Six Flags Over Texas

250px|right|thumb|Main park entrance to Six Flags Over Texas during their 50th Anniversary.
Six Flags Over Texas is a 212-acre (86 ha) theme park located in Arlington, Texas, east of Fort Worth and about 15 miles (24 km) west of Dallas. It was the first Six Flags Theme Park, but because of later acquisitions it is not the oldest park of the Six Flags chain (that particular title is held by Six Flags New England). The park opened on August 5, 1961, following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate developer Angus G. Wynne, Jr.
Since its opening, Six Flags Over Texas has consistently performed well in terms of attendance and revenue, despite its history of ever-changing owners and expansions. The park currently has several amusement rides and attractions, bringing in thousands of visitors daily.
The park is managed, but not owned, by the Six Flags Entertainment Corp., in an arrangement similar to that for Six Flags Over Georgia. Six Flags Over Texas is owned by a group of approximately 120 limited partners—some the heirs of Angus G. Wynne. Starting in 1991, the park was managed by Time Warner Entertainment. In 1998, Time Warner sold its interests in the Six Flags parks to Premier Parks of Oklahoma City, which later changed its name to Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc.
==History==
===Initial planning and construction===
Following a visit to Disneyland, in Anaheim, California, shortly after its opening, wealthy real estate developer Angus G. Wynne, Jr. decided that his home state of Texas should have a local park for entertainment. Planning for such a place began in 1959, under the leadership of Wynne and the Great Southwest Corporation, along with the backing of various New York investors. Construction on the park began in August 1960.
thumb|right|The entrance of Six Flags over Texas welcomes visitors while the Oil Derrick observation tower looms in the background.
===Origin of the name===
The name "Six Flags Over Texas" refers to the flags of the six different nations that have governed Texas: Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the United States of America, and the Confederate States of America. Wynne originally intended to name the park "Texas Under Six Flags." Various legends have attributed the name change to his wife Joann; a group called "The Daughters of The Texas Republic" — of which his wife may, or may not, have been a member; or his entertainment director, Charles Meeker, stating that, "Texas isn’t 'under' anything." The original park was divided into six separate themed areas for each of the six governing entities that have ruled over Texas. Although additional themed areas have been added, the original six can still be found within the park.
===Grand opening===
Six Flags Over Texas opened its gates from July 29 to August 4, 1961, to several local corporations that Wynne had invited as part of a "soft-test opening." The park held its grand opening ceremonies on Saturday, August 5, 1961. Dignitaries included the mayors of Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, and Irving. Park attendance reached 8,374. Admission was $2.75 (or $ in ) for adults and $2.25 (or $ in ) for children (cf. admission prices of $62.99 and $47.99 for the 2013 season); parking was 50 cents (or $ in ) (cf. $20.00 in 2013); hamburgers were 35 cents (or $ in ), and soft drinks were 10 cents (or $ in ). On opening day, guests could visit the six original themed sections: Mexico, Spain, France, The Confederacy, Texas, and Modern (representing the USA). According to the 1961 Park Map"1961 Park Map", rcreride.com. there were 46 "major attractions" listed. The park's first season, lasting only 45 days and ending on November 25, 1961, was a success with over 550,000 visitors.
===1960s===
The 1960s were a decade of growth for Six Flags Over Texas. The park added numerous attractions, including two new sections: Boomtown, named after the boomtowns that sprang up rather quickly during Texas' oil boom era, and the "Tower Section", named after the Oil Derrick observation tower built in 1969. The park also witnessed the birth of two classic theme park attractions: El Aserradero in 1963 and the Runaway Mine Train roller coaster in 1966. Attendance reached close to 2 million visitors a year by the end of the decade. Six Flags Over Texas was one of the locations used for filming parts of the theme song for the TV show The Banana Splits in 1968, in which fan club scenes were also live action. In 1969, Six Flags Over Texas was sold by Angus G. Wynne to a new limited partnership managed by Dallas investor Jack Knox.
===1970s===
The park's growth and expansion continued through the 1970s. It was the setting for the opening sequence in the 1971 Sid and Marty Krofft television show Lidsville, in which lead character Mark (Butch Patrick) sees a magician perform in one of the theaters, then sneaks backstage after the magic show, causes the hat to enlarge, falls through it and lands in Lidsville, "the land of living hats."Lidsville Opening Title and End Credits, YouTube The park underwent new management in 1971 with the Penn Central Railroad. The park added two new roller coasters, more rides, and a new section called "Goodtimes Square". The park also removed many of its less popular aging attractions in this decade as well. In 1975, a new mascot, Cyrus Cosmo - the inventor - was created and led many ad campaigns. By 1978, Six Flags Over Texas had had over 30 million visitors.
===1980s===
The 1980s were another period of change for Six Flags Over Texas. The park added three roller coasters as well as a children's section themed after Pac-Man in 1983 and later changed to Looney Tunes in 1985. Six Flags Over Texas also introduced three popular festivals in this decade. Spring Breakout, introduced in 1984, brought live bands and excitement to the park for students on Spring Break. Six Flags also introduced Fright Fest and Holiday in the Park to increase attendance and extend the season.
===1990s===
The 1990s was a rather rough decade in comparison from decades past. The decade started off with a bang when Six Flags Over Texas introduced the Texas Giant roller coaster. After a record year, Six Flags Over Texas went into a lull with management changes and name changes as the Looney Tunes characters began to take over starting in 1991. The Spee-lunker's Cave was restructured to feature Looney Tunes characters in place of the Spee's who had inhabited the ride since the early days of the park—the park was managed by Time Warner Entertainment. In 1998, Six Flags Over Texas started it off with its addition of Mr. Freeze. When the ride opened it was one of the most technology advanced roller coasters with lims propelling it forward.Time Warner sold its interests in the Six Flags parks to Premier Parks of Oklahoma City, which later changed its name to Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc. In the late 90s, the park experienced a period of growth by adding new coasters and rides. Six Flags Over Texas also introduced FastLane, later Flash Pass, which was similar to FastPass at Disney theme parks. Many of these new additions (including the new Gotham City section) were far from the original Six Flags Over Texas theme. By the end of the decade, Six Flags Over Texas had added ten roller coasters to its list of attractions.
===2000s===
During the first decade of the 21st century, Looney Tunes USA was restructured. In 2001, the park introduced its tallest, fastest, longest roller coaster, Titan. Built by Giovanola of Switzerland, it climbs and features a top speed of . It is the tallest, fastest, longest roller coaster in the park and in the state of Texas. In 2002, the park kicked off the Best of Texas Festival, which brought Texas history back to the park. The park has also made steps toward bringing back the past when they reopened Casa Magnetica. In 2003 Six Flags Over Texas opened the Superman Tower of Power. This was the tallest ride of its kind in the world at the time of its opening. In 2006, the park celebrated its 45th Anniversary by adding ten new attractions geared toward families. Since then, Six Flags Over Texas had placed more emphasis on families by offering a daily parade and more characters (including Scooby-Doo and the Justice League). Six Flags Over Texas also introduced Festival Latino. For 2007 and 2008, Six Flags Over Texas was home to "Cirque Dreams Coobrila", a high energy cirque-acrobatic-type show housed in the Music Mill Amphitheater. On May 17, 2008, Six Flags Over Texas introduced its first roller coaster in seven years, called Tony Hawk's Big Spin.Sixflags.com In 2009, debuted the "Glow in the Park Parade", a nighttime parade filled with thousands of lights.
===2010s===
In early 2010, the Texas Giant roller coaster was closed to be renovated into a super-hybrid coaster and was reopened on April 22, 2011, as the NEW Texas Giant for the park's 50th anniversary.Texas Giant Opening April 22 In late 2010, Six Flags began the process of removing licensed theming from attractions. They terminated several licenses including their licenses with Tony Hawk. Tony Hawk's Big Spin was renamed Pandemonium in the middle of the 2011 season. Mr. Freeze was closed briefly to feature new backwards facing trains. The newly named Mr. Freeze Reverse Blast reopened on May 12, 2012.
On August 2, 2012, Six Flags Over Texas announced the last chance to ride Flashback and Texas Chute Out was September 3, 2012. On August 30, 2012, Six Flags announced the park will be adding the world's tallest swing ride at tall, called Texas SkyScreamer. Texas Skyscreamer is located in Goodtime's Square, in the place of the former Texas Chute Out. It features a Texas theme with red, white, and blue colors, along with a giant star with six other flags all on top of the tower. Texas SkyScreamer opened on May 25, 2013.
On August 29, 2013, Six Flags officially announced that they would expand their kids area into Bugs' Bunny Boomtown. The park will also add Wahoo Racer, a new water slide to the adjacent Hurricane Harbor park. In late March 2014, Six Flags Over Texas announced for a limited time in 2014 Batman: The Ride will become Batman: The Ride Backwards, as the park will reverse the trains.
On August 28, 2014, Six Flags announced "Justice League: Battle for Metropolis", a dark ride themed to the Justice League for the 2015 season.
==References==
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