The things you find on YouTube...

 

 

Featuring Jason Priestley of Beverly Hills 90210 fame.

 

This is the same year that Paramount bought the park, but the re-branding didn't occur until 1993 (and I'm not sure when in 1992 the sale was completed).

This has been posted here many, many times.

It's nice to see it again.

Thanks!

You're welcome. This appears to be better quality than the other version that's on YouTube as well.

Hey, wait a minute! At 9:45 in that video, a national (possibly even world-wide) celebrity just endorsed the argument that Racer is two coasters that mirror each other. Does that officially raise Kings Island's coaster count? Very interesting!

Hey, wait a minute! At 9:45 in that video, a national (possibly even world-wide) celebrity just endorsed the argument that Racer is two coasters that mirror each other. Does that officially raise Kings Island's coaster count? Very interesting!

 

While it is true that the park counts The Racer as one coaster, the park also counts Surf Dog as a coaster. When you fix both of those mistakes, the net change is zero.

 

jcgoble3, aware that he's probably opening a massive can of worms here...

Watching that makes me realize a very sad but probably never going to change truth.

The Kings Island we wish would return, that was a flag ship of a an attempted national park, the family orientated PArk with an identity.... It's all over...

Things that will most likely never return: the golf course, resort, and camp grounds. Things that are gone and probably won't return any time soon: animals/variety of shows, themed buildings, themed little things like trash cans etc.

Things that are gone and could return if deemed profitable: trams for families, classic family rides, themed areas, general sense of caring...

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Hmm... "Brought to you by Chevrolet"? And all of those Chevy vehicles on display in the park?

Boy, I sure do yearn for the good old days when we didn't have all this product placement in the park, amirite?

Ugh... another ball bouncer at 29:21... would love to just go up to him and kick the ball away

Watching that makes me realize a very sad but probably never going to change truth.

The Kings Island we wish would return, that was a flag ship of a an attempted national park, the family orientated PArk with an identity.... It's all over...

Things that will most likely never return: the golf course, resort, and camp grounds. Things that are gone and probably won't return any time soon: animals/variety of shows, themed buildings, themed little things like trash cans etc.

Things that are gone and could return if deemed profitable: trams for families, classic family rides, themed areas, general sense of caring...

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I think the theming back then wasn't much but still went a long way. I recently acquired a brochure from 1992 and flipped through it. Most of the food venues and shops were gift shops and standard amusement park food counters. "The German Building" (currently the Emporium) sold Kings Island souvenirs, Cafe Parisienne sold nachos and cotton candy, and the Swiss Deli, currently Skyline on I-Street, coincidentally enough, sold Skyline along with other food on the menu. Kings Dominion has been going towards themed areas again in its recent days, so it's evident that the Cedar Fair parks have the freedom to bring theming back, even to the smallest degree. It might not happen at Kings Island, but there is some hope of it actually happening one day.

Kings Dominion competes against a highly themed, immersive park.

Kings Island, in reality, doesn't have an on par (or better) park competitor.

See also Knotts Berry Farm on the one hand and Dorney Park on the other.

I wonder if Kings Island will make another video like this in the future.

Have to think back at the time of this video of why it was made. It looks like it ran on TV.

What better way to showcase your new acquisition than by bringing in your stars to the "flagship" park of your new business venture. It was probably "cheap" to make as well since you already have crew and actors under contract. So you don't have to pay freelancers (unless that's how they operate which is what some do). Plus the crew would be professional.

Lastly at this time, how aligned was Paramount with CBS? If they are closely aligned at the time, This becomes an easy plug and fill on a day/time when there is no novel content (think the old Sunday Nights or running against Monday night football, for example).

So you have a media company ready to flex its medi muscle to show off a new purchase. It's like ABC running the Disney Christmas Parade/Commercial. Built in media arm.

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I believe they were interconnected somehow but I will let a more experienced and knowledgable poster answer that.

 

I also found two interesting videos about Kings Island under Carl Lindner on Sean Flaharty's Youtube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJqO8J-sPaA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PdigZarA1c

The sale was announced July 31, 1992 and was expected to close by October 31, 1992.

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/AMERICAN+FINANCIAL+CORPORATION+TO+SELL+KINGS+ISLAND+THEME+PARK+TO...-a012412614

This article correctly states the transaction. At the time of sale, Kings Island was not part of KECO--Carl Lindner's Great American Financial owned Kings Island (and sold it to Paramount). Lindner's company kept the golf center, the Inn and Conference Center....

One of the most amazing things about Kings Island is...that it's still operating.

...especially given Cedar Fair paid $1.24 billion for JUST the Paramount Parks and Dick Kinzel tried to buy himself and select family members a golden parachute by trying to sell out to Apollo Global for little more than half that--$635 million.

There isn't a day that goes by that I'm not thankful for Geoff Raynor, the Knott family and Q.

Terp I think many new people here or people that didn't grow up around the park don't realize/forget how big/resortish KI really was envisioned to be and was.

You could golf, stay in the resort, see animals, and ride rides/see shows. Time marches on and people get richer. But it really was a unique thing at the time.

I can't help but wonder... If KI wasn't parted off by Linder and then Great Wolf, would KI have been a flagship of the current CF instead of CP and the shift towards Carrowinds?

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My bosses kids are in the last shot with the fireworks. Oh to have those Beast restraints again.

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I'd say we are due for a 25th anniversary video of the 20th anniversary video....right???

Sent from a signal coming out of the Vega system.

Bumping this because I tweeted at Jason Priestly this morning regarding this special. He seems fairly active on his account. Interested to see if he responds at all. Likely not, but still. My one chance at this.

I turned 10 in October of 1992.  This was in the days where I'd stay up watching the original Beverly Hills, 90210, and all of the stars from the show were the coolest thing since sliced bread. I remember hearing about this special, and watching it "live" when it aired for the first time.  It was then that I discovered the Smurf ride had been taken out and replaced with Phantom Theatre.  I remember trying to always sit in the same seat as Jason did on the (now) Great Pumpkin Coaster.  I still love watching the special now and again - it brings back so many good memories.  This is the first KI I remember encountering as a kid.

Ha. I'm in this video. 

My brother had landed a speaking part through some kind of talent agency. They filmed it in March or April(I think), before the season began. My parents couldn't take off work, so I skipped two days of school and took him. Memories are vague, but I remember getting there very early for a production meeting at the Festhaus. They took the "cast" elsewhere to work on lines, wardrobe, etc. The friends/family who had accompanied them were used as extras.

We rode The Beast as extras during the filming there. They had to do several takes, and my brother (who was around 12 at the time) had never been on it. So his first time on Beast was filmed, and we rode it 3-4 times in a row. I'm not even sure they stopped the train completely before sending us out again.

I can be seen in the scene where stuffed animals are thrown at him after his basketball game. 

I remember gathering around the TV(and setting the VCR) for its big premiere several weeks later. My brother's scene had been cut. But I made the final version! I never let him live that down.

Welcome to KIC, @KingLlama!  That's so cool!  What an amazing experience!

That's awesome! Haven't heard a response from Mr. Priestly (like I said, not likely) but that's a fun bit of production trivia!

5 hours ago, DMann1979 said:

That's awesome! Haven't heard a response from Mr. Priestly (like I said, not likely) but that's a fun bit of production trivia!

It's possible that even if he sees tweet, he might not remember making this video

He saw and responded to the tweet. No big info, but to say I'm giddy to get this response, worth it.

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 That's so cool!!!!    We should invite him back for a night ride on The Beast.  I volunteer to host him.