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GROUNDBREAKING AT THE 
NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR 1964-1965 




JOHNSON/S 



WAX 





Grouped with ceremonial shovels and the Johnsoti's Wax exhibit 
model are, left to right, H. F. Johnson, chairman of Johnson's 
Wax; Joan Marie Engh, Miss Wisconsin; Howard M. Packard, 
Johnson's president; and Robert Moses, president of the Fair. 



OCTOBER 16, 1962 



X 



REMARKS BY JOHNSON'S WAX AND WORLD'S 

FAIR OFFICIALS AT THE JOHNSON'S WAX 

EXHIBIT GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONIES. 

NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR, TUESDAY, 

OCTOBER 16, 1962. 

MARTIN STONE (Director for Industrial Exhibits) : 
We are happy to welcome you on the occasion of the 
groundbreaking of the Johnson's Wax exhibit. This is a 
particularly auspicious occasion, not only because it signi- 
fies the addition of another splendid name on the roster 
of American business that will come to this "Olympics 
of Industry," as Mr. Moses has described it, but also 
because this marks the first midwestern company to break 
ground at the Fair. 

I think we should immediately acknowledge with thanks 



the visit of Mr. Johnson and Mr. Packard, who have come 
here from Racine, and tell them that we are certain that 
the midwest will be represented well indeed by Johnson's 
Wax, a company over seventy-six years old which has 
stood for integrity throughout all these years, and has 
consistently been a symbol of progress even in architecture 
as evidenced by the Frank Lloyd Wright Administration 
and Research Center in Racine. We feel certain that 
the World's Fair exhibit here in New York will reflect 
the character and integrity of the Johnson's Wax company. 
Now I'd like to turn the ceremonies over to the Director 
of Public Relations of Johnson's Wax, Mr. Floyd Springer. 

FLOYD SPRINGER: Thank you, Martin. You know, 
we have an unexpected treat for you here today. We not 
only have two of our midwestern business leaders, Mr. 
Johnson and Mr. Packard ; we also have some midwestern 
pulchritude. We've been quite flattered by the reference 
of the Fair people to our building as a jewel of a building. 
But, we have with us here today a princess. I am speaking 
of Joan Marie Engh, 21 -year-old beauty of La Crosse, 
Wisconsin — Miss Wisconsin who is here today to join 
us in these ceremonies. Miss Engh. (Applause.) 



)1962 New York World'i Foif 1964-1 965 Corporotic 



I might let you in on a little secret I learned from 
Miss Engh — who was runner up in the recent Miss 
America contest. She informed me that every day, very 
patriotically for good old Wisconsin, she has a chocolate 
soda with two scoops of ice cream. 

I'd also like to acknowledge the presence here today 
of Mr. Walter P. Margulies, president of Lippincott & 
Margulies, whose architectural genius has been a guiding 
light in preparing this wonderful building that we have. 
Mr. Margulies. (Applause.) 

As you know, and as Mr. Stone mentioned, we are 
honored to have with us here at this important ceremony, 
the third generation of Johnson family leadership of S. C. 
Johnson and Son, Incorporated — the grandson of the 
founder of Johnson's Wax, and the man whose vision 
inspired the construction of our world-renowned Frank 
Lloyd Wright buildings. He has been a guiding light also 
in our planning for the New York World's Fair. I refer 
to our chairman, Mr. H. F. Johnson. Mr. Johnson. 
(Applause.) 

Another of our company's leaders is not only providing 
the stimulus for our company to move forward in develop- 
ing exciting new products for the home, for industry and 



agriculture, but he is also inspiring the development of 
some exciting things for our participation in the New 
York World's Fair. I refer to our president, but before 
introducing him, I'd like to introduce to you his very 
charming wife, Mrs. Howard M. Packard. (Applause.) 

And now to speak to us, our president, Howard 
Packard. 

HOWARD M. PACKARD: Ladies and gentlemen, 
Mr. Moses, you know that the company's decision to come 
to this Fair was strictly a business decision. But I think 
you also know that we are counting on having quite a 
little fun here at this Fair, with our business and our 
personal friends. In fact, you know, in the Johnson Com- 
pany we have an official policy — that conducting our 
business is to be a pleasure — in fact, it's to be a little fun. 

We understand that Mr. Moses has described the Fair 
as an opportunity to emphasize the democratic process 
that we practice in our country, and to try to find a com- 
mon ground of international understanding and good 
will; to demonstrate our own progress as a nation, and 
to emphasize our gains in science and education. Now at 
]ohisoris Wax we try to be good businessmen — sound 



businessmen — and as such we can visualize the applica- 
tion of the Fair objectives to our own company and to the 
entire system of private enterprise. 

Participation in the Fair represents a very major expen- 
diture. So, naturally, we studied this matter to determine 
whether the Fair would represent a sound expenditure. 
We set up a series of criteria that had to be answered in 
the affirmative in order to justify coming into the Fair. 
Obviously, we have reached an affirmative decision on 
each one of these criteria, and have decided to participate. 

The selection of this very site where we are standing, 
the building to be erected on it, the educational and enter- 
taining program that we intend to present here — and 
especially the merchandising opportunity presented by the 
Fair — all of these played a significant role in this decision. 

Certainly one of the major factors influencing our deci- 
sion to come to the Fair is its international aspect, which 
has a particular interest to us. The Johnson's Wax company 
established its first overseas company 50 years ago in Eng- 
land. We now have an associated group of 2 1 companies 
around the world. We think that each one of them will 
benefit from the World"s Fair program that we are em- 
barking upon today. Indeed, in June 1964, we are going 



to hold an international conference of our 21 companies 
and it will be closely integrated with the World "s Fair 
program. 

The Fair will also be a world-wide showcase for archi- 
tecture, and we like that. Adventure in the field of archi- 
tecture is not new to our company. In the mid 30's, Mr. 
H. F. Johnson commissioned the late Frank Lloyd Wright 
to design our administration and research center in Racine, 
Wisconsin. Those buildings — as proven over the last 
25 years — were a decided advance in architectural 
concept. 

We are very pleased with the design achievements of 
the Lippincott & Margulies firm who is our architect 
and design consultant for this Fair building. You will 
see the model over there, and we hope very much that 
the actual building on this site will turn out to be, as the 
Fair officials have called it, a jewel of a building. We 
expect it will turn out that way. 

Within our building, we are going to present entertain- 
ment in an educational manner. We are not prepared to 
discuss the details now, but we do say that we have picked 
out a highly dramatic theme and we believe it will be 
entertaining and rewarding to all the people who come 





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Soaring 80-foot columns that arch over and suspend a giant disc 90 feet in diameter are the most dramatic features of 
the Johnson's Wax pavilion for the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. The huge disc, sheathed in gold anodized 
aluminum, will contain a 600-seat theater. 



to the Fair and visit our exhibit. 

Now, in conclusion, I just want to say that we are 
happy to join the many other exhibitors who will come 
here and compete in this healthy, friendly rivalry among 
companies, states and nations. We sincerely hope that our 
participation in what is being called the Olympics of 
Progress in 1964 and 1965, will make a worthwhile con- 
tribution to the goal of world peace through understand- 
ing. Thank you very much. (Applause.) 

MARTIN STONE: Thank you very much. Mr. Pack- 
ard, Mrs. Packard, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Margulies, I have 
the privilege of presenting the President of the New York 
World's Fair, Robert Moses. (Applause.) 

ROBERT MOSES: Mr. Johnson, Mr. Packard, ladies 
and gentlemen — I am always glad to see one of these 
big industrial exhibits get under way. We have lots of 
difficulties here with the other exhibitors — the United 
States government is slow in getting under way, the states 
are necessarily slow because, even after they've signed up 
and appointed commissions, they have to wait for legis- 
latures to meet and provide funds. 

We don't have too much trouble with the amusement 



people. Foreign governments, of course, present unusual 
problems in this particular day and generation. Some of 
us were here in 1936 and 1937 getting this place ready 
for the 1939-1940 Fair. I had charge of the basic im- 
provements here at that time as City Park Commissioner. 
And we know pretty well what the problems are with 
the underground utilities and all that sort of thing. At 
that time Grover Whalen was the head of the Fair, and 
there were relatively few foreign countries and only part 
of them came over here. 

Today we have all these new nations including the 
very new, very ambitious, very sensitive African countries 
who have very little experience in this kind of thing, not 
an awful lot of money, and yet want to put their best feet 
forward and show what they can do. This is an entirely- 
new thing for them and an entirely new thing for us. 

I don't say that these difficulties can't be overcome — 
they will be overcome — but I will say that they are there 
and they have to be reckoned with. Now when we get to 
the big American industries, that's when we're happy, 
because we know when they decide what they want to do, 
that they are experienced and they have the talent to 
design what they want to show. They know what they 



want to put inside of their pavilion, and they go ahead 
in a businesslike way and get done on time. 

That's a great comfort to us. There isn't too much of 
that around here. We have other things to distract our 
attention. You can see the arterial work going on around 
here. Governor Rockefeller said the other day, at Buffalo 
where he was looking at somewhat similar arterial devel- 
opments — bridges and tunnels and that sort of thing — 
that this here in New York, around the Fair, is the most 
complex arterial construction going on anywhere in this 
country, and I would add anywhere. We have to give an 
inordinate amount of attention to the arterial program to 
guarantee its completion on schedule so that it is a great 
thing for us when these industries, responsible to them- 
selves, join us at the Fair. 

Now, without flattering the Johnson company or any 
other big company, it is a fact — something we learned 
from our daily contact with foreign countries — that it 
is American industry that impresses them more than any- 
thing else. Perhaps I ought to say frankly that it impresses 
foreigners more than American government does. They 
are interested in what industry has been able to do under 
our so-called private enterprise system. They admire it. 



They can see what people are driving at. They imitate it. 
They want to equal it. They want to surpass it. 

Now as for your architecture, I think that this building 
Mr. Margulies and his associates are working on is going 
to be a worthy successor to what Frank Lloyd Wright has 
done for Johnson's Wax in his home territory. Cousin 
Frank was a great friend of mine. He was a sort of distant 
relative of my wife's — I inherited him when he came 
to New York. I used to see him, try to bail him out of 
some of his difficulties with the various city officials that 
had to administer the building code. Frank adamantly 
took the position that a building code should yield to 
genius and that he represented genius. And there were 
some various people around New York in the city admin- 
istration who didn't altogether like that description. So 
they used to throw the book at him. I think he had rather 
more troubles than he should have had. 

But he was a remarkable fellow and I wish he were 
around today to work on various buildings here. There- 
is a shortage of people of that kind of talent and genius. 
That's all I have to say, except to welcome you here, and 
to hope that we'll all get together here when the Johnson's 
Wax exhibit opens. 




During the Johnson's Wax groundbreaking ceremonies, president 
of the Fair Robert Moses (center) presented official World's Fan- 
medallions to H. F. Johnson, chairman, and Howard M. Packard, 
president of S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc. 




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JOHNSONS WAX COMPANY 

H. F. JOHNSON - Chairman 

HOWARD M. PACKARD - President 

ROBERT P. GARDINER - Manufacturing Vice President 

J. VERNON STEINLE - Research & Development Vice President 

RAYMOND W. CARLSON - Household Products Division Vice President 

SAMUEL C. JOHNSON - International Division Vice President 

W. C. KIDD — Vice President and Regional Director for Europe, 

Africa and Near East 
HAROLD C. MASON - Treasurer 
KENFORD R. NELSON - Secretory 

EDWARD J. GRANT - Service Products General Manager 
FLOYD K. THAYER - Chemical Division General Manager 
DOUGLAS L. SMITH — Advertising & Merchandising Director, 

Household Products Division 
THOMAS B. MARTIN — Advertising & Merchandising Director, 

Service Products Division 
FLOYD SPRINGER, JR. - Public Relations Director 



NEW YORK WORLDS FAIR 1964-1965 CORPORATION 

Flushing 52, N. Y. Tel. 212-WF 4-1964 

ROBERT MOSES, President 

THOMAS J. DEEGAN, JR., Chairman of the Executive Committee 

WILLIAM E. POTTER, Executive Vice President 

CHARLES POLETTI, Vice President, International Affairs and Exhibits 

STUART CONSTABLE. Vice President, Operations 

WILLIAM A. BERNS, Vice President, Communications and 

Public Relations 
ERWIN WITT, Comptroller 

MARTIN STONE, Director of Industrial Section 

GUY F. TOZZOLI, (Port of New York Authority) Transportation Section 
ERNESTINE R. HAIG, Secretary of the Corporation and 

Assistant to the President 

WILLIAM WHIPPLE, JR., Chief Engineer