2008 October - Trunkations

Archive for October, 2008

Aquarena Springs – Sub Theater Belatedly Doomed

Friday, October 17th, 2008

After a quiet decade, Aquarena Springs is back in the news. Experts know it ceased being a worthy roadside attraction in 1994, when Texas State University purchased the San Marcos property and we reported its long-running mermaid and diving pig show had been shuttered. Disturbing news at the time, since Aquarena Springs was one of [...]

Oldest Goofy Golf Turns 50

Wednesday, October 15th, 2008

Miniature golf has been around for about 80 years, yet the oldest courses lack visual zing. The idea of outfitting putt-putts with palm trees and rocket ships didn’t come along until later, and the surviving granddaddy of these just turned 50 on October 15: Goofy Golf in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Its anniversary [...]

Battling 1880 Towns?

Monday, October 13th, 2008

The Oct. 13-19, 2008 Sight of the Week is a great attraction we happened upon. Through Visitor Tips, we’d been aware for years of the Original 1880 Town in Murdo, South Dakota, a reconstruction of a prairie frontier community, with a bonus display of Dances with Wolves movie props. In August, driving west on I-90, [...]

Vote For The Candidate Of Our Choice

Monday, October 13th, 2008

This is an important election year, as we all know. And the time has come for us to put aside our hilarity for a moment and endorse a candidate. In our opinion, the clear best choice for America’s future is — Whiting, Indiana.
We speak, of course, of the annual Capital of the Pierogy [...]

Poll Results: Taking Direction

Saturday, October 11th, 2008

Question: Who do you find is generally best to ask for directions to an attraction?
We conducted this online poll over several months on RoadsideAmerica.com, and many of you weighed in on which locals to really trust for directions.
The Police Officer and the Convenience Store Clerk garnered the most, statistically tied at 33% and 32% respectively. [...]

Mrs. Butterworth Fights For Lincoln Log Cabin

Friday, October 10th, 2008

It comforts the gut like a hearty stack of hotcakes — and knocks askew traditional concepts of competition — to learn that a roadside attraction is fighting for the existence of another roadside attraction.
So it is in Illinois, where the statue of Julia Dent Grant — known to locals as “Mrs. Butterworth” — has been [...]

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