1939-40 World's Fair

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

02:26

Tabs

About

“At the World's Fair it was fad. It [the television demonstration] was a trip. You would love to see yourself. You'd say, ‘Look, Mary, there we are!’ It was like home movies. Everybody didn't have home movies then - people didn't run around with video cameras at that time. So just seeing yourself on any kind of screen was exciting.” - Ethel Winant, Casting Director

Interviewees discuss the 1939-40 World's Fair and the television demonstration at the fair.

Highlights

Ethel Winant on early involvement in television via the Pasadena Playhouse and on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:56

Louis Dorfsman on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair and the development of color television

02:31

Romilly Rutherford on the television demonstration at the 1939 World's Fair

01:01

Betty Garrett on working at the 1939 World's Fair, and on the television exhibition

05:03

Doris Roberts on seeing television at the 1939-40 World's Fair

00:49

Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. on DuMont's Model 180, their first television set, and demonstrating it at the 1939 World's Fair

01:43

Who talked about this topic

Erik Barnouw

Erik Barnouw on attending the RCA television demonstration at the 1939 World's Fair

01:20

Sam Christaldi

Sam Christaldi on Du Mont and the 1939 World's Fair and the early price of television sets

02:34

John Conte

John Conte on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:47

Louis Dorfsman

Louis Dorfsman on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair and the development of color television

02:31

Hugh Downs

Hugh Downs on seeing television for the first time at the 1939 World's Fair

01:04

Elma Farnsworth

Elma Farnsworth on her husband Philo T. Farnsworth avoiding the television demonstration at the 1939 World's Fair

01:25

Les Flory

Les Flory on preparing for broadcast television and the 1939 World's Fair

03:28

Horton Foote

Horton Foote on the television exhibit at the 1939 World's Fair

01:54

Ray Forrest

Ray Forrest on attending the 1939-40 World's Fair

00:32

Reuven Frank

Reuven Frank on seeing television at the 1939-40 World's Fair, and on his first job in television news

05:47

Betty Garrett

Betty Garrett on working at the 1939 World's Fair, and on the television exhibition

05:03

Leonard H. Goldenson

Leonard H. Goldenson on seeing television for the first time at the 1939 World's Fair

00:34

Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr.

Thomas T. Goldsmith, Jr. on DuMont's Model 180, their first television set, and demonstrating it at the 1939 World's Fair

01:43

Lewis Gomavitz

Lewis Gomavitz on his early experiences in theater and on meeting Burr Tillstrom at the 1939 World's Fair

06:30

Albert Heschong

Albert Heschong on the 1939 World's Fair

02:17

Martin Hoade

Martin Hoade on the first time he saw television at the 1939 World's Fair

01:23

Seaman Jacobs

Seaman Jacobs on attending the 1939 World's Fair, and on the first time he saw television

05:43

Loren Jones

Loren Jones on RCA's television exhibit at the 1939 World's Fair

01:25

Ernest Kinoy

Ernest Kinoy on the first time he saw television at the 1939 World's Fair

01:01

Sid Krofft

Sid Krofft on the 1939 World's Fair

00:51

Sheldon Leonard

Sheldon Leonard on seeing television for the first time at the 1939 World's Fair

00:47

Richard Lewis

Richard Lewis on the first time he saw television, at the 1939 World's Fair

02:34

Sidney Lumet

Sidney Lumet on seeing television at the World's Fair, and on getting into television

02:41

Stewart MacGregory

Stewart MacGregory on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:24

E. G. Marshall

E.G. Marshall on working at the 1939-40 World's Fair, and on his earliest memories of television

03:11

Barney McNulty

Barney McNulty on seeing television for the first time at the 1939 World's Fair

01:57

E. Roger Muir

E. Roger Muir on the first time he saw television in 1939, and on going to work for NBC

03:16

Arthur Penn

Arthur Penn on attending the 1939 World's Fair

00:37

Abraham Polonsky

Abraham Polonsky on first encountering television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:13

Joan Rivers

Joan Rivers on the first time she saw television at the 1939 World's Fair

00:38

Doris Roberts

Doris Roberts on seeing television at the 1939-40 World's Fair

00:49

Andy Rooney

Andy Rooney on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

01:04

Romilly Rutherford

Romilly Rutherford on the television demonstration at the 1939 World's Fair

01:01

Edgar J. Scherick

Edgar Scherick on remembering seeing television at the 1939-40 World's Fair

00:26

Daniel Schorr

Daniel Schorr on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

01:41

Frank Stanton

Frank Stanton on his early awareness of television, and the introduction of television at the 1939 Worlds Fair

01:44

Robert Trout

Robert Trout on covering the 1939 World's Fair

01:15

Ethel Winant

Ethel Winant on early involvement in television via the Pasadena Playhouse and on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:56

Ethel Winant on early involvement in television via the Pasadena Playhouse and on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair

02:56

David L. Wolper

David L. Wolper on seeing television at the 1939 World's Fair and on his family's first television set

01:19

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