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It has been referred to as the “Home of American Music”, “America’s Musical Showpark” and promised “Great Shows, Great Rides and Great Times”. The park originally opened  with 120 acres of rides and attractions. It opened on June 30, 1972 and remained open until December 31, 1997. At the parks peak in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s the park enjoyed the attendance over 2 million guests annually. Welcome to Opryland USA.

Opryland USA, which was usually referred to as Opryland was born due to the popularity of its namesake The Grand Ole’ Opry and the move of the Opry from its long time location at the Ryman Auditorium to its current location at the Grand Ole Opry House. But before we tell the story of the park, we’ll tell the story of The Grand Ole Opry itself…

Stepping back it in time we go back to the Roarin’ 20’s, 1925 to be exact. The Grand Ole Opry started out as the WSM Barn Dance. What was WSM you may ask? WSM was an AM radio station owned by the National Life & Accident Insurance Company. The radio studio was housed on the fifth floor of their building in downtown Nashville, Tennessee. In October of 1925 the station began a program featuring “Dr. Humphrey Bate and his string quartet of old-time musicians”. A couple of weeks after the program aired WSM hired what would become their long-time program director and announcer George D. “Judge” Hay. Hay wasted no time, after coming on board he quickly recruited the seasoned 77 year old fiddler Uncle Jimmy Thompson and then on November 28, 1925 and re-launched the WSM Barn Dance, and although the phrase would not actually be mentioned on air for another 2 years, that date is credited for being the official birth date of The Grand Ole Opry.

During the 1930’s the popularity of the program led to many artists, who would later become country music legends, performing on the Opry as well as the length of the Saturday night show being extended to 4 hours. Being broadcast at that time at 50,000 watts, the show became a staple in homes in 30 states eventually becoming a national show when it was picked up by NBC Radio in 1939. All the time this was happening, the live audience of the show grew quickly leading the show to being moved from its original studio to larger and larger venues to accommodate the audience size. Eventually the audience grew to such a size that measures were taken to control attendance by charging a 25 cent admission charge. That, having little effect to dissuade attendance, led to the show being moved to the Ryman Auditorium. It was during the Ryman years that music legends such as Hank Williams (who was eventually banned in 1952 due to his alcohol problems), Patsy Cline, Roy Acuff, The Carter Family, Bill Monroe, Ernest Tubb, Kitty Wells, Minnie Pearl and many others came to be frequent performers on the Grand Ole Opry Stage.

The Opry’s growing attendance numbers due to its popularity along with deterioration issues with the Ryman Auditorium led to the decision to find a new home for the show. It was decided by WSM, Inc., the operator of the Opry that it would be relocated nine miles east of downtown Nashville, on a tract of land that was owned by a sausage manufacturer (Rudy’s Farm) in the Pennington Bend area of Nashville, it was also decided to build a theme park and hotel/convention center with the new Grand Ole Opry House becoming the crown jewel of the grand entertainment complex. Ironically, the theme park would open on June 30, 1972 prior to the Grand Ole Opry House debuting there on March 16, 1974.

The park would receive its original name from WSM disk jockey, Grant Turner’s early morning show, Opryland USA, with its own name honoring the stars of the Grand Ole Opry.

Although the Grand Ole Opry had always dedicated itself to mostly featuring traditional, conservative Country Music (with only a couple of exceptions); Opryland USA’s overall theme was more of a generalized blend of American Music consisting of bluegrass, gospel, jazz, pop and rock and roll with the theme carrying through not only to the rides but the shows as well. As a matter of fact the Rock N’ Roller Coaster was a opening day attraction.

WSM’s bet paid off in a big way as the entire complex proved extremely popular and spurred its first expansion in 1975. In a move that would fit right in with culture of the park the “State Fair” area was created featuring carnival games, the Wabash Cannonball roller coaster, the Tennessee Waltz swing ride and the Country Bumpkin Bumper Cars. As would become the norm because of the parks limited size, the park would have to remove an attraction in order to add a new one. In this case it was the park’s buffalo exhibit that would disappear in favor of the new attractions. But the Wabash Cannonball roller coaster would prove to be one of the favorite rides at the park until it’s closure 22 years later.

In a setback for the park for its 1975 season, not too long before the park was set to open the Cumberland River experienced a large flood that inundated most of the park with some areas submerged by up to 16 feet of water. Fortunately, the park was able to recover from the flood quickly with the opening day being delayed only for one month, but on a sadder note several of the animals from the petting zoo did not survive the ordeal.

Attendance continued to grow throughout the 1970’s and into the 1980’s partly due to the parks location and its ability to draw guests throughout Tennessee and several surrounding states being that there were no other comparable parks within a reasonable driving distance. Most other parks such as St. Louis’s Six Flags over Mid-America, Charlotte’s Carowinds, Atlanta’s Six Flags over Georgia and the northern King’s Island in Cincinnati were a 4 to 6 hour or more drive making them impractical for a day trip.

As park attendance grew and attractions grew, it ushered in the need for a hotel in order to keep guests onsite for more than a day. In 1977 the Opryland Hotel, a large resort hotel, was built next to the park. Then in 1979 the Roy Acuff Theater next door to the Grand Ole Opry House in the plaza area and was the primary venue for the theme parks premier musical events and productions. In a shrewd business move the theater was actually built outside the park’s perimeter and while because of this you did not need theme park tickets to attend events, productions held there usually did require separate tickets from park admission and in most cases drew day guest’s from the parks to the events as well as the general public, thereby increasing the park’s revenue.

In 1982, things changed for the Opryland complex in an abet, “Grand” way. The parent company of WSM, Inc., (National Life and Accident Insurance Company, later NLT Corporation) was absorbed by American General from Texas. Unlike it’s predecessor, who had benefitted from the advertising value and name recognition of owning and supporting the Grand Ole Opry, American General had no experience with or running an entertainment business and furthermore had no interest in running a theme park nor the broadcast business.

It almost immediately set about the task of finding a buyer for all of NLT’s former entertainment assets and approached some of the larger entertainment and hospitality corporations such as MCA, Anheuser-Busch and the Marriott Corporations about the possibility of selling them all as a “package” deal. While some potential buyers were interested in individual parts like the theme park, the hotel, or the Grand Ole Opry itself; no one company was interested in buying them all at once. After a time, American General began considering that the only way they would be able to divest themselves of these properties would be to split them up into different entities.

As fate would have it, just about that time Gaylord Broadcasting Company of Oklahoma City stepped in and bought nearly all of them lock, stock and barrel. The Opryland Complex, the WSM radios stations and it would have bought the WSM-TV station as well had they had not been at their limit of television stations that they were allowed to own by the government. After the purchase was complete, the name was changed to Gaylord Entertainments Company. In fact, Ed Gaylord, who was then heading the media empire was instrumental in Opryland’s acquisition. Mr. Gaylord, as it turned out was a huge fan of the Opry and spearheaded the effort to purchase it and keep it intact.

As an added bonus, the acquisition also included then fledgling WSM cable network, TNN (The Nashville Network) and its production division Opryland Productions. TNN has since gone on to become a television network dedicated entirely to Country Music. For a number of years TNN’s offices and production facilities continued to be located on-site in Opryland as well as one of its shows, Nashville Now (then later Music City Tonight) was filmed in the Gaslight Theater within the park itself and the park was often used as a backdrop for numerous concerts and performances of popular country music stars.

With Gaylord now owning and backing the park and the enthusiastic leader of the parent company as a fan, the future looked bright for Opryland USA…and for a while at least it would be, but the clouds were beginning to gather.

With the purchase of the park now behind them, 1982 would bring more expansion to the park but with growth would come more growing pains due to the limitations of space. Future expansion from this point would mean that for every new addition to the park, something would have to go.

In 1984, a third roller coaster arrived in the New Orleans area of the park. It was named “ The Screamin’ Delta Demon”. A second, yet more subtle park gate was also added adjacent to the parking lot as well for the 1984 season.

As the 1980’s pressed on, the park would face an issue that it never really had to deal with before…competition. As I had mentioned earlier the park had faired well during the 1970’s and early 1980’s because, while other attractions did exist in Tennessee and it’s surrounding states, there we’re no direct competitors that equal to Opryland USA using te same model. But that was about to change with the opening of kentucky Kingdom in Louisville, Kentucky and the former Silver Dollar City in Pigeon Forge, Tenessee rebranded and improved to become Dollywood, a partnership between the Herschend Brothers and singer, songwriter and actress Dolly Parton. Now with two other parks within driving distance and both competing for Opryland’s guest’s the park stepped up it’s game by committing to making annual changes to retain it’s local and out-of-town guests and adding major attractions such as the General Jackson Showboat (which still continues to operate to this day near Opry Mills), they also added new roller coasters and water rides until the end of the decade with the opening of the “Chaos” roller coaster. 

In 1992 the Chevy-Geo Celebrity Theater opened and for two seasons the performances here were included with the regular park admission. Then in 1994 and 1995 the park began up-charging guests for the concerts held in the theater. Then in a short-lived attempt to capitalize on the success and revenue of the Chevy-Geo Celebrity Theater, Opryland added two more venues; Theater By The Lake and The Roy Acuff Theater each, receiving renovations and expansions, and added them to the concert series and billing it as Nashville On Stage. However, it turned out to be “too much of a good thing by creating more supply than there was demand for the live entertainment” and due to the lackluster sales the multi-venue concert series was moved back to the Chevy-Geo Celebrity Theater serving as the single concert venue inside the park.

Many other things were promoted to bring visitors to the park such as the taping of several weeks of the popular Mark Goodson Game Show “Family Feud” featuring some of the biggest stars in country music at the time including, just to name a couple, the Mandrell’s and the Statler Brothers. Also in reference to TNN’s coverage of NASCAR and Opryland’s designation with NASCAR the annual “TNN Salute to Motorsports” would take place one weekend a year at the park starting in the early 1990’s and continuing until the parks final closing.

Large events were held in the late years of the park, for example the Grizzly River Rampage was used as a course for the NationsBank Whitewater Championships, which (in 1995 alone) served as a qualifier for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. After the events were completed, the course was drained and a temporary Halloween attraction—"Quarantine", tied into the storyline of the neighboring indoor roller coaster "Chaos"—was constructed in its bed and would run during the halloween season from1995 through 1997.

In 1995, in what would come to be the final large attraction would open at the park, The Hangman roller coaster was opened. Also starting in 1994, Gaylord began investing heavily in the rejuvenation of the downtown Nashville entertainment district. The company renovated an old and dilapidated Second Avenue building into what became the Wildhorse Saloon and was also behind the major rennovation and reopening of the Ryman Auditorium. With the investment made in the downtown entertainment district they began to offer a water taxi service between the downtown district and the theme park and solidified the connection between the two areas by renaming the theme park as Opryland Theme Park and using the existing name of Opryland USA as the figurehead name for all of Gaylord Entertainment’s Nashville properties.

Now with all of the investment going into the area and a new coaster for the park you would think that would signal good things for the future of the park but short-sighted planning and baseless decisions would soon signal the beginning of the end for Opryland theme park. For a moment, we’re going to step back in time to 1993. At the time the theme park had grown to 200 acres in size. Let’s put that in perspective. For those of us who are familiar with Disney’s theme parks let’s compare Opryland Theme Park’s 200 acres  to Walt Disney’s Magic Kindom Park coming in at approxamately 142 acres or Disney’s Hollywood Studios Theme Park at 154 acres. Granted EPCOT is over 100 acres larger at 300 acres but I think you get the picture. Opryland at the time was not a small theme park by any means and still needed room to grow. However, that was not to be. A project that would put the final nails in the preverbial coffin for the theme park was to be called “The Delta” and it would be started in 1993 and would open in 1996. The project was huge, in fact it was the largest construction project up to that point in Nashville’s history. It would add a massive new atrium, 1,000+ guest rooms and a new convention center to the Opryland hotel. It  would also come to occupy almost every single square foot of land that would have allowed the theme park to grow and evolve.

Coming back to late 1995, the Gaylord company management at the time had turned a scutinizing eye towards the theme park, and perhaps a bit of predjudice. Nashville’s climate while pleasant throughout the majority of the year, prrevented the park from operating during the winter except for a short run during the Christmas season. The park was also only able to open on weekends during the spring and fall. But the park was open daily during the summer season. According to reports, it was shown that attendance to the parks did somewhat plateau throughout the 1990’s. However, the actual number of visitors to the park made the park profitable, but obviously not profitqable enough for the executives running the company at the time. In 1997 Gaylord management decided that a move back towards it’s core hospitality business was in it’s best interest and in keeping with this directive, it was decided that the Opryland Theme Park property would no longer make a return on investment equal to what was desired for it’s properties and was unlike to do so in the future. Which in light of the consuption of property from the construction of The Delta, seemed to be a self –fufilling prophesy. Either way, one thing was clear, Opryland Theme Park’s journey was coming to an end.

In 1996, a third park gate was finally added near the "Chaos" roller coaster, which allowed pedestrian traffic between Opryland Hotel and Opryland Themepark for the first time in the parks history. Previously, hotel guests wishing to visit the amusement park would have to take a shuttle running back and forth between the hotel and the entrance of the park.

At the end of 1997 the "Christmas in the Park" season was promoted as "one last chance" for the residents of Nashville to see Opryland Theme Park, but guest arrived to find that only a very small portion of the park was open for the season, many of the larger attractions were already being dismantled. Then abruptly on December 31, 1997 the gates were locked and Opryland USA began to fade from reality into history.

As it so often happens in the wake of closing an amusement park, efforts were made to sell off the larger rides and attractions to other parks to recoup as much revenue as possible from the dying park and in some cases they succeeded in others, deals went bad leaving some dismantled rides to either sit in outdoor storage and deteriorate or being sold off for scrap… an end not befitting the memories, laughter and fun times that they had generated for so many years before.

The park site was cleared and paved over and relegated to serving as the parking lot for Opry Mills and the Grand Ole Opry House while construction of the mall took place on the site of the Theme Park’s parking lot.

Opry Mills opened in May of 2000. But for a time some vestiges of the park remained, as a few still do today for those who know where to look. A long, short concrete levee wall that once separated the State Fair, The New Orleans and the Riverside areas is still visible and from the McGavock Street entrance you can still see the remains of the embankment which once supported the rails for Opryland’s railroad.

The administration building that was located however briefly outside the gates of the park was moved near the Cumberland landing docks and serves as offices for the General Jackson and the Music City Queen riverboats.

Quite a bit of the Opry plaza area remains intact and for that matter open for business. The Roy Acuff Theater, The Grand Ole Opry Museum, and of course The Grand Ole Opry House herself have remained in regular use before, during, and after the demolition of the park. It should be noted as well that the Grand Ole Opry show also returns yearly for a limited seasonal run at it’s original home at the Ryman Auditorium.  The buildings that once housed Roy Acuff’s and Minnie Pearls Museum became administrative offices for WSM radio and as for the Gaslight Theater it is still the only building that is still standing from inside the gates of the them park and has been used for Gaylord’s annual ICE! exhibit for a time, as a rental facility for television production, and for various other events.

Though all of the rides had long since gone, the man-made channel for Grizzly River Rampage remained as a visible reminder of the park for fourteen years until Gaylord, in clearing the area for a new events center razed the course…and with that the last recognizable feature of Opryland Theme Park was gone.

While many people have called for the park to be rebuilt, it was not to be. The time of Opryland Park had pasted. For it is now, like so many other parks ever to remain destined to operate only in the memory of those who can’t forget the fun they had in Opryland, USA.

Thank you for joining us for this episode of Echoes Of Laughter. You can listen to this show as well as all of our other shows by visiting us at our website at: ithrivehere.com and of course at echoesoflaughter.com. Please remember that if you like our shows we ask that you subscribe to them and give us a positive rating on iTunes, after all that is how other people are able to find our shows as well.

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For over two decades now it has at times not so quietly slumbered. The old, faded buildings now standing in silent vigil as if remembering a time when their colors were bright & fresh; when were surrounded in laughter and the smiling faces of adults and children alike. The grass grows tall here and the structures that remain are entangled with a variety of plants that now call them home. A place where the sounds of a merry go round, trains and other rides are replaced by the sounds of crickets at dusk, rain drops falling to the ground from tattered roofs and the occasional sounds of frogs & other creatures that now call the park home, But that my friends is not where the story begins or ends. No, this story starts with a man named Alfred G. Caplin...

 

Al Capp

He was born September 28, 1909 in New Haven, Connecticut of Russian Jewish heritage, Al Capp, as he came to be known, was the eldest child of Latvian immigrants Otto Philip and Matilda (Davidson) Caplin whose families had migrated to New Haven in the 1880s. At the young age of nine, Al lost his left leg in a trolley accident. Although shaken by the loss of his leg, Al refused to let the accident stop him and continuously acknowledged the disability the rest of his life, although usually in a humorous way. At  23, Al had moved to New York and became what was possibly the youngest syndicated cartoonist up until that time.

 

On August 13, 1934 Al Capp launched what was to be by far his most well known creation, the comic strip Li'l Abner with eight newspapers and became an instant success. Amongst the contributions of the strip was the now traditional Sadie Hawkins Dances at schools and colleges across the nation, that are based off the strips Sadie Hawkins race where the girls chase the guys! While on the surface the strip was funny and amusing, it was Capp's underlying satiric messages on society, parodies of the corporate giants of the day, celebrities and fellow cartoonists that gave the strip its long lived popularity. Another popular creation of Capp’s was the creatures known as the shmoos. (By the way, if you are unaware of what a shmoo is, you probably aren’t alone as the real meaning of what a shmoo represents in the strip is still being debated to this day.) Superficially, the shmoo was a creature that lived to serve humanity to the point of self-sacrifice and was ever abundant. The creature showed if nothing else that we should accept what is given to us and just be happy.

Yet it would be the Li'l Abner strip that featured characters from the fictional town of Dogpatch and whose lives centered on the adventures of the main character, Li'l Abner. A handsome and strong, if not very bright young man that was raised to be honest and brave except in the face of his girlfriend Daisy Mae, but it was the location that would bring the comic strip to life in a small community now called Marble Falls near Harrison, Arkansas on Highway 7.

 

The Location

It should be noted though that it was the landscape of Dogpatch, not the characters that drew in a real estate broker named O.J. Snow, who had been considering opening a rustic themed amusement park in the Ozarks.

    

But the area that would become Dogpatch had quite a bit of history to it long before Mr. Snow came a knockin’. Let go back a bit to the 1830’s to when the Washington Monument was being planned. You see funds were short to build and complete the monument and a call went out to the States and Territories to donate commemorative stones that could be fitted into the interior walls. Arkansas was one of many places to answer the call.  Mr. Peter Beller moved to Arkansas from Alabama in 1833. In 1834 he and the three of the Harp Brothers dug a 4' X 3' X 2' block of marble out of the hillside across from Dogpatch to contribute to the Washington Monument. The stone was hauled on a sled by a team of twenty oxen for approximately sixty miles across the Ozark and Boston Mountains to the Arkansas River. From there it was loaded on to a barge and was then sent to New Orleans. From there it was loaded onto a ship bound for the Potomac Basin.

Sometime later, a second stone from the very same hillside was donated by freemasons from the area who wished the donation to honor the fact that George Washington was himself a master mason.

Going back to Mr. Beller, sometime around 1840 he acquired the land that included nearby Marble Falls and built a mill there. For a time, Mr. Beller’s Mill steadily continued to grow successfully until the start of the civil war. Years later in 1870 a gentleman with the name of Willcockson built another mill here, and the town, which would bear his name for a time grew an the prosperity of the mineral waters and healing springs that it became known for. But like all good things that too came to an end in the early 20^th century. With the advances in medicine that inevitably came the town’s popularity dwindled. Then came Albert Raney Sr. He and his sons bought the land and changed the name to Marble Falls, he diverted the cold mountain spring water that the town was once so popular for into a trout hatchery, which they owned and operated for several decades.

The Great Idea

Now fast forward to 1966, the elderly Albert Raney Sr. listed his family's trout farm and surrounding land featuring its own canyon, a 55-foot waterfall and an adjacent (and already in operation) public touring cave named Mystic Caverns for sale. It was Snow who, after viewing the property, envisioned the Dogpatch themed park using the existing features of the property to imitate locations featured in the comic strip such as  Onneccessary Mountain, the Bottomless Canyon, and Kissin' Rock, (handy to Suicide Cliff), West Po'k Chop Railroad, and the General Jubilation T. Cornpone memorial statue (the last of these three were built on site in amazing detail to look just as they appeared in the strip.

 

Presenting The Great Idea To Al Capp

Snow, with other business Leaders from the area formed Recreation Enterprises, Inc. or (REI) and set off to propose the grand plan of the park to Dogpatch creator, Al Capp.

 

Capp, who had turned down previous proposals for such ventures, was inspired by the plan and shared Snows vision for the park. He ultimately approved the idea and became a partner in the project. By this time, Li'l Abner had inspired two film adaptations, a Broadway musical and had gained millions of readers so it seemed the perfect venue to compete in the theme park business. The over 800 acre theme park was set to not only be a reality, but in the minds of its creators, had the capability to become a major player in the theme park community.

 

Both Al Capp and his wife made a three day trip to the Arkansas site for the ground breaking ceremony which took place on Tuesday, October 3, 1967.  An interesting fact is that even before the groundbreaking, there were already a few attractions operating on the site such as trout fishing, a boat dock, an operating stage coach & trail ride, a honey shop and arts & crafts. 

 

A mere 7 months later on May 17, 1968, Al Capp was back on the site to deliver the dedication speech of Dogpatch USA. At first the park was begrudging supported by the local Arkansas residents of what was for a time called Dogpatch, Arkansas and resisted the park as a daunting reminder of the “hillbilly” stigma that still hung over the residents of the Ozark town, but at the same time they welcomed the hopeful influx of tourism dollars the park would bring to their below median income community.

 

 

Opening Day

Standing before a crowd of about 2,000 visitors on May 17, 1968, Al Capp uncovered the centerpiece of the park, the giant statue depicting the civil war hero of Dogpatch, Jubilation T. Cornpone, The park admitted a whopping 8000 people its opening day with an admission price of only $1.50 for adults and $0.75 for children.

 

Little did anyone realize at the time that by1993 through a combination of fate, nature, and unforeseen circumstances, Dogpatch USA would be gone...but not forgotten.

 

The parks design had been agreed upon by both O.J. Snow and Al Capp to hold true to the theme of the strip it was based on. Mr. Capp did not want the park full of monster; behemoth rides the zoomed around everywhere.

 

Although competing in the same market, the park had almost the opposite focus of the Disney parks in that where Disney was always focused on exemplifying the innovations and latest technology, Dogpatch USA represented the simplicity of life and beauty of nature. Although the park had some rides geared to pull in the “roller coaster” crowd, most of the attraction of the park was geared around actually spending time with your family and enjoying a leisurely vacation.

 

The Attractions

Now, taking a virtual stroll back in time to the park let’s take a look at some of the attractions, shall we…

 

One of the parks most loved attractions was the trout pond which carried forward the legacy of the land’s previous purpose. It was where visitors could cast a line in the always overstocked pond and for a fee, have their catch cleaned and cooked for them while they sat enjoying the parks surroundings.

 

Dogpatch Caverns which had been around previous to the parks creation under the name Mystic Caverns. A second cavern was discovered by accident while renovating the original cave and was planned to be called “Old Man Moses Cave”. It has, since the parks' closure been called Crystal Dome. The caves hold the distinction to be the only attraction which has operated both before and after the park closed.

 

The Frustratin' Flyer was a steel "Monster Mouse" coaster created by Herschell. It was installed in 1968 for the park's debut and it operated until 1991. A later victim of the failing park the Frustratin’ Flyer was sold between 1991 and 1992 season.

 

Earthquake McGoon’s Brain Rattler  was a toboggan roller coaster that was manufactured by Chance Rides. The ride is believed to have been part of the park when it was opened in 1968. In early brochures it was depicted as being a track wrapped around an enormous tree, but the ride was actually made of metal. At some point in the 1970's the ride was closed, possibly due to maintenance problems. It did not reopen until the park was sold to Ozark Family Entertainment in 1981, and was believed to be in service for the remainder of the park's life. One of the few rides to survive the closing of the park the ride is still in operation under the moniker of The Wild & Wooly Toboggan at Little Amerricka amusement park in Marshall, Wisconsin.

The Funicular Tram, referred to as the "decliner inliner", the tram was used to transport visitors from the parking lot into the park below. It was purchased from an unknown manufacturer in Switzerland and shipped to Dogpatch USA at a cost of a quarter of a million dollars. It was installed in 1970 and opened at the beginning of the 1971 season, it could transport as many as 1,700 guests per hour. As passengers descended into the Dogpatch USA valley they were given a short story about the park over the tram's PA. The tram remained in service until 1992 when the park eliminated general admission, and has the distinction of being the only ride that remains in the park, although it’s remains lies in somewhat less than working condition.

The newcomer to the park was Li'l Abner's Space Rocket - The ride was added sometime prior to 1978 but in sharp contrast to the rustic theme of the park, it never quite fit in with its surroundings, its addition has been thought to signal the beginning of the end of the park. The ride, prominently displayed on brochures from the era, was removed when the park closed in 1993 and its whereabouts have since vanished into the winds of time.

The Trash Eaters also bear mentioning, though not really an attraction - The park had trash cans equipped with huge animal heads that "ate" (or rather sucked) the trash out of patrons hands and into their mouths. The heads were shaped like goats, pigs, and even razorbacks and the unusual design encouraged patrons to properly dispose of their trash by making it a fun experience. The trash eaters used a unique & unusual design in their operation. You see, there was a blower motor inside the trash eater "house". The inside of the "house" was sealed so that when the door was shut, a vacuum was created which sucked trash into the trash eater's mouth. The trash then hit a stop and fell into the trashcan located inside the trash eater "house". Several of the trash eaters still stand in silent vigil to this day, but for how much longer...no one knows.

Right out of the comic strip came the Kissin’ Rocks. They were a natural landmark in the Dogpatch comics & came to mirror the comic in real life. The real life park icon is made of granite & was one of the most photographed areas on the property. After uncounted kisses caught on film it still stands today as a testament to this once great park that remains in a special part of so many peoples' memories.

The West Po’k Chop Speshul  was the miniature train that ran on this line at Dogpatch USA departed from the depot station and ran along the outskirts of the town. The tracks crossed over a bridge overlooking Marble Falls, known as “The Bottomless Canyon”. The train went through a tunnel and then circled through the valley of the Shmoo’ & then returned to the depot by the same route. The train made one stop on the return trip, near “The Brainrattler” ride, allowing passengers to wander that section for a few minutes. Normally there was only one train in operation, but there were two locomotives available during peak capacities in the park. The whereabouts of the train are clouded in mystery. At some point after the park closed passerby’s spotted the engine being loaded up on to the back of a trailer. Weather it was stolen or saved remains to be seen. One can only hope for the latter.

Other Rides In The Park Included The Wolf Island Paddle Boats, The Boat Train ride (replaced in 1988 by bumper boats), The Helicopters (kiddie ride), Ole' 99 (which was a kiddie train ride), The Wild Water Rampage, Yo-Yo ride, The Paratrooper ride, The well-known Scrambler ride, The Merry-go-round, The Antique Cars, General Bullmoose's Gravity House (a blacklight maze, fun house), The Shooting Gallery, Hairless Joe and Lonesome Polecat's Kickapoo Joy Juice Barrel Ride (which was a Rotor ride) replaced by a children's play area in 1988, Sky Driver (which replaced the Brain Rattler in 1989), The Wheel of Misfortune (a Round Up, spinning ride, Wheel of Fortune spinner theme-decor)

The Beginning of the end actually came at the end of the first season; the park had over 300,000 visitors and made a comfortable net profit at the time of $100,000. Rumored disputes of O.J.Snow and the other investors over distribution of profits from the park led Snow at first and eventually the majority of other investors in the park into selling their shares to Jess Odom.

 

Al Capp, who was at first hesitant about Odom’s new role in the development of the park apparently put his fears to rest at some point and signed a substantial agreement giving Odom license to use the Li'l Abner themes and likenesses in franchising agreements that could span decades had with an equally substantial share of gross proceeds going to Capp.

 

Odom had plans to invest millions in the development of the Dogpatch USA park as well as develop a new sister park called Marble Falls Resort and Convention Center. Which would have three ski slopes, an indoor ice rink, and an amphitheater which would feature various music and theatrical events. This remarkable idea may have worked if not for a series of unusual and foreboding weather events that caused a delayed opening to the resort. In another turn of unfortunate events a mild winter brought an early close to the first season. This combined with countrywide climbing oil & gas prices that was affecting tourism coupled with rising costs of operating the parks led to spiral into debt that the parks would never recover from.

 

In a bizarre sense of irony Dogpatch USA itself was profitable for all but two years of its operation. However, other local attractions such as Silver Dollar City which had more elaborate rides and attractions began to win over many of the parks paying customers.

 

Al Capp Retires

The parks, already suffering from lower attendance then received what was possibly the most significant factor in the imminent demise of the park. The retirement of Al Capp from producing the popular comic strip in 1977.

 

 Without the national exposure from the comic strip, the Dogpatch/ Li'l Abner began to fade from the public eye and their memory. The effect of his announcement however, did not have an immediate impact on the park nor did anyone see the gathering storm clouds As a matter of fact and in sharp contrast to the announcement, 1977 had recorded numbers of visitors as well as record sales per visitor to the park.

 

Musical (Chair) Owners

Then, almost in no time at all came rapid successions in ownership. With every new owner came various enthusiastic plans to change and revitalize the park. However, despite the bright future that each new owner promised Dogpatch USA filed bankruptcy in 1980. The park was never the same after the Bankruptcy, but, they lingered on and the parks then began their slow decline into obscurity. Instead of upgrades and renovations, the management began cutting costs by focusing on arts/crafts and charging for individual rides scratching desperately for every penny that could be earned. Intentional cost saving measures aside, the final death nail came as the L'il Abner/Dogpatch brand was removed from the park altogether referring to itself as Dogpatch, Arkansas. The park like so many before, although seemingly successful alone, could not bear the additional burden of supporting its failing sister site Marble Falls Resort and Convention Center. Struggling under massive financial pressures in 1993...the parks closed.

 

Decay

In the years that followed the park changed ownership, bits and pieces of what remained began to disappear and although ideas abounded and rumors swirled about the park being reopened, it being converted to a movie ranch, an eco-tourism hub and about a thousand other ideas none of which materialized. Instead year after year, new weeds would break their way through the seams in the concrete, vines would climb a little higher on the old decaying buildings, the grass would grow a little higher and the once meticulously maintained landscape would fade from view as Mother Nature began to reclaim her own. Gone were the sounds of children and their laughter. The only occasional tourist that the park would see were those either looking to document the withered remains of the park or worse, those that would raid it for whatever scraps of the park that weren’t nailed down, and for that matter some that were. Yes the park had been rapidly losing its battle with time, the elements, and those who would have no purpose other than to destroy what was left of this once beautiful theme park.

 

The Shakeup

You would think then, in consideration of all that had happened to it so far, that the park would then quietly fade off into history But no, as if to add insult to injury, a 2005 accident ended in a judge rendering a judgment in favor of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit, a 17-year-old named Pruett Nance and his father. The young Mr. Nance was riding his ATV onto the property and claimed he had permission to be there by the property owners when he ran into a steel cable nearly decapitated himself. The owners at the time claimed the cable was stretched between two trees to thwart trespassers.  In a lawsuit filed by the Nance’s it was claimed that the cable was put with the knowledge it would cause harm. In a battle that lasted all the way to the Supreme Court, the Nance Family received a judgment in favor of Pruett Nance and according to various sources he was given the deed to Dogpatch and became one of its youngest owners when the owners could not, or would not pay the judgment which ranged from $650,000 to $700,000.

 

More Bad News

Bad luck would continue to plague the area when four years later more trouble would come to Marble Falls (who had changed its name from formally from Dogpatch in 1997) in the form of wastewater issues.  In January 2009 a waste sewage lift station, which was installed during the creation of Dogpatch USA back in 1968, ceased to function due to an ice storm which in turn caused sewage to over flow into nearby Mill Creek. Mill Creek fed into the Buffalo National River which resulted in direct contamination of the Buffalo National River with raw sewage flowing from Marble Falls. The community supported by the massive system is only about 100 users. Because of this the Arkansas Department of environmental quality left the Marble Falls Sewage Improvement District two options,

 

1.)  Fight the case in court ,which they would almost certainly lose or,

2.)  Build a new sewage treatment facility which would cost a total of over $1,000,000 which would still only serve 100 users. This translates into a cost of $10,000 per user. I don't know about you, but I would have just a little bit of a problem with that.

 

The Undiscovered Future…

Fast forward to present times in 2012. The park now not in the hands of a corporation or business man, but in the hands of a young man who has a lot of ideas for the future of the land that the remains of the park reside on. What is in the future for Dogpatch USA? A new Amusement Park? A restored version of Dogpatch? A RV Campground? A Camp for Youth? Whatever it may become of it in the future, hopefully it is in better hands now than it has been in a long time. With the imagination of youth and perhaps some financial backing, history may turn into the future for this ole' dog...

 

You can listen to this show Echoes Of Laughter as well as other AMN Shows on our website at: www,audiosmaximus.com, on iTunes and Stitcher Smart Radio. Once again, this show is brought to you in part by Amazon.com. Please help support Echoes Of Laughter and our other shows by visiting audiosmaximus.com and clicking The Swagus Maximus Store Link or by clicking on our Amazon Affiliate Link. The products you purchase cost you no more than they do normally but we are paid a small commission that helps to pay for our shows. Thank You Again For Your Support! Until Next Time...Remember The Laughter!

 

 

This episode of Echoes Of Laughter is brought to you in part by Amazon.com. Please help support Echoes Of Laughter and our other shows by visiting audiosmaximus.com and clicking The Swagus Maximus Store Link or by clicking on our Amazon Affiliate Link. The products you purchase cost you no more than they do normally but we are paid a small commission that helps to pay for the cost of producing our shows. Thank You All For Your Support!

 

 

Script Written By: Kenny Fairchild & T. Michael Fairchild

 

Rides info per http://www.abandonedok.com/dogpatch-u-s-a/

 

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogpatch_USA#Attractions

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li%27l_Abner#Dogpatch

http://users.aristotle.net/~russjohn/attractions/dogpatch.html

http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?search=1&entryID=2302#

http://www.abandonedok.com/dogpatch-u-s-a/

http://www.undergroundozarks.com/dogpatch.html

Mom, Dad are we there yet? I wanna ride the doll ride mommy, you know the one at the Pepsi Building. NO DAD we rode that last time cause sis wanted to. I wanna see the Dinosaurs and ride in the Mustang. All right children, quiet down now We’ll be there anytime now and your father will decide what we do first… How many times was this scenario played out in 1964 through 1965 if you happened to be in New York?

On this episode of Echoes of Laughter both T. Mic and Bill Cotter will revisit the 1964 New York World’s Fair which was held in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, in the borough of Queens. They will discuss Bill’s personal experience of attending the fair as well as what was good and bad about how the fair came about, how it was operated, what made it a unique World’s Fair, it’s financial problems and what remains of the site today.

The site had also hosted the1939/1940 New York World’s Fair. It ran during April 22 through October 18, 1964 and April 21 through October 17, 1965. The admission price for adults (13 and older) was $2.00 in 1964 but $2.50 in 1965, and $1.00 for children (2–12) both years. The theme of the fair was "Peace Through Understanding," and was dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe". The fair exhibits were unquestionably dominated by American Industry and third world countries that normally would not have a chance to participate in a World’s Fair. The reason for this was that the fair was unsanctioned by the BIE (Bureau International des Expositions) due to a variety of reasons including the fact that it was to be run for two 6 month seasons (The BIE only authorizes 1 – six month run). The fair site encompassed 1 square mile and was one of the largest fair sites ever hosted in the United States. Most of the corporate exhibits were geared towards space age technology. The theme was present in the architecture of many of the pavilions, such as the leaning wall of the GM pavilion, the IBM “Egg”, The Westinghouse and Ford Buildings were also futuristic in design.

Though the fair was plagued with financial woe’s it still is remembered fondly by most of the public that attended it. In the variety of foods (such as the famous Bel-Gem Waffles), the wonder of people first seeing tomorrows technology in action and the hope of a utopian future as it was presented in abundance. Ah, the dreams of the past.

And then there was the Disney influence… Walt Disney saw the fair as a great opportunity for his own company’s growth. Some of America’s top corporations benefited from Disney’s imagination and ingenuity in presenting their products to the public and Disney benefited in return by being able to use the financial backing from those very corporations to fund research and design for technologically advanced ride systems, shows, and (of course) Audio Animatronics… The rest shall we say is history.

The 1964 New York World’s Fair significance is still very present some 48 years later and though there are very few physical landmarks that still survive on the site in Flushing Meadows Corona Park the gleaming stainless steel Unisphere still shines as brightly today for those who see it today as it does in the memories of those who still hold the experience of attending the fair in their mind and in their hearts from so many years ago…

Here’s a story for you. It is of a young boy’s trip to Florida in 1979. The first real vacation his family ever took and was it one to remember and I’d like to share some of our story as well as the stories of three of the attractions that we visited that year that are no longer there to be enjoyed. Hi! This is T. Mic and this Echoes of Laughter will be a little different. It is a trip down memory lane and not just any trip but my own.

To the 11 year old boy that I was in 1979, these places were wonders to me and my siblings at the time and they still hold a special place in my memory some 32 years later. My parents had taken our family to Florida that year on vacation. As a matter of fact, my family was a modest middle class family in the seventies and we had never really gone anywhere on a real vacation before except for a few overnight trips around our home state of Louisiana and a trip or two into Mississippi. This was our first real week long vacation and we were going to the Sunshine State for the first time!

In this episode we’ll explore the Stars Hall Of Fame and The Mystery Funhouse. Both were once located in Orlando Florida. One we visited on our trip, the other we did not, but oh how I wish we had. We’ll talk about both attractions that succumbed to a ever more competitive tourist market and what these wonderful smaller attractions once encompassed.  Put on your old bell bottom jeans, comb that mustache, and sport that dusty old silk shirt in the back of your closet…Were going back to 1979 and talking about more wax than you can shake a match at!

 

In this episode we will be exploring the origins and history of Chippewa Lake Park, once located in Medina County, Ohio on the shores of Ohio’s only natural lake; Chippewa Lake. From it’s early days in the late 1800’s through it’s 1978 closing and into it’s year’s of becoming a legendary urban ruin; you’ll hear all about this wonderful old park as we take a virtual tour of the park through time. The park had a long history of hosting famous musicians, dances, and park guests over it’s 100+ year history and despite it’s closing in 1978, it continued to draw visitors and explorers right up until it’s final demolition in 2009 through 2010. Join us on a journey of fun, laughter, nostalgia and discovery as we journey to and through Chippewa Lake Park.

Please visit our Podcast show page for much more detail on this park at: http://audiosmaximus.com/wordpress/our-podcast-shows/echoes-of-laughter

This episode features an interview with Bill Cotter, published author of several books on World Fairs, Disney Television, and co-author on several other books. T. Mic (show host) & Bill discuss the 1984 Louisiana World’s Exposition at length. They will take you on an audio journey through the fair, area by area, they will discuss some of the individual attractions as well a the pavilions that were located in the 84 acre site on the Mississippi Riverfront in New Orleans Louisiana. They also discuss the origins of the fair, its challenges, highlights, and where you can still experience a few of the original attractions from the fair that are still in operation today. The will also discuss a little on some attractions that were planned for the fair but never came to be. The 1984 Louisiana World is probably one of the least documented World’s Fairs online yet most people that experienced the fair still retain fond memories of it some 26+ years later.

<b>Echoes Of Laughter - 002 12/5/2010 - Riverview Amusement Park  1903 - 1967<b/>

This episode we are featuring Riverview Amusement Park. Once located in Chicago, IL this 74 acre amusement park, located on the banks of the Chicago River and bordered by Western & Belmont Avenues entertained millions of guests during its 64 season run.

Once home to unique attractions and thrilling rides this once world famous, and beloved by Chicago-ans, amusement park's lights blink no more.

In this episode we will have interviews with Mr. Ralph Lopez, the last manager of the "Shoot-The-Chutes" ride and modern day expert on the park. We will also interview John DeSalvo, a former Chicago native that grew up with the park only to lose it to Chicago's storied past at age 14. These gentlemen, from different walks of life, share their stories & experiences with us as well as their perspectives on why it closed and how Chicago could truly benefit from a similar park in Chicago in today's world.

We encourage you to learn more about this wonderful old amusement park, to purchase memorabilia, and original souvenirs from the park by visiting Mr. Lopez's website at www.riverviewparkchicago.com.

Echoes Of Laughter - Episode# 001 10/10/2010 - Ponchartrain Beach Amusement Park, New Orleans, Louisiana 

Welcome to Echoes Of Laughter Introductory Show. This is T. Mic and I will be your host on our journey through history as we explore the amusement & theme parks of yesterday. This will be a monthly podcast and will feature interviews and discussions with individuals intimately involved with these attractions and the people that enjoyed them. We’ll travel back in time to the heyday of these parks and emurse you in the experience of visiting these parks in a way that you will never have the opportunity to do physically today.

On this episode we’ll visit the Pontchartrain Beach Amusement Park. Once located on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, Louisiana. We’ll feature interviews with John DeMajo and Mike Loisel.

Mr. DeMajo is a retired engineer and lived within viewing distance of the park for several decades and was a frequent visitor to the park. He shares with us his many experiences with “The Beach” from the 1940’s until the closing of the legendary park and some of the more technical aspects of the park from inside sources as well as his own knowledge as an engineer.

Mike Loisel experienced the park many times as a child and teen in the later years leading to the parks closing as well. He shares with us some of his more memorable experiences as well as some insights on how todays youth could benefit from experiencing life from the way it used to be done vs. living life through the virtual reality of video games and indoor entertainment. 

The year is 1832 and the original Port Pontchartrain lighthouse begins operating near the shore of Lake Pontchartrain. While this is not the “Milneburg” (often mispronounced as the “Milenburg”) lighthouse that still stands near the banks of the lake at the end of Elysian Fields Avenue on the current grounds of the UNO Technology Park, it is the beginning of a series of events that led to the creation on the beloved, and sorely missed Pontchartrain Beach Amusement Park. As mentioned, the current lighthouse that still stands as a lone sentinel and icon for “the Beach” was actually constructed in 1855 and was actually located several hundred feet out in the lake itself along with the caretakers home and another structure built on pylons and shined until 1929. It was located in Milneburg, a once popular early resort area on the lake at the terminus of the Ponchartrain Railroad line often referred to as the “Smokey Mary”. The “Smokey Mary” also provided access to the many camps that dotted the shoreline as well as the hotels, restaurants, roadhouses, shooting galleries, bathing facilities and fishing piers. It has been said that it was at Milneburg’s dance halls and bars that much of New Orleans’ early jazz was first heard. During the depression in the late 1920’s and early 30’s the WPA (the Works Progress Administration) launched an ambitious project to reclaim almost a mile of land on the southern shores of the lake. Sand was pumped from the bottom of the lake to forma a new shoreline located behind a concrete seawall. Enter Harry Batt, Sr., businessman, showman, and entrepreneur. He sub-leased land from the original owners of Ponchartrain Beach Amusement Park, located near the old Spanish Fort at Bayou St. John and he became it’s sole proprietor during the depression in 1934.  Reletively soon after the land reclaimation project was completed Harry Batt, Sr. moved the park to it’s new location at the end of Elysian Fields Avenue in 1939 and a legend was born… Ponchatrain Beach became New Orleans’, and Louisianas’ largest and most popular amusement park. It continued to grow over the years with the addition of larger and more thrilling rides and attractions . The Beach served hundreds of thousands if not millions of people over its’ 51+ years of existence under the Batt’s family ownership. Of course the people of New Orleans constantly visited “The Beach” but it was also visited and known by residents from around the state of Louisiana, the United States and from around the world. The Beach closed it’s gates forever in 1983…but it will forever live in the the hearts and minds of those who loved it so…