Six Flags AstroWorld

Roy Hofheinz acquired and developed 116 acres (47 ha) of land, about half of which was developed for an amusement park. AstroWorld opened on June 1, 1968, just south of the Astrodome, creating a multi-facility entertainment complex. Hofheinz hired Randall Duell and Associates as the design consultant for the 57-acre facility. An initial investment of $25 million dollars paid for extensive landscaping and a long pedestrian viaduct spanning the I-610 freeway.[2] AstroWorld's original layout was created by Hollywood designer and architect, Randall Duell.[3] Executives commissioned Ed Henderson, a Disney animator, to build a scale replica of the park as well as design maps for park guests.[4][5] The name AstroWorld was selected following Houston's designation as the home of the Johnson Space Center in 1965, paying homage to the nation's manned space programs.[2]

AstroWorld opened to the public with 50,000 guests visiting the first weekend. Hofheinz enlisted two of his grandchildren to launch the amusement park with the release of 2,000 balloons. An initial workforce of 1,200 collected tickets at a price of $4.50 for adults and $3.50 for children.[2] Two of the park's sixteen rides were not operational on opening day.[6] ABC aired the children's television special The Pied Piper of Astroworld, starring Soupy Sales, Lesley Gore, and Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, and featuring Patrick Swayze in a bear costume as well as The Muppets, on December 28, 1968.[7]

"Astrodomain" refers to an area of south Houston surrounding the Astrodome developed by Roy Hofheinz. He and Robert Everett Scott founded the Houston Sports Association, which lobbied Major League Baseball (MLB) for a local franchise. MLB granted them a franchise contingent on developing a new stadium. Harris County financed the Astrodome through the issue of bonds, and the Houston Sports Association leased the stadium for use by their baseball franchise.[8]

Hofheinz developed Astroworld just to the south of the Astrodome. In addition to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the Astrodomain included four hotels. In 1970, just two years after the opening of Astroworld, Hofheinz survived a stroke. Creditors assumed control of Astrodomain in 1975 after the enterprise piled up $38 million in debt, and Hofheinz liquidated his interest in the company a short time later.[8]

Six Flags purchased AstroWorld in 1975. The next year, Six Flags AstroWorld introduced a new, high-speed roller coaster, the Texas Cyclone. In 1978, the new attraction was Greezed Lightnin', a high-acceleration loop roller coaster.[2]

During Astroworld's first twenty years, it entertained more than thirty million visitors. The amusement park persisted while new competitors in Houston emerged and failed, including: Busch Gardens, Hanna–Barbera Land, and SeaArama Marineworld. Attendance increased during these earlier years.[9]

Demolition of Six Flags AstroWorld in December 2005

On September 12, 2005, Six Flags CEO Kieran Burke announced that AstroWorld would be closed and demolished at the end of the 2005 season. The company cited issues such as declining attendance, rising property value, and conflicts involving off-site parking at Reliant Stadium, which houses the Houston Texans football team and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLSR).[10][11] A contractual agreement that allowed Six Flags patrons to park at Reliant Stadium expired in August 2005, and attempts to extend it failed.[12] CFO Jim Dannhauser cited the expired parking arrangement as a "contributing factor" in the decision to close.[12]

The final date of park operation was October 30, 2005.[4][12] Following the closure, most of the park's assets including rides and equipment were sold in auction.[10] Company executives expected to sell the land for as much as $150 million, but ultimately received less than half of that amount. After spending $20 million to demolish the park and clear the land, Six Flags sold the cleared property for $77 million in 2006 to Angel/McIver Interests, a land development firm based in Conroe, Texas.[13]

In 2009, the former Astroworld site was still vacant. The land tract was reported as taking up 104 acres. The land owners hired real estate consultants, Croswell Torian Commercial Properties, to subdivide and market the property to other developers under the "SouthPoint" brand, though no development had yet occurred.[14]

While the original amusement park site was 57 acres, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLSR), owners of record in 2018, hold 102 acres. All of this land falls between West Bellfort Road, Fannin Street, Kirby Drive, and I-610. Parts of the tract were developed, and other parts were not developed. The original 110-acre tract purchased by Hofheinz was reduced by eight acres, with five acres acquired by Harris County Metro and another piece of the tract on the northwest corner sold to a car dealership. Though the site includes a great field of grass, the land is stabilized and partly paved with asphalt so it can be used as parking.[15]

As of 2018, the HLSR owned the property at the former AstroWorld site. At that time, the real estate tract consisted of 102 acres of cleared land. The HLSR was using some of that property for overflow parking and conveying those visitors over the long pedestrian viaduct, the last remnant of the former amusement park.[16]

The Alpine Sleigh Ride, Astrowheel, and Mill Pond were among the park's original sixteen rides.[6][22] The Alpine Sleigh Ride "[took] passengers in roller coasters fashion over a mountain and through snow storms and waterfalls" and had not been tested for public use before the park's opening day. The water skimmer ride Mill Pond was not operational on opening day for mechanical reasons as well as the late arrival of two "water bug" cars.[6] The Black Dragon also debuted within the first year.[22] Dexter Frebish's Electric Roller Ride was AstroWorld's first major roller coaster.[22]

Bamboo Shoot (formerly Ozarka Splash)[23] was installed in 1969.[24] Installed in 1976,[21] Texas Cyclone was among the largest wooden roller coasters in the U.S. and had a "92-foot life and 53-degree angle drop".[6] During construction a portion of the ride was damaged by a tropical storm, delaying its opening. After the park closed, the coaster's trains were relocated to La Ronde.[25] Greezed Lightnin', installed in 1978,[24] could accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in four seconds.[6]

Thunder River was installed in 1980,[24] has been described as the "first commercially successful river-rapids ride".[26] The ten-story Sky Screamer debuted in 1983. Louis B. Parks of the Houston Chronicle said of the ride at the time: "After being shot to the top of the tower in a super fast elevator ride, you are now about to free fall back to the bottom. As you reach the base of the tower, several weeks ahead of your stomach, you will be swooshed along a curving track, changing your horizon and your bearings, and braked to a quick stop while lying on your back." In 2013, the newspaper's J.R. Gonzalez recalled, this "crash course in physics ... wasn't as scary as the Texas Cyclone, nor as drenching as Thunder River, but it did make for a quick thrill." AstroWorld removed the ride during the 1990s.[27]

XLR-8 was installed in 1984. Looping Starship was installed in 1986.[17] Ultra Twister was installed in 1990.[28] The ride stood nine stories tall and had a vertical drop followed by a series of barrel rolls.[21] Mayan Mindbender was originally installed as Nightmare at Boblo Island in 1995, becoming the park's first indoor roller coaster. The 1,148-ft coaster was housed inside a Mayan pyramid.[29] The ride's trains had twelve cars made by the Dutch company Vekoma, with T-bars used as restraints.[21] In 2004, Josh Harkinson of the Houston Press wrote, "the coaster resembles Indiana Jones skiing Space Mountain: It caroms in total darkness inside a faux Mayan temple. Teens are delightfully horrified."[21] In 2019, the newspaper's Jef Rouner opined, "The line setting was fantastic, too. It wound through a jungle past skeletons in crashed jeeps and was probably the best themed wait outside of Batman: The Escape."[29] The ride later operated as The Hornet at Amarillo's Wonderland Park.[29]

Serial Thriller originally operated at AstroWorld starting in 1999. The ride was placed into storage in 2005 and began operating as Ednör at La Ronde in 2010.[30]

Entrance to Tidal Wave, 2004

• Astroneedle, a 340-foot (100 m) gyro tower[46]
• Dungeon Drop let passengers fall, reaching approximately 60 miles per hour in three seconds, before slowing the descent via large magnets. The ride's entry was based on a medieval torture chamber.[21] It was repainted and operating as Superman: Tower of Power at Six Flags St. Louis, as of 2016.[25]
• River of No Return
• Rub-A-Dub[47]
• SWAT
• Tidal Wave was "a flume designed to plunge passengers down a series of slides in a small boat" and "dependent upon a stream of pumped water".[21]
• Wagon Wheel[18]
• Warp 2000 was operating as Crazy Legs at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, as of 2016.[25]