TV and DVD
Here's a list of some of the shows I have helped create or have appeared on.
This page only lists my world's fair-related projects. For more details on my other work please visit my site billcotter.com.
Here's a list of some of the shows I have helped create or have appeared on.
This page only lists my world's fair-related projects. For more details on my other work please visit my site billcotter.com.
The 1964-65 New York World's Fair comes back to life in this documentary that combines archival footage, along with interviews with those who created key attractions at the fair. Discover little-known fair connections to some of the best known names in entertainment. See how Walt Disney used the fair to prepare the east coast for his brand of themed entertainment. Then learn how the legacy of the fair lives on all around us today in our technology, pop culture, and ideology. Hear from Iron Man director Jon Favreau, Men in Black director Barry Sonnenfeld, and Disney legends Bob Gurr and Rolly Crump on the wide-ranging influence of the fair. Its a light-hearted journey for the whole family through the history, and present-day impact of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair!
I am one of the people interviewed in the film. I also supplied many of the photos.
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This special ran on Turner Classic Movies several times in December, 2008. I was interviewed about Disney's early live-action films and television series. It was great to be associated with some of the celebrities and crew who worked on so many of these memorable films.
I appeared in the episode "Worlds of Amusement" and discussed early roller coasters, Coney Island, theme parks, Disneyland, and world's fairs. I also supplied pictures and film footage. The episode first aired on October 6, 2015.
I supplied pictures of the Hertz "Corvette" strollers used at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair.
A rare "Escorter" from the 1964 World s Fair scoots into the shop for a restoration. Will Rick and the crew give this vintage vehicle a restoration that out of this world or will it be a world-class flop?
My love of world's fairs paid off in an unexpected way when I was asked to consult on the film Iron Man 2. Part of the action revolves around a clue that was possibly hidden at "Stark Expo 74", a fictitious fair that bears an amazing resemblance to the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair, and at a newer fair. I contributed the photographs used to create these fictitious fairs, suggestions on how some of the attractions might have looked, and what items you might have found in a fair designer's studio.
Filmmaker Matthew Silva created a wonderful look at the New York State Pavilion from the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, tracing it from the glory days of the Fair through it's current status as an empty ruin. His film has helped raise public awareness of the pavilion, which is currently (2015) being painted for the first time in decades. I supplied pictures of the pavilion and was one of the people interviewed in the film. On May 22, 2015 I was part of a panel at the world premiere of the film in New York.
Bound by a shared destiny, a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor jaded by disillusionment embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory as "Tomorrowland."
The film starts at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. I supplied the reference photos used to recreate the Fair, and consulted on a variety of items such as costume design, prop pieces, vehicles, etc. My work on the film was mentioned in the New York Times and at the D23 event in November, 2014.
