Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Pt. 7: Guests Get Close-Up
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Pt. 7: Guests Get Close-Up
Episode 7 of the podcast covers the park’s history from 1979 through 1981. It focuses on the park’s attempts to position itself against SeaWorld in San Diego by adding exciting new attractions that put people in close contact with marine life. During this period, the park also broke new ground by focusing on education and rescue efforts.
By 1979, the park’s reimagining as Hanna-Barbera’s Marineland was in full swing. Shows were updated for the new era with Bubbles the pilot whale headlining the Seaweed Center for Finny Studies, and sea lions performed at Huckleberry Hound’s Sea Lion Pirate Training School. Fred Flintstone and Yogi Bear, when not mingling with guests, were showcased in a musical, “Singing to the World.”
The park’s animal presentations took on a more cinematic flair as well.
“Marineland was the first aquatic park to put themes behind their shows. For a long time, it was all about showing the behaviors the animals can do,” Live Events director Jim Roope shared with the podcast. “Tim Desmond had the idea to write a script around these behaviors and turn it into sort of a show. And so Marineland was the very first one—not sacrificing the natural beauty of what these animals can do in the wild—to weave a theme around everything and make it more entertaining.”
When did Baja Reef open at Marineland?
The success of the Family Adventure Swim ushered in a shift towards more immersive marine experiences. By far, the most groundbreaking new attraction was the Baja Reef. For a few extra dollars, guests could put on a wetsuit, fins, snorkel, and goggles and swim through an 80-yard maze of kelp and coral, mimicking the Baja California Peninsula. Baja Reef was truly a one-of-a-kind experience, boasting 1,000 fish including nurse sharks.
During this time, Marineland’s new Marine Mammal Care Center allowed visitors to interact with veterinarian staff taking care of rescued marine mammals. In 1980, the center partnered with Unocal, rebranding as the Unocal Marine Animal Care Center, taking care of an average of 360 sick or injured animals annually.
In 1981, Taft Broadcasting and Kroger Company revealed plans to sell Marineland to Far East Hotels and Entertainment, Ltd. But, as you’ll see in future episodes, the new management was a positive step because Far East Hotels’ laisses faire management style gave the park’s employees and management greater control.
View all episodes
By Tod PerryEpisode 7 of the podcast covers the park’s history from 1979 through 1981. It focuses on the park’s attempts to position itself against SeaWorld in San Diego by adding exciting new attractions that put people in close contact with marine life. During this period, the park also broke new ground by focusing on education and rescue efforts.
By 1979, the park’s reimagining as Hanna-Barbera’s Marineland was in full swing. Shows were updated for the new era with Bubbles the pilot whale headlining the Seaweed Center for Finny Studies, and sea lions performed at Huckleberry Hound’s Sea Lion Pirate Training School. Fred Flintstone and Yogi Bear, when not mingling with guests, were showcased in a musical, “Singing to the World.”
The park’s animal presentations took on a more cinematic flair as well.
“Marineland was the first aquatic park to put themes behind their shows. For a long time, it was all about showing the behaviors the animals can do,” Live Events director Jim Roope shared with the podcast. “Tim Desmond had the idea to write a script around these behaviors and turn it into sort of a show. And so Marineland was the very first one—not sacrificing the natural beauty of what these animals can do in the wild—to weave a theme around everything and make it more entertaining.”
When did Baja Reef open at Marineland?
The success of the Family Adventure Swim ushered in a shift towards more immersive marine experiences. By far, the most groundbreaking new attraction was the Baja Reef. For a few extra dollars, guests could put on a wetsuit, fins, snorkel, and goggles and swim through an 80-yard maze of kelp and coral, mimicking the Baja California Peninsula. Baja Reef was truly a one-of-a-kind experience, boasting 1,000 fish including nurse sharks.
During this time, Marineland’s new Marine Mammal Care Center allowed visitors to interact with veterinarian staff taking care of rescued marine mammals. In 1980, the center partnered with Unocal, rebranding as the Unocal Marine Animal Care Center, taking care of an average of 360 sick or injured animals annually.
In 1981, Taft Broadcasting and Kroger Company revealed plans to sell Marineland to Far East Hotels and Entertainment, Ltd. But, as you’ll see in future episodes, the new management was a positive step because Far East Hotels’ laisses faire management style gave the park’s employees and management greater control.