At the Carl Fisher House, 1960s Montauk Is Alive and Well

This summer, the Montauk Historical Society is turning back the clock to 1965 in an immersive, interactive exhibition that celebrates the iconic Leisurama development in Montauk’s Culloden Shores neighborhood.

Created by noted architect Andrew Geller and superstar designer Raymond Loewy, and furnished entirely by Macy’s, the houses were intended as second homes that would be eminently affordable to the average middle-class family. The idea was conceived during the early years of the Kennedy Administration, and it is very much wedded to that era through its architecture as well as its postwar optimism and affluence.

“The Leisurama development was so emblematic of its time in history,” said Kathryn Curran, executive director of the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation, which provided a generous grant for the exhibition. “It was an affirmation of the American Dream, wrapped up in a clean, practical, mid-century modern design.”

Perhaps as striking as the houses themselves was the innovative way in which they were originally marketed: Full-scale models were built on the 9th floor of Macy’s Herald Square, at Roosevelt Field, at the 1964-1965 World’s Fair, and on the Plaza in Montauk. In the words of architect William Morgan, “the Leisurama story is rarely told without some tale of a woman going to Herald Square to buy a bra and coming home with a house instead.”

There were approximately 200 Leisurama houses built in the Culloden Shores development next to the Block Island Sound, most of which remain to this day. Several others dot the Montauk neighborhoods of Hither Hills, Ditch Plains, and Montauk Downs. Originally boasting an all-inclusive starting price of $12,990, Leisuramas now sell for well over one hundred times that price. This past June, a modernized “expanded convertible” model (original base price: $15,990) sold for $2.2 million.

Last October the Montauk Historical Society was gifted all the original furniture from a Leisurama that had been in one family since the house was built in 1965.

“We knew people would love to see all this amazing stuff, but we weren’t quite sure how we could showcase it,” said Mia Certic, MHS executive director. “And then we thought — why not recreate the Macy’s experience right in the great room of the Carl Fisher House? It’ll be like crossing a threshold into 1965.”

Certic gathered a team of specialists to turn the plan into reality, including graphic designer Diane Sheridan, film and TV professional Mara Certic and Brooklyn-based cinematographer Marcin Kapron, who did the lighting design and installation. A mid-1960s soundtrack sets the tone for visitors as they enter the sprawling 1920s Dutch Colonial residence that Carl Fisher, developer of Miami Beach, built for himself in Montauk when he was hoping to turn the hamlet into the “Miami Beach of the North.”

An enormous elevation “blueprint” of a Leisurama leads visitors into the kitchen of a Culloden Shores home, where a shopping bag on the counter overflows with 1960s grocery products. The visit continues through the open-plan dining room and living room, as a vintage TV plays scenes from shows and commercials of the era, complete with “snow” to represent the terrible television reception that was all Montauk could offer in those days. There are records on the portable record player, packs of cigarettes on the side tables, Mickey Mantle’s pictures on the walls of the son’s bedroom and the Beatles on the walls of the daughter’s.

“We wanted it to feel as though this were the home of a real family who had just stepped out for a little while,” said Certic, who now lives year-round in the Leisurama her family bought as a summer home in 1965. Oral histories, accessed via vintage princess telephones, help to flesh out the idea of what it was like to grow up spending summers in Montauk back in the days when land here was cheap and plentiful and largely undiscovered by tourists.

Across the hall, Carl Fisher’s dining room has been arranged to provide historical background to the immersive experience of the great room, with a timeline and panels telling the story of Leisurama from its early roots in the Cold War. Finally, a small boutique sells Leisurama-branded merchandise from fridge magnets to jigsaw puzzles to sweatshirts, along with other 1960s-themed items.

The Leisurama exhibition will run through Labor Day, September 2, Thursdays through Mondays. Admission for self-guided visits is $15 ($10 for members), $5 for children 5 to 12 (the exhibition is not recommended for children under 5). Guided tours are offered every day at noon. Tickets are $20 ($12 for members). Book in advance on the website, montaukhistoricalsociety.org. Carl Fisher House is at 44 Foxboro Road, Montauk. For more information, call 631-668-5340.