You may remember that Josh Shaffer wrote about Todd Dawson's giant 282-pound watermelon a few weeks ago -- the one that broke a state record and was only 9 pounds shy of breaking a world record. That melon, grown in Garner, is on display at the N.C. State Fair in Expo Center, along with the Fair's blue ribbon giant pumpkin.

The pumpkin, weighing in at 522.8 pounds didn't break any records, but it's a crowd pleaser. All day long, folks perch on a bench in front of the pumpkin to have their picture taken near the massive gourd. Johnny Tolle, who minds the giants and answers questions about them from fairgoers, says the all-time pumpkin record in North Carolina is 1,256 pounds, and that last year's pumpkin was over 800 pounds. Tolle says the weather this year wasn't ideal for growing pumpkins of the extra humongous variety. The prize pumpkin was grown by Susie Zuerner from Henderson County.

The N.C. State Fair art exhibit had about 2,500 entries this year and awarded an estimated 112 ribbons for groups ranging from elementary school students to professional artists.

The Best in Show prize for State Fair Scene (above) went to Edwin B. Jenkins of Raleigh. Shirl Keith, the hostess of the exhibit inside the Kerr Scott Building, said the 80-year-old amateur artist has been entering art for at least 20 years and this is his first big prize. She said his reaction when he won was: "Finally!"

Two Capital City cultural exhibits are getting some extra publicity at the State Fair in the next week.

The state Department of Cultural Resources booth in the Kerr Scott Building highlights both "The Art of Norman Rockwell" exhibit, which is coming to the N.C. Museum of Art in November, and the "Real George Washington" exhibit, which is now at the N.C. Museum of History.