Kodak
Exterior of the Kodak Bubble as viewed from across the Theme Stream.
Compared to some of the commercial exhibitors at Expo ‘74, Kodak had it easy. They did not need to apologize for the environmental impact of photography, and the fair was exactly the kind of event that would encourage amateur shutterbugs to use (and buy) plenty of film. The company tied into the environmental theme by asserting that photography “assists man to understand the world’s environmental problems.” All they had to do was show off a few stunning nature photos taken with Kodak film and they were good to go.
From the (Official Souvenir Program)?":
EASTMAN KODAK PAVILION
A soft-shelled, air-supported structure of alternate panels of “Kodak red and Kodak yellow” fashions the 4,000 sw. ft. pavilion of Eastman Kodak Company on an 8,000 sq. ft. site. The pavilion is constructed of heavy-duty nylon, supported by air and “four main posts.” It consists of a theatre serving 225 film viewers who will see their environment in the international language of photography.
In addition to photography, which assists man to understand the world’s environmental problems, 15 Kodak employees will be on hand to answer visitors’ questions regarding film, cameras, and other aspects of photography.
Back of postcard reads, “EASTMAN KODAK air-supported “bubble” theater seats 200 fair-goers for a movie on environment. The theater, of plastic-impregnated fabric, is adjoined by a diamond-shaped structure in which the Expo visitors can await entrance to the movie. Experts will advise fair-goers on their photography questions. The exhibit occupies 4,000 square feet.”
While the postcard featuring the Kodak Bubble promises “a movie on environment,” the official program just says that fair-goers will “see their environment in the international language of photography.” An issue of Kodak Photonews (74-2) clarifies that the Kodak theater will host “continuous showings of an eight-minute multi-image slide spectacular entitled Know the Land and the People… Through Photography.” According to a press release, this presentation “samples the splendor and the personality of the Northwest through the regional photographers who know it best” and was accompanied by a ballad written specifically for the presentation, guitar music, and a song performed by Kodak’s employee chorus, “The Total Sound.” (If anyone has access to any of this music, please get in contact with me!)
