KIRMES & Park REVUE (English) Special Ikarus (Vorschau)

IN MEMORIAM
“Polyp” and the
suspended Ghost Ride
“Fliegender Teppich”
At Phantasialand:
gondola ride “1001 Nacht”
and the water ride
1967. Our wives gave us all
the required support. At first,
we wanted them to join us in
the tour of the park along with
the guests of honour, but the
rush of visitors was simply too
great, and so they sold ice
cream and popcorn clad in
cocktail dresses”. The visitors
were enchanted by the
scenes in the fairytale forest,
experienced an artful puppet
theatre on the open-air stage, or enjoyed themselves
in the adventure playground. They were also
able to do a round-the-world tour in a veteran car,
go on the western-style railroad to the cowboys and
Indian venue, or enjoy a Viking boat ride, or a bathtub
ride on the lake. There were days when the
streets all around Brühl were blocked for many kilometres.
Even in the early morning hours, lines of
cars rushed in the direction of Phantasialand.
Richard Schmidt stood inconsolably at the Autobahn
exit and waved the disappointed families on
when the park had already been closed due to overcrowding.
Nobody could have guessed that the
small fairytale park would develop into one of the
largest amusement parks in Europe over the next 40
years.
Löffelhardt, together with his parents, continued to
operate his successful showman emporium in addition
to the newly opened Phantasialand. In 1966,
the Memmingen Klaus firm built a “Polyp” for Löffelhardt.
As he was not satisfied with the delivered
metal sheet gondolas, the Phantasialand employee
Hoffmann created the typical fish-chaise, which was
then installed in both Löffelhardt “Polyp” rides. In the
meantime, the shape was copied by numerous firms
and can be found today on many Polyp rides and
Ghost Rides. Only twelve years after the disaster
with the Düsenspirale, Löffelhardt purchased a new
ride from Anton Schwarzkopf; the travelling suspended
Ghost Ride “Fliegender Teppich”. It was a
magnificent ride in an oriental design, equipped
with a lushly decorated façade and marked the
beginning of a long-term, trustful and friendly cooperation
between Gottlieb Löffelhardt and Anton
Schwarzkopf, which proved to be very successful.
On September 17 th 1969, Gottlieb Löffelhardt suffered
a cruel blow of fate when his parents, Gottlieb
and Hertha Löffelhardt, died in a serious traffic accident
near Hiltpoltstein on their way to the Munich
Oktoberfest. Notwithstanding this tragedy, the park
was extended thereafter from year to year.
In 1970, the Schwarzkopf Gondola Ride “1001
Nacht” was added, which was modelled on the suspended
Ghost Ride “Fliegender Teppich” and the
“Alt-Berlin” theme area was inaugurated. Henceforth,
the “Phantasialand-Jet” Monorail, built in Münsterhausen
as was the Gondola Ride, supplemented
the compliment at the Phantasialand. On the fairgrounds
however, the brand new, imposing “Geister
Rikscha” from Mack went into operation, which
was to be the last newly purchased travelling ride
for the Löffelhardt Betriebe. A cooperation was embarked
upon with the Rick firm from Hannover, and
together they operated the “Jumbo Jet” coaster –
huge by the standards of that time – until they were
able to sell it to the USA. As Gottlieb Löffelhardt decided
to concentrate on the park from then on, the
first notices of sale appeared. One of the two Klaus
“Polyp” rides was built up in Phantasialand, while
the remaining attractions – including materials –
were sold. Shortly after the opening of Phantasialand,
Löffelhardt and Schmidt made further investments,
as the amusement park industry continued
to boom. They invested for example, about three
quarters of a million into the first German Lion Park
in Tüddern, run by the animal trainer and artist Hans
Rosenberg, to offer the Germans the pleasure of a
safari. As another investment, Gottfried Löffelhardt
bought a share in the “Playcenter” in São Paulo,
Brazil. Due to the energetic support from Gottlieb
Löffelhardt and the numerous used rides from German
manufacturers that he brought to Brazil, the
São Paulo Park became a top venue. The park in
Brühl-Badorf continued to grow. When the first water
ride in Germany was built by Löffelhardt himself,
it provided the park visitors a welcome cooling down
in summer. In the western theme area, the large An-
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