Mobil Flying Horse
- Red flying horse used as the winged mascot for
the Exxon Mobil Corporation. The flying red
horse, or Pegasus symbol, was used as early as
1911 and adopted as a trademark in the U.S.
shortly after the organization of Socony-Vacuum
in 1931. The Pegasus logo, a symbol of "speed
and power" was first colored red by the Mobil
Sekiyu in Japan.
In 1934, Magnolia Petroleum
Company [Exxon Mobil Corporation's predecessor]
erected a "oil derrick" atop the 29-story
Magnolia Hotel building. It supported two 30 by
50 foot red neon signs made in the image of
Pegasus, the flying red horse.
A restored
version of the original revolving Pegasus was
reinstated as a part of the Dallas Millennium
Celebration where a $600,000 duplicate flying
red horse neon sign was relit at midnight to
bring in 2000.
The original 1934 sign has been
put on display in a shed at the Dallas Farmer's
Market. The building's elevator lobby features
elevator doors with the Pegasus logo.
TRIVIA NOTE:
According to Greek mythology, when Perseus cut
off the snake-covered head of the Medusa,
Pegasus leaped full-grown from the blood-soaked
ground. To tame Pegasus, the goddess Athena
provided the mighty horse trainer, Bellerophon
with a magical golden bridle. Bellerophon and
Pegasus performed many deeds including the
slaying of the fire-breathing Chimera.
Unfortunately, when the4 ego-driven Bellerophon
tried to fly Pegasus to Mount Olympus to join
the gods, the winged-steed bolted and cast
Bellerophon to Earth, where he spent the rest of
his life wandering the planet shunned by both
gods and man. Pegasus now resides in the heavens
as a constellation of stars.
The Pegasus character appeared in the movie
Clash of the Titans (1981) starring Harry Hamlin
as Perseus and on the 1963 animated cartoon
series THE MIGHTY HERCULES where Pegasus carried
the legendary Hercules on his many adventures in
ancient Greece.
On November 16, 1991, the long-running PBS
series LONG AGO & FAR AWAY produced by Light
year Entertainment Production aired an animated
half-hour adventure entitled "Pegasus." Narrated
by Mia Farrow, it retold the mythic tale of
Pegasus, the winged horse as he battled a
three-headed monster.
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