Walt Disney’s Country Bear Jamboree “Howdy, folks. Welcome to the one and only, original Country Bear Jamboree, featuring a bit of Americana, our musical heritage of the past”
These words, uttered by Henry, your host, have been heard ever since the Magic Kingdom Park opened in 1971. In fact, it was the first attraction to debut in Orlando first and then to move to Disneyland in California.
As soon as you walk into the waiting area of the Grizzly Hall, the details begin. If you look down at the wooden floor you’ll see thousand of scratches made by generations of bear claws. Then you enter the show area where you sit in wooden benches.
Country Bear Jamboree is one of the very last attractions that Walt Disney personally helped develop. The show was originally planned for a never-built Disney ski resort in Mineral King, California. When that project did not come to fruition, the bears happily moved out to Florida in 1971 and have been performing daily at Magic Kingdom theme park ever since.
By the way, if you wonder why Henry exclaims at one point, “Cause we got a lot to give”, this is because the original sponsor for the show was Pepsi Cola, and at that time their logo happened to be “Pepsi’s got a lot to give.”
Arguably, the most popular character and the one people look forward to is a drooping, depressed, deep-voiced huge bear named appropriately Big Al. He sings “Blood on the Saddle” and then proceeds to sing again out of turn, prompting the other performers to pummel him behind closed curtains.
Other performing bears include Liver-Lips McGraw, Wendell, the Sun Bonnets (Bonnie, Bubbles and Beulah), the curvy Trixie and the Mae West-like Teddi Barra, who descend from the ceiling and invites Henry to “come up and see me sometime”, prompting Henry to say “as soon as I get a ladder I’ll be right up”
There’s also the three stuffed, mounted heads in the back who demand to see the show. They are a deer, a moose and the grouchy buffalo, named Buff (voiced by Tony the Tiger voice man Thurl Ravenscroft).
My personal favorite is Wendell’s and Henry’s rendition of “Mama, don’t whip little Buford. Mama, don’t pound on his head. Mama, don’t whip little Buford. I think you should shoot him instead.” I remember being ten years old and singing that song to the annoyance of my family, especially when I substituted my sister’s name for Buford.
In 1984, a seasonal show, ‘Country Bear Christmas’, was presented regularly every year during the Holidays.
Unfortunately, The Country Bear Jamboree was closed at Disneyland in 2001. It was replaced by the Winnie-the Poo ride. (Yes, the same Winnie that evicted Mr. Toad at the Magic Kingdom also did the same to his ursine brethren in Anaheim).
Country Bear Jamboree is located along the southwest bend of the Rivers of America, next door to Pecos Bill Café. With so many events to enjoy and so many things to see, there’s never been a better time to visit the Walt Disney World Resort today.
Located in Magic Kingdom Theme Park, Frontierland,Fun for Everyone, Fun For Little Ones and it is indoor.
