Fred and cartoon friends visit fair

Three generations of the Wittstock family bonded Saturday at the Orange County Fair — not over heirlooms or cherished family memories, but over Yogi Bear and Scooby Doo.

Yvonne Wittstock of Mission Viejo, her daughter Sarah and granddaughter Audrey were among those who stopped by the Park Plaza area of the fair for Project Boomtown, a booth set up by Time Warner Cable and the Boomerang cartoon network. Throughout the day, classic cartoons played on the wall of the booth while inside, children posed for pictures with life-size versions of Fred Flintstone, Hong Kong Phooey and other beloved characters.

Both Yvonne and Sarah had grown up watching the shows, and they enjoyed giving 2-year-old Audrey her first dose of them. It turned out to be a little hair-raising.

“She was scared of Scooby at first,� Yvonne said. “Now she likes Scooby.�

Project Boomtown, which opened at the fair Friday, provided a haven for cartoon lovers and an opportunity for Time Warner to hype its latest products. Each person who posed for a free picture got the photo burned on a CD that featured games and a link to the Time Warner website. Passersby could also enter in a sweepstakes to win a 32-inch flat-screen television.

Otherwise, it was all about animation. Princess Gardner, a brand ambassador for Boomerang who worked the booth Saturday, said she had gotten responses from people of all ages when they passed by and saw the cartoons.

“Old people come up and say, ‘I used to watch that,’� she said.

Sindy Ramirez of Costa Mesa, who works at a food booth at the fair, stopped by during her break to get a picture taken with Yogi Bear. Afterward, she said she was impressed by the actors who wore the plush costumes for long hours in the sun.

“It’s pretty cool because they can do whatever they want and no one knows who they are,� Sindy, 16, said.

To see photos of the OC Fair, click here.

TO DO:

CHRIS CORNELL

The grunge rocker and former frontman of Soundgarden has kept busy of late, releasing his second solo album this year and contributing the song “You Know My Name� to “Casino Royale,� the most recent James Bond movie.

Cornell was the first American male in history to sing the opening theme to a Bond film — and tonight, he’ll be the last performer in the Pacific Amphitheatre’s summer music series. His show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $45.

FIESTA DEL CHARRO AND BULL RIDING

This year’s Orange County Fair has been about cows, cows, cows. As any farmer will tell you, though, only females really count as cows; their male counterparts are known as steers or bulls, and they tend to get rambunctious.

On the last day of the fair, at the OC Register Arena, trained riders will test their mettle by riding bulls around the dusty track.

The show, included with regular fair admission, takes place at 4 and 8 p.m.