29yrswithaGApass Posted October 26, 2007 Report Share Posted October 26, 2007 Click here to see the whole Spotlight! Comments and discussions are welcomed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarioSonic94 Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 Great Spotlight. I've been wondering what happened to the lion. Its sad that its gone. R.I.P 1974-2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted November 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 Long before the creator of Great Adventure, Warner LeRoy, introduced the original Lion Sign park icon (right photo), his father Mervyn LeRoy, the producer of the Wizard of Oz, gave us the Cowardly Lion character (left photo). Do you see any similarities between the two lions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 Nice Spotlight! Its sad to know that this historic park icon is gone. Hopefully as it says in the spotlight, the park will try to recreate this icon in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarioSonic94 Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 I think Warner LeRoy was paying tribute to his father's most famous production Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted November 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2007 Long before the creator of Great Adventure, Warner LeRoy, introduced the original Lion Sign park icon (right photo), his father Mervyn LeRoy, the producer of the Wizard of Oz, gave us the Cowardly Lion character (left photo). Do you see any similarities between the two lions? Catch the Lion in the Wizard of Oz at 8PM on Friday November 9th on TBS. FAST FACT: Great Adventure's Showcase Theatre presented The Wizard of Oz in the Fall of 2003. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuddyChrist Posted November 9, 2007 Report Share Posted November 9, 2007 Very Nice! It's a shame that the Lion fell to pieces, I hope that they do some work to restore it, it deserves better than just sitting broken on a flatbed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrill-Pics Posted November 11, 2007 Report Share Posted November 11, 2007 yea, me too. I would love to see that in the park today Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfgatim Posted November 15, 2007 Report Share Posted November 15, 2007 maybe if we message them and give them a good reason they would restore it, i messaged them yesterday asking them to do a update page for the dark knight like they did with kk and et. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesternCablesRule Posted November 15, 2007 Report Share Posted November 15, 2007 I find it sad as well that the Lion is gone. I remember seeing it often when I was a child on 537 on my way to LBI when leaving Millstone Twp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great Adventurer Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 I never got to see the lion, but I liked the spotlight nonetheless. They should have moved it to the Wild Safari or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Up_Up_and_Away Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 I never got to see the lion, but I liked the spotlight nonetheless. They should have moved it to the Wild Safari or something. Um, if you check out the spotlight you'll see that, since 1995, it was at the safari. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great Adventurer Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Whoops, sorry! I'll be sure to check it out next time I drop by the safari. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Up_Up_and_Away Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 The operative word: was. The lion wasn't handled with the level of care that was needed when the safari entrance path was realigned and is now no more... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Great Adventurer Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Wow, I really need to take a bit more time while reading. That's sad, I'd have liked to see it. I wonder where it went, hopefully it didn't meet too bad a fate... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted February 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2008 Another Cowardly Lion promo shot for the Wizard of Oz and the Great Adventure Lion...... similar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted May 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2008 This old time graphic makes me wonder if the Lion Sign was originally suppose to be mutch larger including a bear figure and arch-shaped sign. ??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsDevs4Lyf Posted May 10, 2008 Report Share Posted May 10, 2008 Certainly does look like it could have been in the works originally, although I think had it been done that way the sign would have become too cumbersome and probbaly would not have stuck around with us as long as it did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted January 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 With the Hot Air Balloon as an icon for the Enchanted Forest and the Lion an icon for the Safari Park, I wonder why they decided to use the tiger on their logo and not the lion? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertDavid Posted January 3, 2009 Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 With the Hot Air Balloon as an icon for the Enchanted Forest and the Lion an icon for the Safari Park, I wonder why they decided to use the tiger on their logo and not the lion? The lion was not originally an icon for the Safari Park, it was an icon for the entire complex. It was later moved to the Safari. I don't think any of the signs they have had since at the park entrance even come close to matching the magic of the lion. The current park sign looks more like an entrance to an office building than a theme park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted January 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2009 ^ Yep, I know the sign wasn't moved to Safari until years later but a lot of the early Safari related merchandise used the lion (as compared to a tiger). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted April 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2009 Now that we have some veteran Safari experts with us on the forums, does anyone know if the original highway Lion Sign had a name or nickname? I am wondering if it assumed the name of one of the "real" lions in the Safari. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Railer Posted April 25, 2009 Report Share Posted April 25, 2009 Now that we have some veteran Safari experts with us on the forums, does anyone know if the original highway Lion Sign had a name or nickname? I am wondering if it assumed the name of one of the "real" lions in the Safari. Great question. Hopefully someone has an answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Hill Posted April 25, 2009 Report Share Posted April 25, 2009 (edited) Great question. Hopefully someone has an answer. No, the sign was out on the Highway, and all of us animal handlers came in behind the Animal Care Center to park. I only saw the sign very few times because we just never wandered out that way. The orginal place that employees signed up for jobs before the park opened was on the highway, we did drive our Zebra stripped trucks out there checkin out the cute chicks applying for jobs! Is the big white tent office still the Head Quarters for all the bosses? Whatever happened to the big Balloon anyway? I always wanted to go up in it, but never got a chance? As to naming the Lion, Warner LeRoy was wild about my elephants, the big shots were always bringing people to the Elephant/Rhino barn for a tour. Got to meet alot of famous people back then. Edited April 25, 2009 by Gary Hill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAcoaster Posted April 25, 2009 Report Share Posted April 25, 2009 No, the Administration building moved across the park in the early 1980's. That old tent building has been used as storage over the years, and now parts of it are a shop and the entrance to the Superman roller coaster. Employee dining is still over there next to it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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