Author: Easin' Along

It was a quiet week in Knoxville. We enjoyed a few much-needed rain showers, and, as a result, my tomatoes are thriving. I found a new exercise class that meets early in the day in an outdoor pavilion at a local park.  We have an excellent workout before the temperatures begin to soar. Our Tennessee Volunteers baseball team was prepping for a weekend series with Notre Dame for the right to go to the College World Series. Helen had her third chemotherapy treatment and, so far, has not suffered significant side effects. We’re confident that your prayers have helped greatly with that.

Things were so quiet that we decided to load up Dora and head to the mountains for a three-night respite sitting beside the creek in one of our favorite campgrounds in Cherokee, NC.  Helen made the reservation, grabbed a few books and her new puzzle, and we were off. The distance from our home is only 116 miles, and we can make the trip in about two hours in good traffic.

Once there, we pulled out the camping chairs and placed them beside the swiftly running SoCo Creek, swollen from recent rains.  The sound of rushing water is so soothing to the soul.  A raft of ducks swam by us. We counted 18 ducklings in total.  Momma Duck worked hard to keep her brood in tow—somehow, she succeeded, and the family kept us entertained for our entire visit.

I love our mountains and never tire of sitting with them in my view and usually linger long.  My thought process is, “if the mountains don’t feel a need to move, why should I?” On this day, the smoke of the Great Smoky Mountains dipped a little lower than usual, adding some texture to the scene.

Harrah’s Casino, operated by the Cherokee Tribe, is about two miles from the campground and, like a Siren’s song, begins to call Helen around four in the afternoon.  “What the heck, she says; let’s go for Happy Hour!” Helen had a BIG night in the casino, assuring us that she would return on each of the following two days. I had my BIG night two nights later.

We experienced one “uh-oh” during the trip. When I parked the trailer at our campsite, I suppose that I was so excited about a return to camping that I forgot to drop the tailgate before I unhooked—big mistake. The kingpin on the fifth wheel collided with the tailgate and damaged it.  I will have to get a new tailgate…there goes my big night in the casino.

When we checked into Happy Holiday Campground on Monday, the host told us we had to be out of our campsite by 11:00 am Thursday because a weekend Bluegrass Festival would start Thursday night. Campers wanting the best seats placed chairs under the Festival tent beginning on Monday. By Wednesday afternoon, camps were filling fast, and musicians were plucking and strumming everywhere in the campground. We drove out around 10:00 am, and an audience was already in place for the afternoon “Pick and Grin.”

At the end of a quiet week, we left quietly.

I’ve dipped my toes into many different waters in my professional life. Most of those dips were both challenging and rewarding; a couple could be classified simply as a bridge to something better, and I can think of only one that was miserable. Let me tell you about one dip that was as close to pure fun as a person can have.

In 1981, I was completing a short-term project and looking for another opportunity. Around that same time, the pieces of a puzzle that had been under construction in the city of Knoxville for several years were coming together at a rapid pace.  Within about a year, a project that began as a simple idea shared with a few of the right people was about to explode into an experience that ultimately would entertain millions. The project was the 1982 World’s Fair, and I had the good fortune to be a tiny part of it.

A family friend served on the Management Committee and referred me to Fair President Bo Roberts. I was granted an interview with the World’s Fair General Manager and the Executive Vice President of Marketing and Entertainment. Within a few days, I was offered the position of Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Entertainment.

The city of Knoxville faced some challenges in the 1970s.  Many businesses were moving away from the downtown area, leaving vacant storefronts. In the lower Second Creek Valley, a deteriorating railroad yard stood as an ugly eyesore on the edge of downtown. A recession had hit the area hard, and jobs were hard to come by. Knoxville needed a lift.

Similar conditions had existed in Spokane, Washington, before the 1974 World’s Fair held in that city. The success of that Exposition did much to renovate a blighted urban area while pumping $150 million into the local economy. Knoxville officials felt that the same could be done here.  Many others doubted that a scruffy little city (as depicted in the Wall Street Journal) on the banks of the Tennessee River could pull it off, but that only added fuel to the fire. The challenge was on, and by 1981, the Knoxville World’s Fair was well on its way to transforming an idea into an actual happening.

As an employee, my duties were primarily to help coordinate and facilitate the requests from the hundreds of individuals and businesses outside the gates who wanted or accepted a role on the inside. An example would be fielding requests from print publications and other media for World’s Fair advertising. I heard from individuals and groups who wanted to entertain at the Fair.  A representative of talk-show host Larry King called and wanted to bring his show in for a week, although we couldn’t work out the dates. I worked with a television production company who came and filmed a television special soon after the Fair opened. We had an on-site television station designed to inform guests of daily happenings on the Fair site. I was the point person for that project. Glen Campbell taped his television show at the World’s Fair, and I worked with his people, including meeting Glen at the gates and escorting him to the stage.

Helen worked at the Fair also.  Our children were young, and she could only work part-time, but never wanting to be left out, she spent a few hours every day in the ticket booth. 

The gates to the 1982 World’s Fair opened on May 1^st. President Ronald Reagan came to cut the ribbon and welcome the first-day crowd of over 87,000 people. Tennessee native Dinah Shore served as the MC.  Governor (later Senator) Lamar Alexander joined the dignitaries along with Bank President Jake Butcher, the primary supporter of the Exposition.

It was a glorious day in East Tennessee, and the weather was perfect for a successful opening. The crowds continued to come for six months—May 1 to October 31, bringing in over 11 million people, making it one of the most successful World Fairs of all time in terms of attendance.

Fair organizers helped ensure success by securing participation from 22 countries that erected elaborate displays and Pavilions and brought in magnificent exhibits depicting their people and their culture. Among my favorites were China, Canada, Peru, and Egypt (my grandmother’s favorite).

Fair entertainment was non-stop, emanating from the many venues on the site. I had the pleasure of meeting many of the stars.  In addition to Glen Campbell, I rode in an elevator with the great Red Skelton, who was as funny in person as he was on stage.  Jerry Lee Lewis greeted me between acts with a wink and a smile, and countless others have long since faded from memory.

In addition to the excitement from all of the sights and sounds around us was the fascinating collection of people we worked with. The Fair staff was filled with professionals with expertise in almost every endeavor thinkable from the top-down.  People with skills in engineering, finance, marketing, health and safety, transportation, entertainment, food, and retail, came to Knoxville to put their skills to use. The benefits of those skills are still felt in our city today.

Last week, some staff gathered for a 40^th reunion of the 1982 World’s Fair, and Helen and I attended.  It was so good to see everyone who came.  I didn’t recognize a few at first, but I am sure many of the attendees said the same about me. Fair President Bo Roberts addressed the gathering and did a great job summarizing the events leading up to the Fair and listing all that was accomplished. Several in attendance spoke, and all agreed that we had participated in a once-in-a-lifetime event. In the end, everyone came to the same conclusion–We’re so glad we were there!

May the memories live on…