Vintage Theme Parks
In celebration of Memorial Day, The Daily Beast looks back at classic amusement parks of summers gone by, from Disneyland to Six Flags.
Getty Images
With their wild roller coasters, snack stands and endless souvenirs, amusement parks have long been an adrenaline seeker’s heaven. Some of the best known opened their doors half a century ago and are here to stay—Coney Island’s Cyclone roller coaster has been going up, down, and around since 1963. And Ryan Gosling isn’t the only famous face to frequent theme parks: Princess Diana braved Disney World’s Splash Mountain, while Clint Eastwood visited Pacific Ocean Park in Los Angeles and, of course, Walt Disney himself enjoyed the spinning tea cups in Anaheim. Here, the Daily Beast compiles the best vintage pictures from parks across the world.
Sunbathing high above the crowds at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York.
Getty Images
Fashion model Twiggy chats up Coco the Clown at the Bertram Mills Circus in London in 1967.
AP Photo
A woman rides the merry-go-round at a theme park, circa 1955.
Hulton Archive / Getty Images
The Cyclone roller coaster at Coney Island, shown here on opening day in 1963, attracts thrill-seekers to this day.
AP Photo
Two spinning rides, the Gyro-Globe and the Airplane Spin, put riders through the wringer in 1953.
AP Photo
Twiggy and her manager/partner avoid fender benders at the Bertram Mills Circus in London.
AP Photo
Walt Disney, along with his wife and daughter, ride one of the spinning tea cups at Disneyland shortly after the park opened.
Gene Lester / Getty Images
The Viper roller coaster at Astroworld Six Flags theme park in Houston looks decidedly old school since 1989.
Gaylon Wampler / AP Photo
Two women on the carousel at Battersea Park in London in 1953.
Carl Sutton / Getty Images
High-school graduation night at Disneyland in 1962.
Ed Widdis / AP Photo
Princess Diana braves Splash Mountain at Disney World, with her son Harry in the front seat, in 1993.
Bob Pearson / Getty Images
Clint Eastwood and his wife, Maggie, take a ride on the Union 76 Ocean Highway at Pacific Ocean Park in Los Angeles, 1959.
CBS Photo Archive / Getty Images
French revelers in swinging seats at an amusement park in Paris in an undated photograph.
Tom Stoddart / Getty Images
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