Harvey, North Dakota: The Mighty Og (Gone)

I took this one in the winter of 1996, I believe, while I was stationed at Minot AFB.

"The Mighty Og" was originally at Rawhide City, a "frontier" attraction near Mandan, ND, but was actually named O.G. (Oh, Gee!). He was featured on Rawhide City's promo bumper stickers with his name, spelled O.G. The seller apparently didn't tell the new owner how to pronounce it.

Og is gone. Not moved or in disrepair. GONE. I stopped at the Artos Motel where he was supposed to be and talked to a lady there about him. She said he was a big gorilla. He was dismantled and sent away. I specifically asked if he was moved, sold, whatever, as I wanted a picture. She said no to them all. Dismantled and tossed.

I wanted to update you on the sad news of the demise of the Mighty Og. Seems the poor thing was hit by a storm and damaged beyond repair. He has been secreted away to a private resting place. I got this information from his owner's wife. It was intimated that a replacement of some kind -- similar in scale of course -- is being sought.

I have a picture of the Mighty Og when it was still at Rawhide City. I was just looking over the photographic record of a road trip I and some friends made in the summer of 1978 from Philadelphia PA to Glacier National Park in Montana. I did a search on Google for Rawhide City and found a reference on your site (I just knew you'd have something about this).