Opryland's Instruments of Mass Destruction

Once upon a time in Nashville, Tennessee there was an amusement park called Opryland USA.  The musical themed attraction featured shows, rides, and in the early years, cartoon instrument mascots.

Opryland's characters included Johnny Guitar, Jose Mandolin, Yancey Banjo, Delilah Dulcimer, Barney Bass and Frankie Fiddle.

These characters were long gone by the time I made my first visit to Opryland in 1985.  I think they are very charming.  And really bizarre.  In a good way.

Opryland opened in 1972.  The park went through many changes over the years.

For this Opryland map, only three of the instrument characters were used, which is interesting.

Opryland's mascots looked sort of like a mash-up of the characters from a McDonald's Playland and the world of Sid and Marty Krofft TV shows like H.R. Pufnstuf and Lidsville.

I imagine plenty of children were terrified of these characters.

This postcard has a copyright of 1976, and was written in 1981.  Opryland's instrument mascots were gone by 1982.

The "Big G" General Mills Cereal characters (like the Honey Nut Cheerios Bee and Count Chocula) became Opryland's mascots by 1982.

The instruments appeared on some groovy early Opryland merchandise.

It looks like the Soul Train made a stop in Opryland.

Barney Bass looks rather grotesque here.  There.  I said it.

Yancey Banjo is really cool and suave.  It's the mustache.

Delilah Dulcimer seems like a Mae West kind of character.

Frankie and Barney really are giving off a Spongebob Squarepants vibe here.

Sadly, Opryland closed in 1997.  The amusement park is gone, but the Opryland Hotel continues to operate very successfully.

Did the spurned Opryland instruments orchestrate the closure of the park?  Did they regret playing second fiddle to the Trix Rabbit?  Were they fired because they played themselves in public all the time?  We'll never know, because they are out of tune and have been silenced forever.

Opryland's Grizzly River Rampage Souvenirs: Bear Left

Once Upon A Time in Nashville, Tennessee, there was a legendary grizzly bear who lived in the Opryland amusement park.

 According to advertisements and merchandise for Grizzly River Rampage, the bear would emerge from the rapids to terrify raft riders.

Of course, this scene never actually existed in the ride, which opened at Opryland in 1982.  Amusement Parks are notorious for this sort of marketing scheme.

Grizzly River Rampage opened with a number of standard amusement park souvenir items for sale.  Drinking and shot glasses are part of the bear essential assortment of offerings.

How about a GRR floaty pen?

Even the floaty pen promised a scene that wasn't real.

 There was also a GRR floaty keychain.

The floaty keychain was a little bit more honest.

Nope, there's no ferocious grizzly popping up out of the water.

The rafts of Grizzly River Rampage did go through a cave and see a statue of what might have been a grizzly bear.

There may have been strobe lights to simulate movement of the bear figure.

My first and only visit to Opryland was in 1985.  Growing up in Birmingham, Alabama, I was part of the audience that saw the marketing blitz for Grizzly River Rampage.

Yes, you will get soaked on GRR.  A towel is an appropriate souvenir.

We visited Opryland in September of 1985.  It was chilly outside, but we had to ride GRR.  We stayed at the Opryland Hotel, which is huge and still exists today.

At the time of my visit, I don't remember seeing any Grizzly River Rampage souvenirs for sale (like this figural charm, which I would have wanted---but I was a fifth grader and did not have money to spend for that, so it wouldn't have mattered anyway).

I was obsessed with the marketing for this ride.

There was a wonderful comic-book style ad in the Sunday Birmingham News that I still remember to this day (it may have been in the comics section).  If anyone has that, please send it my way!

One of the nicest items is a Grizzly River Rampage stein.

Opryland and Grizzly River Rampage became a thing of the past when the park closed down December 31, 1997 and never re-opened.

A grizzly bear raft ride exists today at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim.  Check out Disney's Country Bears at Grizzly River Run in California Adventure.  There are no advertised grizzlies on that attraction, either (except for a mountain shaped like a bear).

The Screamin' Delta Demon: From Opryland To Shanghai Disneyland

When you wish upon a star, apparently your dreams come true in Shanghai Disneyland.

As a kid growing up in Alabama, I was fascinated by the marketing for the Opryland theme park in Nashville, Tennessee.  Specifically, I was obsessed with the advertising artwork created for the park's Grizzly River Rampage raft ride and The Screamin' Delta Demon toboggan ride.

The logo artwork for The Screamin' Delta Demon seemed to promise an encounter with a scary crocodile/alligator type creature in a swamp.

The reality of The Screamin' Delta Demon did not match the artwork.  It was a fun ride for sure, but there was no monster lurking in a swamp trying to get you.

The ride vehicles, at least, were shaped like the Delta Demon creature.  The attraction zoomed through the woods, mingling with Opryland's (very fun) log flume ride.

By 1997, Opryland closed down and the Screamin' Delta Demon became just a memory.

Flash forward to July, 2015, with new information revealed about the upcoming Shanghai Disneyland park in China.

Shanghai Disneyland's Roaring Rapids raft attraction features a beast that looks very familiar to me.

WOW!  Could it be?  Finally, the terrifying Screamin' Delta Demon lives!  He is only missing his wings.  Maybe King Stefan from Maleficent cut them off.

Seriously, this Shanghai Disneyland creature is fantastic, and a dream come true for me.

Now if only Disney could revive Opryland's Grizzly River Rampage.

Oh, wait, they sort of already did that (see Disney's Country Bears at Grizzly River Run in California Adventure).

For more fun, check out Dreamin' of the Screamin' Delta Demon at Opryland.

In the middle of Opryland, you could also find the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster in Do Wah Diddy City.

These days, you can find the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida, and at the Walt Disney Studios Park at the Disneyland Paris Resort in France.

On the flip side, Opryland also had a show called "I Hear America Singing."

At Disneyland in California, a very similar type show called "America Sings" played in Tomorrowland from 1974 to 1988 (though the Disney show featured Audio Animatronics animals characters---many of whom went on to appear in Splash Mountain).

Dreamin' Of The Screamin' Delta Demon At Opryland

For many years, whenever actress Delta Burke was mentioned on TV, the first thing I thought of was The Screamin' Delta Demon, the awesome fire-breathing monster that could be found at the Opryland theme park in Nashville, Tennessee.

The marketing department of the Opryland theme park had a knack for making a simple amusement park ride a highly anticipated experience. There wasn't actually a fire-breathing, flying alligator creature threatening anyone on The Screamin' Delta Demon.

Isn't this photo scary? I'm talking about the Eighties fashion and hair, not the highly themed Screamin' Delta Demon ride vehicle.

The Screamin' Delta Demon was an Intamin Bobsled roller coaster that weaved around a flume-like ride track through a forest in Opryland. Sadly, there was NOT an animatronic version of the Delta Demon roaring at riders (that would have been awesome!).

The ride was as visually intimidating as its name. I was terrified to ride this, but I'm glad I did.

My first and only visit to Opryland was in September of 1985. Back then, the park was called Opryland USA. The name would be changed around over the years.

I got to stay in the Opryland Hotel, which was pretty amazing. An expanded version of The Opryland Hotel is still open today, though the Opryland theme park closed down years ago.

Why did Opryland close? I'm not sure.

The theme park was said to be landlocked, so expansion may have been too difficult.

Opryland had some rides on my visit, but the focus was clearly on the shows.

The "Modern 1980s" Opryland musical presentation reminded me of the Saturday Morning TV show "Kidd Video" (which I DID watch at the Opryland Hotel right before going to Opryland) and I remember seeing a reference in the park's rock and roll section to "The Flipside" (which was also a setting on Kidd Video).

Opryland had a great deal at the time called the Tricket. You paid for one day and got two consecutive days free.

There were two rides in Opryland that captured my imagination when I was a kid. One was The Screamin' Delta Demon, and the other was Grizzly River Rampage.

The exciting ads for Grizzly River Rampage appearing on TV, newspapers and billboards featured a ferocious bear attacking river rafters. In reality, the bear was a static figure in a tunnel with a flickering strobe light. I think most people did not realize there was a bear there.

Many years later, Disney built a grizzly bear themed raft ride. Check it out at Disney's Country Bears At Grizzly River Run In California Adventure.

Opryland had some very famous mascots, including the Honey Nut Cheerios Bee.

Visitors to Opryland could meet all sorts of General Mills cereal characters.

Box tops from different "Big G" cereals were used for discounts on park admission.

Lucky the Leprechaun always had to worry about kids going after his Lucky Charms, whether it was the cereal or Lucky getting strategically kicked by rowdy children.

The Trix Rabbit could also be found at Opryland's Big G Cereal Play area for kids.

Opryland also had a Petting Zoo, complete with coin operated "game machines" featuring live animals (like bunnies and ducks). The animals would perform a simple trick (like playing basketball) and get food. I can't make this stuff up!

Count Chocula and the Monster Cereal gang are among my favorite advertising characters, and they were on hand to frighten visitors. Well, I don't think Boo Berry was there (he's always been tough to find).

Opryland really missed an opportunity by not making a haunted house ride with Count Chocula, Frankenberry, Boo Berry and Fruit Brute (the lesser known werewolf character---you can see references to him in Quentin Tarantino movies).

Sonny is Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!

Like all the General Mills characters, Sonny's appearance has changed over the years.

I think General Mills introduced more cartoon cereal spokesmen than any other breakfast cereal manufacturer, for a wide variety of cereals that did not last (anyone remember Ice Cream Cones Cereal?). Cinnamon Toast Crunch originally had three baker characters, but only Wendell survived.


To see the two Cinnamon Toast Crunch Bakers that did not make the cut, and get a look at Ice Cream Jones (the mascot for Ice Cream Cones), take a look at Magic Trix Aren't Just For Kids.

Look, it's the Cheshire Canine! No, it's Chip the Cookie Hound, the mascot for Cookie Crisp Cereal (originally made by Ralston Purina, this became a General Mills cereal in 1997).

Cookie Crisp originally had a wizard mascot named Cookie Jarvis. Later, the character was replaced by the Cookie Crook and his dog Chip, who were always being pursued by the Cookie Cop. When General Mills bought Cookie Crisp, the Cookie Crook and Cop were dropped, making Chip the mascot for the cereal. Chip eventually lost his mask, and eventually his job when he was replaced by the Wolf character that is used to promote the cereal these days.

The General Mills Breakfast Babies bean bags were part of a mail-order promotion released in 1997, which is the same year Opryland closed.

Just a few months before my September 1985 visit to Opryland, Dolly Parton (a talented performer and business person) announced her plans to open the Dollywood theme park (formerly known as Silver Dollar City) in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Here's a 1999 Entertainment Weekly article that mentions plans for Dollywood parks in Japan and Europe.

Dollywood (and later, Dollywood's Splash Country water park) have been huge hits for Dolly Parton. Get your minds out of the gutter---I said HITS!

For a look at an early map of the park, check out Dollywood is Open From 9 to 5.

The former site of Opryland is now home to a mall, Opry Mills. Wait a minute---Opry Mills? General Mills Cereal!? Coincidence? I think not!

For even more southern fried fun from the past, see Tennessee It No More: Magic World in Pigeon Forge.

*UPDATE For January 21, 2012:

On January 20, 2012 (the day after Dolly Parton's Birthday) it was announced that Dollywood and Gaylord Entertainment are joining forces for a "water and snow park" near the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee. It should open by Summer 2014. Great news!

Also on January 20, Bobby Bickert wrote to me about those game machine performing animals at Opryland:

"I believe you about these performing animals, because I saw what may have been the same animals in Florida a little while before you did.
They were part of St. Petersburg's famous "Webb's City" department store, which I visited not too long before it closed. The year after Webb's City closed, all of the animals except the tightrope-walking chicken (which wasn't in an enclosed space) turned up at the Florida State Fair as the "IQ Zoo". After that they disappeared. Since this was in the early 1980's, I wonder if they were taken to Opryland?
Here's what I can remember:
Chicken that walked a tightrope
Chicken that played Tic Tac Toe with you
Chicken that "danced" (after turning on a "jukebox")
Chicken that gave you a "prize" out of a gumball-type machine
Duck that played a piano (It turned on a lamp first.)
Rabbit that "kissed" a fake female rabbit
Rabbit fire chief
There were probably others, but that's all I can remember."
Yes, that sounds like the same animals to me. Thanks for the information, Bobby!