Knoxville 1982 World’s Fair facts you forgot from Dolly Parton to the NFL
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Back in 1982, the “world came to Knoxville.”
From May 1 until October, more than 11 million people from across the globe embraced the cultures of 22 countries right here in Knoxville for the World’s Fair.
Visitors enjoyed live entertainment, parades, exhibits, musical and sporting events, food, costumes, rides, games and arcades.
As we celebrate its 40th anniversary, let’s take a walk down memory lane and remember what made the fair special.
Inspired by gas shortages and price spikes
Planning for the 1982 World’s Fair began in the wake of the 1970s energy crisis when much of the Western world faced petroleum shortages and increased prices — an issue we’re again grappling with in 2022.
Organizers believed Knoxville would be the perfect place for the world to develop solutions to the dwindling fossil fuels issue while also celebrating different cultures.
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Why? East Tennessee was home to the headquarters for one of the country’s largest power suppliers, the Tennessee Valley Authority, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and major energy researcher the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Officially known as the Knoxville International Energy Exposition, the World’s Fair theme was “Energy Turns the World.”
What it cost to attend the 1982 World’s Fair
Ticket prices to attend the fair, located in World’s Fair Park in downtown Knoxville, were $8.25 for children under 11, $9.95 for people 12-54, and those 55 and older got a 70-cent discount at $9.25.
More than 11 million people attended the exhibition before it wrapped.
About $46 million in bonds helped fund the fair. The city paid off this debt in May 2007, two years early.
‘The travel event of the year’
Knoxville was one of the smallest American cities to host a World’s Fair, but plenty of visitors came to Knoxville for the fair.
In July 1982, attendance surpassed the total attendance of the 1974 World’s Fair in Spokane, which drew 5.25 million people. In October 1982, Knoxville’s attendance surpassed the 9.63 million people who attended Seattle’s 1962 World’s Fair.
The Travel Industry Association of America named it “the outstanding travel event” of 1982.
NFL played at Neyland Stadium
The fair hosted several sporting events, including outdoor track championships, United States Canoe Association’s Canoe and Kayak Invitational, and even an NFL exhibition game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots at Neyland Stadium.
That game drew a record-breaking crowd of 93,251 and the Steelers won 24-20.
Fair organizer Jake Butcher attended the game and was pleased by its turnout and that day’s fair attendance of more than 63,000 people.
“We’ve got a new Knoxville, we’ve got a new image—a new sense of pride,” he told the Knoxville News Sentinel at the time.
Inventions and marvels
Although, the Rubik’s Cube was released a few years prior, Knoxville helped usher in the 80s Rubik’s craze when Hungary gifted a 10-foot tall, motorized Rubik’s Cube to be displayed at then entrance of its World’s Fair pavilion.
A touch screen computer made its debut at the fair, and so did an early version of the cordless phone.
Coca-Cola began testing Cherry Coke and other flavors at the fair.
Presidents, princes and Dolly
Several famous faces and heads of state enjoyed Knoxville and the fair.
President Ronald Reagan opened the fair and former president Jimmy Carter visited a few months later.
Bob Hope celebrated his 79th birthday at the fair, Dolly Parton performed and boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard was a visitor.
Even Crown Prince of Jordan Hassan bin Talal graced Knoxville with his royal presence.
PEZ swag and the top knot
There’s no shortage of weird and random facts about the World’s Fair.
In 2006, a PEZ candy dispenser with an astronaut’s head and “1982 World’s Fair Knoxville, Tennesse” written on the side sold on eBay for $32,305.
And yes, the state name is misspelled on the dispenser.
An all-purpose fishing knot named the “World’s Fair Knot” was the winner of Dupont’s Best New Knot contest after 498 entries. It got its name after creator Gary L. Martin debuted the knot at Knoxville World’s Fair.
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