Hanna-Barbera Land Explained

Hanna-Barbera Land
Resort:	Spring, Texas, U.S.
Coordinates:	30.07°N -95.432°W
Theme:	Hanna-Barbera
Owner:	Kings Entertainment Company
General Manager:	Joseph Barbera
Status:	Closed

Hanna-Barbera Land was a theme park based on the cartoons of the Hanna-Barbera animation studio. It was located in the Spring, Texas, United States, north of Houston,^[1] and operated for the 1984 and 1985 seasons. After the park's closure following the 1985 season, the rides were sold and the land was reused as a water park, which is now operating as Six Flags Hurricane Harbor SplashTown.

History

Subsections of larger theme parks featured characters from the Hanna-Barbera animation studio prior to 1984, primarily the parks owned by Taft Broadcasting such as Kings Island (1972), Kings Dominion (1975), Carowinds (1975), and Canada's Wonderland (1981).

The standalone theme park in Spring was built by Taft Broadcasting,^[2] which became the Kings Entertainment Company as of opening.^[3] Kings also owned the Australia's Wonderland, Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island theme parks. The park was open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. except Saturdays, when the park closed at 10 p.m. The 1984 season lasted until Labor Day.^[4] Admission was for children and adults from Sunday through Friday, rising to on Saturdays; one grandparent was admitted free with each paid admission.^[5]

Despite increased attendance in 1985, a number of factors led to the park's closure. An oil bust in the early 1980s severely impacted the economy of the Greater Houston area, along with competition with the well-established and more centrally-located AstroWorld, as well as minimal spending in the park on concessions, gift shop purchases, and souvenirs all eventually doomed the park.^[6]

The park was sold to private investors and the SplashTown USA water park was built in its place; the water park was sold again to Bryant Morris, then to Six Flags which purchased it in 1999. After initially not wanting to brand and call it "a member of the Six Flags family," Six Flags eventually decided to re-brand it as Six Flags SplashTown. In 2007 it was sold to PARC Management, which renamed it to Wet N' Wild Splashtown. After the park returned to Six Flags management as part of a 2019 operating agreement, it was rebranded Six Flags Hurricane Harbor SplashTown.^[7]

Attractions

Visitors entered the park through a large rainbow archway.^[8]

The park featured:

• A character carousel, including Jabberjaw, Dino, and Yogi Bear^[9]
• A Scooby-Doo roller coaster, now at California's Great America as Woodstock's Express
• Boulder Bumpers
• Silly Stix, an enormous jungle gym of sorts that looked like it was constructed out of giant Tinker Toys;^{[10] [11]} it was repainted and rebranded as "Pepsi Pavilion" for the replacement water park.^[12]
• H.B.L. Funliner^{[13] [14]}
• The Funsonium, a "do-seum" designed by Edwin Schlossberg^[15] which housed interactive and educational hands-on games and experiences such as Your Name in Lights and You Are the Star; in addition, a continuous feed of Scooby-Doo cartoons was shown^[4]
• Pedal boats with themed characters including Snagglepuss, Quick Draw McGraw, and Huckleberry Hound^{[16] [17]}
• Water body slides, added for 1985^[18]
• Puppet shows
• Papa Smurf's Forest restaurant
• A live Keystone Cops brass band (branded the 'Kops of Komedy')^[4] that performed Hanna Barbera theme songs
• 'Rufus the Rainmaker', a live performance featuring the "leading authority in the art of rainmaking"^[4]

External links

• • Web site: Hanna Barbera Land - 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr. August 1984 .

Notes and References

1. News: Gill . Julian . What it looked like to vacation in Houston as a kid in the 1970s and 80s . . January 3, 2019 . December 21, 2019.
2. A New Generation of Theme Parks Rolls In . Schwab III . N. . April 1983 . . . 0042-0891 . 8.
3. Book: Clavé, Salvador Anton . The Global Theme Park Industry . CABI p. 121 . 2007 . 978-1-8459-3210-7.
4. News: Hanna Barbera Land adds three attractions to park . July 29, 1984 . Longview News-Journal . March 14, 2022.
5. News: Hanna Barbera land in Houston is now open . May 18, 1984 . Shreveport Times . March 14, 2022.
6. Web site: The 1980s Oil Bust Almost Broke Houston. Almost . June 2020 . Houstonia Magazine.
7. News: Takahashi . Paul . Six Flags to rename, renovate Wet 'n' Wild Splashtown . . February 12, 2019 . December 21, 2019.
8. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
9. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
10. Book: Davenport, John C. . Houston: Your Complete Guide to Texas' Largest City . Texas Monthly Press p. 73 . 1985 . 978-0-9320-1280-7.
11. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
12. Web site: Splashtown . Carbon-izer . Fall 2009 . March 22, 2022.
13. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
14. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
15. Mr. Caroline Kennedy, Renaissance Man . April 1987 . Friend, Tad . Tad Friend . 28–36 . Spy . 0890-1759 . Spy Publishing Partners, L.P. . New York, New York . March 22, 2022.
16. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
17. Web site: Houston, TX - Hanna Barbera Land . August 1984 . Syverson, Larry . flickr . March 22, 2022.
18. For Children . May 1985 . Texas Monthly . 73 . March 22, 2022.