A Creature of Imagination

We can't leave Dinoland, U.S.A. without stopping to admire this stone dinosaur. Made of found objects, it seems right at home outside Chester and Hester's place. The custom piece was commissioned for Disney's Animal Kingdom and created by renowned folk artist Mr. Imagination (aka Gregory Warmack).

Mr. I's unique sculptures are composed of bits of rock, glass, tile, jewelry and other objects. You may have seen some of his work at the Smithsonian or if you've visited a House of Blues location.

There are lots of interesting pieces that make up Mr. Imagination's dinosaur sculpture. Of particular interest is the gold-colored oval in the photo below. Found along one of the dinosaur's spines, it's actually a Disney Cast Member 1-year service award pin, featuring an image of Mickey Mouse as Steamboat Willie.

To find out more about Mr. Imagination and his work, visit this link.

Putting Their Own Spin on Things

Chester and Hester definitely have a different take on dinosaurs than their Diggs County neighbors. Their attractions are a breed apart, far more corny and cartoonish than anything coming out of the Dino Institute (although it wouldn't be surprising to catch a grad student or two testing their skills on the Dino-Whamma or the Fossil Fueler game).

Of course, the biggest and most popular attraction at Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama! has to be Primeval Whirl (the name is a clever homage to the Primeval World, a dino diorama that originated with the Ford pavilion at the 1964-65 World's Fair and can now be seen along the route of the Disneyland Railroad in California).

Primeval Whirl is Chester and Hester's tongue-in-cheek take on the Dino Institute's Time Rover Tours. Their spinning, wild mouse-style roller coaster purports to take passengers back in time to the age of the dinosaurs on a crazy chase to outrun falling asteroids.

It all starts in the queue area, where silly scientists are busy checking gauges and pulling levers to operate the time travel machinery. This is high-tech stuff! Okay... really it's not. After all, those fancy doo-dads on the machine are actually hubcaps and kitchen whisks.

Once onboard a time machine vehicle, cobbled together from other parts and pieces, it's off to the dino days. The main lift hill takes us past alarm clocks and hourglasses, way back to the dawn of time (listen for the "ding" of a kitchen timer when the trip is done). A trio of dinos tries to hitch a ride, carrying a sign warning us that "The End Is Near!"

Before we know it, an asteroid comes crashing down right in front of us, sending our time machine spinning out of control. It's not until we make our way through the jaws (and bones) of a big fella who didn't make it that we finally return to the present. (Photo below ©Disney)

Chester and Hester's version of time travel may not be as sophisticated as the tours offered at the Dino Institute, but it sure is fun... and you're less likely to get chomped by a Carnotaurus. It just goes to show that Dinoland, U.S.A. has something to offer just about any dinosaur fan, from the intellectual to the irreverent.

A Blast to the Past

Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama! is a throwback to the kitschy roadside attractions of America's past. Just as Main Street U.S.A. brought back fond memories of a simpler time for Guests in the 1950s, Dino-Rama! is rooted in similar nostalgia. It transports today's Guests to those family road trips in the back of the station wagon to see the world's largest ball of twine, South of the Border or a collection of giant, candy-colored cement dinosaurs.

Similar to Main Street, Dino-Rama! also presents itself through rose-tinted glasses. No roadside carnival was ever this well done, this clean, or this friendly. The Disney version is the idealized version. Here, even the games of chance have a winner every time.

The look of roadside Americana has been lovingly duplicated throughout Dino-Rama! From chasing rim lights to airbrushed character art, all the expected details are there. In true Disney style, though, everything is amped up a few notches. Take the TriceraTop Spin for example:

First, there's the clever word play on Triceratops. The entire attraction is designed to look like an oversize tin toy from the past, a child's spinning top. Notice the baby trike sitting high up on the handle and the threads of the screw where that handle twists into the top of the toy.

Once the giant toy is set into motion, that's when it really comes to life. The dinos around the perimeter rise into the air, as if being lifted magically by a flurry of golden stars. As they go higher, the top opens to reveal other trikes who bob up and down. Watch for the asteroids, though, as they fly around the edge of the top. They threaten to bring an end to our dino fun, but even after we come safely back down to earth, we know we can just get right back in line and do it all again.

Roadside America

In Dinoland, U.S.A., the Dino Institute is still the main show in town, funding all the excavation work and sponsoring the museum and its Time Rover Tours. With the influx of tourists, though, other enterprises have grown up and cashed in over the years. Chester and Hester may have started small with their service station turned Dino Emporium, but they've since expanded in a big way.

Drivers can't miss the signs as they pass along Highway 498 into Diggs County. Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama! is straight ahead. Situated beneath a giant, smiling "Cement-osaurus," it's a loving homage to those kitschy roadside attractions of the past.

Parking's just $2... if you can find a space in the lot. Then it's off to the fun!

Chester and Hester have taken over the old parking lot across the street from the Dinosaur Treasures store and turned it into a bright and colorful dino-extravaganza, sure to capture the attention of anyone driving by who might be heading to those far-less-exciting attractions offered by the Dino Institute.

Contrary to popular myth, the original construction of Dino-Rama! at Disney's Animal Kingdom did not simply involve pushing back the berm and setting things up on an old Cast Member parking lot. On the contrary, the parking lot look of this area was hand-crafted for Dino-Rama! by the Imagineers who designed it. Believe it or not, it was actually more challenging for the team to create the look of realistically worn asphalt (out of more durable concrete) than it was to do the naturalistic hardscape seen in the rest of the park.

Throughout Dino-Rama! you can find evidence of Chester and Hester's creative recycling of old items they had around the place. Discarded tires have been cut down and painted to create curbs. The base of an old lamp post has been welded together with a couple of birdbath basins for a drinking fountain. Even the license plate collection the couple had amassed over the years has come in handy, as both a border for flower beds and various hand-painted signs at the attractions.

The camper they once used to travel has been re-purposed as a Dino Diner (When Animal Kingdom opened, this was up at the current location of the TriloBites stand. It moved here when Dino-Rama! opened in 2001.)

There's lots of cheesy fun to be had at Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama!

But wait... Don't go just yet! There's more to do here than just look around. Come back tomorrow, and we'll have more dino details for you...

Evolve or Die

Way back in the '40s when there wasn't much more in these parts than some cabins and the old fishing lodge, a couple of folks named Chester and Hester decided to go into business. Anticipating the traffic that might come from the recent expansion of Route 498 into a U.S. Highway, they put their savings into building a gas and service station along the side of the road (Notice the sign on the gas pump states that the fuel contains lead).

Since they were the only gas stop for miles, they did pretty well in those early years, but in 1947 everything changed. Dinosaur fossils were discovered nearby. Soon Chester and Hester, along with the rest of the country, had caught dinosaur fever. The couple started doing some digging of their own and even sold a few rocks and fossils to people passing through.

Chester and Hester began offering more and more dinosaur-related souvenirs at their station. Before long, though, they saw the writing the wall. Modern filling stations were cropping up all along the highway, and they just couldn't compete. So Chester and Hester finally made the decision to give up the gas business completely, evolving their entire establishment into Chester & Hester's Dinosaur Treasures.

Today, much to the chagrin of Diggs County's more serious-minded residents, you can't miss the Dino Emporium. The old service station has been painted in gaudy colors and covered with every type of advertising to catch the attention of passing motorists. "We're Erupting with Gifts!" "Going Out of Existence Sale - Everything Must Go!"

Notice that the "T-Rex Souvenirs Are King" billboard is actually painted on top of an old sign advertising gas for 28.9¢ a gallon.

Inside, there are still plenty of remnants of the original service station. The garage doors still open, and there are lots of cans of oil, fan belts and other parts just in case someone still needs anything.

Of course, some things are kept around simply for nostalgia. The Coca-Cola keeps much better in the modern cooler across the room, but the old one holds so many memories they just couldn't get rid of it. Same goes for the rotary dial pay phone. She doesn't get much use these days either.

In another corner of the shop, look for a picture of Chester and Hester themselves, along with photos of the happy couple from the early years. Didn't Chester look smart in his service station uniform? Why, they've even framed the very first dollar they ever earned.

Chester and Hester do dearly love the things of the past, but that's okay. After all, their business is selling souvenirs of the past to the dinosaur tourists of today.