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The Gay Dolphin Gift Cove is located at 910 North Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States, and calls itself "the nation's largest gift shop".〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=About Us )〕 As of 2011, the Gay Dolphin had 〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Gay Dolphin Gift Shop )〕 and store owner Justin "Buz" Plyler said the store averaged 70,000 items. Located in 50 sections called "coves",〔"'Only in Myrtle Beach' things to do." ''The Sun News'', July 9, 2010, Kicks section.〕 including an Elvis Cove,〔Paul Brownfield and Christina Lee Knauss, "Dead - and Wacky - on the Strand," ''The Charlotte Observer, October 20, 1996.〕 items include "sea shells, brushes for bald men and noisy seat cushions."〔 Larger items have included a fountain with three dolphins costing $7,000 and a life-size cigar store Indian.〔 Tom Pierce's Trader Bill's Shark's Tooth Cove rents space in the building. People can bring in their own shark teeth and have them made into jewelry.〔Lauren Leach, "Gay Pride Event Free of Trouble, but Merchants Disappointed," ''The Sun News'', May 5, 1998, p. 1C.〕〔 == History == Justin Whitaker Plyler and Eloise Plyler opened the Gay Dolphin in 1946;〔〔 Justin Plyler Sr. "wanted a whimsical nautical name for his store", according to his son Buz,〔Jay C. Grelen, "Shoppers Shell Out for Beach Deals," ''The Sun News'', November 24, 2001.〕 born three years after the store opened. Hurricane Hazel in 1954 destroyed the original store, which was rebuilt on the same site, starting near the beach. Eventually, the store completed a six-story glass tower next to Ocean Boulevard. In the 1950s, the Plylers also ran an amusement park and a wildlife show. Buz Plyler, born in 1949, started working for his parents at age 8, doing the jobs his father disliked and eventually buying all of the store's merchandise. As of 2011, he has dealt with some sellers for fifty years. Plyler also purchases merchandise from bankrupt suppliers at a discount.〔 The Gay Dolphin was the first tourist-oriented store to stay open year-round. An annex used to be located across Ocean Boulevard, but it has been replaced by Ripley's Haunted Adventure.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Myrtle Beach Remembered )〕 A sign with wooden dolphins remains there, despite the city's efforts to have it removed. It went up in the 1970s but had to come down for Hurricane Hugo. Despite a 1979 zoning law which said such a sign could not be replaced even if taken down for repairs, it went back up in 1994.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=South Carolina Signs )〕 For many years, people could climb the circular steel steps to the top of the glass tower, at one time the city's tallest building, and see the view of Myrtle Beach from the roof. The cost was $1 as of 2000. However, persons unable to find their name on the wall of bicycle license plates could climb up without charge. Liability and insurance claim concerns put an end to the practice of climbing the tower in 2006.〔Will Moredock, "In Search of Old Myrtle Beach: From an Antique Carousel to a 1960s Eatery, You Can Still Find a Few Gems of the Past," ''The Charlotte Observer'', July 18, 2004.〕〔Laura Lewis, "Think You've Seen and Done Everything at Myrtle? The legend Justin Lewis visits Myrtle beach once a summer. We Beg to Differ," ''The Charlotte Observer, October 22, 2000.〕〔"Gay Dolphin Closes Rooftop Lookout," ''The Sun News'', May 7, 2006, p. D1.〕〔 Eloise Plyler worked for the store until she died in 2009.〔Josh Dawsey, "Gay Dolphin founder dies - Plyler always gave to help others," ''The Sun News'', May 2, 2009, p. C3.〕 The concrete walkway that was called the Boardwalk, which was later extended and upgraded, ran from the Myrtle Beach Pavilion past the Gay Dolphin to Plyler Park (see below).〔Dawn Bryant, "Celebrities Brighten Strand," ''The Sun News'', June 3, 2007, p. C1.〕 With the completion of the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk in 2010, the Gay Dolphin made improvements to its entrance from the boardwalk.〔Lorena Anderson, "Myrtle Beach makes boardwalk success a priority," ''The Sun News'', April 15, 2010, Section A.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gay Dolphin Gift Cove」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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