Name/Title
MAD Festival, 1981Entry/Object ID
2007-012.B297NDescription
MAD Festival, 1981. These thirteen color film negative strips were created for the Lacey Leader newspaper. These images were created using several different film rolls, so some of the physical numbers corresponding to individual images are repeated. For the purposes of this description, these strips will be grouped according to which film roll they originally came from. Each of these groups will be assigned a lower-case letter to go along with the physical numbers on the strips (ex: 1a, 2a, 3a, 1b, 2b, 3b, etc.) to help differentiate between images. The images in group "a" show many different people engaged in many different acitvities at Lacey's 1981 Music, Arts, and Dance (MAD) Festival. This festival was held at Saint Martin's Marcus Pavilion, both inside and in the surrounding outdoor areas. The 1981 MAD Fest had a Mountain Man Rendezvous theme. Image 2a shows Ken Balsley wearing a light jacket and a plaid, button-up shirt. He is holding a small shooting target with all the holes at or near the center. He is outdoors at the MAD Festival. Image 3a shows a large (approximately 4' tall if standing) stuffed animal dog seated on a stool. There is a person wearing a jacket which reads "Funstastic" partially visible at the right-hand edge of the image. Image 4a shows three people working at a food counter. The person at the center is a man wearing glasses, a turtleneck sweater and plaid pants. He is preparing food. There is a large Pepsi banner hanging on the wall at the left-hand side of the image. Image 5a shows several young girls and three women standing in a group outdoors at the MAD Festival. The women are wearing dresses/historical costumes, and two of the girls are wearing cowgirl hats. There are food vendor stalls visible at the left-hand side of the image and in the far background. Image 6a shows a vendor stall at the MAD Festival. This vendor stall was selling dolls of various sizes made from yarn or other fabrics, and various trinkets. There is a large display of what appear to be pinback buttons at the right-hand side of the image. A seated woman is partially visible behind this display. Image 7a shows a vendor stall selling various stained-glass items. Image 8a shows a display of approximately six landscape paintings, some of which are quite large. There is a table with a banner hanging off the front. The banner reads "CAROL J. THOMPSON" across the front. Image 9a shows several children standing in front of a carnival game. There are many stuffed animals and other prizes hanging from the walls and ceiling. The child at the center of the image is wearing a baseball cap, and is facing away from the camera. Ken Balsley believed the child in the hat to be his son, Brad Balsley. Image 10a shows the same carnival game seen in image 9a, but there are no children visible in front of the game. The man operating the game is leaning forward on the front counter of the game and looking to his left. Image 11a shows an outdoor area of the MAD Festival. At the left-hand side of the image is a merry-go-round with boats as the ride's seats. Image 12a shows a portion of the ferris wheel at the festival. This image was taken from immediately below the ride, and the camera is oriented upward. Three of the ferris wheel cars are visible. Image 13a shows a child riding in a small car, which appears to be part of a carnival ride. The car has two steering wheels, and reads "HAMPTON" across the grill. Image 14a shows a small child playing with a string or cord of some kind. The child has a cartoon squirrel on their shirt. Image 15a shows a man (Joe Illing) in a blazer taking a bite of fried chicken or perhaps a sandwich. Image 16a shows a woman in glasses pointing toward the right-hand side of the image with her right hand. There is a man to her right who is also wearing glasses. This man is wearing a windbreaker and looking toward the camera. Image 17a shows a group of three people at the center of the image. The man at the center is wearing a running suit. The person at the left is wearing a t-shirt which reads "OLYMPIA SUPERSTAR." The person at the right is wearing a beret. Ken Balsey believed the individuals in this image to be member of the Olympia City Council. Image 22a shows a woman seated on the lower part of the stands at the MAD Fest. She has a large writing surface resting on her legs, and she is writing something. There is a man to the left of this woman who is holding onto the writing surface and looking toward the camera. Mark Brown is at the left-hand side of the image. Image 23a shows a woman in a long sweater and highwaters holding a purse under her left arm. She is holding a cup in her right hand. Image 24a shows approximately ten people on the stage at the MAD Festival. The man at the far left is holding an electric guitar or bass, and there is also one woman seated at a piano. Image 25a shows several people standing near what appears to be a starting line for a race. On the ground near the people are three pumpkins, two basketballs, two croquet mallets and one hula hoop. One of the people standing next to the furthest pumpkin from the camera is Mark Brown. He is holding a croquet mallet. Image 26a shows Mark Brown at the center of the image facing toward the left-hand side of the image. There is a young man (Brad Balsley) in a baseball cap standing behind him. There is a man in a plaid shirt seated on the floor to the left of Mr. Brown. Image 27a shows two men and one woman standing in a circle around a hula hoop and a pumpkin laying on the ground. The man on the right is holding a folder or clipboard in his left hand. Image 28a shows a man with a beard in a cowboy hat and vest speaking to a man in a sea captain-style hat. A pumpkin and a hula hoop are in the bottom-right corner of the image. Image 29a shows a man in glasses and a jacket speaking on the stage. He is mostly obscured by a piano in the image foreground. Image 30a shows four men and one woman in matching t-shirts standing in a line and posing for a photo. The t-shirts bear the City of Lacey logo. The man on the far left is Mark Brown. The man second from the left is Ken Parsosn. The identity of the woman at center is unknown. The man second from the right is Mike Kreidler. The man on the far right is Ken Balsley. These five people are the members of Lacey's Mad Cap Cup team. Image 31a shows a man in a v-neck sweater speaking into a microphone onstage. He is holding up a trophy in his left hand. Image 32a shows the same man from the previous image still speaking on the stage. Two men, one of whom is wearing a cowboy hat, and one woman are standing in front of the stage. Image 33a shows several people standing near two sets of one hula hoop, one pumpkin, and one basketball all laying on the ground. At the center of the image is a man wearing a sea captain-style hat and a woman wearing a t-shirt which reads "OLYMPIA SUPERSTARS." Image 34a shows four men and one woman standing in a line and walking forward. The woman is at the middle of the line. The two men to the right of the woman are clapping. The man on the far left is wearing a t-shirt which reads "FEARLESS FREDDIE." Image 35a shows the same group of people as shown in image 30a. They are standing in a circle and speaking with eachother. The person on the far right is Mark Brown. The man is shorts facing away from the camera appears to be Mike Kreidler. Image 36a shows three people standing and holding hula hoops at waist-level. The person at the center is wearing a t-shirt which reads "WSU." The images in group "b" show people engaged in various activities at the 1981 Lacey MAD Festival. Image 6b shows a man and a woman standing at a carnival game. The man is playing the game, and is or has just thrown something onto a table. Image 7b shows the table which the man in the previous image was throwing an object onto. The table has many equally-spaced spots on it. There is a sign hanging above the table that explains how to win the game. Image 8b shows the ferris wheel at the festival and a large sign. The sign reads "LACEY M.A.D. FALLFEST, VERITY SHOW 8 PM OCT 3, OCT 2 TO 4." Image 9b shows two men standing outside a food vendor. One man is wearing glasses and a long, plaid jacket, and the other man is in a Lacey Police uniform. The menu visible through the window of the vendor advertises hamburgers and cheeseburgers. Image 10b shows an interior shot of Marcus Pavilion with a stage and many rows of chairs set up on the basketball court. All of the seats are empty. One person is visible bending over near the stage. The person appears to be plugging in or unplugging a power cord. Image 15b shows two women and two little girls inside a vendor stall. This vendor appears to be selling quilts and other fabric items. The woman at the left is wearing glasses and is knitting. Image 16b shows several sealife-themed ceramic wind chimes. Image 17b shows three male musicians performing onstage. The man nearest the camera is playing fiddle, the man beyond him is playing banjo, and the man beyond him is playing guitar. The images in group "c" show people engaged in various activities at the 1981 Lacey MAD Fest. Image 14c shows a woman in a floor-length patterned skirt performing a belly dance. Two other belly dancers are partially visible, one at the left edge of the image and one at the right. Image 15c shows three men in fur hats and frontier-style outfits seated on the floor of the pavilion. A large crowd is seated behind them. Te main in a suit and tie seated to the left of the men in frontier-style outfits is Ralph Munro, the thirteenth secretary fo state for the State of Washington. Image 16c shows the same women performing a bell dance from image 14c. The belly dancers are all facing toward the right-hand side of the image, and several tables of spectators are visible at the left. Image 17c shows the band The Mom and Dads performing on stage. All of the members of the band are wearing matching vests. The man at the center of the group is playing a saxophone. Image 22c shows a man in a fur cap and frontier-style outfit speaking into a microphone onstage. He is speaking to Mark Brown. Mark Brown has both hands out in front of him with the fingers splayed apart. Image 23c is similar to the previous image, but here Mr. Brown is holding a sceptre or baton in his left hand. Image 24c shows a line of teepees set up in a grassy field. Image 25c shows a person in a frontier-style outfit down on all fours arranging items on a blanket laying on the ground. The images in group "d" show attendees and musical performers at the 1981 Lacey MAD Fest. Image 22d shows three women and one man speaking. Two of the women and the man are holding plastic beverage cups. Partially visible on the wall is a sign advertising 14 ounce glasses of beer for "1 buck." Image 23d shows a person playing fiddle onstage. There is a second person partially visible at the right-hand edge of the image playing guitar. Image 24d shows a different person playing fiddle. This person is wearing a hat. There is a person partially visible at the left-hand side of the image holding a fiddle, and there is a person partially visible at the right-hand edge playing a guitar. Image 25d shows three people playing fiddle and one person playing guitar.
Mark Brown was a mayor of Lacey. Ken Balsley was an editor, reporter and photographer for the Lacey Leader newspaper. Mike Kreidler is a longtime politician from Washington who has served in the state House of Representatives and Senate, as well as the US House of Representatives. He is, as of 2017, the Washington State Insurance Commissioner.
Printed at intervals along one long edge of all of these film negative strips is "KODAK SAFETY FILM 5075."Made/Created
Date made
1981 - 1981Place
City
LaceyCounty
ThurstonState/Province
WashingtonCountry
United StatesContinent
North AmericaNotes
Film Size: 35 mm
Medium: AcetateLexicon
Search Terms
People, Performances, MAD Festival, Marcus Pavilion, Saint Martin's Capital Pavilion, Saint Martin's College, Carnival ridesRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Kenneth Dale BalsleyPerson or Organization
Mark O. BrownPerson or Organization
Mike KreidlerPerson or Organization
Ken ParsonsPerson or Organization
Ralph MunroPerson or Organization
Brad Balsley