35 YEARS OF MAGIC THEME PARK ROLLS OUT TATSU.Byline: EUGENE TONG Staff Writer VALENCIA -- Its landmark orange tower has stood guard over Los Angeles' northern gateway for nearly 35 years, a beacon of fun and commerce for generations of thrill seekers Thrill Seekers was a television series aired in 1973 and 1974. It was hosted by Chuck Connors and featured people who did dangerous stunts. Other works Thrill Seekers (USA) / The Time Shifters . Roller coasters While there have been hundreds of different roller coasters built, there have been just a few that were notable for specific reasons. Some reasons include:
Noun a glass tube containing neon, which gives a pink or red glow when a voltage is applied neon light n → lámpara de neón neon light n . Though visitors see few traces of Six Flags For the national flags of Texas, see . Six Flags (NYSE: SIX) is the world's largest chain of amusement parks and theme parks and is headquartered in New York City. There are 20 such parks run by Six Flags. California's Magic Mountain's 35th anniversary -- it's eclipsed by parent Six Flags Inc.'s 45th birthday celebration -- the air still buzzed as screaming patrons zipped though any of its 16 white-knuckle coasters. Magic Mountain's 17th roller coaster -- Tatsu -- underwent state safety inspections Monday, and is scheduled to open Saturday. ``It's the place to go for the extravagant thrill rides,'' said Jack Kyser, chief economist The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of responsibility encompassing the with the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Economic Development Corp. ``It just adds to the entertainment portfolio of Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, .'' Roughly 3 million visit the park each year, and it's one of the region's largest employers with more than 3,800 workers -- most of them seasonal. This year, under Six Flag Inc.'s new chief executive Robert Shapiro This article is about the lawyer. For the economist, see Robert J. Shapiro. Robert Leslie Shapiro (born September 2, 1942 in Plainfield, New Jersey), is a high-profile attorney who is most notable for being part of the defense team which successfully defended , the park is reinventing itself again into a more family-centered theme park. Besides Tatsu, it is staging daily parades and performances for those who feel a coaster's rightful place is under a cold drink. ``It could really help Magic Mountain if it could remind a few of the old-timers that have been around L.A. County for more than five to 10 years that it wasn't always the park with thrill rides and teenagers,'' said Robert Niles, editor of ThemeParkInsider.com. ``I would like to see what Magic Mountain 2010 is supposed to look like.'' A theme park on what was once farmland and cattle feed yards was envisioned by San Diego's Sea World. In ``A California Legend: The Newhall Land and Farming Company The Newhall Land and Farming Company is a land management company based in Valencia, California, United States. The company is responsible for the master community planning of Valencia, as well as the management of farm land elsewhere in the state. ,'' a 1992 chronicle of Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. , the late Ruth Newhall described location scouting with park planners, led by county planner and later Newhall Land President James Dickason. ``Dickason drove the visitors over paved and unpaved roads, stopped alongside long, level sweeps of onions and carrots and hiked them to hilltops. The visitors in particular liked the low, rolling hills Rolling hills are like a mountain chain, only a "hill chain" of hills that roll on and on continually. You will often find them in between plains and mountains, near major rivers, or randomly anywhere. The only places without rolling hills are deserts and flood plains. on the west side of the just-building Golden State Freeway The Golden State Freeway is a north-south freeway running through Kern County and Los Angeles County, California. Originally built as U.S. Highway 99, it was re-signed as Interstate 5 in 1964. .'' But the marine park couldn't raise the estimated $21 million with the economic doldrums spurred by the Vietnam War Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. . It struck a deal in 1969 with Newhall Land -- the land owner and developer contributed some $18 million through cash and bonds; Sea World brought park operation and design expertise and $3 million. ``If you get past all the roller coasters, you can really see the similarities (with Sea World),'' Niles said. ``It's more of a wandering around and you stumble into things. They have that big observation tower that they had in all the Sea World parks.'' Dickason suggested the name ``Magic Mountain'' -- which later turned out to be the name of the San Gabriel Mountains San Gabriel Mountains, S Calif., E and NE of Los Angeles, running c.50 mi (80 km) westward from Cajon Pass. San Antonio Peak (10,080 ft/3,072 m) is the highest of the range. Citrus fruits are raised on the southern foothills. peak that was the epicenter of the 1971 magnitude-6.5 Sylmar Earthquake, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Newhall. The park broke ground in December 1969 and opened May 29, 1971, Memorial Day weekend, with 33 rides. Tickets were $5 for adults and $4 per child -- compared with $59.99 for adults and $29.99 for children today. The park's first year was plagued with ride breakdowns, thin crowds and unfavorable comparisons to Disneyland. Larry Gassin of Irvine, who as a college student worked at a park gift shop for two summers in the '70s, recalled a different park. ``They had one ride that kept breaking down all the time -- these pods take you up in the air -- the people going literally had to plan to be stuck there for an hour,'' he said. Attendance was just over 1 million instead of the 2 million expected. Losses of $3.7 million that year persuaded Sea World to sell its stake. ``Whenever somebody does a theme park, people raise an eyebrow,'' Kyser said. ``People wonder if it's going to be around, and there were questions whether it could compete with the Disney juggernaut. But it seemed to have found its own niche.'' Newhall Land continued to pour tens of millions into the park over the next decade. Then the vice president for recreation, Terry Van Gorder, realized the park needed constant investment in new attractions to sustain the crowds. ``The park was bigger,'' said Gassin, recalling his second summer there in 1973. ``They added a children's section with a little kiddie kid·die or kid·dy n. pl. kid·dies Slang A small child. kiddie Noun Informal a child land ... There was a petting zoo.'' The strategy bore fruit in 1976 with the park's first hit coaster, the Great American Revolution -- now simply Revolution -- the world's first 360-degree looping coaster. Attendance jumped 50 percent. The Colossus Colossus - (A huge and ancient statue on the Greek island of Rhodes). 1. Besides new rides, the park also offered generations of teenagers throughout the valley their first summer job, according to Carrie Rogers, city of Santa Clarita's economic development director. ``It provides them an opportunity to learn a different level of responsibility,'' she said. ``They get some spending money of their own, then the come back here and spend it at the mall.'' Gassin even met his wife of nearly 30 years there -- they were both working at the same gift shop. ``It was like Peyton Place,'' said Claudia Gassin, who managed a park gift shop for three summers. ``When they close, it would be a party for the staff and we got to go on the rides. There were some (co-workers) I dated that I probably shouldn't have gone out with, but I met my husband there, so how bad could it be.'' eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com (661) 257-5253 CAPTION(S): 5 photos Photo: (1 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Kevin Marshal, an employee at Six Flags California's Magic Mountain, lubes hydraulic parts and tracks on a section of Tatsu, the theme park's latest roller coaster due to open Saturday pending a state safety inspection. (2 -- 4; 4 -- color in SAC edition only; 2 and 4 ran in SAC edition only) Six Flags California employee Tom Schisler, right, double-checks and tightens bolts all around Magic Mountain's newest ride, Tatsu. The park's landscape has changed dramatically since developers first prepped the land for its 1971 opening, above. Gone are the carrot and onion patches, replaced by 17 coasters. (5 -- color in Business section only) Kevin Marshal lubes hydraulic parts and tracks on a section of Tatsu, the newest roller coaster at Magic Mountain. John Lazar/Daily News Staff Photographer |
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