"Expo 67": What's in a Name?

Nowadays, it's commonplace for a world exhibition to call itself "Expo". Interestingly,  the appellation actually originated at Montreal's Expo 67.

In an email correspondence, Yves Jasmin recalls how the name came to be:

'The official name was "The 1967 Universal and International Exhibition in Montréal / L'Exposition universelle et internationale de 1967 à Montreal". A bit of a mouthful. It needed a more convenient name.'

"World's Fair" would have been the obvious choice, but the organizers of Montreal's exhibition did not want to call it a "fair".  Yves explains:

'The New York World’s Fair (1964-65) was in full swing and fairs have a commercial overtone while the Montreal event was thematic and NOT a fair.'

He goes on to credit Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau for the idea of "Expo 67":

'Mayor Drapeau suggested the name "Expo 67", recalling a 1937 Maurice Chevalier song "La p'tite dame de l'Expo", a girlfriend he had met at the spectacular 1937 "specialized" exhibition [Les Arts et Métiers] in Paris.  Drapeau's suggestion carried unanimity.'

Yves stresses that "Expo 67" had a chilly reception from the English press:

'I waged a three-year battle with the Gazette and the Montreal Star who fought hard to get Expo to change its name to 'Montreal World's Fair'.  For two of those years we were in direct conflict with the New York World's Fair, still the Montreal English speaking journalists fought "Expo" tooth and nail, saying that "Expo'' sounded like a new brand of cigarette, that "Expo" did not convey the significance of an exhibition, etc.'

The legacy of the word "Expo" would be assured in 1970, as Yves explains:

'When Japan had its 1970 World Exhibition, they asked our permission to call it "Expo 70". It was a very gracious move on their part. We didn't even have the creative rights of the name. And now Expo has become a household word all over the world'...

UPDATE (02-27): Some readers have commented that the Brussels exhibition in 1958 had also called itself "Expo".  Perhaps I was getting ahead of myself when stating that the term was "invented" for 1967.  "Expo" as a diminutive of "exposition" in French was nothing new by 1967, but the universal acceptance of the word in the English language remains attributable to Expo 67. 

Yves Jasmin quotes culled from John Whelan's Expo 67 website.

images: (top) alamedainfo.com

(bottom) library and archives Canada

Expo 67 Special Passes

A general press pass was to be on Yves "at all times while on Expo 67 property".

As director of public relations at Expo 67, Yves Jasmin had certain privileges and special accesses during the summer of '67.

A number of special passes identified Yves and ensured these privileges.

Click on the images to see both sides of the cards.

"Lock your car" was inscribed on the back of this parking pass.

This pass granted free entry to the Expo 67 site for Yves and his guests.

An admission pass to the Air Canada pavilion and its lounge.

Yves' Automotive Stadium press pass did not necessarily "entitle him to a seat".

Yves' Expo Club membership card was "not valid for credit".

images: private collection

Happy Birthday, Yves Jasmin!

Today, February 27th, is Yves Jasmin's birthday!

Happy birthday, Yves, from the Expo Lounge!

Yves Jasmin, O.C.

Yves Jasmin was Director of Public Relations, Marketing and Communications for Expo 67. By the time Mr. Jasmin was hired for Expo, he had already worked for such prestigious institutions as The National Film Board of Canada, Molson Breweries and Air Canada, to name a few.

A brochure that beckoned, "Make your plans now to be there".

Yves Jasmin's job was not easy. In it's earliest stages, Expo 67 was not kindly received by the press or the general public. Montreal and Toronto newspapers ridiculed it, predicting that it would cost loads of money, and that it would surely flop... Mr. Jasmin recalls 14-hour days and a minuscule budget to try to convince foreign countries to participate by building pavilions, and to attract the millions of visitors Expo 67 would need to become a success. This was no small feat!

An information kiosk at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel, 1964.

History tells us Expo 67 was an enormous success that came to represent the golden years of Montreal mega-projects. Yves Jasmin received the Order of Canada in 1968 for his contribution to Expo. In 1997, he released La petite histoire d'Expo 67, a book that chronicles how, in his words, Expo rose out of the St. Lawrence river "like Botticelli's Venus". His book, like my blog, serves to keep the legacy of Expo alive in our collective memory. Needless to say, I've read it over and over...

In 2004, I contacted Mr. Jasmin. We've met on several occasions, and I am proud to consider him a personal friend. Last October, I did a 2-hour interview with him for John Whelan's Expo 67 website.

Click here for the web page.

An autograph and a photo with Yves Jasmin.



images: (1) Yves Jasmin's personal collection
(2) daryl.chin.gc.ca (3) expo67.ncf.ca
(4-5-6) author's personal collection