Well, for the umpteenth year in a row, I missed the Missouri State Fair, and this time by only a day. And hey, wait a minute, --this Exposition Guide is from 1945?!! Wahhh!! (the actual 2025 MO State Fair ran from August 7th - the 17th, and I missed that one too!) But as the cover of this great old guide states, the 1945 edition ran from August 19th - 26th in Sedalia MO, and featured all sorts of fun hullaballoo to be had by all! Now I know some of you are all into the livestock weights, and corn stalk heights, and the peach cobbler gooeyness, and yeah all of that stuff is okay too. But for me it's all about the non-stop barrage of gaiety, ie: the games and midway rides, car crashin' daredeviltry, thrills 'n chills, and the va-va-va-voom dancin' ladies-- woo hoo! So let's flip through this crispy tattered copy I dug out of a dusty old drawer, shall we? (a desk drawer too, not someone's dusty under drawers!) Wow, will ya look at all that 1940's family fun entertainment!
3 comments:
Missouri is really leaning on the dancing women! Those acts are loved by old folks, strangers, and young folks!
Pole sitting/balancing, I forgot that was a thing but for a short period it really was the rage. Of course, that was in the 20s so it's interesting to see people still doing it!
I don't know if its the same woman, but there was a Ramona, "master of the Cuban ballet" that died just last year.
Sign me up for Thrill Day and the Valentines!
Man that is a gorgeous two-color cover printing design. I love a great fair!
The Missouri State Fair booklet you have is not just state history but a part of World War Two's history. Japan's Emperor announced Japan's surrender on Aug 15, 1945. I can only imagine the feelings the fair attendees felt back then, maybe relief, maybe gratitude the war was over, maybe a hope for a return to normalcy in every day life.
Thanks for posting this mini time capsule of Missouri's past.
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