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.
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?
I supplied pictures of Escorters in use at the Fair to aid in the restoration process and for use on the show.
From Gertie the Dinosaur to Jurassic Park, this 2-hour TV special explores dinosaurs' impact on pop culture..
I supplied pictures of the Ford pavilion at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair for a sequence featuring the Disney dinosaurs at the Fair.
Peek beyond the magic of Disney Parks to discover what’s Behind the Attraction! From Executive Producers Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia and Brian Volk-Weiss, explore how Imagineers filled the Haunted Mansion with 999 happy haunts, how the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror™ transformed into Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! (while defying gravity in the process) and why Space Mountain took so long to launch. From the 1950s to today, from Jungle Cruise to “it’s a small world” to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disney Parks attractions have amazed millions. And this is the story of how they did it.
I appear in five episodes of this Disney+ series and also supplied reference photos and other research material.
Chicago famously has a sweet tooth, and why wouldn’t it? For much of the twentieth century, Chicago reigned supreme as the “Candy Capital of the World.” From Cracker Jack and M&Ms, to Snickers and Lemon Heads, many of the world’s most well-known sweets originated in the city. At its peak, 100 Chicago candy companies, including Wrigley, Mars, and Ferrara produced a third of all candy in the United States and employed more than 25,000 people. But however all-American this world of confection may appear, it was immigrants who came to Chicago in the nineteenth century who helped mold the industry.
WTTW in Chicago produced this documentary on Chicago's history as a candy producing center. I contributed vintage photos and videos. The show can be seen at https://interactive.wttw.com/chicago-stories/candy-capital.
And now a page from our “Sunday Morning” Almanac: November 13th, 1930, 86 years ago today ... the day the dairy industry experienced a genuine turn-around. For that was the day an experimental dairy farm in Plainsboro, N.J., owned by the Borden Company, inaugurated the “Rotolactor.” Best described as a bovine merry-go-round, the rotolactor could mechanically wash and milk 50 cows in just twelve-and-a-half minutes. Borden put a rotolactor on display at the New York World’s Fair in 1939. The story goes that when fairgoers kept asking which of the cows was “Elsie,” Borden’s advertising mascot, the company plucked a Jersey named You’ll Do Lobelia from the herd and cast her in the part.
I supplied historial photos for this segment titled "Almanac: The automatic cow milking machine". It can be seen at https://www.cbsnews.com/news/almanac-the-automatic-cow-milking-machine/.
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.
"Leisurama" is the story of a little pre-fabricated house, stocked with everything a person could need (except light bulbs)to walk in and begin a happy life, which started out at the 1964 NY World's Fair, and was eventually sold at Macy's! Along the way, you'll find out about the cold war, the World's Fair, the struggles of architects to have their project taken seriously and the fates of those homeowners who invested in a Leisurama home.
I contributed photos and research material from the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. The film is available online on Vimeo.
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.
From the Cutting Room Floor to Your Living Room! During the production of Star Trek: The Original Series, bits and pieces of footage were left on the cutting room floor, then stored away in film cans for decades by the Gene Roddenberry Estate. Now, in celebration of the show’s 50th Anniversary, The Roddenberry Vault has finally been opened. Along with 12 of their favorite episodes, fans can see and own behind-the-scenes footage from the making of the series as well as alternate takes, deleted scenes, omitted dialogue, outtakes, and original visual FX elements.
I've been a Star Trek fan ever since it was first aired, and was lucky to meet a number of the cast and crew as I interviewed them for articles in Starlog magazine or at various events. Over the years I've collected the books, the tapes, the DVDs, the Blu-Rays, etc. - just like any good fan would. Thus, it was a special thrill to see my name on a Star Trek project. I supplied several world's fair images for a section on influences on Star Trek designs.
This segment was part of an ongoing series syndicated to television stations for a "This Date in History" piece. I was interviewed by a team in Chicago and discussed the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair, which had opened on April 22, 1964. I had actually taped this many months before from the CBS News studios in Los Angeles. It was my first experience doing a "live remote" talking to unseen hosts back in the studio. It's not as easy as the pros make it look.
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.
The simple question, 'What happened to the World's Fair?' launches a journey that uncovers the sorted past, present, and future of the United State's role in the largest global event in human history.
I am one of the people interviewed in the film. I also supplied a number of photos.
