lebeau

^^^ Good point. Thanks for clarifying.

Thanks for the link. I'm off to read now! Yeah, that's the sort of thing I was interested in. I didn't figure there'd be a lot of details made public. But I wanted to see what if anything people had heard.

Do you have a link to some of the other discussions? I did a search and came up with nuthin'. I figured they must be out there, but try as I might I couldn't find anything. I'd love to read the original thread(s).

This is probably a stupid question, but I'll ask anyway. I am curious if anyone knows why the decision was made to replace the Nick characters with Planet Snoopy. The obvious answer was cost savings since Cedar Fair already owns the rights to the Peanuts characters. I was just wondering if anyone knew of anything else that might have factored into the decision. I have to admit, I was disappointed when I first heard about the changeover. The Nick characters are a heck of a lot more relevant to my kids than the Peanuts. But now that we've experienced Planet Snoopy first hand, we're okay with the changeover.

One big difference is that at Disney, the characters are typically in higher demand. Mickey walking around the parks would be mobbed. But at KI, we rarely waited more than 30 seconds to see any Nick or Peanuts character. At Disney, people do the character breakfast as a way to see the characters without waiting in long lines. If they didn't come to your table, you'd just have a long line at the restaurant. So the characters have to come to your table. At KI, Charlie Brown can just stand there and let the kids come to him. Because the demand just isn't the same.

Awesome! Funny how Roy became Walt in the telling of the stories I'd heard. I once met someone who swore she had met Walt as KI was being planned. I figured something was up, given Walt's date of death. But I never knew when planning started on KI, so I was never in a position to say for sure one way or another. I hadn't heard the $1 check story. But that fits with what I know. I've always loved these stories about Disney and his company. I look forward to reading more about the history of KI!

Originally, most of Kings Island's rides were compatible for the whole family. This continued until KECO sold the park. The next owner went ahead and removed most of these. I wouldn't be so sure of that. Some say, had Mr. Linder not taken control of the park, Kings Island would of grown into "The Universal of the Midwest." They certainly had the means of doing so. Currently, Kings Island is seen by most of the population as a Thrill Park. Have you ever seen a Thrill Park grow into an entire complex? The money has always lied within the families... Even the teenagers who come to Kings Island get the money they use from their parents. YES! Dark Rides have all the potential in bringing in families... See Disney World. MOST of their rides are Dark Rides, and how are they doing? I remember the early days at KI. I was a kid at the time. We still spent most of our time in HB Land. But we could venture out and do other things as a family. I do wish the park had more of that today. I agree that the money lies with families. During it's darkest coaster park days, KI was over-run by teens and it drove a lot of families out. I think they have realized the error of making the park into nothing but a hangout for teens. I'm a huge WDW fan. I'm all for any changes that bring KI more in line with Disney. I understand the difference between an international tourist destination and a regional, seasonal park. But I think KI would benefit by moving away from the Six Flags model and moving closer to the ideas of Uncle Walt. I've heard stories that Walt was consulted in the early days of KI. I know he tended to get involved in such projects largely for his own fact-gathering purposes. But also because he was interested in seeing these projects succeed. Does anyone know any stories of Walt's involvement in KI?

Thanks! I love the site. I've frequently used it for my KI nostalgia fix. After this weekend's trip I finally decided to take the plunge and register.

Oh how I miss the Enchanted Voyage. It was always a favorite. I was very bitter when the Smurfs showed up. And it's been down hill from there.

I was surprised by 2 things: 1. How little had actually changed 2. How the little changes added up to a much scarier ride. Pull out Scooby and replace him with scarier creatures, and the ride no longer appeals to the same demo. I liked Boo Blasters. It's a fine dark ride. KI needs more like it. I just wish the only family-friendly dark ride on property was less scary.

I was thinking it had to do with the heat of the weekend. I noticed a few people in line that looked like they were going to pass out. If they were waiting in the heat of the sun outside of the shade and misters, I can only imagine how long it would have taken for people to pass out. We had our first visit of the year on Memorial Day. It was a great day to go. Hot, but not opressive. There were some cool breezes now and again. And attendance was light just as I hoped. I wasn't sure if it was the weather forecasts or the fact that people do other things on Memorial Day. But it was a great day to be at KI.

King's Island reminds me of the story of why Walt supposedly created Disneyland. When he was sitting on a bench watching his daughters on a merry-go-round and decided that there ought to be a nice place familuies could go and have fun together. When you go to KI with small children, you're usually stuck watching your kids have fun on the kiddie rides. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy this. But I like the Magic Kingdom better because we can enjoy just about everything together. Obviously, KI can't live up to the standards of the Magic Kingdom. And I appreciate the efforts to make KI more than just a coaster park. But I think more could be done. More dark rides, please!