The Exploding Whale

People come to the Exploding Whale from so many different directions. Not surprisingly, many are often unsure of the event's authenticity. Some see the widely-distributed 1990 article by syndicated humor columnist Dave Barry and think that great artistic license was taken in his retelling. (It wasn't.) Some have seen stories in the newspaper or on TV and think a local reporter has been duped. (They haven't been.) Some people assume the whale was alive and come to protest such cruelty. (The whale was definitely dead.) And there are the lucky few who stumble upon it purely by accident.... 

The carcass of a sperm whale (often reported as a grey whale) had been rotting on the beach just south of Florence, Oregon, USA, for several days. At the time, the Oregon Highway Division (now called the Oregon Department of Transportation) had jurisdiction over beaches and decided to dispose of the whale the same way they would clear a large boulder from a highway construction project. The rest is, as they say, history. 

In case there was any doubt in your mind as to whether this really happened or not, then-reporter Paul Linnman from KATU Channel 2 in Portland, Oregon, and his photographer Doug Brazil were on the scene and captured this incredible event on film. The surreal images, dry humor, and deadpan delivery of the narrative are unforgettable. 

The video is just the beginning. The purpose of this website is to collect all the evidence, resources, and events related to the Exploding Whale, including newspaper articles, transcripts, accounts of other exploding whales (yes, there's been more than one!), and more.