By Rebecca French Smith

IT’S JUST A SMALL PIECE OF FORMED, YELLOW PLASTIC that makes a sound in between a kazoo and a duck call. When you put it to your mouth it tends to transform you into Donald Duck or one of his nephews, Huey, Dewey, or Louie, depending on your age.

Originally designed by students at the University of Oregon because their mascot is a duck, the Wacky Quacker found a home at Ride The Ducks at Branson, Missouri, in 1997 and has been an integral part of the experience for the last ten years, says John Fullerton, deck hand and an unofficial company historian. Ride The Ducks first opened its doors, or decks, in 1971.

Available in the gift shop for $2, these little mementos aren’t expensive. You get them for free as a part of your ride. Each guest who rides the DUKW, pronounced Duck, of course, receives a Quacker upon boarding the vehicle. A DUKW is a six-wheel-drive amphibious truck that was originally designed by General Motors Corporation during World War II for supplies and troop transportation. (See page 22 for the designation of each letter.) As the Duck rumbles down the highways and back roads to Table Rock Lake for a quick tour of the area and cruise of the lake, guests are encouraged to toot their Quackers.

Ride The Ducks hands out up to 2,400 Wacky Quackers every day, almost 260,000 a year, and in 2007, the grand total for the last ten years will approach three million. Made in Taiwan, they arrive via semi-trailer in large quantities several times a year at the Ride The Ducks in Branson, Baltimore, Memphis, and Philadelphia.

But neither the quantity nor the cost make this particular keepsake valuable or noteworthy. Rather, it’s the memory it conjures up when someone blows into it. It doesn’t just remind you of the trip; it actually brings back the time of day, the temperature, the wind blowing in your face, the scent of the lake, perhaps even the corny jokes your captain told, but most of all, the faces of your family happily quacking away during the Duck ride.
Quack, quack!