Because it was being invented more or less at the same time as the Mini and was very new and space age. It wasn't really used for anything outside the space and aviation industries until well into the '60s.
Almost everything on a film camera or camera truck is held together with either Velcro or Dual Lock, the standard stick-on stuff is fine without any extra glue. If you heat the adhesive up first (we just tend to use a lighter for a few seconds) it sets up really well and the stuff is very hard to remove when you are done with it.
