdescribedthescene: Morethan30,000personsdaily,theshow'scapacity,inchalongthesizzlingpavementinlongqueuesuntiltheyreachthechairswhichtransportthemtoatourist'sparadise.Itunfoldsaprophecyofcities,towns,andcountrysidesservedbyacomprehensiveroadsystem.[16] Hisideasofthefuturehadaremarkabledegreeofrealismandimmediacy,strikingachord[colloquialism]withanAmericanaudienceslowlyrecoveringfromtheGreatDepressionandthatwaslongingforprosperity.Futurama'simaginarylandscapeof1960was,atthetime,seennotjustasanovelphysicalspace,butasaglimpseofthefuture.[9] Legacy[edit] TheGeneralMotorspavilionatthe1964NewYorkWorld'sFairincludedaride,FuturamaII,thatwasalsoknownas"TheNewFuturama".[17] The1964versionhada110foottallfrontfacadewhichwastiltedtowardtheviewerastheyapproachedthefrontofthebuilding.Inside,movingtheaterseatstookvisitorsonamulti-mediarideintothefuturearoundtheworld,narratedbyadescriptionofallthefuturescenarios.Afterthe15minuteride,visitorsexitedintoashowroomoffuturisticmodelsandcurrentGeneralMotorsproducts. TheOctober1965attendancestatisticsbeattheoldrecordfrom1939forthetwoyearperiodbyaboutfivemillionvisitors,thelargesteverattendanceofanyexhibitatanyfairintheworld.[18] Seealso[edit] Automotivecity Listofproposedfuturetransport Transitdesert WorldofMotion Automatedhighwaysystem References[edit] ^"Magicmotorways".[NewYork]Randomhouse. ^"Magicmotorways".[NewYork]Randomhouse. ^"GeneralMotorsHighways&horizons :NewYorkWorld'sFair".1939. ^"Magicmotorways".[NewYork]Randomhouse. ^Herman,Arthur.Freedom'sForge:HowAmericanBusinessProducedVictoryinWorldWarII,pp.58–65,RandomHouse,NewYork.2012.ISBN 978-1-4000-6964-4. ^Isenstadt,Sandy,"TheFutureisHere:NormanBelGeddesandtheTheaterofTime",inNormanBelGeddesDesignsAmerica,ed.byDonaldAlbrecht.NewYork:Abrams,2012.pp.136–153(pp.142–144.) ^"AutomatedDrivinginitsSocial,HistoricalandCulturalContexts"byFabianKrögerinMarkusMaureretal(Eds.)(2016).AutonomousDriving:Technical,LegalandSocialAspects.Springer.pp. 41–68(p.48).ISBN 978-3-662-48847-8. ^"TheOriginalFuturama".Wired.2007-11-27.Retrieved2014-07-20. ^abAdams,D(1976)."NormanBelGeddesandStreamlinedSpaces".JAE.30(1):22–24.doi:10.1080/10464883.1976.10758072. ^BelGeddes,Norman(1940)."MagicMotorways".[NewYork]Randomhouse.Retrieved2009-03-18. ^Arthur,Herman(2012).Freedom'sForge:HowAmericanBusinessProducedVictoryinWorldWarII.NewYork:RandomHouse.pp. 58–65,338,343.ISBN 978-1-4000-6964-4. ^abCoombs,R(1971)."NormanBelGeddes:HighwaysandHorizons".Perspecta.13/14:11–27.doi:10.2307/1566968.JSTOR 1566968. ^abMorshed,A(2004)."TheAestheticsofAscensioninNormanBelGeddes'sFuturama".JournaloftheSocietyofArchitecturalHistorians.63(1):74–79.doi:10.2307/4127993.JSTOR 4127993. ^Herman,Arthur.Freedom'sForge:HowAmericanBusinessProducedVictoryinWorldWarII,p.62,RandomHouse,NewYork.2012.ISBN 978-1-4000-6964-4. ^Marchand,R(1992)."TheDesignersGototheFairII:NormanBelGeddes,TheGeneralMotors"Futurama,"andtheVisittotheFactoryTransformed".DesignIssues.8(2):22–40.doi:10.2307/1511638.JSTOR 1511638. ^Fotsch,P.M(2001)."TheBuildingofaSuperhighwayFutureattheNewYorkWorld'sFair".CulturalCritique.48(48):65–97.doi:10.1353/cul.2001.0033. ^"OfficialGuidetothe1965NewYorkWorld'sFair".1965.p. 198. ^"1964NewYorkWorld'sFair1965-Attractions-GeneralMotors-PageSix".www.nywf64.com.Retrieved2021-08-13. Externallinks[edit] WikimediaCommonshasmediarelatedtoFuturama,NewYorkWorld'sFair. ToNewHorizonsisavailableforfreedownloadattheInternetArchive:Avideodocumentrecordingthedisplayatthe1939/40World'sFair(fromPrelingerArchives) IdleMoneyIdleMenattheInternetArchive;this1940bookcontainsanarrationofwhatitwasliketovisitFuturamainitschapter"Designfor1960". MagicMotorwaysattheInternetArchive,Geddes'explanationofthemotorwaysystemshownintheride Retrievedfrom"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Futurama_(New_York_World%27s_Fair)&oldid=1058208920" Categories:1939NewYorkWorld'sFairGeneralMotorsWorld'sfairarchitectureinNewYorkCityAmusementridesintroducedin1939NormanBelGeddesHiddencategories:CS1:longvolumevalueWikipediaarticleswithstyleissuesfromAugust2021AllarticleswithstyleissuesCommonscategorylinkisonWikidataArticleswithInternetArchivelinks Navigationmenu Personaltools NotloggedinTalkContributionsCreateaccountLogin Namespaces ArticleTalk Variants expanded collapsed Views ReadEditViewhistory More expanded collapsed Search Navigation MainpageContentsCurrenteventsRandomarticleAboutWikipediaContactusDonate Contribute HelpLearntoeditCommunityportalRecentchangesUploadfile Tools WhatlinkshereRelatedchangesUploadfileSpecialpagesPermanentlinkPageinformationCitethispageWikidataitem Print/export DownloadasPDFPrintableversion Inotherprojects WikimediaCommons Languages EspañolFrançais日本語 Editlinks