Part 2 - LA84 Foundation

13. Opening, Closing and
Victory Ceremonies
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The SLOOC consulted with popular
music specialists on the Polygram's
suggestion on March 23, 1987. Two
days later on March 25, the SLOOC
invited 33 cultural and arts specialists,
27 members of the News Broadcasting
Committee and 36 SLOOC department
directors and higher-level officials
to a meeting and heard their
advices on the matter. The SLOOC
later set up a contract on the production
and distribution of the Seoul
Olympic song with the Polygram upon
the positive responses of the
discussants.
Under the contract, the Polygram
would pay for all the expenses necessary
for the production and supply of
the song and would select an
internationally-famed composer and a
songwriter, get the approval of the
SLOOC for its selection, and would
have the Korean vocal group
"Koreana" sing the song. The Polygram
would, on the other hand,
produce records, cassette tapes and
compact disks and would pay 5 percent
in royalty per disk for sales of the
first one million copies. The conditions
also required the Polygram to make
the song a big hit worldwide before the
opening of the Seoul Games.
The Polygram recommended Italian
composer Giorgio Moroder and the
U.S. songwriter Tom Whitlock and the
SLOOC approved the suggestion.
Their music and verses were finalized
after some amendment and supplementation
aimed at maximizing the
idea of the Seoul Games and the
image of Korea. The title of the song
was decided as "Hand in Hand" and
the famous Korean word "Arirang"
was put into the English verses. The
Korean verses were written by Prof.
Kim Moon-hwan of Seoul National
University in April 1988.
"Hand in Hand" was recorded at Polygram
by the Koreana and was officially
made public in a press conference at
the Korea Press Center in Seoul on
June 21, 1988. More than a hundred
journalists from home and abroad
attended the conference. Beginning in
July, an extensive publicity on the
song and distribution of the disks was
launched throughout the world
through mass media and in varied
forms of albums, cassette tapes and
video tapes.
"Hand in Hand" topped popular songs
in 17 countries including Sweden,
Federal Rep. of Germany, Spain, Switzerland,
Austria, Japan and Hong
Kong and was listed among the top
10s of the popular songs in more than
30 countries. The hit of the song
meant successful publicity on the
Seoul Games.
13.3.2
Special Effects
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The Opening and Closing Ceremonies
utilized a variety of special effects,
sending a fresh and pleasing shock
wave to the spectators and heightening
the dramatic impression of the
events. A total of 26 kinds of special
effects were used, of which 12 kinds
were employed for the Opening
Ceremonies. The 12 comprised five
kinds of balloons, two kinds of firecrackers,
three kinds of card stunts,
pigeons and congratulatory flights of
the aircrafts. During the Closing
Ceremonies were notable two kinds of
balloons, three kinds of firecrackers,
one card stunt, five different lighting
methods and the gun salute. During
both the Opening and Closing
Ceremonies, explanations were
provided through the electric scoreboard
and earphones.
Card stunts
A maximum-scale show was created
by the spectators sitting on the entire
stands of the Olympic Stadium.
Through the show, the spectators were
transformed into participants from
mere watchers, sharing a sense of
harmony.
The cards were manufactured in a way
to match the colors of the interior
design, the equipment and the performers'
costumes. Three specialists,
who had been recommended by concerned
authorities and organizations
for creativeness, were assigned to
direct the card stunts. The three were
Prof. Kim Kwang-hyon of Hanyang
University, Department of Industrial
Art; Yun Pil-gu who operates a studio
of his own and Prof. Lee Sun-man of
Hongik University. Ten original
pictures were produced, five of them
visualizing the idea of the scenario for
the Opening and Closing Ceremonies
and the rest free expressions of the
artists' creativity. The card stunts were
participated in by people on the first,
second and third floors. The first had
six blocks, the second seven, and the
third eight.
• Paper Flame Stunt by the Audience:
Shortly after President Roh Tae Woo's
Opening Declaration, the audience
performed a stunt showing a picture of
the sun and the moon, colorful
patterns from ancient, and the graphic
designs of "Harmony and Progress" to
the fanfare.
• Stunt by the Chorus: The chorus
produced with cards the national flags
of the 161 participating countries, the
Olympic rings and emblem in the
order of the entry of the athletes
delegations.
• Sound Stunt: Upon the announcement
of "Delegations, enter!" the
audience blew in unison "Do," "Mi,"
"Sol," "Do" with the pitch pipes
placed earlier at their seats.
• Lantern Stunt: After the Olympic
Flame was extinguished and darkness
fell over the stadium, the spectators
and the last group of performers on
the field lit lanterns, filling the stadium
with light. The lanterns formed the
letters of "GOOD BYE."
Fireworks
The use of firecrackers successfully
escalated the dramatic effect of the
Closing Ceremonies and displayed the
Korean skills of producing diverse
kinds of good-quality firecrackers.
Because firecrackers and fireworks are
prone to accidents, the SLOOC did its
utmost in taking the best precautionary
steps through consultations with
the security-related institutions. Parking
cars was prohibited in the vicinity
of the venues of the fireworks, and
traffic was controlled when the explosions
occurred.
• Firecrackers for Daytime: 220 shots
for the Dragon Drum Procession, 260
shots at the time of the Opening
Declaration.
• Firecrackers for Night: 6,000 shots
for "Farewell" during the Closing
Ceremonies.
• Fountain - type Fireworks: Fireworks
for indoor use, 1,000 sets for
"Chaos" during the Opening Ceremonies,
800 shots for "Bridge Created by
Magpies" during the Closing
Ceremonies.
• Roof - type Fireworks: 1,400 sets
for "Bridge Created by Magpies"
during the Closing Ceremonies.
• Waterfall-type Fireworks: Fireworks
shot up to the air, some 1,000 meters
high above the ground, during
"Homeward Bound" in the Closing
Ceremonies.
Balloons
Because balloons cannot be used
repeatedly, the flying of balloons could
not be practiced. Instead, instructions
were given repeatedly to those who
will handle the balloons. Maximum
consideration was given to the safety
matters in the course of putting helium
into the balloons, handling the gas
containers and keeping the materials.
• Balloons for Decoration: 39,800
balloons of 30-cm diameter each for
the Dragon Drum Procession during
the Opening Ceremonies.
• Balloons Flown from Vehicles: 9,600
balloons of 30-cm diameter each were
flown from two 11-ton trucks for the
Dragon Drum Procession during the
Opening Ceremonies.
• Mid-sized Balloons: 300 performers
of "One World," during the Opening
Ceremonies, carried a pair of balloons
each and flew them. The balloons
were 70 cm in diameter each.
• Tunnel Balloons: Twenty-five
balloons were used to make a tunnelshaped
entrance for "Silence" during
the Opening Ceremonies. Each balloon
was 5.8 meters wide, 3.1 meters
high and 1 meter in diameter.