This was amazing to look through! I shared with my friends on Facebook too. I enjoyed the pictures from the Nickelodeon area and the promotion for Son of Beast! It made me really miss some of the former theming!

Thanks!  There's plenty more to come... so much so it's overwhelming!  :-)  I'm enjoying sharing it!

For those of you that may be interested - I uploaded a bunch of Winterfest park guides today.  So far there's 1986-1992, but there's more to come as I dig through my files.  It's actually hard for collectors to find the Winterfest park guides - much harder than the regular seasonal park maps/guides.  Enjoy!

I found the price of those Winterfests pretty amazing.  $4.95-$6.95.  And a season pass for 1988 cost a low price of $35!

FYI, 

A lot of you are very interested in Kings Island's history.

This season, I'm honored to be blogging for the park on their website about the origins of the park all the way up through all the current rides.

The first full installment was posted today.  Here's the direct link:

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/april/a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-rides

That was a very well written and concise first installment.  I look forward to the rest! 

On April 22, 2017 at 11:15 PM, Shaggy said:

FYI, 

A lot of you are very interested in Kings Island's history.

This season, I'm honored to be blogging for the park on their website about the origins of the park all the way up through all the current rides.

The first full installment was posted today.  Here's the direct link:

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/april/a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-rides

Congratulations! It's nice that the park is honoring its past on the website. 

Thanks Shaggy. Always look forward to seeing your posts, here, on Sit on IT, and now on the KI Blog.

Here is an article from a Holiday Inn magazine in 1972 plus the 1972 Guide Book.   Ah the good old days....

 

 

That was one off-brand looking Yogi Bear mascot

Wow @mikejenkins1! Thanks for sharing. Awesome find. That picture of The Racer on the front kills me. I'd love for those colors to return.

Growing up my dad's company did summer picnics at Coney Island.   Then when they built KI we started there from its opening.   I remember my dad getting into the park area and driving along side the construction of The Racer.   As a kid, I was a big cyclist and got a KI season pass and would ride my bicycle there a lot (about a 9 mile ride from my house).   I have had a season pass every year they have been sold.   The first year there was only around 100 people.   I spoke to Rob Decker at the Mystic Timbers Media Day again this year and we spoke about this as well.    I wish I still had my original pass.    They used to just have a person with a clipboard write down your name when  you came into the park.   I would love to know if there are any other people out there that have been a pass holder all these years....

13 hours ago, Magenta Lizard said:

That was one off-brand looking Yogi Bear mascot

The stuff of nightmares! 

Was the Emporium split up into so many shops back then or was that set of buildings still one big store?

Also interesting to see that what is now a store just to the right of the entrance used to be a lost and found.  

On February 17, 2017 at 3:17 PM, Shaggy said:

 

That having been said... I do distinctly recall a big SECRET from that time...  Most don't know what ALMOST happened in 1995... and it involved the monorail NOT being removed.  One word... MOVIERAIL.  

I actually might have liked that. 

This page is very awesome.  You posted the 1983 Park Brochure.  I assume the picture was taken in 1982 since it was in the 1983 brochure.

Interestingly enough, the little blond kid in the 2nd row is me when i was 9 years old. I had some hard copies, but I must have lost the last one about 10 years ago.

Very cool.  Will be following this page.

All year, @Shaggy has been writing blog entries for Kings Island - all of which have been nothing short of excellent. This one is his best yet. Even I learned a few things.

 

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/august/lions-and-tigers-and-baboons-oh-my

That post was great.  As I don't ever really remember the monorail or animals at the park since I was young, the article was very informative.

21 hours ago, BoddaH1994 said:

All year, @Shaggy has been writing blog entries for Kings Island - all of which have been nothing short of excellent. This one is his best yet. Even I learned a few things.

 

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2017/august/lions-and-tigers-and-baboons-oh-my

Thank you, it's been a labor of love.  Plenty more to come!

Shaggy, I joined up on your facebook page last night, and then didn't go to bed until midnight. The memories. I was born in 1980, and started visiting KI about 84ish if my memory serves. So many long lost rides, features and attractions are showcased in your photos. I love it!! Keep it up!! 

On 3/4/2017 at 1:45 PM, KatieF said:

This was amazing to look through! I shared with my friends on Facebook too. I enjoyed the pictures from the Nickelodeon area and the promotion for Son of Beast! It made me really miss some of the former theming!

You know what I don't miss? Waiting in line four hours to ride Son of Beast in 2000. 

On 4/25/2017 at 8:31 PM, mikejenkins1 said:

Here is an article from a Holiday Inn magazine in 1972 plus the 1972 Guide Book.   Ah the good old days....

 

 

The Holiday Inn ad refers to it as a 1,600-acre park...per Wikipedia, the current is 364, and it's grown a good bit. I'm guessing the 1,600 includes the campgrounds?

Taft initially owned both sets of land on both sides of I-71, the side where Kings Island is and the side where the Golf Center (Jack Nicklaus Golf Course) and Lindner Family Tennis Center are located. 

On 2/17/2017 at 2:07 PM, Shaggy said:

It does and it doesn't...

I rode Adventure Express in it's first season and it was actually extremely well done.  It was the 2nd half of a 2-part deal KI had made with R&R Creative (the folks that came up with Phantom Theater's theming.)  They first designed Phantom Theater, and then moved on to the theming of Kings Islands new "Runaway mine train coaster" the park had in the works with Arrow Dynamics.  Obviously the picture dramatizes some elements, but when it opened the theming was pretty over-the top.  All the tunnels had fog, lighting effects, water splashes, animatronics etc.

What exists now is, well, about 20% of it's original effects.

*Side note*  Did you know in Adventure Express' first couple of seasons of operation, the Wild Animal Safari Monorail actually passed through the ride area?

Can that 80% of effects ever be brought back or has the ride changed so much that it can never be brought back to its original look?

I'm still holding out hope that Adventure Express can return to it's former glory!

Adventure Express could defiantly benefit from some TLC to get more popularity it's way again. Back when it had a "theme" it was very entertaining but now serves mostly as a child's first "bigger" coaster, though I always will ride the hell out of it for nostalgias sake alone!

I don't see any loss of popularity for AE.....there's been several visits that I've had to skip it because the wait time was too high and it didn't waiver at all.

6 hours ago, chugh43 said:

I don't see any loss of popularity for AE.....there's been several visits that I've had to skip it because the wait time was too high and it didn't waiver at all.

Don't get me wrong it's still a popular ride, but I think in terms of its heyday, the lines aren't as long because it doesn't have the same charm or effects it had and is now just an "OK" coaster. I still enjoy it but it's fairly jerky and not that thrilling of a coaster with some decent effects. But it's line just depends on the visit I guess. 

5 hours ago, MaestroJr said:

Don't get me wrong it's still a popular ride, but I think in terms of its heyday, the lines aren't as long because it doesn't have the same charm or effects it had and is now just an "OK" coaster. I still enjoy it but it's fairly jerky and not that thrilling of a coaster with some decent effects. But it's line just depends on the visit I guess. 

I getcha....I don't really remember it's heyday as I didn't really get into KI until the late 90s/early 2000s. I have looked at the concept art and I find it crazy for what it was marketed as. I would have loved to see it back then. 

Just found this thread and consequently the FB page.  

Already very much enjoying the FB page, definitely a walk down memory lane.  Thought I would give this a bump after discovering the FB page, I definitely recommend to anybody who has not visited it yet!