Ponderosa Ranch According to the Andersons, tourists would regularly show up at their gates asking where the Ponderosa was. Smelling opportunity, the Andersons contacted NBC and "Bonanza" creator-producer David Dortort. They proposed turning their small ranch into a theme park. NBC, Dortort, and the cast saw the tie-in as a "bonanza" for everyone. All parties being of one accord, the cast agreed to promos being shot at the ranch site and the Virginia City set - including the nearby Silver Dollar Saloon - for financial consideration. The ads stimulated revenue for the park. The park opened to the public in 1968, complete
1947 Oregon Beechcraft Bonanza crash 1947 Oregon Beechcraft Bonanza crash On October 28, 1947, Oregon Governor Earl Snell, second in line of succession Oregon State Senate President Marshall Cornett, and Oregon Secretary of State Robert S. Farrell, Jr. were killed in a crash of a Beechcraft Bonanza in stormy weather southwest of Dog Lake in rural Lake County, Oregon. The trio died along with the aircraft's pilot, who was taking them to an isolated area to hunt Canada geese. The tragedy propelled Oregon Speaker of the House John Hubert Hall to the Governorship of Oregon. On October 28, 1947, a privately owned Beechcraft Bonanza airplane