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Attention Retro Kings Island Collectors (Rare 80's Arcade Coins/Tokens)


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I'm doing some spring cleaning, and I have to get rid of some stuff, so I finally decided I need to pass on these things that I have, but I would prefer to give them to collectors, to help build their collections.

 

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I have more than this, and some booklets that I have several of, so 1 person can get one of everything, and a few others can get 1 of what is left.

 

I mostly collected booklets and coins, but I'm sure I have other stuff. I'll see what all I have.

 

The coins, I seem to be the only person in existence with these coins. They were in the park until Paramount took over the park in the early 90's. I'll explain what they were and how they worked.

 

This is all from memory, so correct me if I'm wrong or if I forgot something.

 

You all know that game in the arcade where you try to make the coins fall over the edge? Well, instead of tickets, you used to actually get the coins, and then you could use the coins to play other games. Well, I always thought the gifts sucked, and I was more interested in getting and keeping the coins. Since they were used to play games, I might be the only one that collected them.

 

In the 70's and 80's, all arcades used fake coins made from plastic for their arcade machines. That way, the owners could hire workers to empty the arcade machines without worrying the workers were going to pocket the money, because all they would be emptying would be fake coins made of plastic. To get the fake coins to play the arcade machine games, they would have to go to a coin machine and feed it either 1 dollar bills, 5 dollar bills, 10 dollar bills, or 20 dollar bills. For every dollar, a person got 4 arcade coins back.

 

I think it was this way at Kings Island in the 70's and 80's, and very early 90's.

 

Places that still do this, actually give you less coins for a dollar, unless you pay big bucks just to get a fair price.

 

I haven't actually been to Kings Island for awhile now, and I can't remember exactly how their arcades operate now. Do they use real money now to play their arcade machine games?

 

Also, should I give all the coins to one person, or one coin to each person that wants one until they are all gone, or would Kings Island want them to create a historical memorabilia display with them?

 

It will be a week until I can get all this stuff together.

 

Let me know if you are interested in getting this stuff to add to your retro Kings Island collection.

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I love Kings Island maps, but since I was born in 93 I only have maps from 97 to the current map. My dad helped me start the collection when I was four to small and to scared to get on roller coasters but still appreciated their size and power. If you have any older maps I would love to have one.

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I would love to have one of the tokens.  I grew up in the 80s going to KI with my dad, so there are a lot of memories of the park for me in that decade.  I think it would be cool if you split the tokens up and gave them to multiple people.  That way lots of people could own a little piece of KI's history.

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I haven't actually been to Kings Island for awhile now, and I can't remember exactly how their arcades operate now. Do they use real money now to play their arcade machine games?

 

They did for a while, at least according to my mother, though I don't know when they started or stopped that. As of five or so years ago, they were using token machines that gave out four tokens per dollar. A few years ago (two? three?), they changed the token machines to a sliding scale based on the denomination inserted. As of the last time I was in one of the arcades last year, they gave two tokens for a $1 bill and more for larger bills, up to I think 60 or 80 tokens for a $20 bill.

 

A new reloadable game card system was introduced for the outdoor games this year, and the arcade games might be using those cards as well now (I haven't been to the park to see for myself and don't remember what might have been said here about it).

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The games /only/ use the game cards now (including Bowler Roller and things like Goblet Toss). You cannot stick money into a game machine*. They no longer use tokens either. You need to go to a game card kiosk and either "buy" a game card (the card itself is free when you load money on one) or reload one, using cash or credit/debit card. The game cards are plastic cards not unlike a season pass or credit card.

I had a handful of tokens left over at the end of last season and I'm glad, because I like them as souvenirs and can't get any more now.

*the only exception I've seen is Zoltar, the fortune telling machine, which isn't strictly a game. It only takes cash, not game cards.

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I just went through everything I have, and sadly I lost a lot of maps and other stuff, which is why I'm giving away what I still have, before I end up losing it all. Perhaps passing along what I have will keep it all around a little longer.

 

Here is what I will be giving away.

 

160 (1980's) KI Arcade silver plastic coins (I think the last year they were in the park was in 1992)

 

2 (1986) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1988) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1991) KI Promotion Brochure / Advertising the monorail wild life, Flight Commander, and the introduction of Water Works

4 (1992) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1993) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (2004) KI Fear Fest Newspaper Ad

1 (2008) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (2009) KI Associate Guide And Orientation Guide

1 (2010) KI Haunt Park Guide/Map w/ KI Haunt 3D Glasses

1 (2010) KI Live Entertainment Brochure

1 (2011) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (2011) KI Fall Park Guide/Map / Trick or Treat with the Dinosaurs

2 (2011) KI Haunt 3D Glasses

1 (2012) KI Haunt Park Guide/Map

1 (2013) KI Fall Park Guide/Map / Trick or Treat with the Dinosaurs

1 (2013) KI Haunt Park Guide/Map

 

 

I don't have a season pass this year, so I'm not sure how to best distribute this material. Perhaps I could give it all to the owner of this forum or a moderator of this forum, and let them distribute it for me? Then perhaps everyone could have a day to get together in the park?

 

Just so no one feels left out, I'll make a video later, showing the old maps and the coins, so everyone can enjoy some of the history, even if they don't get anything. I haven't seen anyone make a video yet showing the old park maps, and I've been wanting to do this for awhile.

 

Just out of curiosity, does anyone have any KI park guide/maps older than 1986?

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hmm, maybe each of those people interested could throw a couple of bucks your way to get you a ticket into the park that way you can get the people what they would like in person and enjoy a day at the park?

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hmm, maybe each of those people interested could throw a couple of bucks your way to get you a ticket into the park that way you can get the people what they would like in person and enjoy a day at the park?

The problem with that is getting all of those people together the same day in the park. 

I live 1.5-2hrs away.....not as easy to hop skip and jump like some do.

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Speaking of Kings Island maps, does anybody know what the 1992 map looks like?

 

1992 was their 20th Anniversary, and that was also the last year it was Kings Island before it became Paramount Kings Island. They made a very big deal about Hanna-Barbera Land, with Scooby Doo and Yogi Bear holding balloons while Fred Flintstone jumped in the air between them, with flags and graffiti in the air above them. The front of this park guide was also on t-shirts, balloons, and everything else. The new ride attraction for 1992 was Phantom Theater. It was in the same building that the Smurf Enchanted Voyage was in, but many years before The Smurf Enchanted Voyage, it was actually not Smurfs at all, it used to just be The Enchanted Voyage, showing many other Hanna-Barbera cartoon characters.

 

1992 was also the last year that Kings Island had a Winterfest. It was so cold, there was almost no one there, and those that showed up, kept riding Phantom Theater just to feel the heat blow on them at the end of the ride where they open the furnace and blow hot air on you.

 

Park Guides and Maps used to be separate. It wasn't until the mid 90's that they started to combine them. Before that, I think they sold the maps separately. The guides still have smaller maps in them, but they are more like blueprints just to show you were things are. The ones that were sold separately were huge foldouts that have the same kind of cartoon images that today's maps have now, so that style never changed. I used to have those older large foldout maps, but the problem with trying to save them was how they were all folded up rather than rolled up, but that's how they were in the park, all folded up. Over the years, the creases of the folded maps, made them tear, so eventually they just fell apart. They were completely white on the back, and they were poster material. So I don't have the older cartoon image maps, but I still have the smaller blue print maps that were in the old park guides.

 

The first map of the water park is actually very funny, because there's almost nothing there, it's so small. I'll make a video of it and post it soon.

 

Something that I miss about the good old days that we don't have anymore, is how people were more daring and more shocking when it came to entertainment, which I would guess it had to do with the internet not existing and so no one could see, hear, or tell others things in an instant, which I guess offered a sense of security for people. For example: I think it was in 1992, in what is now the Kings Island Theater, they had a show called "This Is Magic", and it was all men and women wearing only white full body leotards with nothing on underneath, dancing around in the dark with neon lights and black lights. Being in the dark with those lights, made their full body leotards vanish and you could see everything as if it was just naked men and naked women dancing on stage. Now that we have the internet, I don't think they would risk doing something like that now, as people are no longer that open minded or that artistically and creatively daring.

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I would love to have one of the tokens.  I grew up in the 80s going to KI with my dad, so there are a lot of memories of the park for me in that decade.  I think it would be cool if you split the tokens up and gave them to multiple people.  That way lots of people could own a little piece of KI's history.

 

After counting the coins, I think 160 coins should be enough for everyone that is interested in getting one to get one. Actually, if not that many people are interested, I could then give those that are a few coins each.

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1z4vg5l.png

 

We could meet at either Subway, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Arby's, or Skyline Chili, off of Kings Mills Rd.

 

Best day to meet would be sometime around Fourth of July, when everyone will be out of school and off of work.

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I have some of those tokens too. So you aren't the only one :) I don't have any maps or anything from back then tho.

I also have some game tickets from the 90s

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(Yes, on me, in my wallet today at the park... I promised some to a KIC friend if I ever see him :))

 

That wouldn't be me would it

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I just found something else I had

 

 

1 (1992) 20th Anniversary KI Playing Cards Deck in mint condition, still sealed in plastic and in its display case.

 

It's the image from the front of the 1992 park guide/map, but on the top of the playing cards.

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I just found something else I had

1 (1992) 20th Anniversary KI Playing Cards Deck in mint condition, still sealed in plastic and in its display case.

It's the image from the front of the 1992 park guide/map, but on the top of the playing cards.

That is awesome I would love those!

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I just made a 52 minute video that shows all of these

 

2 (1986) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1988) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1991) KI Promotion Brochure / Advertising the monorail wild life, Flight Commander, and the introduction of Water Works

4 (1992) KI Park Guide/Map

1 (1993) KI Park Guide/Map

 

and the 160 coins/tokens

 

in HD. The video will be uploaded in a few short hours. I'll post it as soon as it is up.

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Here is the video. Visit the video page for the interactive menu to quickly jump through the video. Be sure to like the video, so I know how many people are interested in the coins and booklets.

 

 

Also, if you have old retro Kings Island memorabilia stuff to share, make a video of it and title it "Kings Island Retro Tag" and add it to the conversation. Anything Kings Island from any previous Kings Island years is fine.

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1z4vg5l.png

We could meet at either Subway, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Arby's, or Skyline Chili, off of Kings Mills Rd.

Best day to meet would be sometime around Fourth of July, when everyone will be out of school and off of work.

But what about those who cannot make it then? I haven't made plans for that time frame yet but I know it's typically a busy time for me.

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Let's try to meet in person first. Then those that can't make it in person, just let me know at that time, and we can arrange then to do something by mail.

 

I live rather close to the park, and I figure most people here are going to visit the park eventually, so this would save everyone time and money.

 

The stuff will be safe for a few months, so I can hold onto it till we all find a good time to meet.

 

I know most people go out of town around fourth of July, but for those that will be in the area, that would be the best time to meet. That week before or after, anytime around then.

 

Also, if we give this some time for others to see this topic, there might be other collectors willing to hand over their stuff to others as well, which may help some collectors complete their collections.

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