Made with FlowPaper - Flipbook Maker
SPECIAL CENTENNIAL ISSUE Celebrate the Past. Build the Future.Funworld is a member benefit of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. IAAPA Closes the Book on Its First Century As IAAPA celebrates its centennial in 2018, take a look back through its first 100 years of history to understand how the association adapted with the industry, grew its scope and services, and served its members in myriad ways. In addition, see how certain leaders of distinction helped shape IAAPA’s past, present, and future. page 3 38What Does IAAPA Mean to You? Funworld asks members to share how the association has influenced their businesses and their careers 52Build the Future (Literally) IAAPA’s new global headquarters in Orlando will establish a solid foundation to start the association’s next century 56Mission in Motion IAAPA leaders share insight into the organization’s future 60Look Forward with Fresh Eyes Young leaders envision the next 100 years 66‘The Best Experience I Ever Had’ The IAAPA Foundation continues its mission and looks ahead DEPARTMENTS LETTER FROM THE CEO … 2 TIM’S TURN … 68Rope Drop Step into the Past Through the years, IAAPA has adopted numerous names, including the “National Association of Amusement Parks, Pools, and Beaches,” and has grown to include members from around the world. Read more about IAAPA’s 100-year history and the global community that shaped today’s association on p. 11. Funworld (ISSN 08923752; mailed in Canada under IPM #0902179) is published monthly, except in December, by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, 9205 Southpark Center Loop, Suite 300, Orlando, FL 32819; phone: +1 321/319-7600. Periodicals postage paid at Orlando, Fl., and additional offices. The purpose, function, and nonprofit status of this organization have not changed during the preceding 12 months. Postmaster: Send address changes to Funworld, 9205 Southpark Center Loop, Suite 300, Orlando, FL 32819. Subscriptions are available to IAAPA members for US$82.50 and US$110 for nonmembers. Single issues are $10. ©2018 International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. No material or part thereof may be reproduced or printed without the written consent of IAAPA. Ride-along may be enclosed. DISCLAIMER . IAAPA makes no rep- resentations or warranties about the accuracy or suitability of any informa- tion or materials in this publication; all such content is provided on an “as is” basis. IAAPA hereby disclaims all warranties regarding the contents of this publication, including with- out limitation all warranties of title, non-infringement, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose. IAAPA does not guarantee, warrant, or endorse the information, prod- ucts, or services of any corporation, organization, or person. IAAPA shall not be liable for any loss, damage, injury, claim, or otherwise, whether an action in contract or tort and fur- ther shall not be liable for any lost profits, or direct, indirect, special, punitive, or consequential damages of any kind (including without limitation attorneys’ fees and expenses). 9205 Southpark Center Loop, Suite 300 Orlando, FL USA 32819 +1 321/319-7600 The International Association of Amusement Parks and Atttactions Editorial Assistant Juanita Chavarro Arias JChavarroArias@ IAAPA.org News Editor Keith Miller KMiller@IAAPA.org Contributing Editors Mike Bederka michaelbederka@ gmail.com Juliana Gilling julianagilling@ gmail.com Production Manager Michelle Wandres mwandres@ publishingsolutions.us Director, Advertising Sales Brian Skepton +1 321/319-7644 BSkepton@IAAPA.org Manager, Digital Content and Strategy Prasana William PWilliam@IAAPA.org Funworld Magazine Staff Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Schoolfield JSchoolfield@IAAPA.org Managing Editor Scott Fais SFais@IAAPA.org www.IAAPA.org/Funworld IAAPA Chairman of the Board Andreas Andersen, ICAE IAAPA President and CEO Paul Noland, ICAE IAAPA Chief Operating Officer Doug Stagner, ICAE IAAPA Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications David Mandt DMandt@IAAPA.org IAAPA Vice President, Asia-Pacific Operations June Ko IAAPA Vice President, Europe, Middle East, Africa Operations Jakob Wahl IAAPA Vice President, Latin American Operations Paulina Reyes IAAPA Senior Vice President, North American Operations Karen Staley www.IAAPA.orgFunworld | www.IAAPA.org/Funworld 2 Letter from the CEO This is a monumental year for our association as we celebrate 100 years of serving the attractions industry. Not many organizations of any size, shape, or form reach such a milestone, so we should all be proud of the work we’ve done together in maintaining and growing IAAPA’s mission and impact. This issue of Funworld is unlike any we’ve ever pub- lished before. It eschews our traditional monthly format to rather highlight our centennial theme of “Celebrate the Past. Build the Future.” Inside, you will find a complete timeline of our 100-year history; leafing through these pages, I was fascinated to see how much the association has changed, but also reminded of how our core principles and mission have remained the foundation for all we do. Whether in 1918 or 2018, IAAPA’s goal is to help you produce the safest, most innovative, and enjoyable guest experiences the world has ever seen. I’m also excited for you to see the plans we have for what lies ahead. As this issue states, we are quite literally in the midst of building IAAPA’s future. In the coming months, we will begin construction on the association’s new global headquarters here in Orlando, a building that will allow us to do even more for you in the years to come, and allow you to engage even more with us. With so much enthusiasm surrounding IAAPA and our global industry right now, this centennial celebration is a great reminder of where we’ve come from and how much we’ve accomplished together—decade after decade—in service of this amazing business. I can’t wait to see what our next 100 years have in store! Sincerely, Paul Noland IAAPA President and CEO Dear IAAPA Members: Much to Celebrate3 www.IAAPA.org/Funworld | Funworld IAAPA Closes the Book on Its First Century An industry and an association grow together IAAPA may have been known by several different names over the course of its first 100 years, but the trade association’s mission remained steadfast: serving its members in the attractions industry. From its initial meetings in 1918 right through to its most recent conference and trade show, the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions brings the entire industry together to provide connection, inspiration, and growth. The association has also grown dramatically over the years, matching pace with the industry it supports. In this special issue of Funworld celebrating the associa- tion’s centennial, industry historian Jim Futrell chronicles both sides of that rela- tionship, demonstrating how trends in the global leisure business were reflected in IAAPA’s evolution into the world’s largest trade association for fixed-site attrac- tions. In addition, industry journalist Tim O’Brien, himself a member of the IAAPA Hall of Fame, profiles more than a dozen leaders of distinction who made signifi- cant contributions to the association during its first century. Please turn the page and join us as we “Celebrate the Past”! Timeline by Jim Futrell “Leaders of Distinction” Profiles by Tim O’BrienFunworld | www.IAAPA.org/Funworld 4 1908 | The organization’s second annual meeting took place in September where the members voted to eliminate the initiation fee and reduce the annual dues. The National Amusement Park Association quietly disbanded not long after. It was obviously an organization ahead of its time as the industry was still too wedded to the transportation companies that were so critical to the initial growth. Chapter 1 Birth of an Industry As IAAPA celebrates its centennial, the association is part of the attractions industry’s rich global legacy stretching back more than 500 years. The industry’s roots come from the pleasure gardens that spread throughout European cities from the 1500s to the early 1800s. They provided a place to escape teeming cities and featured many attractions familiar to us today, including landscaped gardens, live entertainment, fireworks, dancing, games, and even predecessors to the merry-go-round, roller coaster, and Ferris wheel. This legacy remains in places like Bakken, outside Copenhagen, Denmark, which opened in 1583, and the Prater in Vienna, which dates back to 1766; Mack Rides, meanwhile, started manufacturing show wagons in 1780. Pleasure gardens migrated to North America in the late 1700s, but it was not until the latter half of the 1800s that amusement parks began to truly emerge as their own industry. In the years following the American Civil War, transportation companies began developing pleasure resorts to generate traffic. The trolley park was born with the development of the first successful electric street railway, and amusement parks spread rapidly through the United States. Seaside resorts offering more extended getaways opened throughout the United States and England. Chicago’s World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893 and the emergence of Coney Island in New York as the center of the amusement park universe brought global attention to this emerging sector. With new parks opening worldwide at a rapid clip, companies began forming to supply equipment to these new operations. It was obvious a new industry was emerging, and its members needed to speak with one voice. 1907 | In September, an article appeared in Street Railway Journal proposing the start of an organization of the owners of “open-air amusement interests in North America.” The purpose would be to “advance mutual interests in securing information for the use of its members regarding construction of various devices, the booking of the best European and American attractions, and the discussion of best business methods in management.” An organizational meeting was held in October in New York City where the name, National Amusement Park Association, was adopted along with eight organizational principles. Many bear a strong resemblance to the priorities of today’s IAAPA, such as government relations and sharing of effective business practices in areas like landscaping, crowd control, and employment. Other priorities, however, reflected a different era— coordinated booking of live entertainment, the association’s top priority, and ensuring each facility contained a “woman’s building, where women and children may be cared for, and where, if necessary, a trained nurse may be provided.” The first general meeting was held Nov. 14. Among the officers was Andrew McSwigan of Kennywood, who would go on to help found IAAPA a decade later. A newly formed statistics committee sent a 40-question survey to all members. Permanent offices were established in New York City. 190819075 www.IAAPA.org/Funworld | Funworld Chapter 2 1916 191719181919 An Identity Emerges By the 1910s, the amusement industry had matured. Transportation companies, which looked at amusement parks as a sideline, were exiting the business, and a new generation of entrepreneurs was acquiring the facilities as its primary business. As consumer demand and technology continued to evolve, the focus of amusement parks shifted from passive attractions such as concerts and dancing to amusement rides, and amusement parks began taking on the identity we know today. With businesspeople now running amusement parks as their primary source of income, they came to the common realization that there were looming threats to their operations and they needed to speak with one voice, set standards for high-quality operations, and share operational ideas. 1916 | More than 600 outdoor showmen from North America and Europe gathered at New York’s Hotel Astor in December, where the call was put out to organize like most other industries to present a unified front and protect their interests. The group adopted the name Association of Outdoor Showmen of the World. 1917 | The showmen reassembled in Chicago in February to formal- ize the organization, adopting the name National Outdoor Show- men’s Association (NOSA). Termed a “protective association,” key con- stituent groups included circuses, carnivals, agents, fairs, showboats, amusement parks, aviation and racing shows, and tent shows. NOSA quickly demonstrated its value the next month when it was able to present a unified front and defeat a proposed amusement tax in Missouri. Proposed restrictions during World War I, including the elimination of traveling shows as non-essential to the war effort along with proposed limitations on man- ufactured goods, prompted a meeting of a Special War Emergencies Committee in December. “Clean amuse- ments are just as necessary to the health of a nation as clothing or food,” said NOSA Secretary Frank Albert. 1918 | A committee of park operators gathered in June in New York City to discuss issues vital to the amusement park business. The result was the formation of a Park Division within the National Outdoor Showmen’s Association. This is recognized as the birth of what would become IAAPA. 1919 | Feeling its needs were incompatible with traveling shows, a call was issued by the Park Division of NOSA, in June, to reconvene to restructure the organization to better reflect the interests of fixed-site amusements.Funworld | www.IAAPA.org/Funworld 6 Chapter 3 1920 19211922 The Golden Age By many accounts, the amusement industry en- tered its first Golden Age in the 1920s. With increas- ing prosperity, business grew to record levels, tech- nology made ever more thrilling rides possible, and the large, city-based, family-owned amusement park emerged as the heart of this growing industry. Roller coasters emerged as the king of the park, with drops and twists that were unimaginable just a few years before. The emergence of the automobile impacted the industry, closing dozens of parks that lacked accessibility and room for parking lots and were replaced by newer, more modern amusement parks. Swimming pools became a popular attrac- tion at dozens of amusement parks. 1920 | In January, approximately 20 industry leaders attended a meeting at the Fort Pitt Hotel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where it was decided a new organization devoted to protecting and advancing the best interests of America’s amusement parks should be formed. At its annual meeting in Chicago a month later, NOSA dissolved, and the National Association of Amusement Parks (NAAP) was formed. Andrew S. McSwigan of Kennywood was named the organization’s president and Alfred R. Hodge of Riverview Amusement Park in Chicago appointed secretary. Forty people attended the first meeting, which offered eight edu- cational sessions including publicity, picnics, reducing liability insurance, and yes, taxes. 1921 | The imposition of Blue Laws, forcing busi- nesses to close on Sunday, was a major topic at the second annual meeting in February. The growth of the association was evident. Membership had doubled, attendance increased from 40 to 150, 20 educational sessions were presented, and manufacturers were invited to display their latest inventions. “We will not stop until we drive out the bad concessionaire and every other objectionable feature from our parks. We will fight the Blue Law agitation and offer all encouragement to the inven- tors of new and good park devices,” said McSwigan. The annual meeting was moved to December in response to manufacturers seeking to reach a greater number of showmen. The first formal trade show was held with 42 exhibitors. The fight against Blue Laws continued. “We believe that if a rich man can ride his horse on Sunday, a poor man should have the same right to ride on a merry-go- round horse,” said Billboard magazine. In his annual address, McSwigan stated: “An amusement park is a legitimate agency of public recreation and a large factor in the peace and happiness of its public. All unclean things in amusement parks must positively be wiped out. This is one of our aims.” 1922 | The December convention expanded from two to three days, and the association adopted a “Clean Up Resolution.” Sessions included an overview of the history of the industry by R.S. Uzzell and best practices for the inspection of roller coasters and other amusement rides. The first participants from outside the United States (from Canada) attended, and President McSwigan spoke of his vision for a “convention in a large hall” along with “a vast exposition consisting of several hundreds of [booths] where the latest devices and park goods would be exhibited.” His dream would take 50 years to be realized. “An amuse- ment park is a legitimate agency of public recreation and a large factor in the peace and happi- ness of its public. All unclean things in amusement parks must posi- tively be wiped out. This is one of our aims.” — Andrew S. McSwigan7 www.IAAPA.org/Funworld | Funworld 1923 192419251926 1923 | The first European attendees arrived at the annual meeting when F.F. Bussey pre- sented a paper on Amusements in England and the British Empire Exhibition, while Wil- liam G. Bean from Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, United Kingdom, discussed the difference between British and American amusements. Bean joined the association following the convention, becoming the first member from outside North America. 1924 | Manufacturers and suppliers held their first official meeting to address “battles royal between various manufacturers.” This led to the creation of a separate Manufacturers Section within the organization. For the first time, more than 100 booths filled the trade show floor. 1925 | The industry held its first Na- tional Kiddies Day promotion in which parks throughout the country offered special attractions and promotions for children on the same day in August. The NAAP adopted a singular National Kiddies Day at the 1924 meeting based on success parks had in hosting their own. 1926 | Showing that some things never change, one of the educational sessions was on “The Ambulance Chaser and How to Eliminate Him.”Next >