Monkey Joe Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 According to Theme Park Review, Paramount has finally sold all of the parks. It is this true? Shaggy, I am looking your direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersNSich Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Is that some sort of post in their forums? If so, could you provide a link? I wouldn't be surprised that there has already been a preliminary deal - but doubt such a deal has been finalized. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 It's a post yesterday in the forums there by a poster who lives in Charlotte but is apparently from Cincinnati. Said poster also claims there was an all day meeting at the park today to announce the sale. I am sorry, but large, publicly traded corporations do not announce their sales toemployees before they do to the media and investors. I don't believe this one for even a minute. Especially since there was a conference call to investors YESTERDAY, and the only thing mentioned was that the pending sale had been announced. I bet anything that is ALL that is behind this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jzarley Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 It's a forum post...I searched for 15 minutes before I found what he was talking about. Some random poster saying the sale was official "as of today", then in a later post saying that "the sale occurred yesterday", and that a meeting of all full-time employees was "held today to fill them in on all of the details of the sale." Hmmm...tell all of the employees before Wall St? Especially when the whole reason you're selling the parks is to get a boost in your stock price? Make your own judgements on the potential for accuracy I guess... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jzarley Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Especially since there was a conference call to investors YESTERDAY, and the only thing mentioned was that the pending sale had been announced. I bet anything that is ALL that is behind this. Excellent point...I wonder if someone heard about the conference call and couldn't understand the difference between an earnings release call with analysts, and an all employee meeting announcing the details of the sale... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RollerNut Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 How about a link? He says yesterday because the original post was yesterday. I know the person who posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TombraiderTy Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 It didn't happen, that's for sure I hope that whoever does buy the park takes good care of it and adds a decent ride every year. Maybe a good roller coaster every three, a new kiddie thing every 4, and a new water park attraction every five. All other years should be whatever the public wants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersRZ Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Ok, like that makes sense. The park should install what makes sense to them and what will make the park a better place, and more profitable. While it may involve the things you mentioned, having a specific formula like that is not sound business sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasper Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Whoever buys thge parks had bettter do just as good or better as Paramount did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Whoever buys thge parks had bettter do just as good or better as Paramount did. Or? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersRZ Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Personally, I think that Parmount Parks has done a pretty decent job with the parks. Yes, they have removed some classic rides, and made some unpopular decisions. But all in all, I think that the parks are in excellent shape and have been making smart moves of late. The parks definantely are definantely better off now than they were the last couple of years under Lindner`s stewardship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooferBearATL Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 Personally, I think that Parmount Parks has done a pretty decent job with the parks. Yes, they have removed some classic rides, and made some unpopular decisions. But all in all, I think that the parks are in excellent shape and have been making smart moves of late. The parks definantely are definantely better off now than they were the last couple of years under Lindner`s stewardship. Nah, I disagree. I saw first hand everything fall to hell and back when Paramount took over. It's just recently that Paramount has gotten towards moving in the correct direction. I just chalk that up to being a learning curve though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted February 25, 2006 Share Posted February 25, 2006 ...which is why it is so important who owns the park. If it is someone who doesn't have a great deal of learning to do, there indeed may not be many stumbles and problems. If, on the other hand, the new owner/group has plenty of ideas of its own but little experience in the industry, and the experienced hands in the chain either leave or get separated, things could get a lot worse rather quickly. The few people on this board who claim it doesn't matter who owns the park and that things will be just the same as if CBS Corporation nee Viacom continued to own the park(s) are very mistaken. These next few months may be the most important that Kings Island and the other Paramount Parks have faced to date. What happens next WILL affect things for years. Postively or negatively. Which? No one knows. It is far too early. Even the buyer itself, if it has selected at this point, doesn't have the capability to predict the future with 100 percent certainty. Things WILL change. That is a given. And remember, all this is taking place while the biggest operator in the industry has entirely new management and is making drastic changes, while still facing a nearly crushing debt load. One prediction can be made with near certainty. At least in the near term, the days of dozens of coaster installations in the USA and Canada per year are over. At least for a while. The pendulum has swung toward family attractions, shows, improving customer service including cleanliness and line reduction and increasing per capita revenue in the parks (which may soon mean the near universal end of the very cheap season passes that both parks and patrons are addicted to). This doesn't even take into account that GE doesn't seem to be enthused about keeping its theme parks, the Busch parks may or may not stay under AB ownership and small, traditional parks--with a few glowing exceptions like Holiday World and Knoebels--are struggling. The times, they are a changin. And those who deny that are about to find out they are very, very wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pope03 Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 I hope another theme park operator (like Cedar Fair or AB) doesn't buy paramount parks because then pki will become just like their other parks. Whoever buys it hopefully will keep it generally the same, just rid of the paramount names for the rides, and I assume they will have to get rid of the part with all the squares with the name of paramount movies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reon Posted April 12, 2006 Share Posted April 12, 2006 A homegrown/lesser company would work for that, but how do you think they'd keep on funding Kings Island if they werent a big corperation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcmaster Posted April 12, 2006 Share Posted April 12, 2006 That's the problem. We need an owner who views the business like Paramount did. Every GM/VP in the chain realizes that you can't keep things the same for years. People grow tired (eg. HB turning into Nick Uni.). New things need to keep being added or you turn into Six Flags, where management was so confused that the Park's went into debt. People complain about Paramount being the owners, but look at the Parks now. Every year there is at least one new attraction at each of their Parks. Other operators, such as Six Flags just as an example, don't do this. Just think about: people complain when once every few years a kid expansion goes in and not a thrill ride. That is one year without a new thrill ride. Another operator may put a new ride in once every few years, meaning longer without a new thrill attraction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 Six Flags didn't go into debt because management was so confused. Six Flags went into massive debt because they went on a humongous park buying spree and bought more parks than they could afford. Then they put massive investments in rides into almost all of them (at first...there was a time when every park they bought got a Boomerang and an SLC, unless it was already a major park). It came to the point where even making just the interest payments was becoming quite a stretch...the European parks were sold, outside investors thought they could do a better job than then current management, then current management gave itself huge golden parachutes and closed Astroworld, the stockholders voted to oust former management and the tale goes on.... In any event, one mistake Six Flags definitely made that Paramount has as well is that they both put in great new rides with, in some cases, incredible theming. And then never maintained the theming. That much, I do see in common. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersRZ Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 Six Flags, and theming? Granted some of the parks have theming, but I can`t recall any rides to be heavily themed or tied to the theming like at the Paramount Parks, FoF, TR:TR, IJST, the new Survivor ride, and the Nickelodeon areas. I know the SF parks have the Marvel comics as well as the Looney Toons characters themed in most of their parks. But IMO, the theming isn`t anywhere near PP. That said, of the seasonal theme park operators (not including Busch Gardens for BGW/E) I believe that Paramount Parks is among the best, although they need to figure out how to maintain the theming so it looks brand new, whether after a year, or ten years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 I suggest you visit The Golden Kingdom at Six Flags Great Adventure. The theming there rivals any at Disney. And the new management seems to have restored it to new for this season. This after a season of very heavy use last year...and a closed major attraction for much of the summer. How the new Six Flags maintains its parks will be watched very closely. The Gotham City areas at the major Six Flags parks are also heavily themed (with the exception, ironically, of Great Adventure). Don't judge all Six Flags parks by Kentucky Kingdom. It really is an atypical (and substandard, compared to the rest) Six Flags. Even this year. At both Georgia and New Jersey this year, I have been impressed by the courtesy, service and cleanliness. I wish I could say the same of my visit to Kentucky Kingdom last Sunday. I can't and I won't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoastersRZ Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 Good point, from the pictures of the Golden Kingdom, I do recall that they did a fairly good job of theming it. And actually, the only Six Flags park I have been to when it was owned by Six Flags is now no longer owned by them (SFWoA). I visited Kentucky Kingdom, but that was back in 1996 before I was really into coasters and before Six Flags became owner of the park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Bombay Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 Who owned SFKK before Six Flags? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 13, 2006 Share Posted April 13, 2006 Mr. Ed Hart, a bunch of investors and the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Mr. Hart also had a connection with Ralph Stricker. http://www.coaster-net.com/pg/sfkk.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcmaster Posted April 14, 2006 Share Posted April 14, 2006 Six Flags didn't go into debt because management was so confused. Six Flags went into massive debt because they went on a humongous park buying spree and bought more parks than they could afford. Then they put massive investments in rides into almost all of them (at first...there was a time when every park they bought got a Boomerang and an SLC, unless it was already a major park) Actually, that seems like management was confused about what makes money and what works. I don't go out buying a bunch of million dollar homes and cars and expect that to make me money once I go so far into debt. Somehow going on a huge park buying spree sounds like someone didn't quite think things through far enough into the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterking123456 Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 I have a question has anybody ridden Son of Beast lately?and if you have is it any smoother than before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Nemo Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 I have a question has anybody ridden Son of Beast lately?and if you have is it any smoother than before? Lol, wrong topic buddy. Here are some topics that will answer your question. SOB Status? My SOB ride 5/28 TR: SOB ride report Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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