Lee Iacocca presents the Ford Mustang to a group of journalists gathered at the Ford Pavilion of the 1964 World’s Fair in New York.
On this day in 1964, something quite monumental happened that would change the automotive landscape of America. Let us set the stage for you: It’s the World’s Fair in New York. Over one hundred journalists are converging at the fair’s Ford Pavilion, waiting for the Ford Motor Company Vice President Lee Iacocca to present an all-new model from Ford. Believe it or not, it was the first time Ford held an International Press Introduction of a vehicle, with simultaneous presentations happening in Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Austria, and Portugal. Here are some of the highlights from this momentous occasion:
2,000 – Number of reporters, editors, and photographers present throughout the worldwide unveilings
29 million – Household TV screens that were expected to see the Mustang during its first round of prime time commercials following the debut
40 – Percent of the population in 1965 under 20 years of age (they didn’t call it the Baby Boom for nothing). Ford was particularly interested in capturing the imagination of this particular segment with the introduction of the Mustang, and an extremely accessible starting price point was a high priority in appealing to the younger generation as well. Speaking of which…
2,368 – The suggested retail price of a two-door Mustang hardtop with standard equipment at a Detroit dealership
100,000 – Forecasted first-year Mustang sales (under that, in fact)
3 – Months it took Mustang sales to exceed that projection
418,000 – Record-breaking number of Mustangs sold in the first model year
Here are some pictures from the Mustang on display at the World’s Fair in 1964:
Photo source: www.at.ford.com
Here at Holiday Ford, we couldn’t be prouder to sell you the latest iteration of the iconic pony car in the form of the redesigned 2015 Ford Mustang. We’ve also got quite a few great used models in stock for you to look at. Why not celebrate the Mustang’s birthday by taking one out for a test drive this month? You can schedule one here or just stop in!
Sources: Wikipedia and this very cool transcript of Lee Iacocca’s original speech at the 1964 World’s Fair.
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