italianchef

Being the pessimist that I am, I SERIOUSLY doubt Disney would open up a hotel or any type of entertainment complex in Greater Cincinnati.

"An area where I think they could do well in regional markets is the hotel resort/in door waterpark concept. Not only is it a hot segment right now, but the Disney name on it would add a lot of prestige. Maybe they could start out by buying Great Wolf and "Disneyfying" those properties...they're already pretty similar to Disney's Wilderness Lodge anyway, and in good markets. (Plus, I wanted CF to buy them out, but it doesn't look like that will happen anytime soon.) The last time I looked, Great Wolf only had a market cap of about $300M. There's probably that much in spare change in Bob Iger's office sofa," said Jlarzey. _______________________________________________________________________ HEY! That is a great idea. I've visited Disney parks in Japan, Florida and California. And after staying at Mason's GWL, I can assure you, as a travel writer, that the GWL is on par with Disney for quality, hygiene, and service. I think the GWL company would fit very well in Disney. Have a great day! Italian Chef

HELLO! Can anyone say, Newport on the Levee? Disney can come in, take what we have and revamp it. They can purchase adjacent land and build a Disney hotel with an indoor water park and Disney Quest arcade - and restaurants with Disney characters. Oh yes! That would so rock. I hope that Disney does embark on such a project. However, being a smaller city, I doubt that Disney would build a presence here. Pleasant Day! Italian Chef

My favorite show in Kings Island history was Graveyard Shift. I do, really do wish it would be brought back. And while I am wishing, I wish that CF would revamp SDATHC as "The Phantom Theater 2" with the original characters - and some new ones, plus greater special effects. Yeah. That would be cool. Have an awesome day! Italian Chef

It is official. Paramount's Kings Island is now "Kings Island" legally and on the park's homepage. My question is, what will happen to PKICentral? Will it become "KICentral"? If so, or something else, when? Enquiring minds want to know. Have a great day! Italian Chef

I am honestly surprised that Star Trek was part of the deal. You'd think CBS would keep it since it is part of the movie franchise. My guess is that CF will sell or close it within 10 years. Sad to say, Star Trek is not what it used to be in terms of popularity. Live long and prosper, Italian Chef

It's a step in the right direction. I'm pleased that the homepage reflects the new owner and look forward to it being fully updated. Have a great weekend! Italian Chef

Miniature Golf and a ferris wheel should definitely be priorities. Also, more INDOOR rides. Whenever it rains heavy, indoor rides are all that many of us can handle.

I have two miniature Eiffel Towers. They are my favorite memorabilia.

My idea is to expel every last vestage of Paramount/Viacom, but leave Nickelodeon until the license expires. Localize it. Bubba Gump Shrimp Shack - Cajun Shrimp Shack Lt. Dan's Bar - Bayou Bar Face/Off - Boomerang Congo Falls - Amazon Falls Days of Thunder - Kings Island Speedway Top Gun - Navy Pilot The Italian Job - L.A. Runaway Happy Days Diner - 50s Diner Flight of Fear - Asteroid Field TR:TR - Treasure Hunter Wings Diner - Rivertown Diner Paramount Story - Japanese Garden presented by Toyota CDBB - Crocodile Kyle's Boomerang Beach Dundee's Outback Shack - Verdi's Outback Shack Wally's Walkabout Pub - Walkabout Pub Mick's Seaside Supplies - Kyle's Seaside Supplies I'd change names and decor. Also, I'd make new films and posters for the "re-themed" attractions. For those of you who don't know, "Crocodile Kyle Verdi" is a character that appeared on the public access TV shows "Thai Food Hunter" and "Entertainers in the Tri-State". Have a great day! Italian Chef

I feel sorry for the people who frequent GL. We wouldn't like it if KI's best rides were taken out and I doubt that GL's season pass holders like what's happening to them.

I don't wish to seem like a skeptic. But I don't see how GL REDUCING its number of rides could possibly help attendence. In my opinion, it would have the opposite effect. I hope that I'm wrong.

I wonder if www.pkicentral.com won't be transformed into www.KICentral.com.

Congratulations to Ryan Suhr for getting his name on the FRONT COVER of The Cincinnati Enquirer today. http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...5/ENT/702050309 It was a great article and nice to see Ryan's name mentioned. Great job, Ryan! I went of www.pki.com and Cedar Fair and the Paramount name and logo are still on all pages. I reckon they'll be gone by opening day. Have a great day! Italian Chef

My guess is that CF will continue the 10-year tradition of changing the haunted house. Hence, I think that Scooby Doo will leave Kings Island with SDATHC in 6 or 7 years. Hey, that's just a guess. Have a great day! Italian Chef

TR:TR is the ONLY ride that would need re-theming. Every other Paramount/Nickelodeon ride could be changed with a sign. Granted for some rides, such as Wild Thornberries River Adventure, effigies would need to be removed. Have a great day! Italian Chef

Today I was wondering about the future of SDATHC. My original guess was that after the legal rigths to Scooby Doo expired, the ride would be Nickelodeon themed and added to Nickelodeon Universe. But now that CF owns the park and if memory serves me right, it only purchased a 4-year right to Nickeloden - I really wonder. Any rumors heard? Does anyone think that CF will renew the Nickelodeon rights? Or change all of NU into a Peanuts kids' area? Any ideas at all? Have a great day! Italian Chef

Personally,I think the sign looks better without the "Paramount's" and mountain. Paramount's Kings Island is a mouthfull. Kings Island is much easier to say. Besides, Cedar Fair now owns the park. Why should they maintain the "Paramount" name? Odds are, the management team did a cost-benefit analysis and concluded that it is cheaper for them to remove the Paramount name than to keep it. I look forward to visiting Kings Island this year and for years to come. Have a great day! Italian Chef

Mrs. Chef and I have long thought about staying at the Great Wolf Lodge - Mason. After we read about the Sunday-Thursday $189/night grand opening special that expires in March....we decided to make a reservation. Last night, Sunday 1/28, Mrs. Chef, Toddler Chef, and I checked into the GWL. Wow! Just the exterior was magnificent. The light brown logs and reddish roofs are gorgeous. And the giant stone wolf statues at the entrance awed us. The Grand Lobby (on the 2nd floor) alone impressed us with its stone fireplace that extends from the 2nd to 3rd floors. It is huge, ornate, and features effigies of wolves. When we checked in, we were provided with water resistant wristbands with bar codes that act as room keys. We found the wristbands to be very convenient as we didn't have to worry about losing our room keys - especially at the water park. On the third floor, where our room was, employees provided us with free cookies and snow cones. We were told that this perk was only available on weekends. Also, the carpeting on the third floor featured wolves, moose, deer, and bears. We loved our suite as soon as we entered it. The wall paper, carpets, and furniture were all rustically themed. The room was spacious - two queen sized beds, a living room type area, and a decent sized, clean bathroom. The balcony was nice, but it was WAY too cold for us to use it. After we unpacked we walked around the lodge and then headed to BEAR TRACK LANDING, the indoor water park. Last year at the water park we frequent most often, we noticed that Toddler Chef is allergic to chlorine. His eyes would get puffy, red, and irritated causing him to cry. So we were nervous about bringing him to Bear Track Landing. I am so so so happy to tell you that the chlorinated water at the GWL does NOT irritate Toddler Chef at all. He dunked his head under water twice even and NEVER complained once. Toddler Chef had a great time running and splashing in the water. And he went down the kiddie water slides repeatedly. I was a proud papa to see him do all that. I did take a little time away from my family to try a few "big" water slides by myself. My favorite one was Coyote Canyon - a tube slide that drops riders into a circular area and gives them the sensation of being flushed town a toilet. It was pretty cool! After the water park we had dinner at the Loose Goose. We chose it because it is a buffet restaurant and being less than 3 years old, Toddler Chef is mighty picky. He did love the food and ate quite a bit of pizza. Mrs. Chef and I made pigs of ourselves feasting on the American and Chinese dishes offered. I'm told that they rotate the buffet menu. That night steak, glazed ham, country ribs, shrimp linguini, bourbon chicken, and MANY other dishes were offered. We went to the Buckhorn Exchange shop after dinner, where Mrs. Chef and I purchased some nice souvenirs. Then we went to the Great Clock Tower in the lobby for a 10-minute animatronic musical show. A Native American girl, a colonial European-American boy and a cast of singing trees and animals sang and performed. Story telling featuring Wiley Wolf followed the show. After the story was read by a lodge official, children posed with Wiley Wolf - who Toddler Chef mistook for Scooby Doo. My son happily posed for pictures with Wiley and kept calling him "Scooby". It was cute. After the shows, we returned to our room. Toddler Chef and Mrs. Chef relaxed in our room. So I went back to the water park alone to ride another slide and then hit Northern Lights Arcade, where I played a Star Trek game and then spent $5 on ice ball (skee ball for the rest of us). When I returned to my room, Toddler Chef was tired. After he fell asleep, Mrs. Chef & I shared a bottle of Moscato that we bought. GWL does have a bar, but how could we go without a baby sitter? The next morning, today, we headed to the Bear Claw Cafe to buy breakfast and take it to our room to eat. Since the offerings - muffins, bagels, & such - didn't interest Mrs. Chef - back to Loose Goose. We ate at the breakfast buffet: eggs, French toast, pancakes, waffles, fruit, etc. The offerings were fit for royalty. After breakfast, we went back to the room to change and then made a second visit to Bear Track Landing. Once again, I did a few "big" slides and played with Mrs. Chef and Toddler Chef in the children's area. We shopped some more and then checked out. I have only one regret about Great Wolf Lodge - that I didn't book 2 nights. The service, room, food, amenities, and atmosphere way exceeded my expectations. Have a great day! Italian Chef aka Charles Infosino

Hip Hip Hooray!!!! Gold is coming back - and I'm gold-digger. Italian Chef

Now that Paramount/Viacom/CBS no longer own the parks formerly know as Paramount Parks, I VERY much would like to see the theming change because: 1. The theming should accurately reflect who owns the park in the present, not the past. For example, we Americans don't fly the British flag anymore because we have a new government. 2. Changing the theming would make the park seem different, almost like a new park. And I think that would make my visits a little more exciting. Folks are more interested in seeing new things than old things. That's why museums have traveling exhibits. 3. I would like to see Kings Island have more of a local flavor, than an image developed by people in a far-off state. These are my ideas anyway. And I respect the opinions of those who disagree. That is the beauty of democracy. Have a great weekend! Italian Chef

I hope that litigation can solve the problem.

At some point Wings should be renamed and re-themed. After all, it's from a 1920s Paramount silent film that hardly anyone remembers. Have a great day! Italian Chef

Phantom Theater. No doubt about it. The Phantom Theater was the most Disney-like ride PKI ever had. Have a great day! Italian Chef

Yes, the "Paramount" name is not mentioned on the telephone recording at PKI, 800-288-0808.