Don Glut's Monster Museum

Above, Jerry "Karlos Borloff" Moore and Don Glut. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Several years ago, horror host Karlos Borloff (Jerry Moore) of Monster Madhouse paid a visit to the "House of Glut" in Burbank, California. I met them later for dinner at a local Italian restaurant (if this is the same visit, I think it is). Above, is a photo of Borloff and Glut during that visit.

Earlier, Borloff shot a tour of Glut's home museum on video. It is posted on YouTube, but I have embedded it here so you won't have to search for it.



Here's a more recent photo of Glut with yours truly (taken by Yuu Asakura with my crappy cell phone camera) during my stop at Glut's to present to him a plush toy of Dino, the mascot of Sinclair Oil. I had a quest to find some for Don and myself after I saw some at a gas station in Yellowstone National Park last June. I wanted to buy them then, but I was on a tour and time was pressing and the gas station was crowded.

Above, Don Glut and Armand in the kitchen with the Sinclair plush. Photo by Yuu Asakura.

"Dino Don" Gets His "Dino"

Above, Don Glut and Armand in the dissection room* of The House of Glut. Photo by Yuu Asakura.

Sandwiched atop the craggy, rugged and jagged peaks near the Borgo Pass and the sleepy little hamlets of Goldstadt and Burbank, stands an ancient castle that the locals call The House of Glut. Herein, resides the old keeper of dinosaur artifacts as well as memorabilia of monsters and mad scientists, Donald F. "Dino Don" Glut.

On this very evening, I paid a visit to Herr Glut and delivered to him a new dinosaur artifact, a plush of Sinclair Oil Company's "Dino" mascot.

During my recent vacation to Yellowstone National Park, I searched far and wide through Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Utah for this rare artifact and finally found a specimen at a Sinclair gasoline station in Utah.

After several weeks passed, I gained enough courage to make the trek to The House of Glut to deliver this prized dinosaur specimen to Herr Glut.

As Dino Don was very busy plotting his next reign of terror upon Burbank and Goldstadt, I made haste after handing him the specimen (and taking the obligatory photograph to memorialize the event in the dissection room*) to the flatlands of the San Fernando Valley.

Needless to say, Dino Don was very pleased to receive this priceless specimen to include it in his dinosaur collection.

*Commonly known as "The Kitchen".

Sinclair Oil "Dino" Stuff

Along with the Sinclair Oil Corporation's plush "Dino" Bronto toy, I bought a couple of Sinclair's hitch covers for the motorhome (I bought two in case I lose one). They are the trapezoid logo hitch covers.

Here they are:

I'll have to meet up with Don Glut to get his Dino to him.

In Case Anyone's Wondering...

Above, Sinclair Oil's Dino stuffed toys. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A few days ago, I mentioned seeing stuffed Dino toys advertising Sinclair Oil Corporation at a gas station in Yellowstone National Park.

I also mentioned that dino exprt, writer, director and Godzilla fan Donald Glut would like one, should I find any on our way back home.

Well, after several stops at different Sinclair gas stations in Wyoming, Idaho and Utah, I succeeded in picking up a couple.

As soon as it can be arranged, I will meet with Glut to present him with his Sinclair Dino.

Sinclair Oil Corporation

Above, a Sinclair gas pump at Yellowstone National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

About a couple of weeks ago, writer, director, Godzilla fan and dinosaur expert Donald F. "Dino Don" Glut mentioned Sinclair Oil Corporation due to its dinosaur logo.

Sinclair has been pretty much a regional oil company with gasoline stations in the Rocky Mountain states and in the midwest. On my current trip to Yellowstone National Park, I have seen many Sinclair stations, and there are some inside the national park.

Our tour group stopped at one station in Yellowstone (there were some bison lounging nearby) for a break.

Above, Sinclair Oil toys for sale at the Yellowstone National Park gas station. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I took the accompanying photographs at the station and posted them on Facebook.

Some have asked about Sinclair Oil and here's what Wikipedia has to say about the company:

Sinclair Oil Corporation is an American petroleum corporation, founded by Harry F. Sinclair on May 1, 1916, as the Sinclair Oil and Refining Corporation by combining the assets of 11 small petroleum companies. Originally a New York corporation, Sinclair Oil reincorporated in Wyoming in 1976. The corporation's logo features the silhouette of a large green dinosaur. 

In 1969, Sinclair was acquired by the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO). Federal antitrust provisions required the new entity to divest itself of certain Sinclair assets, and as a result, the East Coast operations of Sinclair were sold to BP (which has since purchased ARCO). After the acquisition by ARCO, the dinosaur was phased out, but at least one service station, in Winona, Minnesota, retained the original look through the 1980s. Many Sinclair stations in the Midwest continued to use the dinosaur logo along with ARCO's "diamond spark" logo. At least some Sinclair stations partially retained the Sinclair brand for a time, using ARCO's blue rectangular logo including the "spark" graphic, but with the word "Sinclair" substituted for ARCO. 

In 1976, ARCO spun off Sinclair by selling certain assets to Robert (Earl) Holding. Sinclair has been owned by the Holdings since 1976. Assets divested in the spin-off included ARCO's retail operations in the region bounded by the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, and the rights to the Sinclair brand and logo, resulting in many stations along Interstate 80 keeping the dinosaur logo. The ARCO stations in Texas, New Mexico, Illinois and some portions of Oklahoma were not affected by the divesture, and they continued as part of ARCO until ARCO pulled out of those states in the 1980s.

Sinclair is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Above, Sinclair Oil's "Dino" toys. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Upon our return trip home, I will make it a point to stop at a Sinclair gas station and, hopefully, pick up some "Dino" toys. Don Glut indicated that he'd like to have one.