Came across some really interesting videos of Kings Island in 1979 that I thought I'd share.

The first: The Beast's opening day, with interviews and several off-ride shots (including the pond under the queue and a close look at Beast's original trains)

 

The second: aerial and in-park views of the park, including a look at Wild Animal Safari, Tumble Bug (!), and a VERY interesting series of shots of streetmosphere in International Street and Coney Mall. (How naked does International Street look without all the trees! And yet, it's got a TON of charm.)

I don't really have much to add to this--I just know that many here reminisce about the park as it originally was, and I don't think anything has ever really brought the "old days" into perspective like these two videos. So, I thought I'd share!

Nice finds for great posts thanks. 

Dang those were long trains on Beast.  Is it safe to guess that those trains were the only ones of its kinds made by PTC specifically for Beast?

From that first video: "You're single, obviously?" Ouch, man. Ouch.

Listening to those interviews, though, it's pretty amazing how little things have changed in the heart of coaster enthusiasts over nearly 40 years. For me, it's sharing my pics over social media that helps get me through the off-season. 

I'm on Tapatalk and only see The Beast video. But I thought the helix tunnel was not enclosed until 1980? (I'm also at an MD appointment and have my sound off. Forgive me if The Beast video is not from 1979.)

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They both look to be from 1980, as the Skyride is missing and Woodstock Express (then The Beastie) had the tunnel at the bottom of the first drop.

For clarification... the first video's interviews/ride footage was not from opening day.

The interview with Carl Eichelman was filmed in it's second season.  He didn't make a name for himself as The Beast crazed-rider until 1980 when the park began publicizing his ride counts.

The final interviews were likely opening weekend, but not opening day.  It rained 1.25 inches on Friday April 13th, 1979.  The following day, on Saturday the 14th, The Beast did not open until mid-afternoon... and it began raining by 4:00.  The guy is not even wet.

The very brief final off-ride footage is indeed from the grand opening press event - you'll notice very few riders (all of which are wearing ponchos) and there's a camera mount.  There were less than 300 people there for the opening ceremonies on Friday the 13th.

Between the two, the second aerial video is the gem.  I am 99% positive it is from 1979... as "The Bavarian Beetle" was gone and the land was being prepped for "Stadium of the Stars."  If you look VERY closely, you can see that the station for "The Bat" looks to already have been constructed, but there's no sign of any footings or ground clearing yet.

For those unfamiliar, Carl Eichelman was a coaster enthusiast that rode The Beast over over 500 times in 1979 and a cumulative 4,350 by 1989. Here (LINK) is an interesting article on him from 2009.

..is... (He's still around ;-)

These are great videos! I never rode The Beast in its' early years, so I never saw the original trains fading from red to yellow. What is also a tell tale of the time of this video, they guy being interviewed after riding The Beast remarked about how smooth it is and how he had been on many coasters, so he would know something about that.

The second video, I loved because it showed some rides that I thoroughly enjoyed as a kid, like the tumble bug. Also, I think I saw the arms of the Zodiac ride that appears to be fairly close to The Racer.

As a final thought, you gotta love the short shorts we were sportin' in those days 

I stumbled upon this Eiffel Tower video from 1980.  It has a lot of great views from around the park as well.  It is crazy how different some areas of the park look now.

I really like the Videos from George. Question. What is the white circular building behind The Racer? 

The Bat

Check out this video of the original Bat. 

The white circular building is a water tank of some kind, it's still in the same location today. I believe it is used to power wash the PTC trains from The Racer and The Beast during off season maintenance.