  :"great adventure" redirects here. for various plays, albums, movies, television shows see the great adventure six flags great adventure is a theme park located in jackson township, new jersey, owned by six flags entertainment corp. situated between new york city and philadelphia, the park complex also contains the hurricane harbor water park. the park opened in 1974 under restaurateur warner leroy. six flags took over ownership of the park in 1977. today, the park contains eleven themed areas, three of which are designed for small children. on august 30, 2012, six flags combined its  great adventure park with its  wild safari animal park to form the  great adventure & safari park, making it the largest theme park in the world. the premises of the park has been used for concerts. notable artists that have performed at six flags great adventure include the ramones, the beach boys, heart, kansas, cheap trick, joan jett and alice cooper. ==history== thumb|right|view of great adventure from the top of the ferris wheel, looking southeast === warner leroy era (1974â1977) === in 1972, inventor warner leroy developed concept plans for the great adventure entertainment complex, proposing seven parks be built within the complex: an amusement park, a safari park, a show park, a floral park, a sports complex, a shopping district, and a campground with beach and stables.{{cite web|url=http://greatadventurehistory.com/great%20adventure%20pre%201972.htm|publisher=great adventure history|accessdate=february 24, 2012|year=2012|title=great 
1974_establishments_in_New_Jersey Amusement_parks_in_New_Jersey Buildings_and_structures_in_Ocean_County,_New_Jersey Jackson_Township,_New_Jersey Six_Flags_Great_Adventure Six_Flags_amusement_parks Visitor_attractions_in_Ocean_County,_New_Jersey