Before SeaWorld and Marineland, the carneys of Wakulla Springs, Florida began training unsuspecting marine life to perform impressive tricks before a paying audience.
Take Aqua Frolics, for instance, a short entertaining review of the growing popularity of water sports from the 1940’s.
And could you blame the captive seals and dolphins for gladly tolerating free fish and dances in a private aquarium tended by the closest thing to mermaids humankind could produce?
Below the depths of the immense fish tank, giant sea turtles and deadly manta rays delicately nibble on tender morsels fed by the aquanaut working the dayshift.
Meanwhile, an intramural match of underwater women’s basketball is feated with a Thanksgiving turkey dinner under the heady waters of Wakulla.
Then it’s off to a waterski adventure, where teams of aqua frolickers skip the wakes of the speedboats off the coast of Florida
Tricksters on mini skis, impressive even by today’s standards, can only outdo themselves as they jump ramps on a single ski.
Then, a demonstration of the true power of the Gulf of Mexico as a team of extreme rowers take on rugged breakers smashing the coast of Florida’s Panhandle.
1600 miles north, in the state of Maine, daredevil kayakers challenge the whitewater rapids of the northernmost tip of the Eastern Seaboard.
Back in Florida, water skimming is all the rage as teams of water tobogganists try to knock their competitors off their boards along the swamps of the Everglades.
After that, it’s off to the races where a no-holds-bar speedboat challenges, through fire and brick, prove to be as deadly as they’ve ever been.
2,000 miles to the southwest in Acapulco, Mexico, cliff divers gracefully throw themselves from towering heights into waters surrounded by jagged rocks below.
Aqua Frolics from the 1940’s is an exciting trip through pastimes that people still enjoy to this day.
