The legend of the witch steeped in darkness is a tale that has been passed down through generations, captivating the imaginations of both young and old. In a small village nestled deep within a dense forest, there once lived a witch who was said to possess immense power and wickedness. According to the legend, the witch was a tall and gaunt figure, shrouded in a cloak of darkness. Her long, tangled hair flowed like black smoke, and her eyes burned with a malevolent red glow. It was believed that her power came from a forbidden magic, a dark arts that allowed her to control the elements and cast curses on those who dared to cross her path. The people of the village lived in fear of the witch and her dark magic.
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Bomber was, like all too many, a transplant to LA who paid the price for being at the wrong place at the wrong time, much like many find themselves collateral damage in the Olympics brutal, unaccountable wake. Hoddy spared no expense, building a 5000 birdhouse with two 10-foot square rooms where Bomber was kept and fed a lean-meat diet when he was not participating in 45-minute aerial training sessions.
The people of the village lived in fear of the witch and her dark magic. They spoke of her ability to summon storms and bring about plagues, to turn unsuspecting villagers into creatures of the night. Many claimed to have seen her dancing by the light of the full moon, chanting incantations that sent shivers down their spines.
1984 olympic eagl3 mascot
Sam the Eagle prancing through the Opening Ceremonies of the 1984 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, July 28th, 1984 (Photo Credit: Tony Duffy via Getty Images).
By David Kurlander
In a declassified Backstage segment aired this week on Now & Then , Heather Cox Richardson and Joanne Freeman compared the Olympics to Disneyland, arguing that both institutions project a mythic American identity to the world. The two iconic establishments collided in 1984, when Disney crafted Sam the Eagle, the official mascot for the Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Sam’s reign reflected a brash pivot toward private Olympic financing and became a larger talisman for 1980s American business culture.
Prior to the 1984 Games, the Olympics were not known for turning a profit for the host city. The 1976 Montreal Games left Mayor Jean Drapeau with a $1.5 billion deficit , much of it sunk into an elaborate, doughnut-shaped stadium that was nicknamed “The Big Owe.” Even with extensive state and federal assistance, the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid also finished in the red .
Equally vexing to host cities was the political turbulence that so often surrounded the Games. First, police massacred protestors in the immediate lead-up to the 1968 Mexico City Games. Then, there were the terrorist murders of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Games. Four years later, a large delegation of African nations boycotted Montreal to protest apartheid, while the U.S. and 64 other Western nations stayed home from the 1980 Moscow Games in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. It was unclear whether the Soviets would come to Los Angeles.
Mascots had emerged as a potential dual solution to the debt and geopolitical tension that had come to plague the Olympics. The first such official critter was the pastel-colored dachshund Waldi , who graced much of the official material in Munich. The Russians scored particularly big with Misha, a massive teddy bear whose selection and attributes were voted on by USSR sports fans. A stuffed Misha traveled to space with Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz-29 rocket in 1978. At the closing ceremony in Moscow, a massive Misha, tethered to a plethora of rainbow balloons, ascended into the sky while the 100,000-person audience (with many in tears) sang “Farewell, Dear Misha.”
The man tasked with finding the answer to Misha—and making the mascot profitable in the process—was Peter Ueberroth , a 40-ish entrepreneur appointed in 1979 by the L.A. City Council as President of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC). Ueberroth was the founder of First Travel, one of the nation’s largest travel agencies. He was a pro-business Republican who supported former Texas Governor John Connally in his unsuccessful 1980 presidential bid . And he was a believer in funding the Games entirely privately.
Ueberroth pursued massive corporate sponsorships to begin paying for the Games. He set the minimum cost of a sponsorship at $4 million. One of the primary draws for potential sponsors would be their ability to use the mascot and other official Olympic symbology in promotions.
Ueberroth’s LAOOC brought on iconic Disney illustrator Bob Moore , who had worked at the company’s Publicity Art Department since the 1940s, to imagineer an alluring mascot. Moore oversaw a group of 30 animators. Initially, the art team searched for a Californian symbol, but Misha had made the state’s Golden Bear flag samizdat . “The golden bear was out because the Russians just got through using a bear mascot,” Moore later summated. Instead, the team settled on Sam the Eagle.
Per the 1984 Olympic Official Report : “A short, stubby, cuddly little eagle evolved. He had a large head, bulbous middle section and a protruding derriere accented by an array of tail feathers. Besides serving as the national bird of the host country, the eagle was also universally recognized as an incarnation of the ideals cited in the Olympic motto: ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ (swifter, higher, stronger).”
On August 5 th , 1980, the LAOOC held dual unveilings of Sam the Eagle in Los Angeles and New York. On the West Coast, comedian Bob Hope guided Sam the Eagle down the South Steps of Los Angeles City Hall. Sam fell several times and ultimately had to be supported by several assistants.
Local reception to the design was mixed at best. The Los Angeles Times editorial board said that Sam “looks more like a parrot to us. An ungainly parrot, at that.” Many drew specific comparisons between Sam and José Carioca, a singing parrot originated by Brazilian animator J. Carlos and immortalized in the 1944 Disney film The Three Caballeros .
In New York, Ueberroth appeared at the Stage Plaza of the World Trade Center to introduce Sam, making explicit comparison to Misha: “There is a Russian bear that has just gone into hibernation…now here’s Sam the Eagle.”
Los Angeles Times columnist Lou Maysel argued in response, “At least Misha was a cuddly little bear that didn’t convey the jingoistic nature of the Kremlin crowd. Sam the Eagle not only is nationalistic, he’s grotesque.” Even Ueberroth eventually admitted that Sam “looks like a fuzzy duck.”
At the New York unveiling, however, Ueberroth was focused on highlighting Sam’s potential role in the private financing process. “The Olympic Games are now operated by the private sector, not by a government,” he announced, before presenting an initial slate of $116 million in sponsorship: Canon would be the official camera, the Southland Corporation (then the owner of 7-Eleven) would be the official convenience store, Coca-Cola would be the official soft drink, Anheuser-Busch would be the official beer, and United Airlines would be the official airline.
McDonald’s, the official fast-food franchise, also agreed to shoulder the $3 million cost of building a pool for the Games. The following year, 7-Eleven committed to constructing a 6,000-seat velodrome.
Sam went on a 24-city tour to secure additional sponsorships. Over the following three years, the LAOOC secured 43 corporate sponsors and over 50 licensees.
Card Walker , the CEO of the Walt Disney Company, served as head of the Olympics merchandising and licensing commission, navigating increasingly turbulent corporate litigation over the usage of Sam’s visage. In March 1984, McDonald’s went to war with Pioneer Chicken , a fried chicken chain that gave out 300,000 2-inch Sam action figures alongside their $7.99 fried chicken buckets. Although Pioneer purchased the birds through a licensed toymaker, McDonald’s argued that they didn’t have a right to use the toys for profit. “Corporate feathers have begun to fly,” reported the Los Angeles Times .
The flaps couldn’t stop Sam’s profitability, however. 10 million Sam products were ultimately moved. McDonald’s central ad campaign, “ The U.S. Wins, You Win ,” consisted of Sam the Eagle-adorned scratchers that gave away Big Macs when U.S. athletes won Gold. A TV ad campaign had Sam meeting up with Ronald McDonald and Grimace to traipse through the pole-vault and rings.
The commercialism of the Games also became a central tenet of the Soviet Union’s May 1984 decision to boycott the Olympics . While the corporate sponsorships weren’t the only element in the Soviet decision—Reagan administration foreign policy and the reaction to the 1980 U.S. boycott certainly played roles—USSR authorities also referenced the “uncontrolled commercialism” of the festivities.
Even with the Russian exit, the Games proved to be a massive success. President Reagan opened the ceremonies at the Los Angeles Coliseum as Sam the Eagle pranced below. Lionel Richie rocked the closing ceremony with a 9-minute rendition of “All Night Long.” In between, sprinter Carl Lewis won four Gold medals and a rising basketball star named Michael Jordan anchored the triumphant U.S. Men’s National Basketball team.
The Games turned a profit of $222.7 million, surpassing even Ueberroth’s rosy expectations. At the conclusion of the Games, Ueberroth said, “I don’t think that it could have been put on by government. I think it would have failed.” TIME Magazine named Ueberroth the 1984 Person of the Year and he became Major League Baseball’s Commissioner shortly after the Games concluded.
Several Sams danced alongside Mishas, Waldis, and other mascots on the dais at the Opening Ceremony of the 1988 Seoul Games while Koreana sang their hit Olympic anthem, “Hand in Hand.” The 1988 Games made a profit of $497 million , more than doubling the impressive Los Angeles totals.
The legacy of Disney’s Sam the Eagle continues to leave soaring profits—and discontents—in its wake. At the Tokyo Games, Japanese companies invested a record $3 billion , even with low public support for the COVID-limited Games. As Heather and Joanne suggested, these dichotomous existential questions about amateurism, capital, and national identity continue to swirl around the post-Sam games: “Who are we? And how do we present who we are to the world? Who gets to have that say?”
For more on Sam the Eagle’s design, check out Disney historian Jim Korkis’ scholarship on MousePlanet . And to get a larger sense of the business decisions surrounding the 1984 Games, read Peter Ueberroth’s memoir, Made in America: His Own Story .
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This was, of course, the self-branded “Capitalist Games,” where the pomp began to outweigh the circumstance. There was all sorts of nationalistic propaganda on display, like this Wild West song and dance routine depicting our history of settler colonialism but played as fun. The spectacle also included over 1,000 volunteers holding large five-foot balloons with ribbons displaying the word “Welcome” in over 100 languages. The great Etta James performed, leading a 300 member gospel choir in singing “When the Saints Go Marching In” and an 85 piano orchestra with 200 dancers performing George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue.” The saints, apparently, were marching in for a funeral. They even had a guy in a jet pack.
As the legend grew, so did the fear. The villagers began to see signs of the witch's presence everywhere they looked. They heard whispers on the wind, saw strange shadows move in the corners of their eyes. Some even claimed to have encountered the witch herself, her piercing gaze freezing them to the spot. Yet, amidst all the fear and darkness, there were those who saw a glimmer of hope. They believed that the witch was simply misunderstood, that beneath the layers of darkness lay a woman tormented by her own power. They saw her as a tragic figure, a victim of her own magic. These believers sought to uncover the truth behind the legend. They delved into ancient texts and consulted wise sages, searching for answers that would explain the witch's true nature. And what they discovered was a revelation - the witch had not always been steeped in darkness. She had once been a young woman full of light and hope. Legend spoke of a love lost, a betrayal that turned the young woman's heart to darkness. It was this heartbreak that drove her to seek out the forbidden magic, to wield a power that would allow her to exact her revenge. And in doing so, she became the witch steeped in darkness that struck fear into the hearts of the villagers. The legend of the witch steeped in darkness serves as a cautionary tale, reminding us of the dangers of unchecked power and the consequences of succumbing to darkness. It is a tale that teaches us that even the most wicked among us were not always so, and that there is always a glimmer of light within the darkest of souls..
Reviews for "Unveiling the Inner Workings of the Witch Steeped in Darkness"
1. Sarah - 1/5 stars - I found "Legend of the Witch Steeped in Darkness" to be incredibly underwhelming. The plot was convoluted and confusing, making it difficult to follow along with the story. The characters were one-dimensional and lacked any depth or development. Additionally, the writing style was dry and unengaging. Overall, I was highly disappointed and would not recommend this book to others.
2. John - 2/5 stars - "Legend of the Witch Steeped in Darkness" failed to live up to the hype for me. The story felt cliché and predictable, with no real surprises or twists. The pacing was slow, and it took a long time for anything interesting to happen. The world-building was also lacking; I didn't feel immersed in the setting or connected to the magical elements of the story. While the concept had potential, the execution fell flat for me.
3. Emma - 2/5 stars - I didn't enjoy "Legend of the Witch Steeped in Darkness" as much as I had hoped. The writing felt amateurish and lacked polish, with clunky dialogue and awkward sentence structures. The characters were forgettable and lacked depth, making it hard for me to care about their plight. The plot also seemed disjointed and meandering, leaving me feeling unsatisfied by the end. Overall, I found this book to be a disappointment and wouldn't recommend it to others.