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I somehow found this thread and it was amazing to read all the comments on the first couple threads. It was amazing how mad people were. Wonder how happy they were when they heard the recent news....

Maybe they're taking lessons from the "being first is better than being accurate" news media of today?

Can I just move into the big tan box and have all of them in my backyard?

Even though my dad owns 1,100 acres of farm land...I don't want a coaster. A zoo be more awesome for me....but neither is feasible due to location.

^I thought about that. Tear the house down , Tell the wife and kids we're sleeping in the station. Then I wondered what it would be like to be divorced.

That same argument cant be made for Blu-Ray v. HD-DVD. Both had similar resolutions and were cheap to produce. In the case of Blu Ray, it was the major studios forming a cartel of sorts to only release their movies on the format they had a financial interest in, which was Blu-Ray. As Terp said, the superior format (which many believe to have been HD-DVD) doesn't always win.

Ah, well that makes sense. I was too young to know how much he paid for our VCR or how much those things actually cost back then. That would make sense that the VHS won because it was a cheaper product.

Why? Cost. VHS was much, much cheaper. WalMart has built a fantastic business on the proposition that Americans largely value cheap over quality.

Our first VCR was a Betamax as well lol. Around that same time my dad was shopping around for a VCR trying to decide on the VHS or the Beta. After doing much research and consulting people working in the electronics departments, he went with the Betamax. He was informed that the tapes were smaller and had better resolution video (all of which were true) so it would more than likely win out over the VHS which was a bigger tape. As we all know now, VHS won the battle of home video cassette media. Why? To this day I have no idea. You'd think with how things usually go, the more compact tape would win. I loved our Betamax though. The tapes were small and it produced some nice quality recordings. We kept that thing and used it for years, even after video stores stopped renting Betamax copies. Having a VCR in your home in the early 80s was quite exciting!

I love these videos. Reminds me of the times I went to KI with my family in the early years. Some of the best times of my life. Now, I want to make new memories with my son so he can look back and say the same thing.

I'd take the most twisted, air time filled GCI dueling coaster they could possibly create. Millennium Flyers, 90 degree banked turns, and not a single bit of straight track outside the brakes, station and lifts would be in order.

Last night I had a dream that I was riding some undefined roller coaster (similar to Python at Coney Island) while the New Year's Eve ball was dropping in Times Square in NYC which happened to be RIGHT NEXT to where the "coaster" was! 2015 is right around the corner...even in my dreams.

I want an inverted, launching, racing coaster with at least 6 loops, with four tunnels in the darkness of the woods....oh and it has to have 9 air time hills...is that asking for too much?....I know, I know....I can't have it cause I'd "shoot my eye out".

I'm not certain the "we've been informed we might get sued for false advertisement, so here's your durned discount" method is really an effective "something different." Really, they couldn't have spun the extension as something magnanimous, they actually went with blaming the billboard company for forcing them to do it? Yes, it's better PR than a lot of what they've done so far, but it's not exactly good.

As stated at the time, there were very good reasons a Tennessee park got rid of its very similar attraction. What's especially tragic here is a daughter was doing the course with her early 50's Dad on Christmas Eve as she wanted to spend Christmas with her boyfriend. Now, she gets to spend every day of the rest of her life playing the "What if" game. And she had to spend today dealing with the tragic, awful aftermath of a totally unexpected, unnecessary death--one that appears to have been in no way her fault. Needless to say, there WILL be a lawsuit. And no matter what the family recovers, it won't be enough. It won't be Dad, husband, brother, son. It will be cash. Good for nearly nothing at all in compensating for a loss like this. This industry deals with peoples' lives. Every day. If you are a ride op, a maintenance person, an inspector, a supervisor, a ride builder or designer, a general manager, a director, a regulator--never forget that. Safety is paramount. Safety first. Safety always. Safety all ways. It's not about money. It's about people.

Worst...Decision...Ever! This is just plain horrible. Let's look at the Paramount way of thinking...let's take out two very classic and unique rides, and put in just one coaster, that is a clone and probably will be a scaled-down version of a Universal/Disney type ride. The theming will whither away in the first three years, and then we have a dinky rollercoaster that only goes 40 mph. Great choice!!! While we're at it, let's take out more classic rides like Kings Island did when Carl Linder was the owner and when the park was at it's worst it has ever been in. Now trust me, when I say this, if Paramount continues to do this, it will turn out to be very bad in the end for PKI. I think they just don't know what they are doing. If you slap a movie name on a ride it doesn't make it any better.

Alright, here is the last video from July 24, 1980. I put together all the random scenes. You'll see the entrance, shops, singers singing "YMCA", brief views of Zodiac and Tumble Bug, day and night views of the fountain, and even a person selling those neon glowing strips at dusk that were so cool. I am glad this website exists, and I am glad so many people have enjoyed my dad's video. Time to put this tape back on the shelf. George

Supposedly about Wendy's and its breakfast retrenchment, this is one of the most insightful short business interviews I've ever seen, with major implications for all business, including the amusement business: http://mobile.bloomberg.com/video/why-did-wendy-s-quit-the-breakfast-wars-bhp0RH2gT2ivJk_BEymf~A.html

Ina former life we would edit commercials then we would look it over, our two bosses would check then the guy uploading them to the system would watch them and then lastly the guy at Syracuse would check them as well. Sometimes typos made it all the way till we saw it air the first time....

That's all very nice, but blaming the printer? Does no one proof anything anymore?

The "we're not responsible for typos" policy is for the store's own protection, not because they want to be mean to consumers while cutting corners during the printing process. Several years ago, Sears inadvertently listed the then-$745 iPad 2 for $69 in their ad. Had they actually honored that price, not only would they have lost a lot of money, they likely would have been the recipient of lawsuits from competitors and/or friendly notices from Apple's lawyers.

The only rides I've been on that I can think of that would come close to fitting in our yard and would be worth having would be Georgia Cyclone, Phoenix, or the original Coney Island Cyclone. Pretty sure some or all of the house would have to come down, though, haha. Those are all great rides, so I'll take any of them.

When I was much, much younger (during the Water Works days)...I had a dream that there was a roller coaster over a pool where the coaster was like The Bat and the riders held onto gymnastic rings suspended from the cars chassis. As the roller coaster progressed its route, the weakest riders were flung into the water pools below. The remaining riders as the ride returned to the break run still holding on won a prize. I was always flung off the rings just before the breakrun...ending in a surprise wake up from falling...(no water or pee was involved...just the fright from falling.... )

I have to agree... sounds like our local grocery store when there is a misprint in their sales paper..."oops our printer goofed".

Sounds about right.

This wasn't specifically KI, but some undefined theme park. They had built a new wooden coaster and I was excited to ride it, but it turned out being pretty awful. Uncomfortably forceful. Then, I met Terpy, or I thought I did, maybe. I was with a group of KIC people, and I thought I recognized him from his picture, so I asked him. He replied in a way that sounded like an affirmation, but what he said could also be interpreted as a denial. Then he left before I could ask anything further.

If the billboard company is Gannett, if the contract actually runs to that date, and if Ed Glasscock were their attorney....

Why not sue the billboard company instead? Wouldn't there have been a contract involved? Sounds fishy to me, but at least it might be a good PR move. "We misled you on ticket prices last fall, but this makes up for it". Or, " We desperately need good PR, and advanced cash"

The billboard company can't take them down? Joke or not, talk about something you wouldn't hear from current SIX or FUN marketing departments.

Millennium Force. It is smooth, fun, and is re-rideable because it is not incredibly intense.

Kudos to KK, getting the public before the dollar. This year....phew PR and KK seemed like two very different entities, but I am glad that now PR seems to be growing. People want to be a part of KK and want to invest, and KK needs that money. Sure, like what Home said, it is not ideal, but hey when it comes to PR-Guest relations, this is something that shows a sense of "Southern Hospitality". OR: The PR may just say that just to say that and want more people to buy with that in mind. Either way: Kudos to you KK

Please don't get me a roller coaster for Christmas. I don't have room for it, and I don't want the liability. If I have to get a roller coaster for Christmas, give me Big Dipper at Geauga Lake. Holding "rights" to it "forever" as it sits on someone else's property seems like a pretty good deal. Just as long as I'm not the liable party if someone or something is harmed.

^ Original post, quoted from Kenucky Kingdom's Facebook page: From a profit point of view, this is less than ideal, but it looks like they may be getting something right from a PR standpoint...

My uncle purchased a VCR at around that same time, and we used to go visit him. It seemed like it was probably about 2 feet wide, 2 feet deep and probably a foot tall. Playing a movie you want to see - anytime you want to see it!? He may as well have had a space shuttle in his front room. He also had one of the 9 foot diameter satellite dishes in his backyard at around the same time.

Yes, we want to see! You are welcome to post them here, or at least links! And thanks so very much, again.

For anyone interested in the history of this tape here it goes. Yes it was very rare to have a video camera way back then. My father purchased his first VHS VCR in 1977. It was $1,000. This was the first VHS VCR available to the general public. He bought his first video camera in December 1978. I do not know what he paid for it. It was made by Magnavox. At the time there was no portable VCR, so all recordings had to be indoors. He used a cable attached to the VCR (which remained on top of the TV) to record. He hooked a bunch of cables together so he could record outside. This is the first outdoor recording he made: it was January of 1979. Later, in '79 finally a portable VCR became available and he could go places with it. I will be working on other projects like Great America in Gurnee, IL 1979 and Wisconsin Dells 1980 if anyone wants to see. I will not post them on this site, but they can be seen on my YouTube page VideofromGeorge.

And these things are wonderfully fun when run properly. Didn't a park just get rid of their rope course? A coaster is is usually much safer than a ropes course....

Gently put, a pain in the rear? Terp...who likes to ask questions.

I think KI/CF of now needs to take notes and watch this video of the past! You ask me, the park looks truly amazing! I love the themeing they had! Some things that I would LOVE to see: International Street (IS), look and become "international" again. More focus and care put back into the fountains. Someone walking around selling balloon or even have a cart. Not ounce in past few years, have I seen KI even selling balloons! Redo some of the signs of their kid ride, to make them look much more grand again! A live band to go with the show(s). Classic music for Coney Mall and IS. grass/shrubs in the shapes of Peanut characters. Honestly those are some silly things that I think would be quite doable and really add to the park experience!

Something that has been a problem for me, for a while but forgot to mention is, when setting text color some or all of the text will revert to black when posting. (some should be orange, or should be red, and all should be purple). It can be changed back again by going to edit it though. Using Chrome 64-bit the latest public version. Note: Figures the text wouldn't change back to black this time....

Its Google Adsense ads, if you see another one on KIC please take screenshot it and send it to me. I will look for the Hot Europeans and deal with them. /pun

Pictures from 8/9/14

I've heard that I-Street is on deck for an upgrade. Only rumors, but I think we all agree that the area could use a hug. What kind of "improvements" could or would be made is also intriguing to think about. a staff person to replace burnt-out light bulbs.

Zoo photos. These are mostly the highlights, but I'll shoehorn in a few in the random photo thread as well. Accidentally used a flash on this. Whoops. Kind of impressed they'd leave a bird like this around without a cage (this was outside the Reptile House). I'm guessing it either can't fly or can't fly well. This guy was a pain to get a photo. This required a bit of elaborate camera handling as well. Of all the animals to be sleeping, I think Lucy deserves it with all the times she visits UC for football and basketball games (and a myriad of other things). From a bird show. This guy along with a few hawks and bigger birds were flown about, some rather close to the audience. The zoo train. My favorite picture. My 2nd favorite picture.

Cincinnati Zoo- 7/16/14 Today, the UC Community Band, which I play alto saxophone for, had a concert at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens today. One of our brass players (brass in general as he plays trumpet and baritone) works as an elephant handler a the zoo. As such, we got free admission, but it was also $1 day, which reared its ugly head; more on that later. In any case, it was a good situation for me to check out the zoo again. I haven't been there in nearly a decade, back when my family had a membership and we'd go all the time, and boy has it changed since. Getting there was a pain though. As I said, it was $1 day, and I could tell most of the demographic was from around Clifton/the immediate area around the zoo. On top of that, there were also a lot of camp groups, both ones run outside the zoo and ones run by the zoo itself (which I have to commend the zoo for in their conservation efforts, they do a stellar job). I arrived at around 10:30, but holy cow, traffic was bad. When I got to Clifton, the cars were lined up all the way down Vine from the zoo parking lots and all the way up MLK Jr Drive to Reading Road. No one saw it fit to go down Burnett to go in that way, which I did and got in probably around 1/8th the time the rest of those cars were waiting. It started to show in the zoo as well around noon when all those cars finally got in. I got through most of the zoo's exhibits within 2 1/2 hours before the crowds really set in and just took a leisurely stroll around afterwards up until the concert. I really liked the changes to the zoo since I last went. First off, there used to be their main parking lot off of Dury Ave. with their main entrance there. The 'main' entrance (in quotes as there are 3-4 entrances) has been moved to the corner of Vine and Erkenbecker while the old parking lot is now where they have all their big Africa exhibit (lions, giraffes, cheetahs, etc). The elephant exhibit changed quite a bit as well, with a more lushly covered trail than before with just the building. The entire zoo seemed more full of trees and foliage than I remember. I don't like what they did to Swan Lake though, with it merging with a crane exhibit and having a raised walkway. Its still one of my favorite areas in the zoo along side Jungle Trails and the area by the Reptile House. I also liked how they scheduled more shows and 'encounters' with zoo employees showing off animals, probably a way to let guests see certain animals active (I know we've all been to zoos and complained about the animals doing nothing, lying around). I also made sure to pay homage to one Lucy the Bearcat (yes, its a real animal). On top of the $1 day, they also had kind of a music festival going, probably why the band I'm in was invited to play. There was an African-esque drum group, a Dixieland band (also provided by the UC Band), and a guitarist. The only problem is they had those groups perform along the paths, which made for some wicked bottlenecks with the enlarged crowds. All in all, I had a great day re-discovering the zoo. I might go more often, but definitely on days not $1 days. I'd rather pay the extra amount and not have to deal with that kind of crowd, plus the money is for a good cause in the zoo's conservation missions and such, so I wouldn't mind. Pictures to come. EDIT: I also forgot to mention that the zoo is commemorating the 100th anniversary of the year the last passenger pigeon, Martha, died and the species went extinct.

I wonder which one I chose?

Ya know, I got a call from a certain someone on this board last Friday before myself and coasterdime headed up to Knoebels. How incredibly depressing all this is. I realize that this decision has been mostly corporate and some people at PKI are upset about the removal. Still, its completely and totally one of the worse things I've seen from the Park in a long time. PKI has, perhaps, the worse flat ride collection of any park I've ever been to. Keep in mind, I've been to darn near every major theme park in this country now, so I have plenty to base that opinion on. I give them MAJOR kudos though, Delirium and Tomb Raider were FANTASTIC additions and a GREAT start at finally building that collection back up. Now here we are talking about the removal of not ONE, but TWO non coaster attractions. Two attractions that I feel added a lot to the Park's atmosphere. I've read posts on this board, as well as PKIUnlimited, from different people talking about how NO ONE will remember the Eagles and that NO ONE cares about them. I don't think anything could be further from the truth. Since the announcement, I've talked to several friends of mine about the news. No one can really believe it. The Flying Eagles have a history with Kings Island. They will be missed, contrary to the opinion of some on here. The Park will just not be the same next year for me. I certainly don't go for the coasters, as I feel the collection is mediocre at best. None of PKI's rides come even close to topping my personal favorites. The Eagles were the star of the Park for me. This past season was fantastic on them. I have made many new friends there this year, a few of which are truly starting to become some of my closest friends. Just doesn't seem to be a lot left for me. I have always been a fan of PKI and truly love the Park. Its had its ups and downs, but overall always seemed to do so many things right. Now, I gotta question the direction that Paramount seems to be going. I have never been overly excited about Italian Job, this recent decision will certainly hurt in welcoming it with open arms. I think it will be another great family addition to the Park. From my perspective, its an oversized wild mouse. No real big drops, fast and tight turns, with a launch. It'll be fun, but like the other coasters at PKI mediocre at best. Lets all pray that the thematic elements work on a consistent basis, as it seems a large portion of this new ride is based on just that. Italian Job sure isn't worth losing the two rides that we have now. For those who are ok with the changes, thats fine. Not everyone has the same opinion nor shares the same respect for the ride that others do. However, please be respectful enough to those of us who DO appreciate the ride for what it is and are truly saddened by the loss of ANOTHER classic KI ride. -- Todd, who realized at Knoebels this weekend that PKI truly DID have the best set of Scooters ANYWHERE

Ok, now you're starting to **** me off. Is that fact that the Eagles were one of this community's favorite rides too lofty of a concept for you to understand? Now, keep it clean people.

Hey folks remember they pulled this same ploy last year...by saying that Waterworks was gone forever....and look what happened...it's back better. I'm willing to bet they're moving them, and this is yet another marketing ploy. Ya'll need to sit in some marketing classes sometimes

I just hope Italian Job Stunt Track lives up to its name. In 2 years all the themeing that makes the coaters will be gone and we will have a coaster that goes 40 mph wow. Funny they are taking all of the good flats out of the park like in the 80's and they give us cake. Bad showing Kings Island and Paramount Parks. :censored: :censored: