up next on a second look, let's go to the fair. we show you a few reasons why the alameda county fair has captivated crowds since 1912. all straight ahead on a second look. good evening i'm julie haener and this is a second look. every summer in towns all over america a bit of our history and culture come to life. it's the county fair and it's mid-way. livestock shows and carnival

rides are all woven into the fabric of our life. and this year the alameda county fair celebrated its 100th anniversary. in 1985 ktvu's randy shandobil went to the fair and brought us back this report of what lured the crowds there. >> reporter: we went to the alameda county fair in pleasanton, the first of the season which has already come and gone. but the great thing about fairs is that no matter where you are, no matter when they happen they all seem pretty much the same. nostalgic fun. >> look at that.

>> reporter: how do you do it? >> you clean it. >> reporter: what do you think of the pictures that you took? >> i think they came out real good. >> reporter: this man is the best handicappers in the world. we can't talk about how much we win now. >> reporter: you share your tips? >> of course, i have this lovely lady here that's won $4,000 already today. >> reporter: what are you going to do with your money? >> spend it of course. >> reporter: are you going to be nice to this gentleman over here? >> no. >> even though he gave you these tips you're not going to be nice to him?

>> he's lying again. >> a steer that stands 6'tall on his hinds. >> he's just a freak of nature, genetics. >> reporter: he wasn't planned this way. no forced feeding? >> no. >> reporter: promise. >> yes. >> reporter: the size -- >> the smallest horse, the sides of a small dog. >> reporter: it's beautiful. what did michael jackson think of the smallest horse? >> he thought she was adorable. she wanted to take her home. >> reporter: what about betty davis. >> at first she did not like it. but she won her way to her heart too.

>> this is what you call a mood machine. this reveals your permit and your mood of the day by picking a combination of colors. >> you're going to see 10 acts for $10. you have to see it. a man alive with two heads. >> they don't want to let us in because they don't want people on tv to see and not pay. so can you tell us what it was like? >> it's fake. >> reporter: no man with two heads. what about the fat lady? >> yeah, she's in there. >> if she don't make you laugh

there's something wrong with your laughing apparatus. >> 100-pound rat found in a parisian sewer. >> reporter: was that rat really found in a parisian sewer? >> i don't know. >> that doesn't look like a rat. >> that looks like a hamster. >> reporter: freak show, junk food and thrill rides a full day of it. make sure you save this ride for last. vibrating feet. in alameda county, i'm randy shandobil and that's segment two for tonight. have you ever tried those carnival games at the fair? if you have you likely know what elaine corral found out in 1986. they are harder than they look

especially if you want to win the big prizes. >> reporter: now that summer is here, fairs will be popping up all over the bay area or the carnival section of the alameda county fair in pleasanton this is the area where you usually see people walking around with those gorgeous big stuffed teddy bears the ones you would like to win but somehow never can. tonight in segment two we will try to bring one home. >> hello you want to give this a try. >> what do you have to do? >> all you have to do is pop the balloon and you win. it's only a dollar. >> tell me what i win for a dollar. >> anything here. >> you won. >> which one? >> this one. >> how about the big one?

>> a winner. you get any prize on here. >> i got two in one did that count? >> one can for cork. >> what do you mean by can for cork. >> put them in the ball and you win. >> reporter: what do i win? >> whatever is in the bottle you win. thank you for your time. you got 10 more times.

>> shoot it again. >> shoot it, the next time you win you get a metal horse. >> i get a metal horse? >> tip all three bottles. >> a dollar for one bowl? >> yeah. >> sound reasonable. >> what are these milk bottles made out of? >> they are made out of lead. but they weigh less than 3 pounds each. >> you got the milk cans, two for $3 for that one. two dollars for that one. >> $2 for the elephant. >> this only cost her $1 here. >> $2. >> reporter: two dollars? >> $2.

>> reporter: it's now $2 and $25 later for my $25 i'm bringing home this green thing. a frog, a star that's losing it's eye. a plastic horse that lost his saddle and a bear. >> reporter: still to come on a second look how a 4th of july celebration at the alameda county fair became violent. and where the man is now who opened fire on the independence day crowd. >> plus a bit later. the people who pitch the products you might not see any where but the county fair.

we are take ago second look tonight at the history of the alameda county fair. one of the fair's biggest black day is when a shooting took

place. five were gang members the other five were innocent bystanders -- five of the people shot were gang members, the other five were bystander. here's a report from the day after the shooting. >> reporter: the shooting happened during many families toured the carnival section of the fair. many waiting for the fireworks to begin. a bystander with a video camera captured these images. eight fell with gun wounds, eight others were treated for injuries suffered what witnesses say was a stampede. >> everybody was running, we got in a booth. we got pushed in a booth. we got out to try to run toward the exit. we didn't know what it was and here comes a crowd of more people, more shootings. people didn't know where to go, people were screaming, lined against the wall not knowing what to do. >> all of a sudden you heard shots fired and people running. hundreds of people running, running in all direction.

people stampeding and not caring about nothing. people running over people. >> reporter: some fairgoers threw m80 fireworks into crowds trying to leave causing more panic. this morning the carnival area was still quardened off. jamal johnson, 23 was arrested. >> we don't no what precipitated it. we don't know if there was an intended victim or if he just opened at the crowd. >> reporter: some people at the fair today insist the gunman wouldn't have gotten on to the fairgrounds if metal detectors were used. >> you go to any fair, they use

wands. anybody trying to come in, they use the wands. if you have a gun you're not getting on the fairgrounds. >> reporter: a day after, we talked to a mother and son who were trampled during the shooting. >> reporter: during the shooting rampage,tyree was hit by a bullet. his mother says she is very grateful he was not hurt worse. she says they were having fun at the fair when she saw trouble. >> we were going on the last ride and i saw an altercation at which point i knew that it was probably going to escalate. and so we started to walk away. and that's when i felt something and then my son said

he was bleeding so we were running -- by then we were running because gunshots had been fired. and we just kept running until we found some help and hid understood beneath machinery and things like that just to get out of the way. >> reporter: robin peterson says the scene was chaos as fairgoers ran for cover. >> it was crazy. people were running, jumping over barb wire fences, just getting underneath the rides. anything to get cover from the bullets. a lot of shots, there was a lot of shots. i wasn't sure what was going on. i had no doubt that they were gunshots especially after my son said he had been shot. >> reporter: her son tyrese says it was a very frightening experience for him. >> i feel okay but i can barely walk. i hope i can go and slide and swings again. >> reporter: tyrese's mother says she worries about the long term effects the shooting may have on her son and she is looking into counseling.

>> reporter: the man you saw being arrested, 23-year-old jamal johnson was convicted of assault with deadly weapon. the rival gang members refused to testify and johnson was acquitted of attempted murder. he was sentenced to more than 30 years in prison and according to the california department of corrections website is currently serving his sentence at the substance abuse jail in cockrin. who wants to get a set of knives $20. >> if you give them a chance they will make their pitch and hope you leave the fair with their product. later bob mackenzie talks to a lady who is devoted to her livestock. [ female announcer ] safeway presents

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know it's a lot more than cotton candy, ride and races. in 1996 bob mackenzie dug a little deeper into the people behind the pitch. >> reporter: for the past 16 days the alameda county fair has provided a variety of outdoor entertainment. but some of the best entertainment is indoors in the commercial booths where pitch men spill their spiel. pitch men and pitch women make a profit on what they sell. mike liman lives in lodite but mostly he's on the road going from fair to fair. >> who in my crowd eats potatoes. okay put those in your purse i want to get rid of those too. now watch what i'm going to show you. when i did this on tv people didn't believe this. one lady said he was a lie

another said it was a trick. use a potato, zucchini or squash. that's how easy it is. who wants to get a set of knives $20. you are number one, you are number three, you are number four. hold on a minute. miss can you do me a favor, are you allowed to have fun. >> reporter: you make a lot of money doing this? >> not really. it's like a crap shoot. >> you're going to get down into all those hard to reach areas. look at that tile floor guys, you buy one for 20. i'm willing to give you a second one for free. two for $20. >> reporter: bonny is from utah and spent 20 years as a legal secretary. one day she realize -ld she didn't like desk work. now she travels eight months a year selling rubber brooms. >> it's a good profession, it can be very, very up and down. but you know what, there are other benefits than just money

in life. there really are. getting around seeing different things, meeting all the different people. you couldn't, i don't know what it would take to tie me to a chair agaiand a desk and a typewriter. >> reporter: anita tubwa is from alameda. her children are grown and her husband is also a traveling sales man. >> you apply quick and bright, wait a few minutes and lift it off. >> i enjoy my time off. >> reporter: if somebody wants to start doing this what do they do? >> you have to find a product you love. that's the most important thing. you have to find a product you love and believe in and then you sell it. >> we americans take this nation for granted. i have yet to run out of baseball parks, museums, art galleries, porcelains there's

wonderful sites out there like mount rushmore. watching amber waves of grain like we used to sing about. just standing under a redwood tree and breathing it all in and you get to see it. >> reporter: when we come back on a second look a whole new breed of animal on the racetrack at the alameda county fairgrounds. the cloned mule. whoever said that "less is more"

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more down time. more family time. more me time. more me time. more me time. because the more more i have, the more i have to have... more. [ female announcer ] more room. complimentary drinks. free breakfast. embassy suites. get more. our second look tonight focuses on the alameda fair that was held 100 years ago this summer. rodney mackenzie joined with others to raise money and start the alameda fair. horse racing would play a crucial role in the fair's return 20 years later when mutual bething came back, the

fair opened again with horse racing as a major attraction. >> reporter: part of a county fair is the agriculture exhibits with their championship animals. june rogers has been bringing her blue ribbon cattle to this fair for 50 years. >> reporter: what's the secret of having your cattle show off well? >> you must take care of them as you would your kids. >> reporter: really? >> really. >> reporter: i noticed you sleep right here with them. >> oh, you bet. >> reporter: so they're never out of your sight. >> no not everyone at home. >> reporter: this racing mule looks like the other mules warming up at the alameda fairgrounds. but it's a whole new kind of animal. jim is the first cloned mule.

its owner funded millions of dollars in research to produce an exact copy of taz. >> reporter: are you going to put your money on the clone? >> on the what is this. >> reporter: on the clone. >> yes i am. because he's the third best horse, i'm going to put him in the box. >> number three horse on the nose. >> reporter: and they're off a 350-foot race. mules are better at sprinting than distance. for much of the race idaho jim seemed to be ahead. but at the last second three other mules came out of nowhere. idaho jim came in fourth. well it was only $2. >> reporter: as we dug through the archives for stories about

the alameda county fair, we came across this report from 1969 by ktvu reporter carlton cordel. >> reporter: there's the big recreation area, the big ferris well. you name it and they've got it at the county fair. every fairground has a place where you can get your weight guessed. and i took this over. come on baby doll. jump on here. within 3 pounds right. i have to guess first. let me see. do you touch them all over, is that what you do? >> you just look at them. >> you can't touch her, right? i can't -- well let's see. all right lets see your pocket weighs 40 pounds. your shoes weighs 20, your hat another 20. your eyeglasses, you weigh 105 pounds. now get up here and let's see. let's see. 105 and, oh 195. beautiful. well i tell you what. just goes to show you that i

lost. but you ready for your reward. that's all you get. okay. and this is california's 200th anniversary. and as one complete hall completely dedicated to this celebration. every county fair has an outdoor art show and this is probably one of the best. i bet no other fair has this one. a pageant of hathers and foo. let's go see what hathers and foo are, am. we're looking all over the place for a hathers and foo. this looks like nothing more than a silly goose or geese. i sure blew that i didn't find

any fathers and foo. somebody dropped a couple of letters. that was the pageant of feathers and fur. >> that's it for this week's second look. i'm julie haener, thank you for watching.