Remembering Stars Hall of Fame

by Greg May
(Orlando, FL)

I've always been fascinated by wax museums.

Everyone - well, just about everybody - has heard of Madame Tussaud's famous chain of wax museums that today are in almost every major city of the world.

But did you know Orlando once had its own waxworks? And the building that housed it still stands today on I-4 and the Beeline Expressway. You know the building - its the one that juts out almost to the interstate as you drive east toward Orlando from Disney World.

This was once the home of Stars Hall of Fame.

The 20th Century Fox-owned attraction has since gone the way of Circus World and Cypress Gardens. But during its operation in the 70's and 80's it drew large crowds for two reasons.

First, there were over 100 lifelike wax figures of major motion picture and television stars. And you could have your picture taken with them. But what really thrilled the crowds was when Stars Hall of Fame played host to real "live" celebrities!

Tourists - and locals alike - would stand in line for hours to watch the stars step out of the limos and were escorted down the red carpet where they would participate in a hand-print ceremony.

This tradition - which began at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood during the Golden Days of Movie-Making - continued to thrill the crowds during the late 70's and early 80's.

One of the many celebrities that appeared at Stars Hall of Fame was the Maestro of Champagne Music himself, Lawrence Welk. The famed orchestra leader and TV personality danced with every female VIP guest that day while the populace looked on.


One of the ladies he danced with was my friend, the late Helen Peikin. Helen was a columnist for THE ORLANDO SENTINEL. Each week, she would answer questions and give advice to the senior citizen community in her column, "Speakin' With Peikin".

During Helen's reign as the champion for senior citizens she proclaimed every February "Senior Season". And every February Lawrence Welk would bring his orchestra to Central Florida.

I remember one year Helen had me carry Mr. Welk's cake to the Green Room of the Lakeland Civic Auditorium. She pointed out the trumpet player who was once on "skid row" and Lawrence Welk gave him a job.

But bringing in celebrities was not enough to keep the Stars Hall of Fame turnstiles clicking as the attraction found itself competing with an expanding SeaWorld and the newly-opened EPCOT.

A last-ditch effort to stimulate the attendance saw an elaborate production created in which members of the audience could participate in scenes from popular TV shows such as M*A*S*H. This idea was later adapted by Disney-MGM Studios.

Whenever I drive past that building on I-4, I recall the days when Orlando was flexing its muscles to become the Vacation Capitol of the World and the interstate was only a 4-lane highway.

And there's no end in sight.