Visit - Perhaps the greatest diorama of all - simulated helicopter ride was part of the trip

 

Visit

This diorama, depicting all five boroughs of New York City, was built as part of the 1964/65 World's Fair. This diorama would cycle through day and night for the benefit of visitors. Even the city's airports were animated to show airplanes taking off and landing. This photo captures just one small part of this vast diorama. In the distance notice the Triborough bridge and the famous Hell Gate Bridge (immortalized by Lionel Corporation - one fellow I met admitted that he thought the Lionel Hell Gate Bridge was just imagined - he did not know it was inspired by a real bridge). 

The bridge at the bottom of the photograph is the famous 59th Street Bridge. Notice the Con Edison electrical generating plant on the right shore of the East River. In the center is Roosevelt Island, formerly known as Welfare Island. Also note on the west shore of the East River one of the world's greatest medical research institutes - Rockefeller University - interestingly, most New Yorkers are probably not even aware of its existence.

A simulated helicopter ride was part of this exhibit - an experience I remember well as a boy who rode with his family. And by simulated I do not mean computer screens or videos. Visitors got into a small compartment which traveled around the entire diorama as day turned into night. It was not a level ride - the compartment traveled up and down simulating a helicopter ride. Of course, sound effects added to the realism of this ride - I suspect that this was free though there was a modest admission charge to visit the world's fair.

This diorama is one of the few reminders of this world's fair to exist. Regretably the helicopter ride is no longer functioning. It is located in Flushing Meadows Park.

The Long Island Railroad had even a wonderful station for the fair - it might have been an art deco holdover from the first worlds fair there in about 1939.