Post #211256 by Sabu The Coconut Boy on Sun, Jan 29, 2006 11:58 AM

Tang -

I really like those photos of the seashell fountain and the tikis outside the Marineland Restaurant. Living in nearby Redondo Beach, my family visited Marineland at least once a year from the 1960s-1980s. Vivid memories include the flamingo enclosure outside the park, next to the ticket stands, and the giant 15-foot sawfish in the big aquarium that used to haunt the sunken shipwreck. I also remember the hard-hat divers going down into the tank to feed the fish. The modern full-plexiglass aquariums of Sea World and the Monterey Aquarium are truly amazing, but how I miss the nostalgic feel of those gigantic aquariums of the 1950s that were essentially just huge cylindrical steel tanks with spiral walkways along the outside going up to various levels and viewing "portholes" or thick-glass rectangular windows bolted on to the outside at various levels. I think Marineland was one of the last of those vintage aquariums to exist.

I don't remember the tikis or the shell-fountain, but that was probably because we never ate at the restaurant. We were more the type of family who would bring our own lunch to the picnic grounds or buy a few hotdogs. The sea lion, dolphin, and whale shows were amazing entertainment for us kids as well.

I really like that matchbook with the drunken dolphins. Great image!

I found this mint-condition, copyright 1955 Marineland coloring-book at an estate sale back in 2002 and sold it for big money on eBay. If I had known Tang at the time, I probably would have passed it on to him. Here are some of the old auction photos:

Sabu