HarvestmanMan

A couple photos of the former arcade area courtesy of former employee Nick N. (via Facebook). Pretty sobering to see it like this.

Can't remember where I came across this photo - either somewhere on here or on Facebook. Later on, Kings Island Inn used retired school buses in place of double-decker buses. This late-70s International, seen in a 1994 photo, came up for sale on Facebook Marketplace a couple years ago. Not sure what happened to it after that. (Photos are courtesy of the seller.) The inn was operating three buses when they closed up shop. Two of these were auctioned off in running and driving condition and one was sold for scrap as a non-runner.

What a disaster this season would have been if they had kept the rides.

Not a good idea. It was in the same non-operating condition as it was when I tested it out five years ago. They stashed it back into the loft, then tried to put a $500 price tag on it at the sale. You could get a fully working game in better shape for around the same price.

While everyone is still sad, here are a few photos I never posted from the summer of 2015. What a shame it was to see the Trabant in this condition. Coney Island - Trabant by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Trabant (6) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Trabant (5) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Trabant (4) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Trabant (3) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Trabant (2) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr

Really hoping it's not curtains for both The Beach and Coney...

I got up bright and early and headed to the sale this morning. Souvenir hunters, former employees and amusement park aficionados were all over the place. As my favorite game in the arcade was Skee-Ball, I gladly forked over $100 for a piece of Coney history. Now I have to figure out what to do with it. A smaller sign with the old Coney logo was only $20. DSCN9619 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr DSCN9620 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Here were some of the other items on offer. Most of the signs were snapped up quickly, but the remainders will likely be found on Facebook Marketplace pretty soon. It was a little odd to see some of the games that I used to work on with a price tag on them. They were asking $7,500 for the water race game - not so sure about that given it didn't usually work 100% correctly. DSCN9609 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr DSCN9607 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr DSCN9605 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr DSCN9600 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr DSCN9597 by Harvestman Man, on Flickr And finally, some daylight photos of the current ride deconstruction process. I was surprised to see that virtually nothing remains from the Pepsi Python. Sadly I couldn't get photos of all the rides as there was a security guard on patrol. Coney Island - Wipe Out by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Top Spin by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Tilt-a-Whirl by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Tempest by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Rock-O-Planes by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Python site (2) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Pipeline Plunge site by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Flying Bobs (2) by Harvestman Man, on Flickr Coney Island - Flying Aces site by Harvestman Man, on Flickr

Huh. I never knew the Python was that old. Was it relocated from somewhere else? Also - has anyone heard mention of auctioning off any of the other park assets? I remember there was an old Ms. Pac-Man arcade cabinet languishing in the attic of the games building along with lots of spare parts for Skee-Ball, etc. Could be a veritable gold mine for someone in that line of work.

I haven't seen this mentioned anywhere yet: the removal of Thunder Alley was disappointing for me (and probably no one else). As far as I know it was the last gas-powered go-kart attraction in the Cincinnati area after Eastgate Adventures closed several years ago.

A KI blog post covered the meanings of the license plates and the homage to the Zodiac on the new antique cars ride. One thing I was surprised that it did not mention was that the name "Peters" on one of the advertisements is a reference to the former Peters Cartridge factory located just outside the park.

The location of the exit ramp...?

Yeah about that...apparently the guy who shot these originally was a bit of a creep and liked to film girls. I've been informed that girls are pretty much the only thing on the Coney reel. Not worth bothering with! As for the KI footage, you'll be seeing it soon enough in the upcoming #ki50movie.

Not stuck inside - both films are intact. The problem was that the projector needed a new drive belt, and our replacement belt ended up partially melting and eventually broke from the heat of the lamp.

Resurrecting this thread...I still have both reels and am preparing to get them digitized. Unfortunately more than half of the Coney reel is filled with St. Patrick's Day Parade and family picnic stuff. Whoever the camera operator in question was sure had a thing for mini skirts. Kind of creepy actually. Unfortunately, due to a belt-related incident involving my projector, I still haven't been able to see the rest of it. Who knows how much actual Coney footage is on there. The KI reel, however, is well worth checking out. Stay tuned...

Pretty sure I visited a Kiddie Hawk in North Carolina one time.