Danny's Land

2011-11-18T17:53:00.000-08:00

2011-11-06T17:49:00.000-08:00

Tom Ellard: "Following my own ‘World’s Fair’ rule (50 percent scholar 50 percent drunken maniac) I really should take this thing and run it as far as I can get away with it."

2011-10-09T20:03:00.002-07:00

2011-10-09T20:03:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JJ9Ei-2C5Y

2011-08-30T18:22:00.000-07:00

“Personally I would never want to be a member of any group where you either have to wear a hat or you can't wear a hat.” – George Carlin

10 Arrested At Playland In Dispute Over Muslim Garb

Members of the Muslim American Society of New York said they were at the park today for a group visit, with members from Yonkers, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. They said they were at the park celebrating Eid ul-Fitr (Festival of Breaking the Fast), which marks the end of Ramadan. The holiday lasts for three days and includes celebrations with prayers, sweets and presents for children, and community festivities.

Members of the group said that some of their fellow members sought refunds from that park and that led to a disturbance. Park officials dispute this, saying a refund was offered.

Tartaglia said the rules and regulations of the park were made clear before the group arrived, blaming group organizers for not conveying the message.

"Part of our rules and regulations, which we painstakingly told them over and over again, is that certain rides you can not wear any sort of headgear," said Tartaglia. "It's a safety issue for us on rides, it could become a projectile."

Members were are at the park gates shortly after the incident, noting that they had not been able to get information about the status of friends and relatives. Members of the group said they were discussing what to do next — whether they should stay at the entrance to the park or leave.

"They just want to make our life a nightmare for no reason," said Akram Farghlay, while waiting outside.

Akram Ghadami, a member of the group, said they came to Playland to have fun and celebrate the holiday.

"We shouldn't be treated that way," Ghadami said. "We have a right to have a little fun like everyone else. Why are they making a big deal about this?"

He was standing at the entrance to Playland with several of his friends, waiting for others who were still inside the park.

"For some reason, they think everyone in there is a terrorist," Ghadami said.

2011-08-14T08:58:00.000-07:00

Falusi Akvapark, Hungary.

Thanks to Dark Roasted Blend.

2011-07-30T17:48:00.000-07:00

BUS 62. You're either on it or off it.

bonus

2011-07-10T08:39:00.000-07:00

Sleigh leaving ski-jump. Alexandra Palace, London, England, 1933.

Via a post on extreme sports at Dark Roasted Blend, who in turn credit Nationaal Archief / Het Leven and link back to this image at flickr.

2011-06-20T06:30:00.000-07:00

Euthanasia Coaster from Julijonas Urbonas on Vimeo.

"Euthanasia Coaster is a hypothetic euthanasia machine in the form of a roller coaster, engineered to humanely – with elegance and euphoria – take the life of a human being. Riding the coaster’s track, the rider is subjected to a series of intensive motion elements that induce various unique experiences: from euphoria to thrill, and from tunnel vision to loss of consciousness, and, eventually, death. Thanks to the marriage of the advanced cross-disciplinary research in space medicine, mechanical engineering, material technologies and, of course, gravity, the fatal journey is made pleasing, elegant and meaningful."

2011-02-18T09:40:00.000-08:00

Lapland theme park brothers convicted of misleading customers

People always say that Disneyland is all about imagination. Well, if it were, it would look just like this.

C'mon! Don't you have any imagination?

2011-01-27T16:02:00.000-08:00

2010-11-26T10:42:00.000-08:00

Mitchell and Webb take us to Porn & Drugs Towers.

2010-07-20T23:53:00.000-07:00

2010-06-27T18:25:00.000-07:00

Ghennaland Installation by Tom Ellard

Tom Ellard: "This three screen video mural ran for a week at the Next Level festival, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane in late 2007. The commissioned theme was 'funfairs' but I took that to mean the mix of science and magic that takes place in a world fair. This 5 minute section is only a tiny condensed glimpse of the whole thing which used loops of two hours per screen. Making this mural delayed my Thesis Album until 2008, and so it's only fair that I used the latter for the soundtrack here. It's a little section of the minidisc that was part of that work. This segment was made for a forthcoming Blu Ray compilation."

2010-06-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg: "The largest model railway in the world and one of the most successful permanent exhibitions in Northern Germany." Please enjoy more video, some photographs, and the opportunity to send your favorite ride theorist on an all-expenses paid fact-finding expedition from Portland, Oregon, USA to Hamburg, Germany.

2010-02-11T08:53:00.000-08:00

South Korea's Robot Land Theme Park. Can Bucketheadland be far away?

2010-01-25T18:05:00.000-08:00

De Muziekkunstenaar is Arthur van Poppel, die met meer dan dertig jaar ervaring wervelend entertainment brengt voor jong en oud. Hij doet dit door middel van zijn vier attracties, de Muziekfiets, de Muziekauto, de Straaljager en zijn nieuwste aanwinst: de Nautilus!

The Music Artist, Arthur van Poppel, with more than thirty years of experience brings dazzling entertainment for young and old. He does this through his four rides, the Bicycle Music, Music Auto, Jet Fighter and the latest addition: the Nautilus!

2009-12-23T17:35:00.000-08:00

Le Manege Carre Senart

2009-12-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

By way of Metafilter, where there is more information on this bit of unfinished London.

2009-10-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

Math Midway.

2009-09-30T16:05:00.001-07:00

2009-07-24T21:55:00.000-07:00

From Silhouette Masterpiece Theatre.

2009-06-17T17:33:00.000-07:00

The Aerocar - it's Fully Certificated!

2009-03-29T23:25:00.000-07:00

Barcelona, un paseo en tranvia. Una obra de 1908 que nos muestra la ciudad condal y sus principales calles bajo la dirección de Ricardo Baños.

2009-02-05T18:54:00.000-08:00

"To sum up: 1. The cosmos is a gigantic fly-wheel making 10,000 revolutions a minute. 2. Man is a sick fly taking a dizzy ride on it. 3. Religion is the theory that the wheel was designed and set spinning to give him the ride." - H L Mencken, "Coda," in Smart Set (New York, Dec. 1920; repr. in A Mencken Chrestomathy, pt. 1, 1949), quoted at Positive Atheism.

2008-12-21T10:11:00.000-08:00

Wikipedia: "The Oregon Centennial was the 100th anniversary of the statehood of the U.S. state of Oregon. The day of the anniversary was February 14, 1959, but centennial events took place throughout the year. Festivities where held all over the state, with the major attractions at the Oregon Centennial Exposition and International Trade Fair in the Kenton neighborhood of Portland, which took place from June 10 to September 17, 1959. The exposition's theme was 'Frontier of the Future.'" Of course every reader of Danny's Land (and the Journal of Ride Theory) are vitally concerned with expositions and fairs. What may be of special interest, however, is one of the last artifacts of the Oregon Centennial still standing, the statue of Paul Bunyon in the Kenton neighborhood and the crucial role your representative ride theorists have played in its history.

The oldest image I've found of our Paul...

The above may have been his original paint job, but maybe not. The below image isn't especially recent either...

... and features some pretty dramatic eyelashes, a hankie in his back pocket (see below) and checkered shirt courtesy of a repainting by a local Boy Scout troop. The eyelashes are gone now...

... but the hankie remains. In 2002 the statue was moved to make way for a new public transit train. Trevor Blake and Dan Howland were there!

We were treated to a brief presentation by the son of the man who made the statue...

... and a chance to see what was under the big man's feet...

... before the whole operation was moved dozens of feet forward...

... hankie and all. I like to think Paul has moved slightly closer to the dangerous Oregon / Washington border and is thus slightly more menacing to the Northern Aggressors.

2008-11-17T05:07:00.000-08:00

The Louisville, KY Courier-Journal reports: Seven Amish men will appeal their conviction on charges of refusing to use state-required safety emblems on their horse-drawn buggies. [...] The men are members of the Swartzentruber Amish sect, who do not believe in using the bright orange and red triangles that state law requires be placed on the back of slow-moving vehicles such as tractors and buggies [The] Swartzentrubers believe they should not trust their safety to any man-made symbol such as a triangle, and they also object to the bright colors. They have offered to use lanterns at night as well as gray reflective tape -- not in the shape of a symbol but simply outlining the backs of their buggies. They dress and furnish their homes in modest, subdued colors, and the county has even prepared grayish jumpsuits in the event that Amish might be jailed for refusing to pay their fines.

2008-10-19T16:37:00.000-07:00

Curly's Airships is an epic work of words and music about the R-101 airship disaster of 1930, written in a new form of narrative rock music called songstory by Judge Smith (co-founder of Van der Graaf Generator).

Six years in the making, Curly's Airships is probably one of the largest and most ambitious single pieces of rock music ever recorded.

2008-09-28T20:01:00.000-07:00

Future. Music by Todd Rundgren, visuals compiled by Cordt Holland (co-director of Arise!, which I did some of the visuals and soundtrack for).

2008-08-19T11:35:00.000-07:00

Cow poo for your amusement (rides)

2008-07-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

An enraged steamagineer gives the business to a robot president. Public domain, as has been most of my work for more that twenty years. The difference between this idea / image and most of my work is that the option exists to purchase it on a mug or t-shirt.

2008-07-17T23:13:00.001-07:00

2008-07-14T20:28:00.000-07:00

The Climatron by Walt Lockley reads more like an essay from the Journal of Ride Theory than any outside text I've ever encountered. Some excerpts...

"I don't remember being impressed with its futuriosity. I was a kid, accepting every rainforest-in-a-geodesic-dome experience as normal. [...] It's the Climatron because it's a climate-controlled... a-tron, 175 feet in diameter and 70 feet high, construction cost of $700,000."

... and oh my, do read the rest for yourself.

2008-07-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Via the ever-delightful Modern Mechanix: "September 1930. Children will get endless hours of fun out of this airplane swing, run by pedal-driven propellers. Any handy man can build one out of inexpensive junked auto parts and a few lengths of pipe."

2008-06-30T17:26:00.000-07:00

Oh, how I've been neglecting this blog. Part of the reason is that nothing has come along in the outdoor entertainment world that is weird enough for my jaded palate. Well, whenever an oddball musician gushes about an oddball amusement park, I sit up and take notice. Remember back when Laurie Anderson confessed that her favorite amusement park was Dollywood? Now Thomas Dolby says he wishes he could throw everything else aside and work at Diggerland.

Anyone that knows me knows I have a fetish for bulldozers. Don’t ask me what it is about them, I just see a bulldozer and I come over all funny. Big yellow ones are quite sexy, but it’s the smallish black and white ones with metal grilles over the driver that really get me going. Imagine my delight when I came across a theme park where you get to drive them yourself! At Diggerland you can race the small ones round a track, dig holes and fill them in again in a medium-sized one, or even go for a whirry ride in the spade part of a giant one. Ooh, I was in heaven!

And now it appears that Diggerland is hiring! I am awfully tempted to sell everything and head down to Cullompton for a spell. I quote: “You will need to like working with the general public, be energetic, have an outgoing personality and enjoy the thrill of showing others how to use the diggers and other activities in Diggerland.” Isn’t that me down to a tee?

Thanks and a tip of the hard hat to Trevor for the link.

2008-06-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

Like other great discoveries in human history, a simple idea that changes everything.

2008-05-08T16:10:00.000-07:00

I have no further information regarding this image. Do you? Or can you make up a story worth telling about it?

2008-05-05T22:23:00.001-07:00

Have you heard about that wonderful new live-action Race Speedster film, based on the 1960s television show?

AtomFilms.com: Funny Videos | Funny Cartoons | Comedy Central

2008-04-29T21:17:00.000-07:00

Here's some footage of the Margate Scenic Railway fire.

And here's an on-ride video shot before it closed.

2008-04-29T12:58:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get some information on the recent roller coaster fire at Margate's Dreamland amusement park which consumed about 1/4 of the 7th oldest roller coaster in the world. Most of my connections with the world of British showpeople were unwilling to go on the record (quite wisely, I'd say, given the characters involved) but good old Private Eye is on the case.

From the Rotten Boroughs column:

UNLUCKY JIM

There was an air of inevitability about the fire which last week destroyed much of Margate's Scenic Railway, a grade II-listed wooden rollercoaster, once the centrepiece of Dreamland, a classic seaside amusement park which closed after 80 years in 2003.

The closure left 20 acres of seafront real estate practically deserted and ripe for development by its owner, Jimmy Godden. But the listed rollercoaster was in the middle of the site, and an independent government inspector's report in 2005 went against the supine local council and reiterated protection for it and the amusement park.

That year Godden formed the Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company with Reading-based developers Waterbridge, retaining a major stake in Dreamland.

A public "consultation" by Thanet council two years later tried yet again to float the idea of a development, coming up with an unhappy 50-50 compromise of "heritage amusement park" and the usual flats and shops.

This is not the first time Godden has experienced misfortune with his seafront developments. In 1998 his Pleasurama fun park in Ramsgate burned down in the midst of a campaign to save it from redevelopment. Fortunately on that occasion Godden had the comfort of a substantial insurance payout to soften the blow. In 2003 his Mr G arcade on Margate seafront went up in flames, but again there was consolation in that the hole it left, nicknamed "Godden's Gap" by locals, provided the perfect access road from the seafront into the Dreamland site.

When English Heritage listed the rollercoaster in 2002 Godden described it as "great news" and told the BBC it was "safe in his hands". A year later he closed Dreamland, and now more than a quarter of this historic ride lies in ashes.

To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, one amusement park fire may be regarded as a misfortune; three looks like carelessness.

2008-04-20T12:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, this may be the ugliest, most inappropriate fiberglass sculpture in front of a theme park restroom anywhere in the world.

More info here.

Yes, these naked babies stood near the location of every restroom! They scared the crap out of me! First, what the hell is it doing? And second, if its doing what I think it is, why is it so unsatisfied?!

2008-04-20T11:59:00.000-07:00

Picture from darkrides.co.uk.

Here is an on-ride video of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ride at Alton Towers. Reminds me of what I dislike about Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin at Disneyland -- garish, obnoxious, doesn't match the imagery of the source material... but from the sound of it, people are having fun on the second half of the ride: a simulator of the Great Glass Elevator.

By the way -- though the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ride at Alton Towers does not use music from the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, apparently the Alice in Wonderland ride at Blackpool Pleasure Beach does. Along with scenes swiped from the Disney movie and Disneyland ride. Go figure.

(Thanks and a tip of the "In This Style 10/6" hat to Trevor for reminding me about this ride.)

2008-04-15T19:03:00.000-07:00

This is my new favorite vehicle.

2008-03-30T07:47:00.000-07:00

Alex Johnson of MSNBC reports: "Last week, Dallas officials reviewed the numbers and decided that a quarter of the cameras they had installed to catch motorists running red lights were too effective. So they shut them down. They are not alone. Faced with data showing that drivers pay attention to cameras at intersections - resulting in fewer ticketable violations and ever-shrinking revenue from fines - municipalities across the country are reconsidering red light cameras, which often work too well."

2008-03-28T07:20:00.000-07:00

This is a short film in which a dark ride serves as a cautionary tale for a professional athlete. It is in the final seconds a commercial, but don't let that sway you.

2008-03-15T20:17:00.000-07:00

From the ever-delightful Modern Mechanix ("Yesterday's Tomorrow - Today!")

2008-02-16T10:00:00.000-08:00

In September 2005, Baljinder Badesha was charged with the crime of riding a motorcycle without a helmet. Mr. Badesha countered by saying that as a Sikh he is required to wear a turban whenever he leaves his home and that nothing can touch his turban, therefore he is unable to comply with the law in this matter. The State hired a professional engineer to simulate wearing a turban while riding a motorcycle. This was done by placing a turban on a mannequin head and subjecting the mannequin head to 300 kph winds in a wind tunnel. The turban in a turbine unwound, which the State used as evidence that it was a danger to Mr. Badesha and to other riders. Mr. Badesha then rode his motorcycle on a close speedway at 110 kph to demonstrate that his turban would not unwind. The State has further claimed that since it will pay the medical bills of Mr. Badesha should he be injured in a motorcycle accident, the State has a reason to insist on his safe use of a motorcycle. The case continues to make its way through the courts.

Many of my favorite topics are woven into this story. Ancient superstition is trumping common sense and personal safety. The State is demonstrating it can't demonstrate justification for its laws. No simple answer appears in accomodating public safety versus individual choice, or superstition versus the secular state, or socialized medicine versus un-asked-for 'care' from the State. My view counts for nothing here, but perhaps a suitable compromise might be that Mr. Badesha should be allowed to ride without a helmet and the State should be relieved of providing him medical care should be be injured while riding without a helmet.

2008-02-06T18:26:00.000-08:00

From BoingBoing: a pedal vehicle for a monorail track.

2008-02-04T21:57:00.000-08:00

A Playground for Oldies.

More pics here.

2007-12-18T10:16:00.000-08:00

This just came in from my brother.

13. It’s a fat world, after all. Disneyland announces plans to close the “It’s a Small World” attraction to deepen its water channel after the ride’s boats start getting stuck under loads of heavy passengers. Employees ask larger passengers to disembark—and compensate them with coupons for free food.

This is a great example of short-term solution thinking. "How do we keep the fat annual passholes, who come here year after year, off the boats? Hmm... What if we lure them away with CUPCAKES?"

I have another solution. If you just fill the channel with melted chocolate, all the fat people will lean over to drink it, fall in, and then you can simply suck them up gigantic tubes that go to the fudge-making room.

2007-12-16T18:33:00.000-08:00

Annie Leibowitz dressed Beyonce as Alice, Lyle Lovett as the March Hare and Oliver Platt as the Mad Hatter and took their picture riding the teacups.

Platt looks a bit more like a plump Willy Wonka (or maybe a still-living version of this hitchhiking ghost from the Haunted Mansion), but you have to admit Lovett does have a very leporine mouth.

2007-11-26T21:33:00.000-08:00

I've just been interviewed by Wired about the 1939 Futurama ride.

2007-11-23T14:22:00.000-08:00

Triple geek-out: Joel Hodgson of MST3K interviewed on starwars.com talks about an upcoming book about...

Well, this is a fortunate byproduct of being the creator of Mystery Science Theater. Besides making money every time someone buys a box set of DVDs, I also get paid to come up with ideas... Fortunately we negotiated to get most of the ideas back, we have about 3,000 concept drawings and storyboards, as well as scripts and "proof of concept" footage. Jim and I have agreed we will start to release these playful ideas sometime toward the end of next year. I believe our first book is titled "Rides and Attractions."

2007-11-19T13:35:00.000-08:00

Many of our readers are haunted by public transportation. What happens when public transportation haunts us back? Trevor Cawood's film Terminus may explain all.

2007-10-08T20:46:00.000-07:00

"We are the cyclists; the intermediate stage between humans and pure energy."

Perhaps because I am a pedestrian in Portland (where arrogant bicyclists aplenty clutter up my sidewalks, ride the wrong way down one-way streets, snake between cars, and run red lights) this animated clip summed up my loathing quite neatly.

NOTE: If you are a bicyclist, you won't think this is funny at all. That is what makes it funny.

2007-10-03T16:45:00.000-07:00

2007-10-01T20:45:00.001-07:00

2007-09-30T11:51:00.000-07:00

TV coverage of Brendan Walker and his Thrill Technicians' Oblivion: Thrill Laboratory at Alton Towers.

BBC Midlands:

ITV:

BBC Midlands (Live):

2007-09-26T19:51:00.000-07:00

(Dan explains: my buddy Brendan brought his "Thrill Laboratory" event to Alton Towers last week.)

2007-09-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

Germany to build Maglev train!

2007-09-22T07:46:00.000-07:00

Listening to "In Conversation", an ABC* podcast this week, I made the delightful discovery that Richard Dawkins and his wife collect carousel horses.

*That's ABC, the Australian public radio network, not the American commercial television network.

2007-09-16T17:46:00.000-07:00

Dymaxion Twin-Stilt Omniplumeting Device. Noh 1 has it.
[Credit to Trevor Blake, www.ovo127.com]

2007-09-08T02:49:00.000-07:00

Snail-themed monorail ride at De Efteling amusement park in the Netherlands.

2007-09-06T18:21:00.000-07:00

Something Awful presents The Awful Guide to Your Inevitable Walt Disney World Vacation. Probably not safe for work.

2007-09-05T22:01:00.000-07:00

2007-09-04T08:59:00.000-07:00

Train News:

Eurostar makes the trip from Paris to London in two hours.

The Beeb says:

The BBC's Nick Higham, on board the train, said a GPS device had recorded a speed of 202mph (325km/h) in France and 195mph in Britain.

The Gruniad reports:

A Reuters report quoted figures saying the CO2 impact of aviation was between four and 10 times that of rail on short-haul journeys.

That's something you hear a lot about in the British papers, and amost nothing about in America: the carbon impact of travel.

Meanwhile, in news of one of my favorite train journeys:

Anaheim Resort Transit (ART) will begin service from the Anaheim Amtrak station to The Disneyland Resort and Anaheim Resort hotels beginning Oct. 1, 2007. The shuttle service will be provided hourly meeting all southbound and northbound Amtrak Pacific Surfliner trains. A schedule will be posted on the ART website www.rideart.org starting early September.

This simple little service has been missing from the Anaheim train station since way back when I used to live in San Diego in the late 1980s and I used to take the train up to Disneyland. For a while after the shuttles were discontinued, I would walk half a mile or so to one of the hotels, pretend I was a guest, and ride one of their shuttles. Sometimes, I would even help myself to the continental breakfast.

2007-09-01T20:30:00.000-07:00

There's a nice article in the Guardian about the London Eye.

London is full of buildings that are admired and adored, but the Eye has achieved a different magnitude of success altogether. It is arguably the great architectural statement of our time. There are very few people who don't like the Eye. You can measure its success in figures and statistics. It is the most popular paid-for attraction in the country, it draws more than 3.5 million visitors a year and, in a recent survey by Trip Advisor, it came out as the top attraction in Europe, beating even the Eiffel Tower. Research carried out when it was re-applying for planning permission showed that support for the Eye, both in the local area and across London, stood at 85%.

2007-08-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

... by way of the ever delightful Dark Roasted Blend.

2007-08-26T09:46:00.000-07:00

2007-08-22T23:04:00.000-07:00

Next year, let's send the kids to Camp Okutta!

2007-08-18T02:12:00.000-07:00

2007-08-17T08:30:00.000-07:00

The Journal of Pediatrics at the University of Washington recently published a report titled "Associations between Media Viewing and Language Development in Children Under Age 2 Years." Among its conclusions were the following: "among infants (age 8 to 16 months), each hour per day of viewing baby DVDs/videos was associated with a 16.99-point decrement in CDI score in a fully adjusted model (95% confidence interval = −26.20 to −7.77)." Infants who watch TV don't develop language as well - fancy that! Not good news for believers in the Baby Einstein series of DVDs. And so...

Bob Iger of Disney sent the Univesity of Washington a letter [pdf] "demand[ing] the immediate retraction of an inflammatory and misleading University of Washington press release that misrepresented research data about Baby Einstein." UW President Mark Emmert offered a less vitriolic reply. Disney says they/it "stands by its request" and "is currently exploring next steps in this matter."

My next step in this matter? Not buying any Baby Einstein DVDs, for one.

2007-08-15T08:52:00.001-07:00

2007-08-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

Never Trust a Populist

New York's Mayor Bloomberg makes a great show about how he takes the subway to work. The only trouble is, he doesn't walk to the subway stop nearest his house, he has a pair of SUVs -- which idle in front of his house until he's ready to go -- take him to a stop nearly a mile away, where he doesn't have to use any transfers.

On the plus side, one of the reporters who shadowed the mayor tells us:

"We also had a chance to sample a few excellent breakfast places in the area. Highly recommended: Nectar Coffee Shop, Madison Avenue on the corner of 79th Street. A bit pricey, but what can you expect for the Upper East Side? Try the two-eggs-and-bacon combo, with a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. And the service is great."

2007-08-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

File under: "Somewhat Famous People Who Are Perhaps More Obsessed Than I"

Former teen idol Bobby Sherman built a 1/5 scale model of Disneyland's Main Street in his backyard.. Sorry to harsh your memories if you were one of the girls who thought he was dreamy back in the day -- no, he was just an obsessed Disneyland geek.

2007-08-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

Disney says yes then no to smoking, yes then no to drinking. Who will say yes then no to Disney?

2007-07-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

Another great moment in Amusment Ride Death: The wreck of the Far Tottering and Oyster Creek railroad at the 1951 Festival of Britain. You can see footage of the ride -- not the crash, mind you -- here. More pictures here.

2007-07-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

This elephant polo thing just keeps getting better and better: one of the teams consists of ladyboys.

2007-07-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

Two words: elephant polo.

And if anyone out there needs to buy me a gift any time soon, here it is.

2007-07-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

CNN reports: "Elizabeth K. Mohl, 16, of Neenah, was killed Saturday after falling 40 to 50 feet from a ride called Air Glory. [...] The girl was attending Lifest, a Christian music festival that features rides and sports. Workers shut down the ride after the afternoon accident. A prayer service was held before the festival resumed about 7:30 p.m." More information and the above image from Ride Accidents. I offer my sincere condolences to Ms. Mohl's family and friends.

I would also like to ask some questions. Is it a good idea to have rides like this at all? Is this ride regulated, or monitored, or governed in some way? Who is responsible for that? What does prayer do? How do Christians justify people being killed by 'acts of God' while engaged in Christian activities (not to mention an equally awful Christian 'Disneyland')?

2007-07-02T09:35:00.000-07:00

Asbo (Anti-Social Behaviour Order) holders given free entry to theme parks

An invitation to Anti-Social Behaviour Order (Asbo) holders to visit three tourist attractions free of charge was condemned yesterday. All they have to do is provide proof of their court orders to gain free admission to the Dungeon in London, York or Edinburgh. Once inside, their misdemeanours are announced to other visitors, who will have the chance to pardon them before a "judge" decides their fate and a "priest" reads the last rites.

Any Asbo holders choosing to visit the London Dungeon can have a turn on the Drop Ride to Doom, which plunges 13 feet and is supposed to show what public hangings in the 18th century were like.

(...)

The scheme has been criticised as a reward for bad behaviour because law-abiding citizens have to pay admission prices ranging from £8.95 for children to £19.95 for adults.

2007-06-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

M-I-C... see you real soon...

Well, here's a new wrinkle -- this may be the first time a costumed children's show host was beaten to death on the air. The Hamas propaganda character Farfur had his show cancelled, so in the final episode...

...an actor said to be an Israeli agent tries to buy the land of the squeaky-voiced Mickey Mouse lookalike.

Farfur brands the Israeli a "terrorist" and is beaten to death.

He was killed "by the killers of children", Saraa says.

I wonder if he got 70 virgin Minnie Mouse rip-offs in the afterlife.

On the BBC, here.

2007-06-28T15:32:00.000-07:00

For this, our 800th ride in Danny's Land, may I proudly present a musical band whose name includes one case of celebrity imitation and one word that cannot be said in polite company. They have a few observations [observe here!] on differing levels of cultural relevance and of differing modes of transportation, all of which observations are delivered to an attentive audience while the performers sport mouse ears common to a certain other Land.

2007-06-09T15:56:00.000-07:00

Scrambler ride converted into giant spirograph-type painting machine. (Thanks, Boingboing!)

2007-06-09T08:42:00.000-07:00

Man goes for wheelchair ride on the front of a truck.

2007-06-04T16:01:00.000-07:00

"A few miles later, arrives a chariot with five or six of monkeys." My Fish is a Fender by Film 2 is one of a number of songs by German musicians including lines about meeting David Bowie and Iggy Pop. This music video is not suitable for all audiences.

2007-05-15T11:45:00.000-07:00

It's always nice to find someone who has it worse than you. The over-the-top, cringe-worthy geek moment here is when he shows his "Madame Leota" crystal ball, and he's playing Leota. And the whole Rod Serling meets Count Floyd vibe is great.

But the real chills come later.

The whole deal is part of a career website promotion. I think they should show these videos to all potential employers...

2007-05-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

"All around the world we're marching..."

2007-05-05T07:55:00.000-07:00

Iain Aitch, thanked recently in this blog, just had an article on roller coasters published in the Telegraph.

2007-05-03T11:23:00.000-07:00

Another Fake Disneyland!

Here is the original fake Disneyland, Nara Dreamland. Now comes news of a new fake Disneyland, Shijingshan Amusement Park, which has the best ad slogan for a rip-off theme park ever: "Because Disneyland is Too Far!"

Don't miss the fantastic video, with copyright infringement galore. I particularly like how the costumed characters just pop their heads off from time to time whenever they feel like it.

Here is a Google satellite picture.

Thanks to Iain Aitch for pointing this out before I read my daily BoingBoing.

2007-04-19T10:17:00.000-07:00

The Sound of Fun Surrounds You! MP3s of this 7" EP (my favorite vinyl format) from 1967 here, at WFMU's Beware of the Blog.

2007-04-16T15:33:00.000-07:00

Dickens World opens soon.

Dickens world is proud to announce that it will be opening its doors to the public from the 25th May 2007 from 10 a.m.
Dickens World is a brand new, innovative and exciting indoor visitor complex themed around the life, books and times of one of Britain’s best loved authors, Charles Dickens. It will take visitors on a fascinating journey through Dickens’ lifetime as they step back into Dickensian England and are immersed in the urban streets, sounds and smells of the 19th century.
With a host of captivating attractions, Dickens World features one of Europe’s largest dark boat rides, the Haunted house of Ebenezer Scrooge, a state-of-the art animatronic show, Victorian School Room, 4D high definition show and Fagin’s Den. Offering a unique showcase for one of the world’s best loved storytellers, Dickens World will truly offer visitors the ‘day out of a lifetime’.

2007-04-10T13:10:00.000-07:00

Oh, thank you WFMU Blog, for this horrible theme park news. Yes, the Hard Rock Cafe franchise is branching out into the amusement park business, at a really, really good site for successful amusement parks, Myrtle Beach, SC. And the extra good news: just as no modern presidential library would be complete without a chunk of the Berlin Wall, Hard Rock Park will have a chunk of CBGB's walls!

2007-03-29T13:00:00.000-07:00

The nice thing about this plan is that with the addition of a giant raincoat, mask and KFC bucket, you could easily convert it into Buckethead...

2007-03-25T08:00:00.000-07:00

1:10 scale model of World Trade Center (New York), Mini World Park, Beijing, China. From page 45 of the Beijing issue of COLORS Magazine.

2007-03-23T12:26:00.000-07:00

Brendan Walker has added some Fairground: Thrill Laboratory videos to his site.

And here they are on mine. First, from the Discovery Channel:

Next, ITV:

And finally, the BBC:

2007-03-10T13:44:00.000-08:00

This simple flight simulator lets you fly a small airplane over Disneyland. There is no sound to this simulator, so you'll have to add your own background music.

2007-03-07T18:17:00.000-08:00

Video of Banksy inserting a Gitmo prisoner into the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride at Disneyland.

2007-03-07T09:39:00.000-08:00

All employees in the French Quarter of Dannysland will please removed their berets and place them over their hearts today, as we mourn the death of the post-modern philosopher and De-Imagineer Jean Baudrillard.

And now, the skills of the artist and the talents of the sculptor combine to bring you Great Moments with Mr. Baudrillard.

"Disneyland is a perfect model of all the entangled orders of simulation. To begin with it is a play of illusions and phantasms: pirates, the frontier, future world, etc. This imaginary world is supposed to be what makes the operation successful. But, what draws the crowds is undoubtedly much more the social microcosm, the miniaturized and religious revelling in real America, in its delights and drawbacks. You park outside, queue up inside, and are totally abandoned at the exit. In this imaginary world the only phantasmagoria is in the inherent warmth and affection of the crowd, and in that aufficiently excessive number of gadgets used there to specifically maintain the multitudinous affect. The contrast with the absolute solitude of the parking lot - a veritable concentration camp - is total. Or rather: inside, a whole range of gadgets magnetize the crowd into direct flows; outside, solitude is directed onto a single gadget: the automobile. By an extraordinary coincidence (one that undoubtedly belongs to the peculiar enchantment of this universe), this deep-frozen infantile world happens to have been conceived and realized by a man who is himself now cryogenized; Walt Disney, who awaits his resurrection at minus 180 degrees centigrade."

-- Jean Baudrillard, Simulacra and Simulations, 1988.

On a personal note: on a trip to the park in the early 1990s, I bought a Mickey Mouse hat and had the name "Baudrillard" stitched into it. I gave this to a friend at UCLA, who kept it on her desk there. When she left, it somehow found its way into one of those trophy cases that line the hallways. My little contribution to academia. I hope it's still there.

UPDATE: It's not -- my friends STOLE IT BACK!

2007-02-09T00:54:00.000-08:00

Says here, "Disney park to open in Bahrain".

It seems to me that there are some things that increase in value when you mass produce them, and some things that decrease in value when the world has too many of them. I never thought there would be too many Disneylands in the world.