Escapees March/April 2016

SKP Stops

SKP Stops Sharing News from the Road

SKP Stops Information • Deadline : Material for each issue will be selected based on location and the migration of seasonal travel . • Words: Short stories of 300 to 500 words are ideal. Submissions that are illegible, inappropriate or considered advertisements may be excluded. Due to limited space, submissions will be edited. • Photos: Photos are accepted and included on a space-available basis. Include the name of anyone who may appear in a photo and also the name of the photographer. • Acknowledgement: The editorial department may not acknowledge receipt of submissions. Submissions may not qualify for payment. The SPAM® Museum 701 18th Ave., NW, Austin, MN 55912 • 800-588-7726 www.spam.com/spam-101/the-spam-museum Did you know there’s a museum dedicated to a can of meat? Well, not just one can of meat, but rather billions of cans—cans of SPAM®. The SPAM® Museum is in Austin, Minnesota, and when you’re in north central Iowa or south central Minnesota, you should stop in for a few free sam- ples of SPAM® and a whole lot of SPAM® history. Some people love SPAM®, others, not so much, but few people in the U.S. and Canada have never heard of it. SPAM® hit the markets in 1937. Who thought up SPAM® isn’t known, but Ken Daigneau, a Hormel employee, named it and got $100 for his efforts. The museum opened in 2001 and covers the history of SPAM® and other Hormel products. When you enter the museum’s lobby, you pass below the Wall of SPAM®. It’s a ceiling high display of more than 40,000 SPAM® cans. On the opposite wall is a framed mosaic of two SPAM® cans. They are made from tiny photographs of SPAM® products, facilities and company employees. It’s actually pretty impressive. The next stop is the George A. Hormel Theater where you’ll be treated to a short movie about the company, and then it’s on to the museum proper. The ¿ rst things visitors see are historical displays showing the history of the Hormel family and the company founded by George A. Hormel. As you go deeper into the museum, there are exhibits chronicling SPAM®’s contribution to allied victory in World War II. For example, more than 100 million pounds of SPAM® and other Hormel products were shipped abroad to feed U.S. forces and those of our allies. In one part of the exhibit, former British Prime Minis- ter Margaret Thatcher and former Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev give SPAM® ringing endorsements for help- ing get England and Russia through the war.

Guidelines and Helpful Hints • Keep your submissions positive, upbeat and short. • Include fun or interesting photos with a brief description. • Share your favorite RV travel destinations, restaurants, museums, off-the-beaten-path locations or unique places to visit. • Keep in mind that the next magazine issue will mail two months from the time of your writing. Identify time-sensitive material. Send submissions to Escapees Magazine, 100 Rainbow Drive, Livingston, TX 77351, or to editor@escapees.com . Article submission guidelines are available for downloading online at: www.escapees.com/knowledge/ escapees-magazine/tips-submissions . There’s an interesting congratulatory letter from former President Dwight Eisenhower to Hormel’s president, in which Ike admits to eating a lot of SPAM® during WWII and, like many GIs, wasn’t thrilled with it. Nonetheless, he thanked the company for the provisions. The company produced a lot of print and radio advertis- ing for SPAM® in the 1930s and 1940s. It also sponsored the radio show of the top comedic team, George Burns and Gracie Allen. Millions tuned in weekly to listen to their exploits—and in the process heard a lot about SPAM®. There are replicas of print ads featuring Burns and Allen and outtakes of ads from broadcasts. Hormel was always looking for unique ways to advertise its products. One out-of-the-ordinary effort was “The Horm- el Girls,” a troupe of 60 singers and dancers put together in

The inviting entrance to the Spam Museum in Austin, Minnesota. Photo by Richard Bauman.

84 . ESCAPEES | March/April 2016 | www.escapees.com