530 JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS THE TmRD CONGRESS OF THE I.F.S.C.C.--A REVSEW OF ACTIVITIES BY R. A. KRAMER The Third Biennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists was held at Columbia University in New York City during the week of June 21, 1964. The attendance set a record for this event with 800 registrants from 22 countries. Twenty-one scientists were given an opportunity to present their papers at seminar sessions over a period of four consecutive days. Of the 21 speakers, 12 came from various parts of the world to present their papers at the four scientific symposia moderated by representatives from four countries. One could not help but be impressed by the international character of the meeting and the extent to which equipment was installed in Ferris Booth Hall for simultaneous interpretation into French, German and English by six interpreters working relays. This was the first time that any scientific meeting of cosmetic chemists in the U.S.A. was simultaneously broadcast in three languages to all registrants who took advantage of the receiving equipment that was available for their individual use. There must be time for relaxation at any Congress of this magnitude and the U.S. SOCIETY arranged affairs on four consecutive evenings which did much to make the visit of our friends from abroad pleasant and enjoyable. On Monday evening, June 22, we had a reception and dinner in the Delegates Dining Room at the United Nations, which we filled to capacity. On Tuesday evening, June 23, we chartered the finest boat in the harbor for a trip around Manhattan with a buffet dinner and refreshments on board. By sheer coincidence Macy's fireworks display on the Hudson River was given that evening. The 35-minute display was indeed very spectacular when, after ten minutes, one of the four barges used to send up the fireworks exploded, causing the loss of two crew members. No one on our ship knew of the tragedy until the following morning. We are likely never to forget such an unusually spectacular though accidental display of fireworks. The Reception, Banquet, and Dance in connection with the Third Congress were held Wednesday evening, June 24, in Ferris Booth Hall and John Jay Hall at Columbia University. Dr. E. Howard Mercer of Melbourne, Australia, was given our Literature Award at the Banquet. An account of this presentation to Dr. Mercer will be found elsewhere in this issue of the JOURNAl..

REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES 531 On Thursday, June 25, after the morning seminar session and luncheon in John Jay Hall, buses took all participants to the World's Fair, where everyone spent the rest of the afternoon and evening. The only scheduled event at the World's Fair was a 3-hour luau at the Restaurant of the Five Volcanoes in the Hawaiian Pavilion. A luau must be seen to be appreciated. Everyone enjoyed the 3-hour session, which included many native dishes and drinks with a background of Hawaiian music and native dancers. The formal sessions in connection with the Congress ended with the seminar papers given Friday morning, June 26. During the week there were several meetings of the I.F.S.C.C. Comit• de Direction and the I.F.S.C.C. Council. There were no less than 22 committees handling and guiding the many special events, seminar sessions, reservations and endless problems in- volved in running such a large, international congress. Special credit must be given to perhaps the best known cosmetic scientist in the world and one of our founding members and first president, Mr. M. G. deNavarre, who brought together scientists from all over the world to present papers at our Congress. Mr. Harry Isacoff, General Chairman of all Activities Committees, did a magnificent job keeping all events moving smoothly. We are indebted to Mrs. Eunice T. Miner of the New York Academy of Sciences and her staff, together with our own Agnes Korte, for handling of all reservations, receipts and disbursements. The United Nations Reception and Dinner was under the guidance of Edward Morrish, who established quite a precedent in being able to make arrangements for us to take advantage of most of the facilities at the United Nations. The boat trip was under the direction of Vincent D. Gennaro, who did an excellent job keeping our overloaded boat on an even keel. The World's Fair presented many difficult problems, and these were all taken care of under the experienced hand of James Baker, who was ably assisted by Berrie Stanton. The high point of the Congress was the Banquet at Columbia University. Every- thing in connection with the Banquet ran smoothly and was arranged in excellent style by Lester Conrad. Three years of planning went into this Congress, during which time I was assisted on the Organizing Committee by Lester Conrad and Warren Den- nis, who never failed to come forward with good suggestions and ideas which went a long way to make this Congress an outstanding success. Nothing makes for a successful Congress more than good attendance, which we had to the limit of our capacity. Under the direction of George G. Kolar, our Fund-Raising Committee was able to exceed its goal as a re- suit of the generosity of no less than 93 cosmetic manufacturers and sup- pliers to whom we wish to express our appreciation for financial support which made possible many of the arrangements for this Congress.