Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt "What do you all think about it...?" I haven't had a chance to read everyone else's opinons but I see no logical reason why Disney should buy MM. The park would need an incredible financial investment to bring it up to even Disney's lowest standards. And chances are the returns would not be stellar. If Six Flags doesn't want it, then why would Disney?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros If it's good enough for Six Flags not to want it, then it's good enough for Disey to not want it.
Originally Posted By indysoarin19 Disney shouldn't buy MM, plain and simple. It would diminish the Disney image and look. I was at MM last Thursday and was disappointed with what I saw. Multiple major coasters only running one or two trains, poor customer service in several areas, and trashy looking areas. I did a sort of photo tour and took pictures of the terrible condition Colossus is in. The past several years have made a pattern at MM: Build a sweet coaster, drop it into place, and move on to the next one while not caring for older attractions. Viper and Riddler are perfect examples of this. Refurbishments never occur at MM. People were hoping that Revolution was going to get some TLC this past winter, but they just closed it to accomodate Tatsu construction. The customer service for my season pass renewal and a locker were very poor, sending me to various locations. Managers there look like they are 17. Metal detectors are always a reminder of MM's clientele and the numerous incidents that have occurred there. Universal won't buy MM because they aren't all that interested in their own parks anyway. Cedar Fair would have come to the rescue, but they bought the Paramount Parks chain for 1 billion+ dollars. The best scenario, but it won't happen. Tussaud's Group has been mentioned, but I doubt they will be able to pull off a purchase. Busch won't do it, as it doesn't fit with their family-style parks. Newhall Land and Farming, the developers of Valencia, have soured on MM in recent years and probably wouldn't mind seeing that land become housing. Unfortunately, this looks like the most realistic scenario if a sales transaction takes place.
Originally Posted By TinksBestFriend I have no idea who would by MM but I would like to see the students at Cal Arts (just down Interstate 5) let loose on it.
Originally Posted By wonderingalice I mentioned the sale of MM to my KC coaster buddy this morning... Asked her if she'd like to buy a home where the Viper (which used to be our favorite) sat and she just said, "I don't think I would like to buy a house where many people have been throwing up!" *LOL* Good point. And another fine example of why the purcase of MM would not fit with Disney's theme park philosophy.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I wonder if the city of Valencia might not take it over for a few years, let it be managed by some other company? That's what happened with Great America in Santa Clara when Marriott got out of the theme park business.
Originally Posted By Skippy Here's a crazy idea - sell it to the land developers, but only on the condition that the rides stay! Who wouldn't want a house within the superstructure of Colossus? Penthouse apartments in that tower thingy? Log cabins in and around the Gold Rusher coaster? Commute to work by taking the X train! Well like I said, it's a crazy idea...
Originally Posted By a1stav I know many of you here don't care for the place, but I feel it would be a tremendous loss to amusement park enthusiasts every where. Please sign the petition to keep the doors open. <a href="http://www.petitiononline.com/SaveMM/petition.html" target="_blank">http://www.petitiononline.com/ SaveMM/petition.html</a>
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt So a petition has been started demanding that a park be kept open that is a financial drain on its parent organization? Boy, that makes a lot of sense. BTW, when did MM become a destination for people from all around the world?
Originally Posted By oc_dean A history lesson on destroying Southern California icons......... MGM Studios in it's heydey (backlot and all)..... <a href="http://www.culvercity.org/cityinfo/history/images/big_mgm_lot2.gif" target="_blank">http://www.culvercity.org/city info/history/images/big_mgm_lot2.gif</a> What mostly rose in it's place by today.... <a href="http://www.aavirtualoffice.com/SQLImages/ListNow/MainPhoto-Normal/335816.jpg" target="_blank">http://www.aavirtualoffice.com /SQLImages/ListNow/MainPhoto-Normal/335816.jpg</a> A sea of generic condos!
Originally Posted By ChiMike >>BTW, when did MM become a destination for people from all around the world?<< I believe selling MM is one of the first bright things Shapiro has proposed. I think it is a huge problem for the company going forward and would love to see it and a few other parks out of the chain. Even though SF Great Adventure is an impressive park and the new flagship park for the chain, I do believe my home park, SF Great America, to be the best all-around park in the chain. In addition SF St. Louis is an exceptional little park with very clean standards and great staff. Getting rid of deadweight like SFMM only helps these other parks. However, as a coaster guy, Hans it does stink to see a place with the collection of coasters and history that MM has go away like Astroworld. I think SFMM needs to be put out of it's misery but it's hard to deny that it is a much more popular destination for tourists than a Six Flags St. Louis. Disney should build Tijuana Disneyland before they even think about buying MM.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt I personally think the closure of MM will be of little consequence to anyone who didn't grow up or spend time living in Southern California. Unless you are a coaster buff MM is completely over rated.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt Seems to me that Six Flags is in a desperate situation. According an article in Los Angeles Business the company's finances are still in terrible shape and year-to-date attendance is down from last year. >>Visitor counts dropped by as much as 1.3 million through June 18 at parks owned by the second-largest U.S. theme-park operator, a 13 percent decline from last year, the company said. Ticket sales suffered as Six Flags tried to keep rowdy teenagers out of its parks, executives told media, but the visitors who do come to the parks are spending an average of $4.12 more at the parks this year than last. The company said it's close to violating terms of $1.04 billion of its loans and is negotiating amendments with its banks. It will boost spending this year by $15 million on top of a $45 million increase already planned to hire staff and lure back customers. The company has about $2.1 billion in debt, owns 3,500 acres of excess land that it's looking to sell, and is hoping to drop debt down to $1.6 billion. Shapiro also told media that the company probably won't meet its earlier forecast of $340 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization this year.<< <a href="http://washington.bizjournals.com/losangeles/stories/2006/06/19/daily45.html" target="_blank">http://washington.bizjournals. com/losangeles/stories/2006/06/19/daily45.html</a>
Originally Posted By ChiMike >>I personally think the closure of MM will be of little consequence to anyone who didn't grow up or spend time living in Southern California. Unless you are a coaster buff MM is completely over rated<< And that I agree with, I just don't think the coaster buffs should be so severly discounted. Magic Mountain HAS BEEN a destination for a larger segment of the market that it has been meant to appeal to. The problem is that most believe correctly that it is the wrong market to begin with.
Originally Posted By walt01 For anyone that has lived in So. Cal for any length of time, they may remember also, P.O.P, or Pacific ocean park in Santa Monica. If anyone wants to see what it looked like, the last episode of "The fugitive"(the episode with the one armed man) was filmed there, as well as a "Get Smart" episode that did their own version. As to Magic Mountain, I think its rep was placed in stone a long time ago. Personally, for those that think that Disneyland is for kids, and therefore stay away- good. Let Walt's quaint, square, un-hip little park stay exactly what it has always been, a place for families to come and have fun. I think Disney learned a lesson belatedly with DCA, that Magic Mountain has yet to learn. When you market for too narrow an audience, when you use fancy buzz words, like "edgy" and God help us, the much over used "Extreme," to make up for a lack of creativity you might as well build your park on sand. It's transitory, and holds no weight. Magic mountain could be saved, but given greedy, homogenized thinking of most developers in California, it probably won't happen. My only idea, was that Disney buy the propery, re-theme a few of the coasters, and then open it back up as Disney's America. Just a thought..Best regards, Walt o1..
Originally Posted By ArchtMig Magic Mountain has been an important destination for coaster enthusiasts worldwide for a long, long time. I know that crowd alone is not large enough to justify keeping the place open, but it's not like only tattooed punks from SoCal will be the ones mourning the park's loss. Many of the park's coasters are world class. Some of them hold "world record" superlative status of some sort or another. Many of the rest were "world record" holders in their time before someone built coasters elsewhere that took the crown away. Some of them are the very first of their kind. Some of them are unique, one of a kind. If Magic Mountain closes, well over half of their signature rides will be dismantled and sold for scrap, because they are very custom to the mountainous terrain that they were designed for. Among the rides that will be lost: Revolution: First steel coaster with a 360 degree vertical loop. Colossus: At one time, the tallest, fastest wooden coaster worldwide. Goldrusher: Perhaps the first "mine train" type steel coaster, and one of the best of its kind. Ninja: The best suspended coaster when constructed. Viper: The tallest "7 inversion" coaster at the time. Tatsu: Just opened last month - the biggest, fastest, best "flying" coaster anywhere. Superman: The very first ride to break the 100 mph barrier. Yes, the management of Magic Mountain has been attrocious, which has led to its sorry state... but it will be a tremendous loss to the coaster world if those rides and others are destroyed. I would put that on par with losing a beloved, classic ballpark somewhere. Damn the punks that have ruined the place, and damn the management that encouraged the punks and provided the atmosphere that led to their behavior.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss <<When you market for too narrow an audience, when you use fancy buzz words, like "edgy" and God help us, the much over used "Extreme," to make up for a lack of creativity you might as well build your park on sand.>> I don't think that's necessarily true. Cedar Point seems to get along fine with being known as a big coaster park, and it's doing fine. The problem with MM (and Six Flags) has been management, not so much the product they are offering.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA <The company said it's close to violating terms of $1.04 billion of its loans> Sounds like something Dr. Evil would say -- but it's true! Violating terms on one BILLION dollars. Six Flags has a debt load of over a BILLION dollars. That's a lot of parking and full-price admissions. <Many of the park's coasters are world class. Some of them hold "world record" superlative status of some sort or another. Many of the rest were "world record" holders in their time before someone built coasters elsewhere that took the crown away.> Sorry to be so abrupt here. But I gotta tell you, for the average family -- you know, the ones that Six Flags wants to come and visit Magic Mountain -- they don't care. All those stats, while interesting from an historical perspective, are essentially meaningless. It's like those shows on the Food Network. 'If you took all the cherry Twizzlers manufactured in one day, and placed them end-to-end, they'd travel around the world 17 times.' Uh-huh...and how does that impact my enjoyment of a cherry Twizzler?
