Dogpatch, is there more than one?

[HMndnproud]

I found this..........

Lake Ozark, Missouri - Dogpatch
I am the youngest daughter of Walter Tietmeyer, who built Dogpatch from the ground up. I have many old postcard photos and the real info on my father's now defunct business.

The figure in the description "Muffler Man", is an odd one. The figure's name is actually "Mortimer Snerd" -- he used to hold a golf club in his hand, and was used as a promo for my father's mini golf course.

My father sold the family business in the 1980s. In my father's final years at the business, he grew weary of mainting the hillbilly attractions that the kids seemed bent on destroying. I had hoped that the new owners would save what was left, but it is all completely overgrown now. I went back for the last time 2 years ago, and it was very sad to see. I do have every little piece of it in my heart, though. [Carol Tietmeyer, 12/04/2006]


(Dogpatch: Lake Ozark, MO Directions: Business Hwy. 54. )


What is this chick talking about? Is there some other business type thing that was called Dogpatch in Missouri?

I found this info Here

[BROUSER]

http://www.funlake.com/press_releases/c ... zarks.html

This article basically just describes Dogpatch up by Lake of the Ozarks as a roadside attraction, for the most part. The actual name of the place in Arkansas is Dogpatch, U.S.A., I guess.

[slow_walker]

I found this:

But for generations of visitors, no trip to the Lake of the Ozarks is complete without a stop at that Strip institution, Dogpatch. Opened by Walter Tietmeyer in 1947 and based on Al Capp's comic strip, Dogpatch featured a combo gas station/souvenir shop, a live snake pit, a lion, piano- and tic-tac-toe-playing chickens, and an outhouse featuring a hillbilly mannequin screaming, “Shut that door!”

Today those talented chickens are long gone, and the lonely guy in the outhouse is less vocal. Inside the big, bright, well-stocked Dogpatch store are generations of families searching for the perfect Lake of the Ozarks gifts and souvenirs. The store is known for its friendly atmosphere and quirky features including the fortune telling machine, elephant skull and “Old Grandpa” the talking hillbilly. Mike Page bought the place in 1993; he also owns Leatherman and Grandma's Candy Kitchen, home of 20 flavors of fudge and 40 flavors of saltwater taffy.

“We try to keep the old-fashioned atmosphere and nostalgia,” Page says of the Dogpatch store. The most popular items, he notes, are “anything with yesteryear appeal. Adults who come to the Strip used to come here as children. Now they're bringing their children and grandchildren to experience what they experienced before. Some things never change and that's comforting.”

In addition to Dogpatch, among those things that don't change at the Lake are the Muffler Men. These fiberglass giants originally were created in the 1960s by a California company for gas station chains and were used to lure owners of noisy automobiles to replace their mufflers. As businesses closed or changed owners, the Muffler Men were moved to other locations.

Apparently the Strip is lucky to have two, including one of the most rare styles, the “Half-Wit” (as designated by Roadside America ) in front of Dogpatch. Dressed like a hillbilly, he has the head of MAD Magazine 's Alfred E. Neuman and one arm raised in perpetuity as he waves to the giant Indian across the street at the Rebel Arcade. The Indian comes from Oklahoma. “That's about all I know about him,” says Rebel Arcade owner Keith Blankenship. “We repaint him as often as needed to keep him looking good.”

The website where I found it was updated as of June 2006, so maybe this Missouri version of Dogpatch is still there in some form.

[HMndnproud]

Hmm, so it's a store. I wonder if it's still open, does it have Dogpatch stuff for sale? Where is Lake Ozark?

[Gravefindr]

Dogpatch in Lake of the Ozarks is on the strip near Bagnell Dam.......its a very old attraction. From what I remember it included a store and several attractions. In one of the adjoining buildings (not sure if it was actually part of the Dogpatch setup or just a neighbor) was an animated model of a logging operation, basically it was about a 4 x 8 display enclosed in a glass case and when you put a quarter in it, the differant operations of the logging camp began working. Seems a little lame now but it was really cool to a kid in the late 60's, early 70's.
The Dogpatch USA in Arkansas was an amusement park with rides, etc. and was much much larger than the Lake of the Ozarks attraction.
There was also a Dogpatch attraction in Kentucky. From what I understand it was just a roadside/souvenir shop attraction.

[bobcat]

The Lake of the Ozarks is located in Camden, Miller, and Morgan County in Central Missouri. It's about 50,000 acres and 90 miles long. It used to be a nice place to go, not unlike Table Rock or Bull Shoals; however, its been completely destroyed and polluted by developers, ill conceived septic systems, off-shore racing boats, and a by volume content of about 2% urine largely originating in the fabled "Party Cove".

The lake was constructed in 1931 to provide hydroelectricity for the state, flood control, and a tourist destination. Not surprisingly, the electricity was largely funneled to many of the large mines in St. Francois County owned by St. Joseph Minerals Corporation (Bonne Terre, Rivermines, Leadwood, Elvins, etc). Ameren Co. owns and operates the dam now, so its probably just a matter of time until that bastard pops like a swollen tick ala Taum Sauk.

You've got the grand lake. I wouldn't bother with the Lake of the Ozarks.

That is unless you like to snort some coke while riding your waverunner and flashing thousands of drunks piled on multimilllion dollar boats. But who likes that???