Orange County Fair: We're No. 11 in the Country! OC Great Park: Cirque Shows Will Make Money!

By Matt Coker Tue., Dec. 29 2009 at 12:05 PM

Categories: A Clockwork Orange, Main

OCFair.com

Clowning around at the '09 fair.

As the battle rages over ownership of the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, the current OC Fair & Events Center operators are trumpeting the annual summertime event holding onto the No. 11 spot among the top fairs in the U.S.

Meanwhile, down the 405 at the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, the city of Irvine is crowing about a study it commissioned that shows the upcoming Cirque du Soleil production at the so-called Great Park will make money.

Yes, people get paid for this stuff.
Costa Mesa, CA (December 23, 2009) - For the second year in a row, the OC Fair in Costa Mesa, CA, was named the No. 11 top U.S. fair by attendance by carnivalwarehouse.com, an online source for news and facts about the fair industry. In 2009, the OC Fair saw 1,072,018 visitors through its gates for a 23-day run, July 10-August 9. In 2003, the OC Fair was ranked No. 21 and has jumped 10 spots to its current position. The Fair's strong year-over-year growth is an indicator that it is poised to break into the Top 10 in 2010, which will mark its 120th year.

Do all those homeowners encircling the fairgrounds want to exceed that 1,072,018 attendance or 23 days of fairdom so the OC Fair can crack the top 10? Isn't keeping things at manageable levels what this whole fight over ownership of the fairgrounds is about? Just saying.

Incidentally, No. 1 among the top 50 fairs and festivals throughout the nation based on final attendance is the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in Texas, which drew more than 1.8 million guests. Remember the days when rodeos and livestock exhibitions were the main attraction at the Orange County Fair? Ah, memories. Now it's all about puke-inducing rides, deep-fried poopsicles and overpriced, uh, everything. And Weird Al's brain.

The fair operators' statement also singled out its "partner," Ray Cammack Shows (RCS), for being named by carnivalwarehouse.com the No. 2 carnival in the industry.