Getting Started

Seafair's beginnings go back to 1949 when George E. Gunn Jr., a retired industrialist, was asked to head a committee to arrange a giant celebration to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Seattle's founding, in 1852. Gunn and Walter Van Camp, a transplant from Minnesota, felt Seattle would be better served with an annual civic event rather than a one-shot anniversary celebration.

The next year Seafair centers were established, with Van Camp serving as the managing director. Seattle's attraction is water, so Seafair was built around that theme. But it was also designed to promote Seattle as a place to do business, to live, to love, to work and play, to boat, fish and swim.

Everybody got into the act. There were hydroplane races, Aqua Follies at Green Lake, community events in Ballard, Lake City, Rainier Valley,. Wallingford, West Seattle, the University District. The outskirts of Seattle joined in with water carnivals in Des Moines, parades in Bellevue, Kent and Issaquah, and similar celebrations in Everett, Bellingham, Port Townsend, Sequim-every town, in fact, from Portland to Vancouver, B.C.

The younger men of the Ale and Quail Society, the rump organization of the Washington State Press Club, made themselves available to Seafair's sponsoring body, Greater Seattle, Inc. They requested help in forming a down committee and a statewide clambake. From the Ale and Quail Society came the Seafair Pirates, who were to assist in the summer festival which later became known as Seattle Seafair. (So it is the Pirates who own the name Seafair.)

The Ale and Quail Society took out a $100 membership in Greater Seattle, and made their energies and talents available. At a meeting in April 1950 the two organizations joined hands to make the summer celebration a success.

What follows (in the 1984-88 log book) is a collection of interviews with current members of the Seafair Pirates. Some of us go back almost to the beginning of the group. Others have joined in along the way. We thought the people who have watched us over the years would be interested in learning more about our activities, And we also hoped that through advertising revenues and the sale of the magazine we could raise enough money to provide a Sunshine bus for the Variety Club.

1961 was the year of the ape suit. It was a rented suit made in China with hand-woven hair and a big ugly head. The Pirates and Greater Seattle split the $500 rental fee for the 10-day celebration.

A Pirate walked the parade route in this garment, led by a balding Pirate and a chain. It was a success, but it took some of the thunder away from the Pirates themselves, as whenever we went to a parade or a bar or a cafe, all anybody could see was this big ape.

In a cocktail lounge, the ape would be put in a dark comer, where he would moan and start acting up. Some people thought it was the real thing.

Pirates also tried out other animals as gimmicks. Dick Albertson, a science teacher, had a pet white rat which crawled out the end of his cutlass and drank beer from a cup. The rat would sometimes get a little tipsy if Dick wasn't careful. Bob Liles had a pet monkey, Pat Rothaus had a skunk, who had its spray gun removed. However, the skunk, like the monkey, was pestered too much by the bar patrons who thought it was cute. It would get overly excited and use Pat's shirt as a urinal or toilet.

Finally, Don Mumm, who now owns a cafe in Arlington, carried a parrot. The parrot was perched on his shoulder, in true pirate fashion, But he bit Don's ear once, and the ear became infected.

He left a note in his room at the Hungerford Hotel asking Barney Moore to feed the bird. Three days later Barney found the note and the bird. He moved the bird to Tom Chase's room. When the Pirates finally found Mumm, his infected ear didn't keep him from being fined $9 for three nights' lodging plus $2 more for zookeeper's fees.


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