You might think that ’smart mobs’ are a 21st century phenomenon. But think again. Back in 1939, thousands of people gathered around Elektro, a talking robot built by Westinghouse, at the New York World’s Fair.

So if you happen to be around Ohio this coming fall, don’t miss an exhibit at the Mansfield Memorial Museum featuring the 7-foot-tall Elektro, the oldest U.S. robot with its 65 years. “Elektro is the only survivor of a group of eight robots created by Westinghouse in Mansfield between 1931 to 1940 for several hundred thousand dollars each,” according to this article from the Plain Dealer, Cleveland (free reg. is sometimes necessary).

Back in 1939, Elektro was able to walk, talk, raise and lower his arms, turn his head and move his mouth as he spoke. It used a 78-rpm record player to simulate conversation and had a vocabulary of more than 700 words.Thousands of people enjoyed Elektro at the New York World’s Fair in 1939.

It even appeared in a long-time forgotten movie, “Sex Kittens Go to College,” also known as “The Beauty and the Robot.” This overview contains other details, references and pictures.

You might think that ’smart mobs’ are a 21st century phenomenon. But think again. Back in 1939, thousands of people gathered around Elektro, a talking robot built by Westinghouse, at the New York World’s Fair.
So if you happen to be around Ohio this coming fall, don’t miss an exhibit at the Mansfield Memorial Museum featuring [...]