PKI to be no more

[WooferBearATL]

It was just "King's Island" long before the Paramount was added. I think that most younger folks just find the idea of dropping the "Paramount's" from the name odd because it's what they're used to. Much like us older folks never really got into the habit of calling it "Paramount's Kings Island". If they spend more money on the park bringing it back up to the standards of its heyday, then I'm all for it. They can call it "Cousin Buford's Trailer Park" for all I care.

Exactly. Back when the park was originally sold, we thought that it was stupid and sounded terrible to call it "Paramounts" anything. LOL, then the Paramount execs showed up and we realized just how stupid they were.

[jzarley]

LOL, then the Paramount execs showed up and we realized just how stupid they were.

Now that's funny!

Were you still there after Viacom's acquistion of Paramount Studios a few years later? From what I heard from people at the time, that's when things really hit the fan...

[Captain Picard]

They put in a CBS Cafe at Paramount's Carowinds but thats the only tie-in I can think of at the parks. I think Happy Days was from CBS too.

[WooferBearATL]

Were you still there after Viacom's acquistion of Paramount Studios a few years later? From what I heard from people at the time, that's when things really hit the fan...

No, I was a food service supervisor at the time of take over. We actually were under KECO at the time. LOL, funny story is that a bunch of us were up at Canada's Wonderland when we heard news t that Lindner had bought the park. We were wondering if we were going to have jobs when we came back from that.

The Paramount people came in and had all these "Visions." They insisted on reinventing the wheel. When they said that they were pulling beer from the park was when I knew it was time for me to go. At that time the supervisors did not make great money. We depended on that bonus at the end of the year. And without the beer sales, there would be no end of year bonus.

[jzarley]

They put in a CBS Cafe at Paramount's Carowinds but thats the only tie-in I can think of at the parks. I think Happy Days was from CBS too.

Actually, Happy Days aired on ABC. I believe it was produced by Paramount, though.

Greenlighting "Happy Days" (and later "Laverne & Shirley" & "Mork & Mindy") was one of the events that really made a name for Michael Eisner as head of entertainment for ABC. (It was one of his personal projects...) And, of course, we all know where he ended up

Joel

[WooferBearATL]

And, of course, we all know where he ended up

Being Booted Out of Disney but financially set for life.

[jzarley]

And, of course, we all know where he ended up

Being Booted Out of Disney but financially set for life.

Booted out...after a 21-year run. Not exactly a complete failure when the average CEO tenure is currently about five years...

I'm willing to bet he was probably set for life by about 1987 considering the stock options he was getting from Disney

But, we digress...

[Outdoor Man]

OK- humor doesn't play well on these airwaves... Les... whatever the rest of the name is. Most of that post was in good humor. I could car less what the rides are called. But someone did bring up a good point- Paramount has not shown good strategy in cross-promoting their brands. Bringing in the CBS brand entertainment or any other Viacom franchises could have only helped in various park shows. NBC-Universal does do the best at this. that might be helped by the fact that the parks were always Universal property and were not previously themed after something else. Now, really did you think I was suggesting to rename the rides after TV shows. yea, like they would listen to my opinion anyway.

But, thank you for your character opinion of "idiot" - much appreciated.

[Gordon Bombay]

It was just "King's Island" long before the Paramount was added. I think that most younger folks just find the idea of dropping the "Paramount's" from the name odd because it's what they're used to. Much like us older folks never really got into the habit of calling it "Paramount's Kings Island". If they spend more money on the park bringing it back up to the standards of its heyday, then I'm all for it. They can call it "Cousin Buford's Trailer Park" for all I care.

Exactly. Back when the park was originally sold, we thought that it was stupid and sounded terrible to call it "Paramounts" anything. LOL, then the Paramount execs showed up and we realized just how stupid they were.

What are you people talking about? Paramount buying the park was the best thing to happen to it. When it was owned by KECO it looked like GARBAGE! There was gum and trash everywhere. Kings Island is much better off under a giant corporation then being independently owned.

[FOF/Z 4-ever]

I agree. Plus, there is more money if its under a giant corporation.

[WooferBearATL]

What are you people talking about? Paramount buying the park was the best thing to happen to it. When it was owned by KECO it looked like GARBAGE! There was gum and trash everywhere. Kings Island is much better off under a giant corporation then being independently owned.

Exactly opposite. As soon as Paramount took over the park started to take a nose dive. They had little understanding of what it took to run a park. Cleanliness and maintenance meant nothing to them. The Ecology workers were on top of everything and keeping it clean. The streets would be pressure washed every night or morning. You can accuse KECO of many things, but not running a clean park is not one of them.

[RailRider]

CBSKI

CBS' Kings Island.

Ahh I can see it now, the Everybody Loves Raymond ride and the Survivor Live action show.

[Gordon Bombay]

What are you people talking about? Paramount buying the park was the best thing to happen to it. When it was owned by KECO it looked like GARBAGE! There was gum and trash everywhere. Kings Island is much better off under a giant corporation then being independently owned.

Exactly opposite. As soon as Paramount took over the park started to take a nose dive. They had little understanding of what it took to run a park. Cleanliness and maintenance meant nothing to them. The Ecology workers were on top of everything and keeping it clean. The streets would be pressure washed every night or morning. You can accuse KECO of many things, but not running a clean park is not one of them.

Bull Crap, KECO kept the park looking like garbage and Paramount puts more money into cleaning the park than any previous owner. Every night trucks filled with water are brought in and every section of path is sprayed thouroughly then every morning when Im just coming in for work Ecology sups are already working on drying off the pathways and picking up what was missed. KECO made the park look like crap and ran it like crap. What did they do for the park? The Bat? Yeah that worked out well and accuse Arrow all you want, but the park rushed for The Bat to be built. Atleast with Paramount we get somethinge very year and int he past 3 years we've had two park expansions.

[FOF/Z 4-ever]

Since I dont remember the park before Paramount bought it, I cannot compare the two. However, PKI does keep the park clean and that is one of their main goal each year. Infact, they take pride and honor in having their park very clean. Like Combat said, they bring in big water trucks and hose down every inch of the park and the parking lot. You can complain as much you want about how a ride is dirty, but that is normally at the end of the day when the park is dirty. Each morning, every manger that is in that day goes to every ride to inspect it to make sure it is clean.

[DeLorean Rider]

Ok now lets talk about cleanliness at say, oh, i dont know, kentucky kingdom?? On that note, Kings Island is goregous.

[WooferBearATL]

Ok now lets talk about cleanliness at say, oh, i dont know, kentucky kingdom?? On that note, Kings Island is goregous.

I haven't been to Kentucky Kingdom, but have an example on how things can change. I toured Dollywood when I worked at Kings Island. I remember thinking "What A Dump!" I would have even been afraid to eat anything prepared at that park. But now, I think that it's one of the cleanest parks around.

[jzarley]

I actually think there was a big quality difference between the original KECO's ownership and Carl Lindner's...

I think KECO did a fantastic job. However, I think the park suffered during the few years that Lindner owned it with cleanliness, general upkeep, etc. I thought things improved under Paramount (in later years...maybe not during the first few seasons.) Interestingly, while I've always considered Lindner's ownership the "dark years" for the park, two of my favorite attractions were introduced during that time--Adventure Express and Phantom Theater!

The one area that I think KECO really shined was in landscaping... The landscaping is fine under Paramount...but not nearly as intricate and fastidiously maintained as it was in the early days.

I guess I don't have any proof that the park was actually more poorly maintained under Lindner's ownership, but I remember that was certainly my impression at the time. And, as they say, perception is reality...

Joel

[WooferBearATL]

Bull Crap, KECO kept the park looking like garbage and Paramount puts more money into cleaning the park than any previous owner. Every night trucks filled with water are brought in and every section of path is sprayed thouroughly then every morning when Im just coming in for work Ecology sups are already working on drying off the pathways and picking up what was missed. KECO made the park look like crap and ran it like crap. What did they do for the park? The Bat? Yeah that worked out well and accuse Arrow all you want, but the park rushed for The Bat to be built. Atleast with Paramount we get somethinge very year and int he past 3 years we've had two park expansions.

Check your history books. Every major theme park adds new attractions or they die. This was done under Taft Attractions, Kings Entertainment and under American Financial. At one time there was no need for trucks to be brought in to do cleaning as there were high pressure watter connections throughout the park. Ecology has always come in each morning to squeegy off the puddles. I can tell you about the cleanliness at that time because I know what was expected. I remember Mr. Hooper (former CEO for the park) walking around and if he saw something on a patio he would clean it himself. That is the dedication that was shown.

As far as running like crap. The honest situation is that the parks (all of them) lost money when Paramount took over. How I know this? Supervisor bonuses used to be based upon park profitability. A percentage was used based upon what your bonus rate was, what the parks profits were and what your two reviews were. The first time I ever remember supervisors not making bonus was the two years after Paramount took over.

[WooferBearATL]

The one area that I think KECO really shined was in landscaping... The landscaping is fine under Paramount...but not nearly as intricate and fastidiously maintained as it was in the early days.

I guess I don't have any proof that the park was actually more poorly maintained under Lindner's ownership, but I remember that was certainly my impression at the time. And, as they say, perception is reality...

Yeah, flowers and plants were exploding from everywhere in those days. Was very impressive with the topiary and designs. The landscapers would start work each morning about the time that the morning people arrived for set up and usually stayed until dusk. Happened every day.

As far as with Lindner, there was not a lot of change. KECO still provided the management. Linder was very "hands off." We were still very connected with each of the other parks and it was almost as if it was all one company.

[Gordon Bombay]

Bull Crap, KECO kept the park looking like garbage and Paramount puts more money into cleaning the park than any previous owner. Every night trucks filled with water are brought in and every section of path is sprayed thouroughly then every morning when Im just coming in for work Ecology sups are already working on drying off the pathways and picking up what was missed. KECO made the park look like crap and ran it like crap. What did they do for the park? The Bat? Yeah that worked out well and accuse Arrow all you want, but the park rushed for The Bat to be built. Atleast with Paramount we get somethinge very year and int he past 3 years we've had two park expansions.

Check your history books. Every major theme park adds new attractions or they die. This was done under Taft Attractions, Kings Entertainment and under American Financial. At one time there was no need for trucks to be brought in to do cleaning as there were high pressure watter connections throughout the park. Ecology has always come in each morning to squeegy off the puddles. I can tell you about the cleanliness at that time because I know what was expected. I remember Mr. Hooper (former CEO for the park) walking around and if he saw something on a patio he would clean it himself. That is the dedication that was shown.

As far as running like crap. The honest situation is that the parks (all of them) lost money when Paramount took over. How I know this? Supervisor bonuses used to be based upon park profitability. A percentage was used based upon what your bonus rate was, what the parks profits were and what your two reviews were. The first time I ever remember supervisors not making bonus was the two years after Paramount took over.

The water trucks do more than the pressure hoses and get the job done quicker. Just cause you didnt get a bonus the first two years paramount took over doesnt mean they made less money than KECO. They just bought 5 amusement parks, thats gonna set them back a bit so bonuses may be the last thing on their minds. Paramount has done more for the park than any past company ever has.

[Vortex]

The one area that I think KECO really shined was in landscaping... The landscaping is fine under Paramount...but not nearly as intricate and fastidiously maintained as it was in the early days.

Paramount really droped the ball on this one. They let all of the plants die off, Plus Coney Mall has gone down hill alot also. They took down alot of trees and replaced with nothing no shade on a hot day. Also Paramount is know for letting themed rides go and not fixing them.

[CoastersRZ]

While the landscaping may not be to the caliber it once was, it is still pretty well maintained. I like the fect that they have kept the old KI logo in the floral calendar, even after all these years of ownership under Paramount. While some thing have deteriorated in Coney Mall as far as landscaping (namely the ginko trees are no longer trimmed like push pops, like they used to be), they still do a pretty good job. Yes, they took out some of the trees along Coney`s midway, but they replaced them with new ones. The old ones probably were sick and either going to die, or spread it to the neighboring trees. The landscaping around TR:TR is pretty good now that it has had a few years to fill in!

And no, Paramount hasn`t let all of their attractions` theming deteriorate. Look at FoF. It is in its tenth season, and the preshow and lights are still working like they did the year it opened! While I admit, rides like Top Gun, Adventure Express and to a lesser extent TR:TR have gone down hill, it seems to me like the part is making a conserted effort to keep up the level of theming in the rides, especially with the direction that the park seems to be headed in.

[Gordon Bombay]

Very well put CoastersRZ its good to see someone else is still in the right state of mind. Everyone complains that PKI's theming sucks. Well look at Universal and Disney......theyre theming deteriorates too......they just have more money to put into it then paramount parks do. Everyone complained about IJ's effects not working when it first opened........when Revenge of the Mummy opened there were entire rooms and scenes not working.

[CoastersRZ]

That is one thing that bugs me about IJST though, is that the onboard audio and headlights are no longer working. While the headlights did not add much to the ride, unless you rode at night, the onboard audio, made the ride more fun and enjoyable. On the flip side, the fishtailing effect that was almost unnoticable in the beginning of the season, is begining to become more evident as the springs loosen up. On Saturday, I felt two or three spots where our car was definantly pivoting. But other than the onboard train issues, which are in part due to the new technology involved, the effects on IJST have been pretty consistent. THe "stunt" show in the middle of the ride has worked flawlessly every time I have ridden the ride this year.

Thanks for the kind words CombatStupdendous! It bugs me when people critique the park, and blatantly do not tell the truth or know the reasons behind why things are done the way they are. Take a look at some of the other theme parks around (like PKI`s neighbor in Kentucky) and you will realize how well Paramount takes care of their parks!

[WooferBearATL]

It bugs me when people critique the park, and blatantly do not tell the truth or know the reasons behind why things are done the way they are. Take a look at some of the other theme parks around (like PKI`s neighbor in Kentucky) and you will realize how well Paramount takes care of their parks!

You will never find me make a comment or critique that I can not back up.

[Gordon Bombay]

No one ever said you did.

[Outdoor Man]

one opinion wwhy the park may not have that "maintained" look would be because the trees look overgrown..... which isn't to say that they are not maintaining them. Young landscaping always has that "clean" look to it. The problem here is that back in the KECO days these trees were still relatively young <15 years old.... some are now on the broad side of 30 years old and are considered mature trees. You can't prune them back for a "clean" look without just having stumps. I remember back in the day and if you look at old pics, the landscaping was incredible... but plants get old and unmanageable at some point in their growth and you have to choose whether to replant or go on to something else. I'm glad they put thousands into other things than 1980's nostalgia landscaping. It was neat but I don't go to the park to ogle at the trees.

As far as cleanliness. I've done a few of the Volunteer work days and must say that the attention to cleanliness is outstanding (at least with the places I've worked). I've been to several parks before.... and really, outside of Universal Orlando I've not been to a cleaner park.... and again, Universal Orlando is just 10 years old.... young landscaping.

[LesbiasaurusREX]

Have you ever seen the flowers and landscaping under GC, it is very nice.

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[Outdoor Man]

help me out here... what does GC stand for?

[CoastersRZ]

I`m assuming Ghoster Coaster? Also, the flowers in the planters in front of the Paramount Theater are beautiful. The flowers are literally overflowing from the planters!