Alley Oop

It all started when…

V. T. Hamlin, created the character of Alley Oop on December 5, 1932, after working near Iraan, Texas, where he was doing art for an oil industry publication. One day, while wandering through the desolate landscape of the oil fields, he began musing about the dinosaurs who had once roamed through the very same territory. Hamlin also acquired a lifelong interest in paleontology through conversations with geologist acquaintances. Hamlin wrote and drew the Alley Oop comic strip through four decades for Newspaper Enterprise Association. Hamlin introduced a cast of colorful characters and his storylines entertained with a combination of adventure, fantasy, and humor. Alley Oop, the strip's title character, is a sturdy citizen in the prehistoric kingdom of Moo. He rides his pet dinosaur Dinny, carries a stone axe, and wears only a fur loincloth.who wrote and drew the strip through four decades. The comic strip inspired a Top 40 hit song, “Alley Oop” by the Hollywood Argyles.

In 1965, the city of Iraan created Alley Oop Fantasyland, and park dedicated to the characters in Hamlin’s comic strip. The park’s centerpiece is the 65-foot-long statue of Dinny, Alley Oop’s friendly brontosaurus-like steed. Dinny was unveiled at the dedication ceremony of Fantasy Land with V.T. Hamlin appearing to help judge the beauty context and cut the ribbon.

Iraan’s decision to theme their town’s tourism on Alley Oop more than 32 years after the strip was born was not as crazy as it might seem today. Nor is the decision to restore the park and museum to its former glory. Judging by the energy from the project’s Facebook page, if nothing else, it has energized many of the town’s young leaders to dream big.