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Giant reptile From Out West #25, January, 1994 By Chuck Woodbury Been to Vernal, Utah? Then you've seen the Beast -- the huge Tyrannosaurus Rex along U.S. 40, right across the street from Dinah, the mascot of the Dine-a-ville Motel. The two have been welcoming folks to town for 23 years. George Millecam, now 74, owned the Dine-a-ville back in 1969 when he decided to build some dinosaurs. The T-Rex became the fifth and final dinosaur he would ever build. And, arguably, it is his best. He'd never built a dinosaur before, but it seemed like a good idea. After all, even then, Vernal was big-time dinosaur country. Nowadays, in fact, it's the official headquarters of Utah's "Dinosaurland." Dinosaur National Monument is just a few miles out of town, and who knows how many real life (but dead, of course) dinosaurs are still buried in these parts? Millecam is a self-taught dinosaur builder. "I went down to the library and the field house and got pictures of all the dinosaurs I could find," he recalls. Being a carpenter all my life, building 'em wasn't too hard." Why dinosaurs? "We had to do something to attract customers to the motel. I decided to build a dinosaur park-- kind of a miniature Disneyland. So I went ahead and built the dinosaurs." But his mini-Disneyland flopped, and after two years, Millecam donated his property across U.S. 40 to the city of Vernal. And up went the T-Rex. He dispatched the other dinosaurs elsewhere. Four are in nearby Dinosaur, Colo., where the Stegosaurus stands proudly in front of the county office building. Vernal erected a welcome sign in front of its new T-Rex. Tourists began stopping to snap photos and, to this day, they still snap. Who knows how much money Kodak has made off this impressive reptile facsimile? Millecam knows how much he's made: nothing. "If I had a nickel for every photo that's been taken, I could retire a lot better than I am," he said. At 23 feet, the T-Rex is a mighty beast -- a roadside legend with a frame of steel. Millecam welded it together piece by piece then covered it with metal lath, and then blasted it with stucco. The result: Perhaps the most outstanding and impressive artificial dinosaur to welcome a tourist to a town anywhere in the world! The T-Rex shares the spotlight with another beast across the road -- Dinah, herself a masterpiece -- a unique, pink reptile with gorgeous eyelashes. She's definitely female and bears a slight resemblance to the legendary Brontosaurus. Millecam didn't design Dinah. His wife Helen did. She constructed a five-inch miniature, which she still has today. The Young Sign Company of Salt Lake City was commissioned to build the beast. Dinah is lovable-looking and fiberglass. And even though she's as gentle as can be, some folks insist on shooting her with bows and arrows. "You notice more arrows during hunting season," said Millecam. Other folks claim the arrows are the nocturnal work of the high school archery club. Who knows? But the story does not stop here. A short drive east of Vernal is the Colorado border town of Dinosaur, where yet another dinosaur tale is to be told. Unfortunately it's a sad story of a recent closing of the Dina Freeze Drive-In. No longer can a hungry traveler motoring west or east across lonely U.S. 40 order a Bronto Burger, like Out West did less than three years ago! It was good. It was cheap. It was legendary. And it's gone--another strike against the Great American Roadside and the independent fast food joint. But we end on good news. The tourism leaders of Dinosaurland have made a most generous offer to Out West readers. They have offered to send you one of their fabulous Dinosaur Hunting Licenses -- perfect for framing or just looking at. And, get this: There is absolutely no charge. None! Simply go to your phone and dial 1-800-789-9571. Tell them you are an Out West reader and you want your dinosaur hunting license. They will send it. And you will be glad. ©1998 by Out West Newspaper Do you have any comments or update information about this story? Please e-mail Chuck Woodbury. Out West, 9792 Edmonds Way, #265-A, Edmonds, WA 98020. 800-274-9378. Fax: (425) 776-3398. One year subscription in USA $12.95 ($16 outside the states). E-mail: outwest@seanet.com. On the Web: http://www.outwestnewspaper.com |
