Vol. 5, No. 9, September 2008
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Breaking Convention
In 1964, all eyes turned to Atlantic City, site of the Democratic National Convention. Unfortunately, it wasn't a pretty sight.
Those dates heralded mostly positive changes. A less happy turning point came in August 1964, when the Democratic National Convention focused national attention on the city—to its detriment.
Paradoxically, the Democrats were lured to the shore by Republican State Senator Frank S. “Hap” Farley. The ’64 convention was part of Farley’s master plan to lure both parties’ ’68 conventions to town and thus solidify Atlantic City as a convention hub.
Though the New York Times had dismissed Atlantic City as “Coney Island with illusions of grandeur,” city boosters hoped the convention would re-introduce the resort to thousands of visitors.
Construction on the expressway was nearly finished, Convention Hall had a new $2 million air conditioning system, and new motels were ready to open. “Everything possible will be done to encourage lengthy visits,” said a news report of the time, “including politeness on the part of waiters, waitresses, chambermaids, bellhops, taxicab drivers, and other service employees.”
More than 80 volunteers greeted arriving delegates at the region's airports, bus stations, and train depots. Throughout the town, hawkers sold candy bars, cuff links and cowboy hats (a nod to President Lyndon Baines Johnson, a Texan), candy jars. Spirits were running high.
The convention got off to good start. Though Johnson dominated the proceedings, his predecessor, John F. Kennedy, assassinated just months earlier, was still a presence. New Jersey Governor Richard Hughes had just unveiled a bronze bust of JFK, sculpted by Evangelos Frudakis of Ventnor, on the Boardwalk in front of Convention Hall.
A notable moment during the convention was the speech by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy lionizing the slain president, his brother. Before RFK could say a word, the audience erupted in 20 minutes of uninterrupted applause. It was the convention's emotional high point, and a moment that onlookers remembered decades later.
The greatest dramas of the convention involved the selection of the vice president (ultimately, Senator Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota) and a battle over the Mississippi delegation.
At that time, the Mississippi Democratic Party was segregated, so black Mississippians formed the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. This integrated political group sent 64 delegates by bus to the national convention, but after the Democrats refused to unseat the “regular” Mississippi delegation, MFDP delegates remained to draw attention to racial inequities.
Their appearance was a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement; soon the Voting Rights Act—championed by President Johnson—would open the door to greater black participation in politics, which in turn fostered the integration of political parties throughout the South.
But it soon became apparent that the convention was not an economic success. A local shopkeeper said business had “dropped like an elevator”; business overall was down by as much as half.
Worse, the national media was disenchanted with Atlantic City. Poor accommodations, bad service and high prices infuriated delegates and irritated reporters. One California delegate said her hotel was “dirty and falling apart.” Newspaper and magazine coverage of the convention sent the message that the city was similarly worn.
In a sense, the 1964 convention was a necessary step before Atlantic City’s revival. It demonstrated without question that the city had deteriorated and needed to chart a new path. Within a decade, most residents would agree that casino gaming alone could save the resort.
But before the city could head up, it had to reach bottom. So the 1964 Democratic National Convention deserves a place in Atlantic City history alongside those other, happier landmarks
