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Home > Index > Animals > Horses > Ad Mascots > Exxon's Flying Horse
       
  Advertising Mascots - Horses  
     
 

Exxon Flying Red HorsePegasus - 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. 

The Mobil "Pegasus" image is featured prominently on the gas tank of the famous "Bathing Suit Vincent" motorcycle driven by rider Rollie Free. On September 13, 1948, he raised a motorcycle speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah to a speed of 150.313 mph. The motorcycle he rode was the very first Vincent HRD Black Lightning, owned by the California sportsman John Edgar and sponsored by Mobil Oil. Sign Industry Restores Historical Flying Red Horse  Mobil's Flying Red Horse 

 
 

 

 
 
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