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Robert
Moses speaks
out on the B.I.E.:
"Most of the foreign
nations are coming in, either officially or through quasi-official
business and other official interests. We are not members of
the Bureau of International Expositions, can't be without a treaty
proposed by the President and approved by the Senate, and could
not in any event subscribe to the peculiar rules of this curious
organization. This has proven only a minor embarrassment, to
the disappointment of the Gloomy Gusses who prophesied that without
the B.I.E. we would never get off the ground."
-Progress
Report #6 of the New York World's Fair Corporation September
12, 1962
"You have heard much
about our difficulties with the Bureau of International Expositions
in Paris, the so-called B.I.E. This controversy has been grossly
distorted. The facts are really quite simple and are perhaps
worth repeating once more in view of the continuance of mis-statements:
- The New York World's Fair
Corporation is under public auspices on city park land enjoying
tax exemption as a non-profit educational enterprise.
- It must run two years,
that is two seasons.
- The World's Fair Corporation
cannot join the B.I.E. except by a treaty authorized by Congress
at the instance of the President.
- No such action is even
remotely thinkable.
- The New York World's Fair
of 1939-1940 repeatedly assured the B.I.E. at that time that
we would join, but never did.
- In the case of this Fair,
the B.I.E. was told frankly that we could not join.
- The B.I.E. attempted to
"outlaw" the 1964-1965 Fair but did not succeed. Some
B.I.E. countries refused to exhibit as such, but almost all are
in the Fair under private or quasi public auspices.
- The absentees unfortunately
include the United Kingdom and Canada, but the Fair will get
along without them.
Let me add that Canada
has been authorized by the B.I.E. to hold a world exposition
in 1967 and has made some rather flamboyant, premature announcements."
-Progress
Report #7 of the New York World's Fair Corporation January 24,
1963
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