How Were You Introduced To Dinosaurs?

[Nanuqsaurus]

I have no idea how I was introduced to dinosaurs as a kid. I guess I just went through the ''dinosaur phase,'' I had a lot of Chinasaur toys and was a great fan of WWD. I think most kids are fascinated by dinosaurs because nobody really knows what they looked like, and using your imagination is an important thing for kids. For most people, this phase ends after a while, for some it never does.

[Flaffy]

Same here, I remember when I was little, almost everyone at my age was somewhat fascinated by these scaly bloodthirsty killing machines . But a few years later, EVERYONE started to "grow out" of the dino liking stage and started to tease the ones (or should I say 'the ONE' ) who still liked dinosaurs and thought it was childish. Then some people found out that dinosaurs weren't scaly bloodthirsty killing machines, and found out that some had feathers, started to think that dinos are lame and say that "feathers are ruining dinosaurs". 

[stargatedalek]

I was always interested in dinosaurs growing up but back then more into Jurassic Park and such. I was only interested in them as fictional monsters equivalent to Xenomorphs or the giant fish from Star Wars, my interest lied mainly in modern animals. But then later in childhood (I have a bad memory so no clue exactly when) I started watching dinosaur docu-dramas like Walking With Dinosaurs and Dinosaur Planet along with modern nature ones. I had never been interested in "watch X paleontologist talk for two hours" because I could just watch a modern animal documentary instead but with docu-dramas it was a similar experience. I had always loved birds so the more bird-like dinosaurs became the more I liked them too. Some of those old shows I still re-watch occasionally for entertainment value.

[Kovu]

Oh, I remember when Walking with Dinosaurs was first broadcast on the TV and watching it with my dad, being super excited about it!

[FishFossil]

I started the same way most others here did. I had several chinasaurs, my favorite being the Dilophosaurus that was a quite obvious knock off of the Battat Boston Museum of Science Dilophosaurus. The point where i really become obsessed with them and become introduced to the full range of Dinosaurs was when an incredibly distant relative randomly sent me a copy of Dougal Dixon's "Complete Book of Dinosaurs". I was hooked from that point on. 

[btb300]

I honestly can't remeber if toys or books were the First, and also it must have happened around teh time JP was released. I also got a stamp with my name and saying paleontologist, with two dino silhouettes  I still have it somewhere...

[acro-man]

childhood phase:
the deepest impression was Jurassic Park, which i watched every weekend on a video recorder in my grandma's home. probably 40 times before "grew up".
but that was definitely not how dinosaurs were first introduced to me.
cos i clearly remember when the brachiosaurus made its appearance in the movie, i was like
"at least one of the feet must be sticked to the ground like other movies cos they are machines in a dinosaur cover and they need power from the ground cable!"
my jaw dropped as i saw them really moved.
but at least that proves in my forgotten and very very early childhood, i knew dinosaurs far before JP.

rather than cheap movies, i'd believe it's my dad first introduced dinosaurs to me.

a very short memory quickly flashed in my mind -
my dad holding an book. he was reading "Parasaurolophus" to me but didn't know how to pronounce.
there were text and a picture of the duck billed monster. on another page brontosaurus in the water.
he finally came up with a wrong pronounciation, which i keept talking for more than 20 years.
when he turned to the brontosaurus part, he told me they are using water floatage to release the burden of their own weight.

very sweet old memory with dad.
can't believe how time flies

[Doug Watson]

As long as I can remember I have been fascinated with dinosaurs. As far as I know my introduction would have been through my Dad who almost always took me into the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Ottawa on Sundays. Once I was old enough he would leave me in the Dinosaur Hall while he visited the rest of the museum which included the Museum of Man back then. I would guess he started taking me at a very young age I would guess around 1961 because that is around the time I start having my childhood memories.

[Lanthanotus]

Read through all posts in this thread, was really worth it

I honestly can't say exactly what my interest for dinosaurs sparked or when. I got my first dinosaur figure at my 3rd birthday together with a lot of other miniature animals, but until recently I deemed that figure an iguana or something other unspecific. Some time later I owned a plesiosaur of which I am not sure where I got it from. Carried it everywhere until I lost it forever just a tad bit of time later.

I also quite vividly remember having owned this marx knockk off (or should I say abomination?!)

and its companions on which I spend tons of hours of playing (and wondering how to position this damn carnosaur with its awkwardly warped feet), but I cannot remember when exactly this was. While I always liked animals and animal toys my closest guess for sparking my interest in the end, was this book which I got for a birthday present by my parents back in 1984 or '85. Around the same time I repeadatly loaned another book from my school library and was so impressed by the marine reptiles within, that I used the instructions found in another book to stich together my own pliosaurs with some yellow felt - oh my, that was a mess, I was 8 or 9 years old, so you can guess the result

[Halichoeres]

Great stories, everyone! I can't remember a time when I wasn't into dinosaurs (well, ancient life more generally). I nearly went to college for paleontology at the University of Alberta; really the only reason I didn't was that I forgot to fill out the visa paperwork that went with my application. I feel lucky that even though I don't have the geological training to be a proper paleontologist, I'm able to use paleontology in my work anyway.

[Viking Spawn]

Being a 70's child, I don't recall my first experiences involving my fascination with Dinosaurs and/or Godzilla!  My enthusiasm has always been there for them!  Perhaps it was children's books in my school library that started it all?  The small figurines and the book image Newt posted I do remember vividly!  I couldn't get enough of them then just like I can't get enough of them now some 40 years later!   

[Dilopho]

This might sound stupid but....the first time I ever say a dinosaur was on a T-Shirt I got as a baby...and that started my obsession!

[stoneage]

When I was a kid I saw the Age Of Reptiles Mural in Life magazine.  That really peaked my imagination.  Soon there after I got the first of my Marx Prehistoric Times Playsets which were based on the mural.

[laticauda]

Great stories. 

Unfortunately I don't remember how or have a great reason to why I am interested.  HMMM lets do a quick time warp.

I remember as a kid my brother had the marx/mpc plastic dinos and I played with them, but I already liked dinosaurs by then.  When I was in kindergarten, I already wanted to be a Paleontologist, but my interests have always been and still are varied.  I remember reading many dinosaur books as a kid, and I always picked them up at book fairs.  In the movies, I loved Fantasia (still do) and the rite of spring with the dinosaurs was amazing.  Of course that movie came out many, many, years before I was born.  Now the Land before time I saw when it came out and it was good, but I don't think it furthered my interest. 

I remember reading Jurassic Park when it hit my local library when I was in 6th grade.  I only picked up the book because of the T-Rex skeleton on the cover.  It didn't increase my interest in Dinos, just in reading all the Michael Crichton books.  When JP the film came out, I was disappointed at first by the film adaptation of the book, but I was excited by the art work by Crash Mccreery.  Around the same time, I discovered Carnegie toys, and loved them.  I would have thought by college that I had moved on, but when WWD came out. I was glued to the TV instead of partying with my friends.  I have always had a fascination with prehistoric, (and current) animals.  I wouldn't call it an obsession, but a life long interest, that I am proud to share with my kids. 

[Derek.McManus]

I have a conscious memory of watching King Kong (1933) on the television as a child in the 1970's...but as someone else stated there were lots of (wildly inaccurate by today's standards) books around in school and the library. M + S always seemed to have a glossy hardback book for sale under the St Michael brand around Christmas time!

[allosaurusrock]

Same here, I remember when I was little, almost everyone at my age was somewhat fascinated by these scaly bloodthirsty killing machines . But a few years later, EVERYONE started to "grow out" of the dino liking stage and started to tease the ones (or should I say 'the ONE' ) who still liked dinosaurs and thought it was childish. Then some people found out that dinosaurs weren't scaly bloodthirsty killing machines, and found out that some had feathers, started to think that dinos are lame and say that "feathers are ruining dinosaurs". 

Exactly my situation.

[allosaurusrock]

I believe for me it was a mixture of Barney and my local science center while I was in preschool. It then died out for a while, but after a visit to some museums during a trip to England, I soon became obsessed with Mammoths. When I returned home, all I read were outdated paleontology books from my school library, which steered me towards loving dinosaurs in particular. After I had read every single dinosaur book at my school library (and I mean every single one), I started watching docudramas on Netflix, and fell in love with WWD, especially the allosaurus special, causing that to be my favorite dinosaur. A few years later, and here I am now, aged fourteen, aspiring to be a paloeartist/paleontologist.

[laticauda]

I believe for me it was a mixture of Barney and my local science center while I was in preschool. It then died out for a while, but after a visit to some museums during a trip to England, I soon became obsessed with Mammoths. When I returned home, all I read were outdated paleontology books from my school library, which steered me towards loving dinosaurs in particular. After I had read every single dinosaur book at my school library (and I mean every single one), I started watching docudramas on Netflix, and fell in love with WWD, especially the allosaurus special, causing that to be my favorite dinosaur. A few years later, and here I am now, aged fourteen, aspiring to be a paloeartist/paleontologist.

I did not like Barney!
During the 90's I was once coerced to wear a Barney costume for a friend of mine for his younger cousins birthday.  I wasn't told anything by my friend other than we just had to stop at the party for a few minutes before going to play basketball.  Once we got there the whole family was like oh your just the right size for the costume.  I looked at my friend and said, "what are they talking about."  He told his family that I would do it, but he never asked or told me, he just figured that all he had to do was get me to the party and I would do it.  I couldn't even protest due to all the little kids running around.  The costume was hot and didn't have eye holes.  It is one of the reasons I hated Barney and it was during my teen years, which might explain my lull in my interest for a few years.

[Takama]

I remember watching Barney VHS tapes at my grandparents house and my parents took rme to see the Movie in theators.    But I watched barney because I enjoyed the show as a kid. But he was not one of the driving factors in my obsession with dinosaurs.