Kings Island vs. Paramount's Kings Island

[Weasel_Punk13]

What about Flight of Fear the first coaster to uses LIM ?

[WooferBearATL]

"The old time cars have been replaced with a roller coaster that I did not even bother to stand in line to ride. And the old time cars were relaxing. Enjoyable."

The cars were what I would consider to be a classic. They very much leant to the atmosphere of the park. I know many a family had fond memories of riding and driving these cars. It's a huge loss for the park.

[Weasel_Punk13]

I loved the Tiques

[HaUsTy83]

I know you people miss the good old days of Kings Island but its 2006 now and we have to move on and enjoy ourselves at the park. Yes they are going to remove rides for new ones and keep updating safety on the rides that exsist still. The accidents in the country on rides are due to idots that just don't follow instructions,signs. We the public should know whats right and whats not when being on a ride. The park has to enforce suggestions that should be made for the safety for all guests on the rides. I'm glad more safety restraints are being put on rides now. I used to not feel safe on rides when I was about 8... I now know how to feel safe on rides and enjoy myself on the ride. I don't need to do something stupid with my friends or get attention and get myself killed. I always will enjoy my time at the park and other parks I get the chance to go to when i'm traveling. I hope everyone on here can understand what the meaning of safety should mean to you.

[marlfox_21]

I know you people miss the good old days of Kings Island but its 2006 now and we have to move on and enjoy ourselves at the park. Yes they are going to remove rides for new ones and keep updating safety on the rides that exsist still. The accidents in the country on rides are due to idots that just don't follow instructions,signs. We the public should know whats right and whats not when being on a ride. The park has to enforce suggestions that should be made for the safety for all guests on the rides. I'm glad more safety restraints are being put on rides now. I used to not feel safe on rides when I was about 8... I now know how to feel safe on rides and enjoy myself on the ride. I don't need to do something stupid with my friends or get attention and get myself killed. I always will enjoy my time at the park and other parks I get the chance to go to when i'm traveling. I hope everyone on here can understand what the meaning of safety should mean to you.

Actually the deaths that occurred at the park in 1992. ( All on the same day. One on Flight Commander. Which was a Drunken woman who stood up while on the ride. And the One who got a little too close to the electricity by actually going into the water. And the security guard who died while trying to save this individual) did occur while under the ownership of Paramount. Granted the park did not grace the Paramount Logo until the following year. The sale had been completed by summer "92" At this point the announcement that WinterFest's last operation was going to be held during that year had already made as well. So to state that no individual has died during Paramount's Ownership is a false claim. Paramount was already making changes to the park at the time. And I do know a lot more details about this day.

My sister worked at the park on this day. And One of my good friends was working Flight Commander when the woman fell from the ride. I'm not going to go into details about it. If you don't know than you don't need to know.

M.F.

[WooferBearATL]

If you don't know than you don't need to know.

Man, someone is not getting enough fiber in their diet!

[CoastersRZ]

Marlfox 21, the deaths that occured at PKI on what is known as Black Sunday. It was a Sunday in June in 1991 (I believe it was the 11th of June, but am not positive on that date). Not 1992 like you say they occured. Secondly, even if it had occured in June of 1992, Paramount didn`t buy Kings Entertainment Company until July 31, of 1992. When the accidents occured, the parks were still under the stewardship of KECO. 1991 was not a good year for the park as their attendance dipped to 2.85 million. In 1990, the park attracted approximately 3.2 million visitors.

And in regards to the accident on Flight Commander. The State of Ohio determined after an extensive investigation that it was the ride manufacturer`s fault which led to the accident. They cited the cars as being inadequately designed to allow a single passenger to slip under the restraint when riding solo. The problem was alleviated when riding two to a seat as there was no room to slide across the two seats and under the bar. Intamin, the manufacturer made modifications to the ride, including adding a seat divider between the two seats, and the ride reopened in 1992. Although, the ride did not get high ridership and was later removed after the 1995 season.

[WooferBearATL]

See!

Now Coaster DID get enough Fiber in his diet.

Let this be a lesson to you Marlfox!

[Legend Rider]

king_cobra_27, Would you like some cheese with that whine?

I mean honestly, there is no way to say that Paramount's Kings Islnad is a bad park, they have not done anything that is truly horrible. I mean sure they have made drastic steps, but they do have goals.

There is an issue called a Master Plan, and I'm sure that the master plan indeed does involve the removal of Vortex, but it might not.

Frankly, I am tired of people complaining, has paramount not brought the records to Cincinnati several times? I mean they have a great thing going for them, and the overall goal right now for most parks is to aim for families. Families bring the money, appease them, then the teens, the thrill seekers want big rides, but more than half of the visitors are families, and they want something for the whole family.

I thoroughly enjoy my time when I visit PKI, I would not trade my times there for another far off park. When I go to Cedar Point, I will still want to hit PKI, sure I miss the eagles, but this will not stop me from visiting, nor will the removal of HB.

The removal of the Banshee at Holiday World to make way for swings, that was not as happy an addition as many were, but I enjoy the ride, plus, back to the master plan, there was a plan since several several years ago to add a thanksgiving section, and a swings ride in that location. these plans are old, not so much old, but well planned. There is a plan for everything in the amusement park industry, let it flow, you wont have much impact right now, sit back, buckle up and enjoy the ride.

[Gordon Bombay]

^Amen, Amen, I say again, Amen! Very well put Legend Rider. Im glad to see not everyone lacks common sense anymore.

[RailRider]

Im a long timer, but Ill take Parmount over not having Paramount. The quality of rides and experience in my opion have gone up while Paramount was in control. Not knocking the pre-Paramount era, but I like this era better.

[Delirium13]

Nicely said Legend Rider. Some people just like to look at the bad things and make them seem 50x worse than they really are. Paramount has done a lotmore for the park than people give them credit for and people like to ignore all the good that happens and overly complain about the small bad things.

So everyone should be thankful for everything Paramount has put into the park and hope that the new owners do a just as good, if not better job.

[RingMaster]

Ooh, ooh, me next on the rant list with common sense sprinkled in!

Ok, if I'm not mistaken, how many people here wanted some new flat rides to go in PKI, like a Jump2 or a Topple Tower? Well, didn't we just get a fresh new batch of flat rides included with Nick Universe?

....ok, Plankton's Plunge doesn't count, but we still got a Kite Flyer (very popular, I hear) and a re-designed Skater (it being the world's first AND only) as flat rides. I bet that if these were part of a Coney Mall expansion instead of a kiddie land expansion, half of you would jump for joy. But, instead, you take it out on Paramount for getting rid of the Hanna-Barbera liscense (and also completely forget that a very excellent HB-themed movie ride is coming this summer) and up and say that they're a terrible company.

Yes, there are things that they've screwed up on (the over and under-hyping of attractions, poor maintenance on heavily themed attractions, etc.), but there are tons more things that they've done great that need to be recognized:

Delirium-The world's first Giant Frisbee

Italian Job: Stunt Track-I think everyone forgot about what the cars can do and worried more about its downtime last year (including me). The cars can fishtail, provide a neat stair step effect (they have yet to put that in, though), rumble like a real car, have working head and tail lights, and have on-board audio. Not to mention car doors that open and close.

Tomb Raider: The Ride-This has to be the most hevily themed attraction I've ever seen outside of Florida/California. That, and the fact that it's the world's ONLY indoor Giant Top Spin

Crocodile Dundee's Boomerang Bay-Coolangatta Run is the world's first slide of its kind (now that someone else is getting the exact same ride), and Tasmanian Typhoon is the world's longest funnel ride of its kind.

Face/Off-One of the nation's first face-to-face inverted suspended coasters.

Drop Zone-Remains the world's tallest gyro drop at 316 feet.

Son of Beast-Retains the title of the world's tallest, fastest, ONLY looping wooden coaster six years running.

Flight of Fear-The world's first LIM-launched (Linear Induction Motor) coaster....that's indoors, too.

FearFest-Its opening season in 2000 made it the Midwest's scariest haunted event.

School of Rock LIVE! in Concert-This was the underdog of 2005. While IJ:ST got all the glory, this show proves that Paramount can cook up a good show.

Nickelodeon Celebration Parade-Finally, someone beat Disney at their own game. Again, this was the underdog of 2004, with Boomerang Bay getting all the glory, but it won an IAAPA award last year.

the talent of Jeff Siebert (sp?) and Maureen Kaiser-No one can forget the wonderful talents of Jeff. Let's hope Schlitterbahn is getting some good laughs right now. Meanwhile, it seems as if Maureen has some troubles of her own, dealing with a few "please-do-not-sit-in-the-Vortex-cars-during-Winter-Rehab" delinquents. Yeah, you know who you are.

[CoastersRZ]

And don`t forget that PKI brought back WinterFest this year. The event shows that PKI is dedicated to live entertainment still. WinterFest was a top notch event that will hopefully be a tradition for years to come.

I don`t know if the Nickelodeon Celebration Parade surpassed Disney, but it was right up there with them. Hopefully, the parade will expand and grow throughout the years, as it seems to be a big crowd pleaser.

[Outdoor Man]

Paramount's ownership has brought in some good all-around rides. honestly. my few gripes would be:

1. they've confused the theming of the park

2. and i don't feel that necessarily all rides need to have a Hollywood reference. lets take top gun for instance. this movie is good, but not yet on the classic reel and was out on VHS (& Beta... if anyone knows what that is) before some of you were born.

3. Festhaus shows.

Most flat rides live up to billing. coasters are good but stop short of being great. TG... too short, FOF.... too short, FO.... too short, SOB.... IJST... too short.

In somewhat of Paramount's defense on the theming/maintenance... if i'm not mistaken, that's a local thing. Suits in California aren't making trips to Cincinnati to fix theming elements. That's why there's local management. If a speaker is not working on IJST or a light bulb is out on an attraction, that's not California's problem.... that's local.

[CoastersRZ]

But while the maintenance crews are local and based at PKI, it all comes down to budget. If Paramount Parks doesn`t give PKI the budget to fix and maintain the theming, then it won`t be maintained. Without an increase in budget, they won`t have the personal to maintain all the theming, or to buy replacement parts for the theming.

I just hope that they get the on board speakers working on IJST this season! The onboard audio added a lot to the ride experience, IMO.

[The Interpreter]

And the Paramount Parks 'suits' aren't in California. They are in Charlotte. Perhaps one reason why Charlotte's Carowinds is so much better landscaped and the rides' cosmetics maintained than in Cinci...

Just my opinion, but hardly mine alone...

[WooferBearATL]

Which is kinda a turn about.

I would have to say that Carrowinds faired better under the Paramount purchase than any of the other parks.

Carrowinds had always been kinda the "step child" of the parks and never received quite the same amount of attention that KI, KD and CW.

[jzarley]

And the Paramount Parks 'suits' aren't in California. They are in Charlotte. Perhaps one reason why Charlotte's Carowinds is so much better landscaped and the rides' cosmetics maintained than in Cinci...

Just my opinion, but hardly mine alone...

I had always wondered why PP put the HQ in Charlotte... I don't believe it's located actually at Carowinds, but in another part of town.

[Gordon Bombay]

^If you type in Paramount Parks in Google Earth you can find the offices. Im watching you INterpreter.

[CoastersRZ]

Well, I believe that the KECO offices were in Cincinnati, since Taft Broadcasting was in Cincinnati. That is also why Cincinnati has become a hotbed for amusement and theme park designers. From Dennis Spiegel at International Theme Park Services to Jack Rouse at Jack Rouse Associates to Bruce D. Robinson. They all originally worked for Taft or KECO before opening up their own design firms.

When Paramount bought KECO they opted to move the offices down to Charlotte. Not sure the exact reasoning behind the move.

[spongebobforpresident_4]

Well, I believe that the KECO offices were in Cincinnati, since Taft Broadcasting was in Cincinnati.  That is also why Cincinnati has become a hotbed for amusement and theme park designers.  From Dennis Spiegel at International Theme Park Services to Jack Rouse at Jack Rouse Associates to Bruce D. Robinson.  They all originally worked for Taft or KECO before opening up their own design firms. 

When Paramount bought KECO they opted to move the offices down to Charlotte.  Not sure the exact reasoning behind the move.

Yes Paramount brought back Winterfest in 2005. But they also gave it the boot in the early 90's. Yes Paramount raised the Son of Beast and used it as fierce competition in 2000 with Millennium Force at Cedar Point. ( 2000: One Great Year for Record Breaking Coasters ) But you know. A lot of the family values that I remember the park having before the sell to paramount are truly lost forever. Most people ( still ) in the area are simply too young to remember. All that they have ever known is the park that paramount built. So of course they are going to defend it. Kings Island did have shows featuring dolphins and seals that would rival ( not in size ) but in quality even those of Sea World. Kings Island, in the past, had people who could really sing ( well ) performing at the shows. But in return, paramount has brought all new shows to the table. FearFest, and a much grander WinterFest. ( which was 13 years in the making ) A mixed collaberation of Nick Toons and Hanna Barbera characters. Where else in the world would you find such a rare mix. Hanna Barbera came and went. The studio failed to keep the characters fresh and timeless. Its a very sad loss. But Nickelodeon is not likely to have the same fate. Nobody can say that paramount did not try. Just a few years ago they gave this famed kids area a complete makeover. They repainted and added some new rides. However, it proved to only be a temporary fix.

Now they are taking the next step to ensure that the next generation of children can have just a memorable experience as kids in the past got to enjoy. When kids recognize the characters that they love, of course they are going to have a better time with it. As opposed to not recognizing anything except for maybe Scooby Doo.

And wouldn't it be a shame if someday we are all on here referring to how it used to be years ago when paramount owned the park. And talking about things like the new owners again diminishing WinterFest, or even FearFest. All owners are going to leave their greatest trademark in the parks history. Some are simply going to be greater than others.

[WooferBearATL]

Well, I believe that the KECO offices were in Cincinnati, since Taft Broadcasting was in Cincinnati. That is also why Cincinnati has become a hotbed for amusement and theme park designers. From Dennis Spiegel at International Theme Park Services to Jack Rouse at Jack Rouse Associates to Bruce D. Robinson. They all originally worked for Taft or KECO before opening up their own design firms.

When Paramount bought KECO they opted to move the offices down to Charlotte. Not sure the exact reasoning behind the move.

Yeah, the KECO offices were actually in the Adminitration building.

I figure that's one reason why Kings Island was always very well taken care of.

[Legend Rider]

Most flat rides live up to billing. coasters are good but stop short of being great. TG... too short, FOF.... too short, FO.... too short, SOB.... IJST... too short.

Did you just say that!?

Son of Beast!?

Did you just say it was too short!?

It has been the second longest Wooden Coaster in the World for 5 straight years, and will remain for at least one more year!

[The Interpreter]

I think that as to SOB...nothing at all was said.

As in "If you can't say something nice...."

[Jasper]

You know you kind of have a point. When it was just plain KI HAnna Barberra was the main sponsor and none of the rides had a movie theme. Not saying that it is not cool to have a movie theme but it is like taking over and everywhere you go there is a nick theme. I am not saying they should go back to regular KI but it would be nice to have a change of things and actually have a good maintenence crew. The maintenence crew right now is pretty good but they could be better. But overall i say that we just ease up on the Nick stuff but leave the name and rides the same.

[gburn07]

Guys you need to stop complaining. last year when I went to PKI for my first time I had doubts of it being a 'six flags' type atmosphere that we all know about according to some descriptions I read on here prior to visiting. It was anything but that and comes in second place Next to BGW as the nicest seasonal theme park i've been to. That list includes Hershey, Cedar Point, and six flags properties to name a few. Parks do go through changes. Its the way of life. Of course it wont be the same as wen it opened up in the 70's. Hate to tell you this but neither is Disney so my parents say. But its still a fantastic park thats very well landscaped, VERY GOOD rides, and prices far less than other parks in terms of tickets and even food.

[The Interpreter]

That's all very nice. And I am trying to be nice here.

If you think PKI is very well landscaped, you really need to get out more. Try starting at any Busch park (yes, I know you say you've been to Busch Gardens Europe fka Busch Gardens Williamsburg), any Disney park, or even Six Flags Great Adventure.

I've been at Kings Island every single year since it opened. To say that PARAMOUNT's Kings Island is well landscaped is not unlike saying that a Daewoo is a fine luxury car. Perhaps, if you've not driven anything else.

[WooferBearATL]

That's all very nice. And I am trying to be nice here.

If you think PKI is very well landscaped, you really need to get out more. Try starting at any Busch park (yes, I know you say you've been to Busch Gardens Europe fka Busch Gardens Williamsburg), any Disney park, or even Six Flags Great Adventure.

I've been at Kings Island every single year since it opened. To say that PARAMOUNT's Kings Island is well landscaped is not unlike saying that a Daewoo is a fine luxury car. Perhaps, if you've not driven anything else.

Remember how it used to be with all the landscaping and the topiaries?

Ahhhh, I miss the old landscaping.

[Outdoor Man]

thank you Interpreter.... you truly are an "interpreter." that's exactly what I meant. it wasn't typed real clear.... but no one would dispute the sheer size and length of SOB.

and I agree. been to Busch Gardens - Williamsburg and it is one of the best landscaped and manicured parks anywhere.