Vintage Rides, August 1968
I have a pair of August 1968 slide scans for you, from an unknown amusement park or fair/carnival!
We'll start with the best one, featuring the Herschell Looper (the sign says "Rock & Roll LOOPER") . "It's fun!". Apparently the riders can make those circular vehicles rock back and forth - could stronger guests actually make the things do a 360? That little girl looks pretty tough to me, her brother is begging her to take it easy.
It looks like it was a pretty slow day at this park (chime in if you recognize it!). Here we have a standard "little car ride". Kids can go around in circles all day, I've seen it with my own eyes. The boy has chosen a classy dark green auto, I think I'd be drawn to the yellow examples. Three little girls discuss the merits and shortcomings of the little cars while their mom looks on.
I know somebody out there will know what that ride just behind the mom is... little sleds of some kind.
17 comments:
Major-
Yes, the Looper can easily 'do a 360° loop'.
I assume that ride with the "little sleds" is a kiddie roller coaster - but I'm no expert.
(I don't suppose this park is Knoebels Amusement Resort [formerly Knoebels Grove prior to 1981-?]...)
Thanks, Major.
Ah, the "Squirrel Cages"! That's what we called them back in the day. For some reason, I can't recall if they were capable doing a 360; I'm pretty sure they did. "Someone knows". Andrew! We need your help! Edit: Ah, Nanook to the rescue!
Hmm, not sure what the "little sleds" ride is. We know from the canopy that it's "Little" something. And the (white) ticket sign below has the name of the ride: Again "Little" something. "Little Dipper" perhaps? Would that make it a kiddie roller coaster?
Edit again: Nanook concurs!
Carnival rides are always fun to see, Major. Thanks!
I always wanted to go on a Looper. I remember seeing them when I was younger, in the Fun Zone at the Los Angeles County Fair. I also saw one a few years back at Hanayashiki Park in Tokyo, Japan. I should have gone on it there, because they have since taken it out! You snooze, you lose! Unfortunately, I was with someone who did not want to go on it.
In the second pic, is that a ride operator balancing on the railing, and with his feet on the chain below? While working at Knott's, I would see a chain just like that, break at the point where it was attached to a pole, from the weight of both children and adults sitting on them and "swinging." It happened repeatedly, but a couple times, the chain literally broke while we were in mid-sentence, trying to tell the guests not to sit on it. The one I'm thinking of was in the ice cream parlor, and maintenance would come out to fix it regularly, but whatever they did to reattach the metal loop onto the pole was never good enough. The parade of people falling while sitting on the chain was constant. That was Knott's for ya!
I wonder if that lady's white hat is covered in feathers? My grandmother had a similar one, covered in pink feathers. Underneath the feathers, was just some kind of heavy netting. I think she only wore it when she had "just washed her hair and couldn't do a thing with it!"
Could be feathers, could be silk flowers. All's I know is, I want it.
I'm really digging the three girls' alike-but-different coordinated looks. It's harder to pull off matching kids with three than with two.
"When shall we three meet again,
In thunder,lightning, or in rain?
When the hurlyburly's done,
Beneath the sign that says, 'It's Fun.'"
They're about to cast a spell to make their big brother fall off the fence.
I've never been to Knoebels, but I think Andrew has.
I want a real car That looks like that red one. So streamlined and dynamic.
Fun stuff!
I have no idea where this might have been.
I’m the last Junior Gorilla to ask about amusement park rides, but I think that is a Little Dipper kiddie coaster.
That first ride is pretty awesome, going in circles on two axes.
And I was so busy yesterday I never got back to comment on Lou’s motel pics. I’m heading back there now.
Thank you, Major!
JG
Nanook, it can do it easily? Huh, I guess I assumed it took some muscle! I’ll need Andrew to chime in to see if he thinks this is Knoebels.
JB, at least you didn’t call them the “Rat Cages”, that would be rude. It doesn’t seem like that wide leather belt would be very secure for holding a person upside-down, especially a grown adult. I could see those “sleds” being cars for a small roller coaster, it’s as good a guess as any.
TokyoMagic!, yeah, I’m not sure I ever had a chance to ride the Looper, but it looks pretty wild. I think I only went to the L.A. County Fair once when I was a little kid, and I guarantee that my mom would not have wanted to do that ride! “You snooze, you lose”, it’s so true! Funny about the chain in the picture, and chains in amusement parks in general - my nephew sat on a chain at Disneyland, lost his balance and basically landed on his head. I still remember the sound! He was so stunned he didn’t even cry, much to my amazement. It must have hurt though. You’d think that anybody injured could sue the park because the chain is an “attractive nuisance”. “Yes, they told me not to sit on it, but it was RIGHT THERE!”. I don’t think that lady’s hat is covered in feathers, I remember hats like that with sort of wavy, bunched up fabric. Hard to describe. But maybe it IS feathers!
Melissa, yes, silk flowers is a much more elegant way to describe what I meant, ha ha! “Bunched up fabric”, oh boy. That poem was nice, but it should have used “t’is” instead if “it’s”. I don’t make the rules, I just enforce them.
Sunday Night, I have to agree with you!! It looks like there would be room for a rumble seat. I’ve always wanted a car with a rumble seat.
JG, places like this look generic to me, but I’m sure that people who have been there would instantly recognize it. Maybe the colorful striped wall will tickle somebody’s memory. I hope you enjoy Lou’s photos of the motels!
Not Knoebels! It's Gwynn Oak Park which was located near Baltimore until 1973. I did not know that offhand, but seeing the African-American family made me think of Glen Echo Park and Gwynn Oak, two Baltimore-area parks that played a role in the Civil Rights Movement. This photo confirmed it for me, as you can see the carousel has the same facade and the same fence for the Whip ride behind the Little Dipper. Here's a video that gives some context of the role the park played in the Civil Rights Movement.
The Looper (amazing photo here) is a great ride that you can still ride at Knoebels! I rode it this past summer with my little sister. They still have the same leather strap as the restraint, although it's held down with a heavy-duty clamp. You use the foot pedal, shift your weight, and soon you're spinning head over heels over and over again! The best part is when you stall upside down for a time while the ride is still spinning. We probably flipped 20 or 30 times during the ride. Fun, right? :-)
@ Andrew-
Thank you for the ID. Had I been correct, it would've just been a lucky guess. (I kinda didn't think so, but it was worth a shot).
Outstanding work, Andrew!
"Tilted Acres" the fictional amusement park in John Waters' movie "Hairspray" was based on Gwynn Oak Park of the early 1960's.
Nanook, it was a good guess! Both have similar wooded settings and rides.
Andrew, see my comment to Nanook! Incredible, I just had a feeling that you would know. When you need an expert opinion… ask an expert! Thanks so much, and thanks for the link to that photo as well. I see that Gwynn Oak Park exited from 1893 to 1973, which is also pretty incredible. I’m glad I have these two photos, I need to write the info on the slide mount. Spinning 20 or 30 times… maybe before eating? THANKS ANDREW.
Nanook, hey, at least you had a guess, which is more than I had.
K. Martinez, wow, that’s a pretty amazing piece of John Waters trivia!
Andrew, I’m still stunned.
I think falling off the queue chain makes it educational. Maybe they should charge extra for that.
I would've LOVED The Looper in my teenage years. No ride was ever too fast or too "loopy" or too "spinny," back then.
FUN day at GOP - thanks to Major and Andrew!
"That poem was nice"
Thanks! Shakespeare helped a little.
"Tilted Acres" the fictional amusement park in John Waters' movie "Hairspray" was based on Gwynn Oak Park of the early 1960's.
And to add to what Ken said, they filmed the "Tilted Acres" scenes at Dorney Park, in Pennsylvania. I love the original 1988 film, "Hairspray." It's so much better than the stage play and the 2007 remake film, based on the stage play.....in my opinion, anyway.
And to name a couple other amusement park filming locations, from vintage TV shows, Glen Echo park (which Andrew mentioned) was featured in an episode of "Gomer Pyle, USMC." Gomer and Sargent Carter go to Washington D.C., but take a side trip to Glen Echo park.
And I mentioned this the last time we saw a pic of a Looper ride here on GDB, but that ride was also used in an opening title sequence for "The Courtship of Eddie's Father"......or was it in a closing credits sequence?
I think falling off the queue chain makes it educational. Maybe they should charge extra for that.
Dean Finder....I can see it now, the "Swinging Chains" ride. No lap bars and no seat belts! In fact, NO SEATS!
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