HOME |
RSS | 
Park visitors won’t get forty shillings on a drum, but if French politician Yves Jégo has his way, they will get to experience the life and times of Napoleon Bonaparte. He plans to build, at a projected cost of $280 million, a theme park inspired by the French emperor:
The plan is to build the unlikely amusement park on the site of the brilliant but doomed French leader’s final victory against the Austrians in the Battle of Montereau in 1814 just south of Paris.
The 1815 Battle of Waterloo, in which the Duke of Wellington ended Napoleon’s rule in France, could be recreated on a daily basis with visitors perhaps even able be able to take part in the reenactments.
They will also be able to take in a water show recreating the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar, in which Lord Nelson scored a decisive victory over a French and Spanish coalition aboard HMS Victory but died in the process.
Link -via Samizdata | Image: Jacques-Louis David -via Direktor
Remember James Cameron’s newest Disney film Avatar? Of course you don’t, because the movie had nothing to do with Disney. Nor has it established itself in the public long enough to become a classic like Star Wars and Indiana Jones. But that hasn’t stopped Disney from announcing that they will be creating an Avatar-themed area at Disney World. Construction is expected to begin by 2013.
While I think Pandora was beautiful, I don’t think it warrants its own Avatarland. What do you guys think?
If you love MMORPGs, particularly WOW and Starcraft, then you’d most certainly have a great time at China’s counterfeit theme park based around the epic Blizzard videogames. You can see all kinds of pictures of the park over at Shanghaist.
Link Via Consumerist
Love it or hate it, It’s A Small World is undoubtedly a catchy song and an iconic Disney attraction. But did you know the ride was actually made on the fly as a last minute World’s Fair attraction or that it was originally slated to feature a variety of national anthems instead of its title track? Here are some fascinating facts you might not know about one of the park’s most popular rides.
Image via Thomas Hawk [Flickr]
One of Disney’s most iconic attractions actually started out as a last minute attraction to the 1964 New York World’s Fair. The team was already working on a number of exhibits for the fair, including the Magic Skyway, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and The Carousel of Progress, when the program manager for the fair reached out to Disney and asked him to creat a tribute to UNICEF.
Always up to a challenge, Disney agreed and asked Mary Blair, Marc Davis, Alice Davis and Gregory S. Marinello for help. Mary gave the ride its overall feel and whimsy and inspired the general character design. Marc designed the scenes and the specific characters, while his wife, Alice, designed the costumes. Gregory designed the clock face on the exterior. Walt oversaw the design of the doll’s faces, which were all made to be exactly the same in order to promote the concept that all around the world children are all the same deep down.
Image via Andy Castro [Flickr]
The original nickname of the ride was “the happiest cruise that ever sailed” and the ride was intended to showcase the national anthem for each country portrayed. Unfortunately, this ended up sounding like a terrible mess in practice, so he hired the Sherman Brothers, the same gents who wrote the theme song for the Tiki Room, to create a song that would unify the ride’s characters together. It was only after the boys came back with their masterpiece that the ride got its name.
more …
Dark Roasted Blend looks at Coney Island in its heyday, when parks and attractions were constantly opening and attempting to outdo everything that came before. See photographs and postcards from the 19th and early 20th centuries, when the New York neighborhood was nicknamed the City of Fire. Link
Here at Neatorama, we’ve previously covered the eerie world of abandoned amusement parks. Joel W. Styer is assembling a comprehensive list of defunct US amusement parks, sorted by state, including pictures and video where available. Pictured above is a roller coaster from Chippewa Lake Park, Ohio, which closed in 1978. Photographer Dave Sandborg writes of his exploration of the park in 1997:
As for the condition of the coaster, it actually didn’t look that bad from a distance. Most of the structure seems intact, except for a few missing handrails. The wood seemed in surprisingly good condition, given how long it’s been neglected. I’m not a good person to judge how easy it would be to move or reconstruct this coaster, but I could clearly see several major problems. First, the ground near the back end of the coaster is pretty waterlogged. Second, there is one spot where a tree has completely fallen over the track and wrecked it. Third, the undergrowth around the coaster would be a major problem. There were trees growing straight through the brake run tracks. Finally, the cars themselves were in terrible shape.
Link via Hell in a Handbasket | Photo: Dave Sandborg
New York City has big plans for Coney Island. The Brooklyn neighborhood will soon have new thrill rides and other amusements designed to bring back the glory years when Coney Island was known as “the People’s Playground” after years of decline.
Luna Park at Coney Island will open on Memorial Day weekend with 19 rides. Among them will be the Air Race, which sends riders swinging and soaring around a control tower. It will be the ride’s global debut.
Also promised are games, live entertainment, and concessions including Nathan’s Famous hot dog stand, which opened in 1916, pioneering America’s concept of fast food.
By the summer of 2011, Scream Zone at Coney Island will offer two roller coasters, go-carts and a human slingshot launching people more than 200 feet into the air.
Other plans include shopping centers, restaurants, movie theaters, hotels, and 5,000 new housing units for the area. Link -via Fark
(image credit: AP/NYC Economic Development Corp.)
I’m a huge fan of theme parks. I love roller coasters and costumed characters and all that jazz, but there are some parks that are boring and some that are just plain weird. Personally, I think I could pass on quite a few of these bad parks…others I want to visit just to see that the deal is.
Image Via km33068 [Flickr]
1. Hershey Park, PA -Mmmmm….chocolate! Hooray, kisses! The company that combined the two truly is brilliant, but a theme park in their name? There’s roller coasters, water slides, and, of course, cute little Reese’s and Hershey’s characters wandering. If you were worried about getting your chocolate fix on, don’t worry, there’s plenty of sweet treats at the restaurants throughout the park.
Image Via Andrewds14 [Flickr]
2. Dollywood, TN –Maybe you’re a Dolly fan. Maybe you like the ironic humor of visiting a theme park dedicated to the blonde county bombshell Maybe you just love farms. Whatever your reason for visiting Dollywood, you’re sure to get an earful –of Dolly Parton songs. Enjoy the sights and smells of the Smoky Mountains while speeding through exciting roller coasters.
3. Diggerland, UK –Ever wish you could be a construction worker, but hate sweat and hard work? Finally, you can relax by going to work on backhoes and other digging devices. They even have rides where you get to be inside the digging bucket. Apparently the United Kingdom has a crucial shortage of construction jobs available.
Image Via Hazelisles [Flickr]
4. Limestone Heritage, Malta –What could be more fun than limestone? Why anything of course! This exotic destination located on the island of Malta teaches kids about the fundamentals of limestone. I’ve never seen anyone work so hard to remove the “fun” from “fundamentals.”
Image Via llamnudds [Flickr]
5. Dickens World, UK –Do you have great expectations when it comes to your amusement parks? Sorry, I couldn’t resist. You can finally chill out in downtrodden 19th century England like the characters of Charles Dickens.
Image Via Mukluk Land website
6. Mukluk Land, AK –Alaska isn’t exactly known for being a crazy fun place for children and their amusement park is no exception. Their biggest attraction is the World’s Largest mukluk (a traditional soft boot worn in the Arctic). Aside from that, there is skee ball, mini-golf and big cabbage.
Image Via blatantgizmo [Flickr]
7. Pedro Land, SC –Why is there a Mexican theme park in the middle of South Carolina? Because who better to build a stereotypical amusement park based on the South of the Border than people who know nothing about Mexicans? Pink flamingos, hot tamales and really bad puns, like a mini golf course called the “Golf of Mexico,” run abound in this cheesy park.
Image Via the website Gallery
8. Harry Potter Themepark, FL –This is park may be unfinished, but it is sure to be completed and opened sometime in 2010. It’s going to be part of Universal Studios Florida. Finally you can put away your muggle wears and “let out your inner wizard.”
9. The Ocean Dome, Japan –Ever go to the beach and think, “I sure wish I could be having a simulated beach experience right now?” Here’s your chance. With real sand, manufactured waves, a private rain forest and a simulated volcanic eruption every hour, the Ocean Dome would be a great attraction for landlocked people in Utah. Unfortunately, its actual location lies within 1000 feet of a real beach in Miyazaki, Japan.
Image Via azkid2lt [Flickr]
10. Grutas Park, Lithuania –Hooray communism. Go USSR. Grutas Park is nicknamed “Stalin’s Word” -and for good reason. This Lithuanian theme park is dedicated to the area’s soviet-occupation. There’s not only a great statue garden of the communist heroes and a zoo, but also a fun gulag experience for all you history lovers out there.
Image Via Theme Park Review
11. BonBon Land, Denmark –Yes the colors and statues look crazy, but the madness doesn’t stop there. One roller coaster peaks with farting sounds being played just as you pass behind Henry Hound’s butt. Vomiting, pooping and breasts are in full force throughout this tasteless park, making it any 13 year old boy’s fantasy land.
Image Via Angie Torres [Flickr]
12. Suoi Tien Park, Vietnam –Sure Buddhism is all about sacrificing material goods and obtaining enlightenment, but roller coasters and water slides are fun too. You know what else is fun? A pond full of 1,500 live crocodiles that you can feed with meat attached to fishing poles. And just in case you really don’t get the message of Buddhism through the tons of golden statues, there is also a fun animatronics ride featuring the 12 torments of fell.
13. Shijingshan Amusement Park, China –If you thought the Chinese bootleg DVDs were a huge source of copyright infringement, just wait until you see the Shijingshan Amusement Park. Despite numerous copyright lawsuits from Disney, blatant knock offs of Minnie Mouse, Cinderella and Donald Duck still roam the park grounds, along with their friend Hello Kitty.
Image Via Semisvetik [Flickr]
14. Love Land, Korea –A lot of the attractions at this park are too adult for the general Neatorama audience. Even so, you’re certain to enjoy this sculpture of dogs making love with while flashing the peace sign. The owner hopes that the park will not only be fun, but be a good-source of education for newly weds.
Image Via San Sharma [Flickr]
15. Neverland Ranch, CA –Lock up your daughters –I mean sons. This park is an American classic, filled with tacky artwork, a zoo and rides. Unfortunately, this is one park that is long gone and will likely never rise again as the attractions have been moved out in the last year. Jackson said he no longer considers this park home since he claims the police officers “violated it.”
Roll Up, Roll Up, It’s Thrills, It’s Spills – It’s the Amazing “Wall of Death”!
Derived from normal wood board motordromes the America’s Original Extreme Motorcycle Thrill Show became one of the most daring acts at fairgrounds and carnivals in the early 1910s, achieving peak popularity during motorcycle-crazed 1930s….
Who doesn’t love going to an amusement park? There is no comparing the thrill you get from such a controlled environment. There is that off chance though that something could go wrong.
The blog below tells, in great details, every amusement ride accident dating back to 1998. There are roller coaster derailments, inflatable bounce castles blowing away with people still inside, and the county fair rides that were just not put together right, it’s all there.
I promise that you will be amazed and a little creeped out by how many of these "incidents" occur but you never hear a word.
Link – via suburbanfoodforthought
From the Upcoming 
ueue, submitted by stevesteve8383.
