The Lost World Of Sid & Marty Krofft, Part 2
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The World Of Sid & Marty Krofft was a new kind of theme park. Unlike the vast expanses of Disneyland, or the nearby Six Flags Over Georgia, The World Of Sid & Marty Krofft was entirely indoors, contained on six levels of the Omni entertainment complex in downtown Georgia.
Guests arrived via the longest free-standing escalator in the world, arriving at carnival-themed Fantasy Fair Terrace on the top floor.
Entrance and Fantasy Fair
The next three levels were Tranquility Terrace, loosely inspired by the Bugaloos’ Tranquility Forest, featuring circus acts and a fantasy carousel with “crystal” animals made of clear resin.
Continuing downward, guests found themselves in Uptown, home of The Great Pinball Ride, a dark ride that placed guests inside the ball for a trip through a giant pinball machine.
Also in Uptown was a theater, with live stage shows featuring Krofft characters.
The Harlem Globetrotters were not a Krofft creation, but they definitely fit comfortably in that world. Couldn’t you see Meadowlark Lemon and Curly Neal turning up in the Land Of The Lost?
Below that was Lidsville, based on one of the Krofft’s crazier creations, and finally, the basement level contained Living Island Adventure, another dark ride featuring possibly the Krofft’s best-known creation, H.R. Pufnstuf.
No pictures seem to exist from within the Living Island Adventure; this is the best we could find.
Throughout the park were “street” performers, face-painters, and even more Krofft characters. Performers like Patty Maloney, known for playing “Honk” on The Far-Out Space Nuts (as well as “Lumpy” from The Star Wars Holiday Special), were frequently seen in costume, along with other little-people performers who populated Krofft shows.
The World Of Sid & Marty Krofft opened with a star-studded gala on May 23, 1976.
Ernest and Tovah Borgnine riding the Crystal Carousel
Few could have predicted what happened next…
This storyline, and the accompanying blog posts, have necessitated a ton of research. We have tried to present information as accurately as possible (while adhering to our principle of “erring on the side of comedy”), and apologize for any errors.
To see more, you guys gotta check out the Facebook group, I went to “The World of Sid and Marty Krofft” in Atlanta, GA.
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