Go back to your reptiles.” And so that stuck with me. When I became director, I knew I wasn’t a merchandiser. I wasn’t a businessman. And I went to Bob Hyland and I said, “I’d like to bring in a consultant to look at our food service, business operation.” And… Read More
He came in and did a research study and wrote a proposal where he suggested that. We had combination food stands and souvenir stands all in one roof. They had hotdogs, hamburgers, popcorn and cheap chintzy, made in Japan souvenirs. He said, “You should have upgraded apparel, nice things for… Read More
I got a budget. I used Jerry Ward as a consultant. We interviewed people. We brought in a woman who had been a chief merchandiser for one of the St. Louis department stores, put her in charge of merchandise and gift shops. We hired a food service manager who’s trained… Read More
When you first got to the zoo, can you talk about what the zoo had as far as visitor services?… Read More
And then when you were director, how did you want to change that visitor service experience?… Read More
When I came to the zoo, they had souvenir stands that sold whips and spears. The kids were buyin’ ’em for a buck and then they stab at the animals. They’d come to the reptile house. They’d lean over the pits. We had open pits. They’d try to stab the… Read More
I have no control over that.” So I went to see Mr. Sanders in his office. Henry Sanders was the assistant director. And I told him, I said, “You know, these kids have these spears and these whips and they’re teasin’ the animals. And I just don’t think it’s professional… Read More
Was Betty White a friend of the zoo and how was she friend?… Read More
Well Betty White was a personal friend of Marlin and Carol Perkins. Apparently she was a fan of Wild Kingdom. And one time when Marlin was visiting in California, they met Betty White. And Betty White, Carol Perkins became very, very close friends. Later when Marlin Perkins and Carol Perkins,… Read More
She is a avid, avid zoo fan and a friend of any zoo. And of course she’s now the oldest performing Hollywood movie actress still active in TV and movies and doing a great job and still an advocate for zoos. Now the zoo’s made up of many parts. And… Read More
Would you explain who he is?… Read More
Grzimek, Bernhard Grzimek was director of the Frankfurt Zoo and also established the Serengeti Research Station in Tanzania. And so a well-known biologist and he was the Marlin Perkins of Africa, of Europe because he had a TV show in Germany that went all over Europe. And he also was… Read More
You know, I have a hard time answering that one. I’ll throw out one, which was Jane Goodall. Okay, we did have the opportunity to invite Jane Goodall to speak to our association members. And in fact, our auditorium wasn’t big enough. We had to rent Powell Hall which is… Read More
Stephanie Parze. We brought her to St. Louis and she talked about her animal orphanage in Africa. I’m tryin’ to think other people we brought. We also had Grzimek visit one time and we had him read some of our members. Read More
Would you explain who he is?… Read More
How did that affect the zoo?… Read More
Did they help raise money?… Read More
Who were some of the people that made big impressions on you, that surprised you, that you had the opportunity to meet?… Read More
Were they helpful in any way to the zoo other than coming to see the zoo?… Read More
What mistakes did you see zoos making in exhibiting the animals and allowing people to see them and how did that affect how you wanted to do it?… Read More