Monday, December 8, 2014

A postcard look back at Marineland of the Pacific, Los Angeles, CA Circa 1960s

In 1954, a year before Disneyland opened, Marineland of the Pacific was opened to the public. It was located on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles. The park was the largest oceanarium at the time.

In 1961 the park was the first to capture an Orca, which promptly died only three days later. In 1969 the park was successful in capturing another Orca, named Corky, and then in 1970 captured a female named Orky, who would go on to have six calves that died shortly after birth. Both would be moved to Sea World San Diego in 1987. Orky died upon transit to Sea World San Diego. She was involved in multiple incidents in which trainers were nearly killed.

The company that owned Sea World at the time, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, promptly closed Marineland of the Pacific after promising to keep it open. They transported all remaining captive animals to Sea World San Diego.

Based upon the location of the park in Los Angeles, the park was often used for television and movies. The Lucy Show, The Munsters, Emergency!, Wonder Woman, the A-Team, and more. Additionally, upon abandonment, many movies have utilized the vacant space for filming. Movies such as Pearl Harbor and Pirates of the Caribbean, were filmed at the site.

The inspiration for this research rant came from finding this foldout set of postcards the other day. The dating appears to be from the 1960s. If someone can cue me in on an exact date, please let me know.

 "Porpoise feeding"
 "Aerial of the Mainland of the Pacific"
"Oceanarium at Marineland of the Pacific"
 "Bottlenosed Porpoises"
 "Wilmington-Redondo Beach area"
 "Weyfarers' Chapel" 
This world famous church was designed by Lloyd Wright, Frank Lloyd Wright's son, and completed in 1951. It is a world famous venue for weddings and was even used The O.C. for weddings and funerals. It is famously known as "The Glass Church."
 "Glass Church" - Aerial view of the Wayfarers' Chapel
 "View from Palos Verdes Estates"

Marineland was located in a very beautiful area of coastline in Los Angeles. Surprisingly the property sat completely abandoned for several decades, and now it is in the process of being redeveloped.

Available now is our 2015 Roller Coaster Calendar. It is available through

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