Kings Island

Kings Island is an amusement park located in the northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. The park first opened in 1972 by the Taft Broadcasting Company.

Early in its history, Kings Island appeared in popular sitcoms and received widespread recognition for its record-breaking attractions and events. One of the park's most popular attractions, The Racer, is often credited with reviving worldwide interest in roller coasters during the 1970s. Others, such as The Beast and Banshee, have set several world records, some of which remain to this day. The largest investment in park history is Orion, a giga coaster that opened in 2020. In spite of its fame and innovation, the park is also never shy away from bad press, particularly surrounding the early demise of roller coasters The Bat and Son of Beast.

History

When Taft opened Kings Island in 1972 – as an expansion of their then-recently purchased Coney Island – the company promoted Hanna-Barbera's cartoons as part of its branding. One of its original themed areas was The Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera, and featured attractions based on many of the animation studios' TV series.

Characters

Costume characters

• Yogi Bear
• Scooby-Doo
• Fleegle
• Drooper
• Bingo
• Snorky
• Mildew Wolf
• Bristlehound
• Lambsy Divey
• Fred Flintstone
• Barney Rubble
• Hong Kong Phooey
• Captain Caveman
• Huckleberry Hound
• Dynomutt
• Quick Draw McGraw
• Hair Bear
• Bubi Bear
• Square Bear

Behind the scenes

• In 1972, Hanna-Barbera produced an animated made-for-television film called The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park, which mixed in live-action sequences filmed at Kings Island.

In popular culture

• Kings Island was the subject of the Partridge Family episode, "I Left My Heart in Cincinnati".
• It was also featured in The Brady Bunch episode, "The Cincinnati Kids".