Butte County booth takes home gold—again

Butte County’s booth in the California State Fair has taken home the gold medal once again, along with a special award for “best use of special effects.”

The booth, designed by Richard Bay in tandem with Debra Lucero, the county cultural-tourism director, depicts “Bartholomew Butte,” the figure featured in last year’s gold-winning booth, as Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood, the 1938 classic filmed in Bidwell Park. Its theme is “Butte County: The Greening Experience,” and it focuses on the area’s examples of sustainable businesses and partnerships.

What captured the judges’ hearts and the special-effects award was Bay’s creation of an animated, talking Hooker Oak tree (pictured) that according to a press release tells the “green stories of Butte County.”