Fair is coming back strong with a 10-day run this year
After years of three and four-day fairs, the Santa Clara County Fair is attempting to turn back the clock when it opens Wednesday with an entertainment-filled 10-day run for the first time in at least 25 years.
This year's county fair in San Jose will have strawberry shortcake, turkey legs and Angelo's peppersteaks, carnival games and rides, livestock exhibitions, square dancing and even a big Ferris wheel right by the entrance. The only thing missing from the fair's '80s and '90s heyday is the image of the Cheery Farmer with his corncob pipe and yellow coat saying “Hi, Neighbor!”
“Coming out of COVID we wanted to come out strong and show that we're back, we're open again. That's our theme — “Fair Strong, Countywide,'” said Abe Andrade, the Santa Clara County Fair Management Corp.'s longtime executive director. “We're coming back with a passion to show people that whatever you've experienced in the past, we've got a lot to offer you this year.”
The fairgrounds on Tully Road have been spruced up quite a bit in anticipation of this year's event. New signage has been installed on buildings like the Food Court, Expo Hall and Pavilion Hall, some structures have been recently painted and rough roads have been repaved. All that's missing right now are the people, but Andrade and other fair boosters hope the extended run gives busy families ample opportunity to visit.
Opening day on Wednesday will kick off with a VIP-laden ribbon cutting around 2:30 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m. parade that will proceed around the fairgrounds perimeter. Entertainment that day includes tribute acts to Elvis, Michael Jackson and Motown groups, comedy hypnotist Terry Stokes and magician Phil Ackerly. The rest of the run will include tribute acts to Selena, the Beatles, Elton John, Garth Brooks, AC/DC and Kiss. There'll be plenty of local bands, too, and Italian tenor Pasquale Esposito will perform Thursday.
During the run of the fair, artists from New York, Los Angeles, Miami and elsewhere will be painting murals depicting Santa Clara County on the walls of Gateway Hall, complementing murals representing county cities and towns created for the fair's 75th anniversary by a team led by San Jose artist Lila Gemellos. For those looking for a real throwback experience, the Fairgrounds
History exhibit at Heritage Hall has greatly expanded with cases displaying memorabilia from county fairs going back to the 1940s, as well as San Jose Speedway and the old steam locomotive that used to be on the grounds.
The fair is closed on Monday and Tuesday during the run — July 31 and Aug. 1 — but you can get the full schedule, ticket prices and other details at www.thefair.org.
“The most exciting thing is giving people a place and opportunity to come out and be together again and celebrate,” Andrade said. “We've been locked up for three years because of COVID, and what a greater opportunity than to come out to the fair this year.”
SWIFT TRAVELS >> Santa Clara isn't the only one jumping on the Taylor Swift bandwagon ahead of her Friday and Saturday concerts at Levi's Stadium. Radio station Bay Country (KBAY 94.5 FM) is transforming itself into “Tay Bay” from 10 a.m. Friday through midnight July 30, taking listeners through all eras of Swift's career — including, of course, her start as a country music sensation. “I don't know if we will ever see this much excitement about a musical tour,” Tay Bay Program Director Bo Matthews said. “Santa Clara is Swiftie Clara. Taylor is the mayor, and Tay Bay is the soundtrack for Bay Area Swifties all weekend.”
And if you're lucky enough to have tickets to one of the Eras Tour concerts this week but are dreading dealing with traffic at Levi's Stadium, the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition has some alternative ideas courtesy of a blog post on its site by Libby Nachman, a transportation planner at the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. Among the ideas: biking and using the Bike Coalition's free valet bike parking or taking VTA light-rail, Caltrain or BART (which has announced plans to run extra trains).
CREATIVE VOICE LOST >> I was sad to hear about the death of Ted Kopulos, a San Jose writer and composer, on July 1 at age 67 of a heart attack following brain surgery. Kopulos was a graduate of Leigh High School and San Jose State, and many people probably knew his voice as the Movie Guy on KOME 98.5 FM in the 1970s and '80s. I first talked to him decades later when he was promoting “Decembrance,” a concert of his holiday songs.
A celebration of life is set for Wednesday in Los Gatos, but space is limited. Friends can email Kopulos' sister, Sue Weitzel, at susanweitzel@gmail.com, to find out if any space remains.
GOLDEN SOUNDS >> Another big loss Friday with the death of the legendary Tony Bennett at age 96. My favorite memory of the performer was when he was the headliner at Santa Clara University's Golden Circle Theater Party in 2016. Then 89, Bennett wowed the crowd at the San Jose Center for Performing Arts by concluding his set with a rendition of “Fly Me to the Moon,” sung loudly and clearly without a microphone. Good thing he left his heart in San Francisco because he stole a bunch in San Jose that night.