Men in Black's Flying Saucers: The New York State Pavilion

One of the traits that make Universal Studios stand out is that they'll often recreate real buildings and areas from around the world. Tucked back in the corner of the park, is the New York State Pavilion. To many, they’re just the flying saucers from Men in Black, which is fitting for the exterior of a Men in Black ride. However, those towers are so much more than that. They're an iconic piece of New York City, and today we're going to explore its history.
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[@rodakscreens]

"The New York Skate Pavilion" is quite possibly the best portmanteau I've ever heard

[@UmmYeahOk]

Our local skating rink, which opened in 1980, is next to the interstate. It’s called Interskate. 😆 I don’t think anyone really calls it that though. Everyone just calls it “the skating rink.”

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

Of course it was used as part of the Stark Expo, now that’s a more fitting role for it but its role in Men in Black is still fun. Glad the map was saved and the state does actually care about it by planning to restore it

[@AveryTalksAboutStuff]

I love Universal's pavilion designs. Being from a proud Irish family, my mom and I always enjoy the Irish subsection of the old new york pavilion.

[@anthonyruggeri8901]

Omg I literally just looked up ur channel to see if there was a new video, and as I do the notification pops up. Perfect Timing

[@edvaira6891]

My Grandma lived in Flushing so I got to visit the park all throughout the 70’s and 80’s...it was a bit gritty and sad looking, but SO WAS ALL OF QUEENS back then! I didn’t care! I thought it was just SO VERY COOL and it was probably what got me fascinated with Worlds Fairs and really excited once Epcot opened--A Worlds Fair that WASNT going to go away and that I wasn’t born too late for! I’ve since visited the former sites of no fewer than four other Worlds Fairs (Seattle, Spokane, Knoxville and New Orleans) and two Expos (67 in Montreal and 86 in Vancouver) and have generally loved the experience of just seeing what was left behind and imagining what was there,

[@i_am_the_wallace]

AHHH Rob's face!

[@MidwaytoMainStreet]

AHHH It's back!

[@edvaira6891]

Nice to see you back on camera, Rob!

[@lohphat]

Doing a vid on the other pavilions would be cool too. You had a brief shot of the Tower of the Four Winds designed by Disney attraction Imagineer Rolly Crump who is a topic all its own.

[@bainr6856]

Great as always, Rob! Never knew the history of "those flying saucers."

[@UmmYeahOk]

4:29 You would not believe how annoyed I used to be not being able to find my town on a map. You see, to be on a map meant you lived somewhere. If you weren’t on a map, you lived in the middle of literally “no where.” It’s sort of how they made a big deal when Radiator Springs showed up on the map. But what annoyed me the most about living “no where,” was the fact that there were lots of places with have the population, that were on the map. We had enough people to be classified as a city, but these po dunk villages were on the map and we weren’t. By the time we finally made it on regular maps, everyone started using navigation systems and smart phones, so it was pointless, as everything was there. But I do remember when the first online satellite imaging showed up in the early aughts. Most of my town had images. I was super excited. Then I got to my neighborhood... ...a black square. I still lived “no where.”

[@joshdominguez6324]

Loved this video. I was always interested in the pavilion and the towers and why it was let to waste. I live in Southern California so I could only visit the site via the internet but at the end of 2018 I got to go to NYC. I didn’t think about the pavilion because we only be in Manhattan. To by surprise I got to quickly stop by and visit because we were coming from the Long Island Airport and it was on our way to Manhattan.

[@seanseanseanseansean]

This video had some great research in it. Thanks for making it.

[@Gardenlodge4691]

Yesterday was my first time visiting Flushing Meadows for the US Open and when I saw these “saucer towers” I immediately thought of MIB!! 😄 I was asking my family if they remembered the movie and none of them did. 🤦🏽‍♀️ So I had to find a good explanation on YT & this video is perfect! ☺️ I never knew the history of the World’s Fair. Thank you for this fascinating info!! 😊🛸 🌎

[@Rose258V]

Adam the Woo just made a video showing some of the remnants of the world’s fair and it reminded me of your wonderful video! 😊

[@Nighthawk1000]

I always pass those and my parents always told me they were flying saucers and then they told me how it was part of the world's fair. It's always nice going into a video and already knowing what its about.

[@awesomedez]

Great job researching all of this. I didn’t know I would be interested in this.

[@kevinmanmc]

Great seeing it all on the way to watching the LOLMets on a summer night

[@liamb.9964]

WOW! that video was awesome. Keep up the good work Rob. I'm thinking about joining your Patreon and would love to have the money to be able to. I've been watching your videos for the past tree years about i think and they've all been AWESOME. God Bless. Liam Boda. PS. Who could have given your video a dislike. I thought it was great, And if this video had an emoji to describe it we all know this would be it. 💥---------🔫😎 You make this look good.

[@shanestuddard3749]

This was absolutely FASCINATING. Thank you, Rob!!

[@merrivideo]

great to see you again

[@wdwnutjm]

Fun video! And thanks for adding the little "Midway to Main Street" music & logo at the beginning - we missed that when you first changed the channel name.

[@SaturnCanuck]

Hey! Old guys! Do these still work? Seriously, thanks for this history of this icon.

[@kellibertelsman1191]

Great video. Interesting information!

[@mojosa1182]

Amazing as always! BTW, OMG, you bought one of those $6 Coke bottles?!

[@cannibalisticrequiem]

I just had a thought of what my paternal grandmother (my dad's mom) would've thought about the 1964 World's Fair in New York, as she grew up in Buffalo, but then I remembered that she wouldn't have seen it as by 1964 she was already living here in San Diego, married to my grandfather, and had my uncles and my father by then.

[@IanTMcFarland]

Much love, Rob - but I think you meant to say Ellsworth Kelly, not Kenny.

[@Zerocool13xx]

Awesome job on the new video!

[@Taydar]

I can see why it would find it hard to compete with the other pavilions.

[@ppl2luv]

i pass the “flying saucers” a lot. they look really run down and rusted. it’s a shame

[@loganmosher5935]

Save New York's Flying Saucers

[@fcontitwo]

⚡️As a teen I attended the ‘NY-World’s Fair’ and it was absolutely “Fresh” !!! ✨🇺🇸🎭⚡️😎✌🏼⚡️#DisneyReigns 💐⚡️

[@RRM_Personal]

Kinda sad you didn't touch on the music video for They Might Be Giants' song "Don't Let's Start", other great vid!

[@MinoTheShow]

Yeah, that’s definitely where I know the map from

[@Bobby10241]

Cool stuff

[@brianolson6366]

Robert Moses 25 times, I laughed so hard at that

[@ottot3221]

To be historically correct, this self proclaimed "world's fair" isn't part of the real world fairs with that name. But it sure was a cool one.

[@carminecostello]

Interesting video- It was nice to see you in the video as well...🙂

[@JimmyGoodYT]

Trying to recall if we saw a glimpse of it in "Tomorrowland" the film as well? Regardless, great video Rob!

[@missybarbour6885]

Feeling homesick for NYC, Rob? lol

[@Millard.Fillmore]

The pavilion is a perfectly sad metaphor for the State itself.

[@Delirious365]

Cool video 🎬👀💯✔

[@Marylandbrony]

I would be quite disappointed that the theaterama didn't have a futruama show. Both the original form the 1939 fair and the Fox animated sitcom about the delivery company.

[@realamerican5016]

They need to go all the way and restore it completely open to the public map on the floor plastic things for ceiling. I mean seriously get on it guys if you can't raise money for that then what can you raise money for?

[@Atmblack03]

Was the map and building the one also seen in the show Mr. Robot?

[@MidwaytoMainStreet]

Looking into it, it appears to be a different map. That map from the show is a scale model of New York City that currently resides in the Queen's Museum. It, too, was built for the 1964 NY World's Fair, but it was built for the New York City pavilion. (The fair had both a New York State and New York City pavilion.)

[@Inazarab]

I wish they would do something with it. Every time I drive by I always think what a waste.

[@ChristopherCruz-ks8jz]

Why are they still unfinished?

[@brainysmurf74]

The disintegration of the pavilion just sums up the lack of care America and nyc has for its own legacy and history. I wonder if britain would let big ben/clock tower or tower bridge fall down into ruin in such a manner.

[@UmmYeahOk]

Umm... ...didn’t they have a whole song about that bridge falling down? ...like, repeatedly? And didn’t they eventually sell the bridge to a US developer? But the thing is, they took care of their monuments because they always were in use. They always needed/used that bridge. They always needed/used that clock. World fair pavilions are like the olympics, in that things are mostly built for that one purpose, then sadly, discarded, regardless of how much money was spent, how many homeless they could house. Heck, the Eiffel Tower was only to be temporary. Originally the citizens hated it. Worlds fair is over, now what? How would the N.Y. pavilion help it’s citizens? Would it draw tourism? Could is house something more? Looks like they tried, but never really could find a long term use for it. Great Britain also has its own issues with historical monuments... ...everything is so old. Everything has history. But if you try to save everything, you can’t build anything new. So I’m not sure what the best solution is. What we as Americans consider old and historic, they see as only being a few decades old, built for one purpose, then abandoned. They wouldn’t save Flushing. They would probably build brand new skyscrapers, choosing some other area to be preserved instead.

[@nt4382]

@@UmmYeahOk Umm yeah ok but there have been bridges at the London Bride site for about 2,000 years so as you can imagine a fair few of them have fallen down. Its current version was opened in 1973. Tower Bridge is a different bridge at a different place and while slightly older than the current London Bridge I still fairly new - only 126 years old.

[@jamesrael9557]

Tell the noobs what Cinerama was!!! Full episode, please.

[@marriedGary]

I have to hit “like” because it’s Rob, but it’s not Disney soooooo....

[@UmmYeahOk]

He talks about the mini Disneyland at the fair for a few seconds to keep our attention.

[@abrandenburg10]

THE FACE RETURNS

[@rep4280]

lmaoo i live there

[@gregmartell1235]

Rob! you know Disney sponsor by Marvel and Star wars but what about anime and why disney keep fallen about anime.

[@UmmYeahOk]

I think they just have a contract with Studio Ghibli, which puts out a lot. Disney doesn’t own them like they do Marvel and Lucasfilm. They only have distribution rights. But it’s still a large share of US animé releases. I think FUNimation is #2.

[@katherinealvarez9216]

Huh, cool.

[@bretz9276]

Dude so much to decode

[@circomnia9984]

Wait so...they're NOT flying saucers?!? Really?!? But....if they're not real flying saucers....how did the alien manage to get in and fly it?!? You even showed him crashing it after he got shot down!!! You're lying!!!

[@holdenmendez7320]

First

[@CPar926]

Holden Mendez Second

[@Xboxplayerpinoy]

Thirst

[@dylanalgate8130]

Thats what they want you to think… jk jk

[@give_me_my_nick_back]

the world fair seams to be like the best concept ever far more interesting than olympics and such, i'd love to go ther had it still evisted and were a rotating event, I mean had it been anywhere in the EU i'd have no excuses of fare money being a problem, i'd go there no 2nd thoughts edit: short google later it does still exist apparently but it is scalled down and watered down so much that it no longer interests anyone...