Vintage Roadside Visits: Aquarena Springs documentarian Bob Phillips - Part 2

Here's Part 2 of our interview with Bob talking about his new Aquarena Springs documentary. In case you missed Part 1 you can find it here.

Vintage Roadside: We've spent years tracking down the former Aquarama employees. Has it been difficult to find the former Aquarena performers?

Bob: When I began the Aquarena documentary project back in 2006 my goal was to interview the people I knew that were still around San Marcos. It was somewhat easy for me because I already knew many of the people. The first person interviewed was my step-mother Shirley Rogers, granddaughter of Aquarena Springs developer A.B. Rogers, and daughter of Paul Rogers who continued the dream of his father. Shirley told me about Edwin Cooper, one of the first glass bottom boat drivers from 1946, and the 99-year-old gentleman who told stories about dancing on top of the Aquarena Hotel between 1929 and 1932. I found and interviewed them both.

Then I met some people I did not know at the 2009 Aquarena reunion. That was a great opportunity to hear stories that took place before I worked there. One of the gentlemen I did not get to interview was a San Marcos native who began working there when he was 12 years old and later became the CEO of Busch Entertainment. He told me he would love to be interviewed, but with so many other people to help tell the story I never did track him down...

Vintage Roadside: The reunion sounds wonderful. Any idea how many people came to it?

Bob: There must have been about 150 people there. I was like a kid in a candy store without enough time to eat it all!

An Aquarena Mermaid.

Vintage Roadside: Are there still former employees you'd love to talk with?

Bob: Yes, if there are folks out there who I did not get a chance to talk to I would love to connect with them to learn more of their stories.

Vintage Roadside: You put together an amazing archive of film and images for your documentary. How difficult was it to track those down?

Bob: I spent years collecting the photos and film footage. I first went to the Texas Department of Transportation Tourism Information Division's photo library where I found over 100 great vintage photos. Also, I found great photos at the San Marcos Library and the Texas State University library. Aquarena Springs also had some great video footage. I found some footage online that was shot in the 1960s and contacted that person and got approval to use some of it. Shirley, my step-mother, produced some pure gold with her 16 mm footage that was shot in the 1940s and 1950s. It included great footage of her father and grandfather at the first submarine theater performance as well as her family trip to Florida where her father had gotten some ideas from visits to Weeki Wachee, Silver Springs, and Marine Studios. There was also a film from the 1940s about the town of San Marcos that included the first glass bottom boat.

A Facebook page was created prior to the Aquarena Reunion in 2009 where I posted a request for images and footage - I got a good response from that, too. Also, the lady who trained Ralph the Swimming Pig had some great video footage as well.

In the beginning I thought I might not have enough images to back up the interviews, but as the project progressed I ended up way more than I could ever use in a single documentary.

Ralph enjoys a refreshing beverage.

Vintage Roadside: How fantastic you were able to gather so much material. It sounds like you won the "Researcher's Lottery"! Any idea just how much material you collected?

Bob: I collected between two and three hundred photos and about 10 to 15 hours of vintage video and film.

Vintage Roadside: One of the great images you have is the photo we posted above of Ralph enjoying a meal. We've always been big Ralph fans - can you tell us a bit of his story?

Bob: Ralph the Swimming Pig was cool. He began swimming in the show about 1956. In the beginning they called the pig Missy, not sure why, just seemed a good name for a pig I guess. Then in the early 1960s, Barbara Backus, the swimmer who was Missy's trainer as well as an Aquamaid, was in the water training a new Missy. Fellow Aquamaid Virgie Sheets was helping Barbara. Virgie just happened to be going through a divorce at the time with her husband Ralph and was telling some stories about it to Barbara. Well, Barbara, for the fun of it started calling the pig she was training Ralph. It became sort of a joke to call that pig and then all the other pigs Ralph. The name stuck and the rest is history!

Ralph was always a hit in the show and soon began to appear on national television. He became the one thing that people wanted to see when they came to Aquarena Springs - slightly edging out the beautiful mermaids, believe it or not.

A vintage Aquarena decal spotted in 2011.

Vintage Roadside: You recently had a screening of your film at the Texas Music Center in San Marcos. How did the screening go? Did you have a nice turnout?

Bob: I used the premier as a fund raiser for the San Marcos Heritage Association. They in turn got to use the theater for free and we had over 160 people pay $10 each to attend the premier. We served free popcorn and there was a cash bar. At the end of the movie 90 copies of the documentary were purchased and we ended up raising about $2300 for the Heritage Association. 

The film was shown in High Definition on a 20' by 20' screen and the sound system blew me away. The music that I had heard a million times while editing on my computer sounded so much better on their system. I heard wonderful sound in the music I had not heard before.

It was surreal sitting in the theater I had grown up watching movies in, with 160 people, most of whom I did not know, quietly watching, laughing, and crying at the documentary I had spent years creating.

The one, the only, Glurpo!

Vintage Roadside: Before we ask you about some of the highlights of your film, we have to ask the one question most people ask us. Any idea why Glurpo was so frightening looking in his early costume?

Bob: Glurpo did start out dressed in an actual clown costume. Early photos (like the one you posted above) show him with a clown mask on, and a very scary one at that. Not sure why they would have a clown in such a scary looking mask, after all this was family entertainment. I'm hoping to hear back from some of the 1950s performers with their thoughts.

Later Glurpo wore a white swimming cap and a large red nose attached to his faceplate mask. In the late 1960s, the theme of the show was changed to a Polynesian Village and Glurpo became a witch doctor dressed in a grass skirt, beads, and a long-haired black wig.

Glurpo the Witch Doctor.

Vintage Roadside: Now that the DVD is available to purchase can you let people know a bit about the finished film?

Bob: In this 78 minute documentary the story of Aquarena Springs is told by over 30 people I interviewed along with vintage images, film, and video. The people in the documentary are folks who either worked at or visited Aquarena Springs. Viewers will see and hear every aspect of what made Aquarena Springs THE place to take the family for vacation from 1950-1990.

Vintage Roadside: We've watched the film several times and it's amazing the variety of things you've included. Being fans of old roadside attraction billboards could you list some of the things we'd see on Aquarena and Ralph billboards along the highway?

Bob: Here's some of what you'll see in the film:

• Beautiful mermaids and aquamaids swimming, performing underwater ballet, eating & drinking underwater - and learn how they did it.
• Learn how Glurpo the Clown smoked and blew smoke rings underwater.
• How do you teach a pig to swim?
• See Ralph the Swimming Pig's "Swine Dive" from above and below the water.
• Hear the story about the alligators escaping after the flood of 1970 into the San Marcos River - and how they were rounded up.
• See the dancing chicken.
• Learn how the world's only Submarine Theater worked and hear what happened when the submarine flipped over during a show with 57 people aboard.
• Take a ride on the Von Roll Swiss Skyride across Spring Lake.
• Hear about the time Johnny Weissmuller, Tarzan himself, visited the park.
• See the 1956 underwater wedding covered by Life Magazine as well as hearing from the best man about what kept the bride's dress from floating over her head.
• Much, much more!

Ralph enjoying the spotlight on To Tell the Truth.

Vintage Roadside: Congratulations, Bob, on creating such a great film. On behalf of Aquarena fans everywhere, thank you for the years you put into this! Where can people order a copy?

Bob: You're welcome. You can purchase a copy of the DVD for only $19.95 at my website here.

We hope you've enjoyed our talk with Bob and that you'll pick up a copy of his film!

Jeff & Kelly

Vintage Roadside

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Vintage Roadside Visits: Aquarena Springs documentarian Bob Phillips - Part 1

When we heard a documentary on the history of Aquarena Springs was being created by a former employee we couldn't wait to see the finished project. After spending the past few years researching the history of the Aquarama in Missouri it felt like we had discovered a kindred spirit out there somewhere in the (relatively narrow) field of "people who devote years to the research of defunct mermaid attractions." We'd check online every few months to see if there were any updates on the completion of the film and this fall we saw an announcement for the screening of the film is San Marcos, Texas. Not being able to make it down to Texas for the screening we were pleased to see the film was also being released on DVD.

Cover of Aquarena brochure

We immediately ordered our copy and sent an email to Mr. Phillips congratulating him on his film. We've been lucky enough to share research with each other and Bob has generously spent time answering our questions. Here's Part 1 of our in-depth conversation with Bob about his project.

Vintage Roadside: For those not familiar with Aquarena Springs can you give us an overview of some of the different things visitors to the park could enjoy?

Bob: Aquarena Springs was located on Spring Lake which is the headwater of the spring-fed San Marcos River. Visitors could experience the "World's Only Submarine Theater" where you would be taken underneath the surface of the crystal-clear water to see mermaids and aquamaids (beautiful young ladies) perform underwater ballet, eating and drinking underwater, as well as Glurpo the Underwater Clown who performed underwater antics such as singing, smoking, and blowing smoke rings. All these performers were upstaged by Ralph the Famous Swimming Pig that would capture the hearts of all who saw him with his world-renowned swine dive.

Glass bottom boats would take visitors across Spring Lake where they could look below the surface at the beautiful plant and animal life as well as the water bubbling up through the limestone sand.

The Von Roll Swiss Skyride took visitors up over 100' across the lake to the hillside hanging gardens that included the Burleson Log Cabin, Mr. Manley the glass blower, a Mexican paper flower market, the 100-year-old Gristmill that ground corn meal you could purchase, and the Spring House Gift Shop where you could buy rock candy and cheese. Visitors could take the Skyride back or a ferry boat across the lake to Pirates Cove Landing which included a pirate and nautical themed gift shop.

Interior of Aquarena brochure

The Texana Village was an old western town (think Gunsmoke) complete with San Marcos' original home, a saloon, a barbershop, a general store, farm animals, a blacksmith shop, old carriages, and a beautiful rock and crystal collection. There was also Top Gun - a mechanical cowboy that would challenge you to a gunfight, the dancing chickens, a fire engine bunny, a basketball playing chicken, a piano playing duck and chicken, and the chicken that would challenge you to a game of tic-tac-toe - and beat you every time! There were even 20 live alligators you could see.

The gift shops were wonderful and sold all the stuff tourists love like Aquarena-branded shot glasses, rubber snakes, Davy Crockett coonskin hats, and Ralph the Swimming Pig t-shirts.

The Aquarena Springs Hotel was opened way back in 1929. It had about thirty rooms and sat right on the headwaters of the San Marcos River. You could sit on your second story balcony and see the fish swimming in the crystal clear water.

Visitors head into the original Submarine Theater

Vintage Roadside: It's incredible just how much there was to do there. We want to ask you more about Ralph and Glurpo, but before we get to that we'd like to hear about your connection with Aquarena Springs. Your family has a very deep history with the park. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Bob: My family history at the park began when my older brother Bill worked there for one summer when he was 12 years old (about 1960). I followed in his footsteps when I turned 12 in 1962 doing the same job he had done, which was sweeping up cigarette butts in the parking lot and placing bumper stickers on people's cars. We were called "Butt Boys". We actually had to go up to each car that entered the parking lot and ask the driver if they wanted a free Aquarena Springs sticker on their bumper. It was an inexpensive advertising ploy. Of course we wanted everyone to say yes but many didn't, and some weren't very nice about it. That was a tough job for a shy 12 year old. I seriously think this is where I learned the important lesson of how to overcome rejection.

Vintage Roadside: What kind of money did you make out there in the parking lot? 

Bob: The pay was a handsome 25 cents per hour, two dollars for 8 hours of work. The first few days on the job I ate lunch in the Aquarena Restaurant, but ended up spending a whole day's pay. Later, I started bringing my sack lunch (figuring that it was better for my parents to pick up the tab) allowing me to save some serious spending money. Being in South Texas in the summer on a blacktop parking lot got pretty hot and I would spend as much time as I could under the largest shade tree out there. There were about 4 or 5 of us San Marcos youngsters working at the same time and instead of spreading ourselves out over the parking lot as we were instructed by our boss we would all end up under the same shade tree telling stories. The boss would come out and tell us to spread out and it worked - for about 20 minutes. It could get lonely out there.

One day in August I had had enough and decided to quit, so I did. I went home and relaxed until my dad got home from work. He asked me how my day went and I told him I quit. He said "You what? You know they expected you to work until Labor Day." The next morning he took me back to Aquarena (this was very embarrassing for me, of course) and found the owner and general manager in the coffee shop, walked me up to them and said (without asking me) that Bob would be happy to come back to work and finish out the summer. Thank goodness they told my dad that was ok, they had enough help and did not need me to come back. Whew, that was a close call. 

An Aquarena Aquamaid performing

Vintage Roadside: What a great story! That must have been mortifying as a 12 year old. Did you go back to Aquarena that next summer?

Bob: No, the next summer (1963) I worked for my dad at his Mobile Oil business helping him fill up his huge gasoline truck that would transport hundreds of gallons of gasoline to the local retail gas stations. 

In 1964 my father sold his business and Aquarena offered him a job as assistant manager. So that summer I went back to work at Aquarena, but this time as the boss' son which wasn't that wonderful because now I had to set an example of being a good worker - no more goofing off. My job was upgraded from "Parking Lot Butt Boy" to "Inside Park Butt Boy" which included cleaning out the Submarine Theater between shows. I loved this because the submarine was air-conditioned and I got to help take tickets for the next show which allowed me to legally linger around in the shade until the next show started. 

I later became a glass bottom boat driver, underwater gardener, and swam as Glurpo the Underwater Clown. Being in that 72 degree crystal clear water was like being in Heaven. I worked there until I graduated from the local university, Southwest Texas State in 1972.

Vintage Roadside: Did you father continue to advance with the Park?

Bob: He did. He later became manager and then president and general manager of Aquarena Springs. He then went on to become a popular leader in the Texas tourism industry by becoming the chairman of the Discover Texas Association and chairman of the Governor's Texas State Tourist Development Agency - the agency that promoted Texas to the rest of the world. He was well liked by everyone who knew him. He was warm, friendly, and had an unbelievable sense of humor - everyone loved my dad.

Vintage Roadside: Did any of your other family members work at Aquarena?

Bob: My grandfather W.G. Phillips worked there in the Texana Village in the mid-1970s. His job was to hang out in the general store and visit with the public and tell the younger folks stories about the early 1900s.

Newspaper clipping showing Bob with 2 co-workers

Vintage Roadside: Now, you ended up being related to the Aquarena founding family didn't you?

Bob: I did. My mother passed away in 1974 and my dad later married the daughter of the founder of Aquarena Springs, Shirley Rogers. The family sold the park around 1985 to a group of investors who continued operating the park as best they could until 1994 when they sold it to Texas State University (formerly Southwest Texas State University). 

Vintage Roadside: The University didn't operate the park much longer did they?

Bob: Two years later in 1996 they decided to close the park - except for the glass bottom boats. Their goal is to use the area as more of a learning experience about the importance of the springs and the endangered species that are in the lake.

Currently the park is being torn down and brought back to its original environment - turning it back into an aquatic ecosystem. The springs have never stopped flowing for thousands of years and the site is known as one of the longest continually inhabited areas in the northern hemisphere. The glass bottom boats will still operate.

Vintage Roadside: Aside from your family history with the park, what were some of the other reasons you felt it was important to make this film?

Bob: I had such a wonderful experience and fond memories working at this beautiful place and I know that anyone who ever visited or worked at Aquarena Springs had the same feeling. They knew it was a magical place. I felt it was important to keep the stories and memories of Aquarena Springs alive for the millions of folks who interacted with it.

We hope you're enjoying our interview with Bob and learning about his unique history with Aquarena Springs. Join us for Part 2 where we'll talk about how he researched his film, compiled materials, and what you can expect to see on the DVD. 

Here's a trailer for the film:

Jeff & Kelly

Vintage Roadside

Vintage Roadside to debut all-new presentation at Modernism Week 2012!

We've got exciting news to share here at Vintage Roadside - we'll be giving an official Modernism Week 2012 presentation on February 24th, 2012! We're debuting an all-new presentation called "Mid-Century Mermaids: A History" in which we share the stories and people behind a true 1960s phenomenon - the Live Mermaid show. Tickets are now available here!

Oh, did we mention that we'll have a live mermaid performing in the Ace Hotel pool? That's right, the world famous Marina the Fire Eating Mermaid will be joining us for our presentation with a one-of-a-kind performance in the hotel pool - a true Modernism Week first! So, for all of you who wished you could make it to Florida to see Marina we proudly present the opportunity to see her in the desert for the first time ever.

Some of what you'll see in our all-new presentation includes vintage home movies from defunct mermaid attractions, archival photos from numerous sources not seen in decades, first-hand accounts from several former mermaids & performers, a selection of vintage mermaid tails, swimsuits and costumes (many of which were assumed to have been lost), a selection of current mermaid tails, and much more!

We'll also take you back to the days of the assorted aquatic shows that paved the way for the mermaid attraction of the 1960s. We've got Aquacades, Aqua Spectaculars, Aqua Follies, Aqua Frolics, stories of a famous movie star swimming around without his suit, and more.

We'll cover the 1950s which saw the heyday of the Porthole Lounge in some of the swankiest hotels in the country. Places like the Wreck Lounge, the Mermaid Room, the Jules Verne Room, Davy Jones Locker & more. 

The 1960s were the high point of the mermaid attraction. We'll highlight Weeki Wachee in Florida, Aquarama in Missouri, Aquarena Springs in Texas as well as places like Marineland and even Disneyland which featured mermaids to bring in the guests. And for those looking for a little adult history we'll let you in on the secret of which hotel featured topless midnight mermaid performances.

Before moving outside for our live mermaid performance we'll wrap things up with a list of places you can still catch a mermaid show such as a 1960s motor lodge in Montana.

We've been working for years to put all this together and can't wait to share what we've discovered...looking forward to seeing you in Palm Springs!

Don't forget to pick up your tickets here.

You can also learn more by clicking the "Events" tab at our Facebook page here. 

Jeff & Kelly

Vintage Roadside