![Perisphere leo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Perisphere_leo.jpg)
The Trylon and Perisphere were two monumental modernistic structures designed by architects
Wallace Harrison
Wallace Kirkman Harrison (September 28, 1895 – December 2, 1981) was an American architect. Harrison started his professional career with the firm of Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray, participating in the construction of Rockefeller Center. He i ...
and
J. Andre Fouilhoux that were together known as the Theme Center of the
1939 New York World's Fair
The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...
. The Perisphere was a tremendous sphere, in diameter, connected to the spire-shaped Trylon by what was at the time the world's longest escalator. The Perisphere housed a
diorama
A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...
by
Henry Dreyfuss
Henry Dreyfuss (March 2, 1904 – October 5, 1972) was an American industrial design pioneer. Dreyfuss is known for designing some of the most iconic devices found in American homes and offices throughout the twentieth century, including the We ...
called ''Democracity'' which, in keeping with the fair's theme "The World of Tomorrow", depicted a utopian city-of-the-future. The interior display was viewed from above on a moving sidewalk, while a multi-image slide presentation was projected on the dome of the sphere. After exiting the Perisphere, visitors descended to ground level on the third element of the Theme Center, the Helicline, a spiral ramp that partially encircled the Perisphere.
The name "Perisphere" was coined using the Greek prefix ''peri-'', meaning "all around", "about", or "enclosing". The name "Trylon" was coined from the phrase "triangular pylon".
Construction
![1939fairhelicline](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/1939fairhelicline.jpg)
The Theme Center was designed by architects
Wallace Harrison
Wallace Kirkman Harrison (September 28, 1895 – December 2, 1981) was an American architect. Harrison started his professional career with the firm of Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray, participating in the construction of Rockefeller Center. He i ...
and
J. Andre Fouilhoux, with the interior exhibit by
Henry Dreyfuss
Henry Dreyfuss (March 2, 1904 – October 5, 1972) was an American industrial design pioneer. Dreyfuss is known for designing some of the most iconic devices found in American homes and offices throughout the twentieth century, including the We ...
. The structures were built in
Flushing Meadows Park
Flushing may refer to:
Places
* Flushing, Cornwall, a village in the United Kingdom
* Flushing, Queens, New York City
** Flushing Bay, a bay off the north shore of Queens
** Flushing Chinatown (法拉盛華埠), a community in Queens
** Flushing ...
in
Queens, New York
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long I ...
and were intended as temporary with steel framing and plaster board facades. Both buildings were subsequently razed and scrapped after the closing of the fair, their materials to be used in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
armaments.
Legacy
The Trylon and Perisphere became the central symbol of the 1939 World's Fair, its image reproduced by the millions on a wide range of promotional materials and serving as the fairground's focal point. The United States issued a postage stamp in 1939 depicting the Trylon and Perisphere (pictured). Neither structure survives; however, the
Unisphere
The Unisphere is a spherical stainless steel representation of the Earth in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. The globe was designed by Gilmore D. Clarke as part of his plan for the 1964 New York World's ...
, the symbol of the 1964–65 New York World's Fair, is now located where the Perisphere once stood.
In culture
* In 1939, all three of New York City's major league baseball teams wore a patch on their uniform sleeve depicting the Trylon and Perisphere.
* Composer (and ''Rhapsody in Blue'' orchestrator)
Ferde Grofé
Ferdinand Rudolph von Grofé, known as Ferde Grofé (March 27, 1892 April 3, 1972) (pronounced FUR-dee GROW-fay) was an American composer, arrangement, arranger, pianist and instrumentalist. He is best known for his 1931 five-movement tone poem, ...
was commissioned by the World's Fair to compose a piece of symphonic music dedicated to the sculptured edifices.
* The ''
New Yorker
New Yorker or ''variant'' primarily refers to:
* A resident of the State of New York
** Demographics of New York (state)
* A resident of New York City
** List of people from New York City
* ''The New Yorker'', a magazine founded in 1925
* ''The New ...
'' published a
George Price cartoon in which two men dressed as the Trylon and Perisphere approach the World's Fair office, one saying, "If ''this'' doesn't get us in, nothing will."
* The Trylon is mentioned in the 1939
Yip Harburg
Edgar Yipsel Harburg (born Isidore Hochberg; April 8, 1896 – March 5, 1981) was an American popular song lyricist and librettist who worked with many well-known composers. He wrote the lyrics to the standards "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" ( ...
song "
Lydia the Tattooed Lady
"Lydia, the Tattooed Lady" is a 1939 song written by Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen. It first appeared in the Marx Brothers movie '' At the Circus'' (1939) and became one of Groucho Marx's signature tunes.
It subsequently appeared in the movie '' Th ...
", made famous by
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, stage, film, radio, singer, television star and vaudeville performer. He is generally considered to have been a master of quick wit an ...
in ''
At The Circus
''At the Circus'' is a 1939 comedy film starring the Marx Brothers (Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx and Chico Marx) released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in which they help save a circus from bankruptcy. The film contains Groucho Marx's classic rendition of ...
.''
* The
Trylon Theatre
The Trylon and Perisphere were two monumental modernistic structures designed by architects Wallace Harrison and J. Andre Fouilhoux that were together known as the Theme Center of the 1939 New York World's Fair. The Perisphere was a tremendous ...
, located on
Queens Boulevard
Queens Boulevard is a major thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Queens connecting Midtown Manhattan, via the Queensboro Bridge, to Jamaica. It is long and forms part of New York State Route 25.
Queens Boulevard runs northwest to so ...
in
Forest Hills, Queens
Forest Hills is a mostly residential neighborhood in the central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is adjacent to Corona to the north, Rego Park and Glendale to the west, Forest Park to the south, Kew Gardens to the southeast, ...
, operated from December 1939 through December 1999. The theatre's decor included several references to the 1939–40 World's Fair.
* In the 1941 movie ''
Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' the characters go to the fair. The actual structures are showcased with long camera shot, and are clearly visible while the characters are stuck on an amusement ride.
* The episode "
The Odyssey of Flight 33
"The Odyssey of Flight 33" is episode 54 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone'', the 18th episode of the second season. An unlikely break of the time barrier finds a commercial airliner sent back into the prehistoric age ...
" of ''
The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
'' featured a view of these structures from the air to indicate that a
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is an American, long-range, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype first flown in 1954, the initial first flew on December 20, ...
had
time travel
Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a w ...
ed and had arrived in the year 1939 or 1940.
The Odyssey of Flight 33
"The Odyssey of Flight 33" is episode 54 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone'', the 18th episode of the second season. An unlikely break of the time barrier finds a commercial airliner sent back into the prehistoric age ...
* In the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
series ''
All-Star Squadron
The All-Star Squadron is a DC Comics superhero team that debuted in ''Justice League, Justice League of America'' #193 (August 1981) and was created by Roy Thomas, Rich Buckler and Jerry Ordway. Although the team was introduced in the 1980s, its se ...
'' (debuting in 1981 but set during World War II), the Squadron used the Perisphere as their headquarters.
* In the DC Comics comic book series ''
Young All-Stars
The Young All-Stars are a team of fictional DC Comics superheroes. They were created by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, and Michael Bair, and introduced in ''Young All-Stars'' #1, dated June 1987. The team members Tsunami, Neptune Perkins, and Dan the Dy ...
'' (debuting in 1987 but also set in World War II), used the Trylon and Perisphere as their headquarters.
*
Howard Waldrop
Howard Waldrop (born September 15, 1946) is a science fiction author who works primarily in short fiction. He received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2021.
Personal life
Though born in Houston, Mississippi, Waldrop has spent ...
's 1985 short story "Heirs of the Perisphere" describes the excavation of the
time capsule
A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ba ...
which was buried at the 1939 World's Fair.
* Singer/songwriter
Aimee Mann
Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released more than a dozen albums as a solo artist and with other musicians. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyr ...
created a song called "Fifty Years After the Fair" for her 1993 album ''
Whatever'', the subject of which is the 1939 World's Fair. The song references the Trylon and Perisphere while suggesting how little of the Fair's bright vision of the future had actually been realized in the "decades ahead" now passed.
* In the 1995 episode "
Aubrey
Aubrey is traditionally a male English given name. The name is from the French derivation Aubry of the Germanic given name Alberic / Old High German given name Alberich, which consists of the elements ALF "elf" and RIK "king", from Proto-Germani ...
" of the TV series ''
The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...
'', the protagonist has visions of Trylon and Perisphere leading the detectives to an important clue.
* The second episode of the fourth season of the
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
series ''
Homeland
A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethni ...
'' is titled "
Trylon and Perisphere
The Trylon and Perisphere were two monumental modernistic structures designed by architects Wallace Harrison and J. Andre Fouilhoux that were together known as the Theme Center of the 1939 New York World's Fair. The Perisphere was a tremendous sp ...
".
* The 2000 self-titled album
''Deltron 3030'' featured an image of the Perisphere on its cover.
* A chapter in
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon ( ;
born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...
's 2000 novel ''
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
''The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay'' is a 2000 novel by American author Michael Chabon that won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2001. The novel follows the lives of two Jewish cousins, Czech artist Joe Kavalier and Brooklyn-born write ...
'', set in 1942, takes place inside the recently abandoned Perisphere.
* In author
E. L. Doctorow
Edgar Lawrence Doctorow (January 6, 1931 – July 21, 2015) was an American novelist, editor, and professor, best known for his works of historical fiction.
He wrote twelve novels, three volumes of short fiction and a stage drama. They included ...
's semi-autobiographical novel ''
World's Fair
A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...
'', Doctorow tells the story of a boy named Edgar in the late 1930s who lives in the Bronx, which culminates with the 1939 World's Fair. The Trylon and Perisphere are referenced throughout the story.
* In
Kenneth Robeson Kenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street & Smith publications as the writer of their popular characters Doc Savage and later Avenger. Lester Dent wrote most of the Doc Savage stories; others credited under the Robeson name included:
* W ...
's 1939
Doc Savage
Doc Savage is a fictional character of the competent man hero type, who first appeared in American pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. Real name Clark Savage Jr., he is a doctor, scientist, adventurer, detective, and polymath who "rights w ...
novel ''World's Fair Goblin'', the Trylon and Perisphere are depicted on the cover and integral to the story.
* In
Rex Stout
Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886 – October 27, 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and ...
's 1940
Nero Wolfe
Nero Wolfe is a brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective created in 1934 by American mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe was born in Montenegro and keeps his past murky. He lives in a luxurious brownstone on West 35th Street in Ne ...
novel ''
Where There's a Will'', one character says she had "an inferiority complex about the size of the Perisphere" (chapter 8); Archie Goodwin later suggests to a police officer that he "go sit on a trylon" (chapter 13).
* The 2015
utopian
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia'', describing a fictional island society ...
/
dystopian
A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- "bad, hard" and τόπος "place"; alternatively cacotopiaCacotopia (from κακός ''kakos'' "bad") was the term used by Jeremy Bentham in his 1818 Plan of Parliamentary Reform (Works, vol. 3, p. 493). ...
film
''Tomorrowland'' contains futuristic versions of the Trylon, Perisphere, and Helicline. The Perisphere, in contrast to the 1939 World of Tomorrow exhibit, contains a device that can see into the past; the past is viewed on the sphere's inner surface. Also, unlike the 1939 Perisphere, the future Perisphere floats in mid-air. In the opening of the film, the Disneyland image is altered to include the trio. They also appear in the closing animation.
* The 2017 short story "The Past is Important to Us" by
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...
in his collection ''Uncommon Type'' is predominately set in New York City during the 1939 World's Fair and mentions the Trylon and Perisphere among other sights.
* The
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
movie ''
Mask of the Phantasm'' depicts Bruce Wayne and his girlfriend Andrea Beaumont visiting the Gotham World's Fair. Although not set in 1939, it hearkens back to that World's Fair because this is Batman's origin story and he first appeared in 1939. Thus, the Gotham World's Fair also has structures similar to the Perisphere and Trylon and displays depicting the future.
See also
*
Skylon (tower)
The Skylon was a futuristic-looking, slender, vertical, cigar-shaped steel tensegrity structure located by the Thames in London, that gave the illusion of 'floating' above the ground, built in 1951 for the Festival of Britain.
A popular joke ...
at the 1951
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people:
...
*
Unisphere
The Unisphere is a spherical stainless steel representation of the Earth in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. The globe was designed by Gilmore D. Clarke as part of his plan for the 1964 New York World's ...
at the
1964 New York World's Fair
The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...
References
Further reading
* Cohen, Barbara. ''Trylon and Perisphere''. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Publishers, New York, 1989.
* Gelernter, David. ''1939: The Lost World of the Fair''. The Free Press, New York, 1995.
* Newhouse, Victoria. ''Wallace K. Harrison, Architect''. Rizzoli International Publications Inc. New York, 1989.
* "New York World's Fair, 1939." ''Architectural Forum'', June 1939. vol. 70, pp. 393–462.
* "The World's Fair will put on a 6-minute show inside its perisphere." ''Life'', August 1938. pp. 55–58.
* "Aerodynamics of the Perisphere and Trylon at World's Fair." ''American Society of Civil Engineers'', Vol. 65 Issue 5, 1938. pp. 887–906.
External links
1939–40 World's Fair ''Democracity'' Recreation(New York Public Library)
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World's fair architecture in New York City
1939 New York World's Fair
Modernist architecture in New York City
Demolished buildings and structures in Queens, New York
Domes