Ripley's Believe It or Not!

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This article is about the entertainment franchise created by Robert Ripley. "Believe it or Not" is also the name of a song by Nickelback (see The Long Road) and the informal name of a Mike Post theme song (see The Greatest American Hero).

Also, you may be looking for Ripley's Believe It or Not the TV series.

Ripley's Believe It or Not! is a franchise which deals in bizarre events and items so strange and unusual that readers might question the claims.

The Believe It or Not franchise started in 1918 as a newspaper cartoon panel featuring unusual and startling facts from around the world.

Conceived and drawn by Robert Ripley, the panel proved popular and was later adapted into a wide variety of formats, including radio, television, a chain of museums, a book series and a pinball game (produced by Stern Pinball, Inc.).

The Ripley collection includes 20,000 photographs, 20,000 artifacts and more than 130,000 cartoon panels. With 50-plus attractions, the Orlando-based Ripley Entertainment, Inc., a division of the Jim Pattison Group, is a global company with an annual attendance of more than 12 million guests. Ripley Entertainment's publishing and broadcast divisions oversee numerous projects, including the syndicated TV series, the newspaper cartoon panel, books, posters, games and mobile phone content.

Contents

[edit] Syndicated Feature Panel

"Ripley’s Believe It or Not!" is a registered trademark of Ripley Entertainment, Inc. Originally involving sports feats, Ripley first called his cartoon feature Champs and Chumps, but he changed the title to Believe It or Not, and it premiered on December 19, 1918, in the New York Globe. When the Globe folded in 1923, Ripley moved to the New York Evening News. That same year, Ripley hired Norbert Pearlroth as his researcher, and Pearlroth spent the next 52 years of his life in the New York Public Library, working ten hours a day and six days a week in order to find unusual facts for Ripley. Other writers and researchers included Lester Byck and Don Wimmer.

And on the syndicated newspaper panel after Ripley included Joe Campbell (1946-1956), Art Sloggat, Clem Gretter (1941-1949), Carl Dorese, Bob Clarke (1943-1944), Stan Randall, Paul Frehm (1938-1978 - Frehm became full time artist in 1949) and his brother Walter Frehm (1948-1989 - Walter worked part time with his brother Paul and became full time Ripley artist from 1978-1989). Paul Frehm won the National Cartoonist Society Newspaper Panel Cartoon Award for 1976 for his work on the series. Clarke later drew parodies of Believe It or Not! for Mad, as did Wally Wood, and Ernie Kovacs, who also did a recurring satire called "Strangely Believe It!" on his TV programs.

At the peak of its popularity, the syndicated feature was read daily by about 80 million readers, and during the first three weeks of May 1932 alone, Ripley received over two million pieces of fan mail. Dozens of paperback editions reprinting the newspaper panels have been published over the decades. Other strips and books borrowed the Ripley design and format, such as Strange As It Seems by John Hix and It Happened in Canada by Gordon Johnston. Recent Ripley's Believe It or Not! books containing new material have supplemented illustrations with photographs.

Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz's first publication of artwork was published by Ripley a cartoon claiming his dog was "a hunting dog who eats pins, tacks and razor blades." Schulz's dog Sparky later became the model for Peanut's Snoopy.

[edit] Radio

In April 1930, Ripley brought "Believe It or Not" to radio, the first of several series heard on NBC, CBS and the Mutual Broadcasting System. As noted by Ripley On Radio, Ripley's broadcasts varied in length from 15 minutes to 30 minutes and aired in numerous different formats. When Ripley's 1930 debut on The Collier Hour brought a strong listener reaction, he was given a Monday night NBC series beginning April 14, 1930, followed by a 1931-32 series airing twice a week. After his strange stories were dramatized on NBC's Saturday Party, Ripley was the host of The Baker's Broadcast from 1935 to 1937. He was scheduled in several different 1937-38 NBC timeslots and then took to the road with popular remote broadcasts. See America First with Bob Ripley (1939-40) on CBS expanded geographically into See All the Americas, a 1942 program with Latin music. In 1944, he was heard five nights a week on Mutual in shows with an emphasis on WWII. Romance, Rhythm and Ripley aired on CBS in 1945, followed by Pages from Robert L. Ripley's Radio Scrapbook (1947-48).

Ripley is known for several radio firsts. He was the first to broadcast nationwide on a radio network from mid-ocean, and he also participated in the first broadcast from Buenos Aires to New York. Assisted by a corps of translators, he was the first to broadcast to every nation in the world simultaneously.

As the years went on, the show became less about oddities and featured guest-driven entertainment such as comedy routines. Sponsors over the course of the program included Pall Mall cigarettes and General Foods. The program ended its successful run in 1948 as Ripley prepared to convert the show format to television syndication.

[edit] Films, Television, Internet & Computer Game

Ripley's Believe It or Not! (1949)
Genre Non-fiction
Creator(s) Robert L. Ripley
Starring Robert L. Ripley
Robert St. John
Doug Storer
Country of origin USA
Production
Running time 30 min.
Broadcast
Original channel NBC
Original run 1949 – 28 September 1950
Links
IMDb profile

The newspaper feature has been adapted into more than a few films and TV shows.

  • Ripley's short films were parodied in a 1939 Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies cartoon titled Believe it or Else!. Released on 25 June, directed by Tex Avery and written by Dave Monahan, it featured a running gag in which Egghead (a prototype Elmer Fudd) appeared to declare, "I don't believe it!" On 5 November of the same year, another Avery documentary parody, Fresh Fish, was released. Written by Jack Miller, this cartoon's running gag was a two-headed fish that kept swimming onto the screan to ask, "Pardon me, but can you tell me where I can find Mister Ripley?"
  • The first Believe It or Not TV series, a live show hosted by Ripley, premiered March 1, 1949. Shortly after the 13th episode, Ripley died May 27, 1949 of a heart attack and several of Ripley's friends appeared as the host including future Ripley's Believe It or Not! president Doug Storer. Robert St. John served as host from the second season until the series ended on October 5, 1950.
Ripley's Believe It or Not! (1982)
Genre Non-fiction
Creator(s) Robert L. Ripley
Starring Jack Palance
Catheryn Sherriff
Holly Palance
Marie Osmond
Country of origin USA
No. of episodes 79
Production
Running time 60 min.
Broadcast
Original channel ABC
Original run 1982 – 1986
Links
IMDb profile
  • An animated series, Ripley's Believe It or Not!, was produced in 1999 and followed the adventures of "Michael Ripley", Robert Ripley's nephew. The show was aimed at a younger audience, and would often feature Michael going around the world.
Ripley's Believe It or Not! (2000)
Genre Non-fiction
Creator(s) Robert L. Ripley
Starring Dean Cain
Kelly Packard
Gregory Jbara
Country of origin USA
No. of episodes 88
Production
Running time 60 min.
Broadcast
Original channel TBS
Original run 12 January 2000 – 15 October 2003
Links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary
  • The most recent series based upon the comic strip, once again titled Ripley's Believe It or Not! also debuted in 2000 on TBS. Hosted by actor Dean Cain, the series took a slightly more sensationalistic approach to its subject matter. The series was cancelled in October of 2003 after four seasons. Like the previous syndicated live-action series, this latest edition moved to the Sci Fi Channel for reruns, and continues to air today.
  • Ripleys.com held a Dear Mr. Ripley contest where 10 contestants were chosen to be voted upon as to which of their stories is the most unbelievable. The contestants included a two-faced kitten, a car hurdler, and a tongue swallower. The winners were announced on December 15, 2006.

Ripley's Believe It or Not!: The Riddle of Master Lu was published and developed by Sanctuary Woods, Inc., and released in 1995.

In the game, you control a historical character, Robert Ripley (1893-1949), a famous traveler and collector of rarities. One day, during a travel in Egypt, Ripley was attacked by mysterious Chinese assassins. The trail leads him and his Chinese girlfriend Mei Chen to the Forbidden City of Beijing. There he becomes involved in a mystery that will take him to exotic locations all around the globe.

The game plays like a traditional puzzle-solving adventure. Ripley will have to talk to various people, searching for information, but the main emphasis of the gameplay is still on puzzles, mainly inventory-based. The game features live actors filmed over pre-rendered backgrounds. Cut scenes are often presented as full-motion movies shown in small screens with close-up on the actors.

[edit] Museums

When Ripley first displayed his collection to the public at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933, it was labeled Ripley’s Odditorium and attracted over two million visitors during the run of the fair. That successful exhibition led to trailer shows across the country during the 1930s, and Ripley's collections were exhibited at many major fairs and expositions, including San Francisco, San Diego, Dallas and Cleveland. In New York, the famed Times Square exhibit opened in 1939 on Broadway. In 1950, a year after Ripley's death, the first permanent Odditorium opened in St. Augustine, Florida.

As of August 2006, there are 29 Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditoriums around the world. Odditoriums, in the spirit of Believe It or Not!, are often more than simple museums cluttered with curiosities. Some include theaters and arcades, such as the one in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Others are constructed oddly, such as the Orlando, Florida Odditorium which is built off-level as if the building is sinking. The first one was opened in Chicago in 1933, where, in an apparent promotional gimmick, beds were provided in the Odditorium for people who "fainted" daily. A new Odditorium is opening in Times Square,NY in 2007.

(Note that the list below is incomplete and is not all inclusive.)

[edit] St. Augustine, Florida

Ripley's oldest Odditorium, located in the Castle Warden, was purchased shortly after his death in 1949 and opened in 1950. Prior to becoming home to Ripley's vast collections from his many travels, "The Castle" as it is known, was once a hotel which played host to many famous guests, including Ripley himself and author/owner Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. "The Castle" was originally a Moorish Revival style mansion, built in 1887 by millionaire William Warden as a winter home. The popularity and success of this museum led Ripley's associates to open new establishments throughout the United States and the world. But "The Castle" remains the permanent home of Ripley's personal collections and is the flagship of the Odditoriums. Perhaps not surprisingly, it is also rumored to be haunted. Segments of the most recent Ripley's TV series were filmed here, including the opening credits. Among the attractions here are a mummified cat, a 1/12 scale model of the original Ferris wheel made out of Erector sets, life and death masks of famous celebrities (including Abe Lincoln), and shamanistic apparatus from cultures around the world.

[edit] Gatlinburg, Tennessee

The original Gatlinburg, Tennessee museum, built in 1970 by Jason Santuccio, was destroyed by a massive fire caused by a faulty light fixture in a neighboring shop on July 14, 1992. The museum had to be completely rebuilt. Some of Ripley's most prized and unique possessions were consumed by the blaze. The current museum opened in 1995, with a tribute to the city's firefighters included among the collections. Artifacts salvaged from the blaze sport "I Survived The Fire" decals. The new building also has nearly twice the amount of exhibit space as the original.

As with some other Ripley museums, this building has a theme. The museum looks as if it has survived a major earthquake. The interior and exterior of the building feature "cracks" throughout, adhering to the theme. The original museum featured the same theme.

The Ripley's Company has since opened several other attractions in the area, including a "four-dimensional" theater, a state-of-the-art aquarium, a haunted mansion, several arcades and two miniature golf attractions, all of which carry the Ripley's brand name and signature logo.

Hollywood, California Odditorium
Hollywood, California Odditorium

[edit] Buena Park, California

This Ripley's Odditorium is located in Buena Park's E-Zone district on Beach Boulevard. It is within close distance of Knott's Berry Farm as well as the now-closed Movieland Wax Museum.

[edit] Atlantic City, New Jersey

The Ripley's Museum in Atlantic City, New Jersey is located on the boardwalk between New York Avenue and St. James Place. It is a popular destination for tourists.

[edit] Branson, Missouri

The Branson, Missouri museum looks like a stone edifice that was cracked by an earthquake.

Odditorium in Myrtle Beach
Odditorium in Myrtle Beach

[edit] Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

The Myrtle Beach, S.C. museum looks like a building cracked by a hurricane. It's at the corner of 9th Avenue and Ocean Boulevard, across from the famed pavilion. Ripley's has three other attractions in Myrtle Beach besides the museum: an aquarium, a moving-theater attraction and a haunted house.

[edit] Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin

In the family resort of Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin.

[edit] Malaysia

The Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum is located inside the First World Hotel in Genting Highlands, Malaysia.

[edit] Mexico City

Opened in 1992, the Mexico City's Ripley's Museum is shaped like a Medieval castle and has 14 exhibitions halls within it. It was the first of several Ripley's museums to open in Latin America.

[edit] Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

The museum in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada is shaped like the Empire State Building fallen over, with King Kong standing on top of it. In 2008, Ripley's will open an aquarium in Niagara Falls! There is also a Ripley's museum located in Canada's East Coast as well.

[edit] Blackpool, England

The only Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum located in the UK is based in the popular holiday destination of Blackpool.

[edit] Copenhagen, Denmark

There is one Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum in Copenhagen, Denmark.

[edit] Ocean City, Maryland

The Ripley's Museum in Ocean City, Maryland is located on the boardwalk at Wicomico Street. It is a popular destination for tourists and it sits at the entrance to Jolly Roger's Pier Amusement Park. It features a large model of a shark that appears as if it has crashed through the museum.

Ripley's Shark Being Produced at Creative Environs, Inc. in Jacksonville, FL
Ripley's Shark Being Produced at Creative Environs, Inc. in Jacksonville, FL

Believe it or not, the Ripley’s Great White Shark in Ocean City, Maryland is a Florida native. “Born” in the Jacksonville, Florida fabrication facility of Creative Environs, Inc. International, the one-of-a-kind mechanical marvel is the vision of Bill Sims, CEO of Two-Headed Shark, LLC, and owner of the Ripley’s Believe it or Not franchise in Ocean City. The huge 40-foot, four-ton frenzied shark that now terrorizes visitors to Ripley’s is nearly twice the size of the largest Great White (Carcharodon carcharias) on record (23 feet long, 7,000 pounds). Modeled after the exacting, authentic conceptual drawings of Louis Pecci, Design Factory, Jacksonville, Florida, the Great White’s two massive separate body parts (head and tail) are made of steel armatures and fiberglass, with an exterior texture-coating mixture of sand and fiberglass to simulate sharkskin. Creating the angry, thrashing shark that undulates up and down and back and forth in constant motion was the easy part, according to John Oldham, CEO of Creative Environs. It was the existing Ripley’s wooden building awaiting the shark attack that posed the biggest challenge. In order for the old building to meet safety standards and accommodate the huge interactive attraction, new construction was required both on-site and in the fabrication facility 750 miles to the South. In readiness for the shark attack, the interior corner of the existing building was reinforced by two six-inch wooden beams and the roof was destined to be lifted. Meanwhile, in Jacksonville, a prototype of the site was constructed. Engineers tested and re-tested the weight and movement of the shark on a huge steel rail and trolley connected to a show control that also caused water to spew from a burst pipe and broken electrical wires to spark. Safety and precision tests completed, the shark was ready to rip through the building in Ocean City. But first, the huge Denison of the deep cut a swath of terror along the entire East Coast on I-95. Lashed to the top of a flatbed 18-wheeler, the Great White attracted national attention, appearing on CNN and Fox-TV. Arriving to great fanfare in Ocean City, the shark was put into his final place of unrest. Scenically creating the illusion of the shattered exterior and filling what appear to be the gaping holes around the head and tail of the shark with special weather-proofing material, the Creative Environs crew had done their homework during the four months preceding installation. The shark was actively doing his destructive deed within three days! While the exterior effect of the frenzied shark ripping through the building is impressive, visitors are treated to a unique lesson in industrial engineering when they enter the building. With 8 tons of shark and steel suspended in motion 25 feet above them, visitors view the “mechanical guts” of the project as the totally unconnected head and tail of the shark move independently on a trolley with wheels, powered by hydraulic pistons, while livewires spark and water shoots from broken pipes. For nearly seven years, the angry Great White has struggled to free himself from Ripley’s Believe It or Not, to no avail. And now, you know the rest of his story.

[edit] Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco, California

There is a Ripley's Museum located near Fisherman's Wharf.

[edit] Newport, Oregon

The Ripley's Museum in Newport, Oregon is at the Historic Bayfront. One of three amusements known as Mariner Square. The other two are the Wax Works and the Undersea Gardens.

Orlando, Florida Odditorium
Orlando, Florida Odditorium

[edit] Orlando, Florida

This Odditorium is located on the busy International Drive tourist corridor.

[edit] Key West, Florida

The Ripley's Museum is located on the famous Duval Street.

[edit] Grand Prairie, Texas

Ripley’s Museum located on 601 East Safari Parkway in Grand Prairie, TX 75050 Phone: (972) 263-2391 Just west of downtown Dallas, Texas on I-30 Highway. On northwest intersection of Belt Line Road & I-30, Approximately 5 miles East of Six Flags Over Texas Amusement Park.

[edit] San Antonio, Texas

The Ripley's Museum is located across from the historic Alamo. Just a short walk down the road is Ripley's Haunted Adventure.

[edit] Pattaya, Thailand

The Ripley's Museum is in Royal Garden Plaza in Pattaya.

[edit] Panama City Beach, Florida

Opened in 2006, this Ripley's Odditorium in Panama City Beach is designed to look like a 1950s luxury cruise liner that has run aground on the beach.

[edit] Williamsburg, Virginia

This Ripley's Museum in Williamsburg opened in 2006. It has 11 galleries and over 300 exhibits. Along with the museum there is also a 4-D theater.

[edit] Closed parks

[edit] Great Yarmouth, England

There was an Odditorium in Great Yarmouth on the east coast of England. It opened mid-1996 and shut its doors early 1997. It closed because the owner said "People wanted something new".

[edit] Metro Manila, Philippines

In the Shangri-La Mall in Ortigas, there had been an Odditorium, though it shut down in early 2002, likely due to the relatively-high price of admission which costs too much for one to afford.

[edit] External links

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