Ford Pavilion – New York World’s Fair 1964
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Spanning several acres and dominating the transportation district of the Fair, the Ford Pavilion was one of the largest—and most talked-about—corporate exhibits on the grounds. Located across the highway from the main fair complex, it shared the same area once used for transportation exhibits at the 1939 World’s Fair, though this time the focus had shifted dramatically: from railroads to automobiles, reflecting America’s postwar car culture.
Costing an estimated $30 million, the pavilion was several city blocks long and filled with exhibits ranging from futuristic prototypes to meticulously crafted historic dioramas. Many of the displays were designed by Walt Disney and WED Enterprises, marking one of the earliest large-scale collaborations between Disney and a major corporation.
The star attraction was the Magic Skyway, a half-mile guided ride system carrying visitors in 178 real Ford convertibles, all modified to run automatically. Riders travelled through scenes of early human history, prehistoric landscapes populated by massive audio-animatronic dinosaurs, and visions of the future. Among the vehicles on the ride were **Thunderbirds, Galaxies, Falcons, Park Lanes, Comets, Montereys, Lincolns—**and most famously, the brand-new Mustang, which made its public debut at the Fair.
After the Fair closed, the dinosaurs found a second life and still survive today at Disneyland as part of the Primeval World diorama—visible only from the Disneyland Railroad.
The Ford Pavilion embodied the spirit of the era: bold, optimistic, experimental, and certain that the automobile would continue shaping the future—on roads, in culture, and in imagination.