Defunctland
December 3, 2017 6:10 AM   Subscribe

Defunctland is a notional amusement park comprised of defunct rides and attractions from actual parks, but more interestingly it's a series of entertaining short videos about the stories of vanished rides- why they were built, what they were like, and why- be it changing tastes, entertainment conglomerate politics, poor quality, or terrible engineering- they became defunct. Episode list inside.

Early on he's got the frame concept of a notional park, and at some point he came up with the idea of a VR park, and I dunno about that, but these histories are really fascinating.

Disneyland's ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter
Disneyland's Videopolis
Universal Studios' Jaws: the Ride
Disney Hollywood Studios' Sorcerer's Hat and Earffel Tower
Pretzel Amusement Ride Company's Dark Rides
Disney World's Pleasure Island (Part 2)
Universal Studios' Kongfrontation
Disney California Adventure's Superstar Limo
Universal Studios' Back to the Future: the Ride
Disney World's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Part 2)
Disneyland's America Sings
Universal Studios' Ghostbusters Spooktacular
King's Island's Son of Beast
Disney World's Body Wars
Universal Studios' Earthquake: the Big One and Disaster!
Cedar Point's Disaster Transport
Disney's Captain EO
Vernon, New Jersey's Action Park
Universal Studios' Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue
Disney's Extinct Walk-Around Characters
Busch Gardens' Drachen Fire
posted by Pope Guilty (15 comments total) 39 users marked this as a favorite
 
The histories are fascinating, and he's sourced a lot of video that takes me way back to my couple of visits... the presentation as a bit leaden and... weird,at some points? Like at the end of alien encounter he describes child molestation as "a big no no for disney". Maybe he could use a writer.

Still going to watch all of these, mind.
posted by ominous_paws at 7:36 AM on December 3, 2017


*scans list for "Action Park"*

YESSSSSSSS
posted by phooky at 8:31 AM on December 3, 2017 [5 favorites]


Related, but Dusney-specufic:

Walt Dated World
Widen Your World
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:36 AM on December 3, 2017 [2 favorites]


Why would you even need to restore rides from Action Park?

Wouldn't just putting people in old oil drums and rolling them downhill towards an expressway be easier?
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 8:44 AM on December 3, 2017 [8 favorites]


MartinsVids produces beautiful videos of Disney attractions with details of their conception and construction.
posted by chrchr at 9:02 AM on December 3, 2017 [2 favorites]


Teenage me went on Drachen Fire and then decided to never ever do that again. Such neck pain.
posted by eyeofthetiger at 9:13 AM on December 3, 2017 [2 favorites]


I love the Busch Gardens Old Country commercial with Roger Davis included in this video! How many of us can afford a trip to Europe? But for just under seven dollars... Can you even get into a local fire company's carnival for $7 anymore? I remember my Dad having a full-on Fred Sanford style stage heart attack when he saw it would cost him $17 a head to get all four of us into the Magic Kingdom for the day in 1983.He was for real serious going to get his two little girls up to the gates of Disney World, then turn around and not go in because the tickets were $17. And he was management at New York State Electric & Gas. It was one of those very rare times Mom put her foot down.

(Today's ticket price works out to $49.46 in 1983 dollars, but there's a lot more to do in the MK than there was back then.)
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:42 AM on December 3, 2017 [1 favorite]


Teenage me went on Drachen Fire and then decided to never ever do that again. Such neck pain.

Yeah, the Minebuster at Canada's Wonderland permanently soured me on wooden coasters. It was so rough I swear I *heard* something go crunch in my neck. I had to lie down for a while afterward to stave off a headache.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:56 AM on December 3, 2017


I don't know why you trust these factual videos made by a Perjurer...
posted by Samizdata at 10:53 AM on December 3, 2017 [3 favorites]


Also, disappointed by the lack of Mission to Mars or Adventure Through Inner Space, both from Disney.
posted by Samizdata at 12:05 PM on December 3, 2017 [2 favorites]


Also, thanks. I REALLY needed another rabbit hole to occupy my time.

Also, really enjoying how the Tuber community has been crossing over more and more lately, it seems. Nice to see people play well with others, especially with everything CodysLab has been going through.
posted by Samizdata at 2:35 PM on December 3, 2017


Also, I really seem to really need to say "really" more. Really.
posted by Samizdata at 2:36 PM on December 3, 2017 [1 favorite]


This is such a genius idea and I am devouring it eagerly. Thanks for posting!
posted by capricorn at 6:09 PM on December 3, 2017


Just watched the Pretzel one, which was fascinating. There is an excellent original Pretzel at the Sylvan Beach amusement park on Oneida Lake in New York State.
posted by kinnakeet at 6:40 PM on December 3, 2017 [1 favorite]


I just started watching the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea episode because I loved that ride so very very much as a kid (it's possibly the greatest piece of immersion[1] in the history of WDW) but, HOLY MOTHER OF RABBITS, DOES THIS GUY HAVE AN ANNOYING VOICE. There's something about the tone that tells me he's probably holding his soft palate weirdly high to help his enunciation and man, does that grate on my ears.

[1] no pun intended, for realz
posted by hanov3r at 10:48 AM on December 4, 2017 [1 favorite]


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