Movie Park Germany (formerly known as Warner Bros. Movie World Germany) is a theme park in Bottrop, Germany which opened on June 30, 1996, under the ownership of Warner Bros., who would then hand over park operations to Six Flags in 1999. Despite the name and sharing the same logo, it had no relation to the Warner Bros. Movie World park in Australia, which was owned by Village Roadshow.
The park was built on the site of "Bavaria Filmpark", a theme park that was owned by Bavaria Film, one of the largest film production companies in Germany. Originally scheduled to open in May 1991, the park didn't open until the following year and then closed in 1993 due to a lack of popularity.
History[]
Earlier history[]
The park's history dates back to "Kirchhellener Märchenwald", a German amusement park run by the Allekötter family that opened its doors in 1967. At that time, the attractions featured huts in the woods where guests could press buttons to listen to different fairy tales.
After the 1976 season, a couple named Hans and Ida Rosenberg bought the park, and reopened it under the name "Traumlandpark". The Rosenberg family is perhaps most well-known for the popular German theme park Phantasialand, which is still open to this day. In 1985, the Rosenbergs declared bankruptcy with a debt of €22 million.
Wolf-Dieter Jahn from Essen, Germany, and Alexandre Berthé from France, who had previously worked at the park, bought it in 1986 and reopened it in 1987 under the name "Neue Traumland". In 1989, they decided to sell the park to Bavaria Film, and it closed again on August 31, 1991
The park then became "Bavaria Filmpark", which was originally scheduled to open in May 1991, but didn't open until the following year. The park then closed in 1993, after not becoming very popular.
Development[]
In May 1994, Warner Bros. purchased Bavaria Filmpark and began construction on a total redevelopment of the park into "Warner Bros. Movie World Germany", the second Warner Bros. Movie World park following the successful Warner Bros. Movie World on the Gold Coast, Australia. Zeitgeist Design and Production's Ryan Harmon served as the Director of Show Development for Warner Bros. International Recreation Enterprises, where he conceived, wrote, and managed the design team for Warner Bros. Movie World in Germany's worth of rides, shows, and attractions. Botticelli's - Atelier der angewandten Malerei and Sanderson Group were responsible for designing and painting the theming for the park, and Alan Griffith Architect and Alder Constructions were also involved in the park's development.
Grand opening[]
The park had a grand opening on June 29, 1996, with 20,000 invited guests including Johannes Rau, Ernst Löchelt, August Everding, Gustava Everding, Michael Douglas, Sophia Loren, Ron Williams, Amanda Lear, David Copperfield, Claudia Schiffer, Chris O'Donnell, Hans Meiser, and Heinz Hoenig as special guests. The park opened to the general public on June 30, 1996. Zeitgeist Design and Production's Ryan Harmon served as the Director of Show Development for Warner Bros. International Recreation Enterprises, where he conceived, wrote, and managed the design team for Warner Bros. Movie World in Germany's worth of rides, shows, and attractions. Botticelli's - Atelier der angewandten Malerei and Sanderson Group were responsible for designing and painting the theming for the park. Alan Griffith Architect and Alder Constructions were also involved in the park's development.
In 2001, General Manager Joe Meck left the park to become Vice President/General Manager of Six Flags Marine World (now Six Flags Discovery Kingdom) in Vallejo, California.
In 2002, a sister park - Warner Bros. Movie World Madrid opened up in Madrid, Spain. Unlike the German park, Six Flags only minority-owned and operated this Park.
Sell-off and Rebranding[]
In April 2004, Six Flags sold off their entire European theme park division, including Warner Bros. Movie World Germany, to StarParks. Warner Bros. Movie World Madrid however was not sold to the company and was instead purchased back by Time Warner. This meant that due to the new ownership, all Warner Bros. theming had to be removed, and the park reopened as Movie Park Germany in 2005, with its theming being replaced with licenses from other companies like Nickelodeon and 20th Century Fox.
Areas and attractions[]
The Old West[]
This area was themed to the Wild West as it was in the United States, mostly themed after Warner Bros.' western films. It opened with the park in 1996.
Attractions[]
- Wild Wild West (1999-2004)
- Josie's Bath House (2000-2004)
- Blazing Saddles (2000-2004)
- Eraser (2001-2004)
Marienhof[]
A German-themed area that focused on different cultural aspects of Germany. It opened with the park in 1996 and closed with it in 2004.
Attractions[]
- Marienhof Karussel
- Lethal Weapon Pursuit
- Gremlin Invasion (1996-2004)
- Museum of German Film History
Dining[]
- Warner Music Club - The Restaurant
- Prince Regent Luitpolt Biergarten
Gotham City[]
As its name suggests, this area was themed after the fictional city from DC Comics. It featured various Batman themed rides and attractions, as well as meet-and-greet, dining, and shopping locations.
Attractions[]
- Batman Adventure – The Ride
- Riddler's Revenge (1999-2004)
The Hollywood Street Set[]
The "main" entrance area of the park, themed after the Warner Bros. backlot in Hollywood, California.
Attractions[]
- The Bermuda Triangle (1996-2004)
Looney Tunes Land[]
A children's area based on the Looney Tunes franchise. It featured many different rides and attractions for kids.
Attractions[]
- Tweety & Sylvester's Tree House (2001-2004)
- Tom & Jerry's Mouse in the House (1996-2004)
- Looney Tunes Carousel (2000-2004)
- Looney Tunes Tea Party (1999-2004)
- The NeverEnding Story
- Coyote's and Roadrunner's Achterbahn
- Looney Tunes Adventure
- Bugs 'n Friends Music Party
External links[]
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This page uses content from the English Wikipedia page Movie Park Germany. The revision history lists the authors. The text on Warner Bros. Entertainment Wiki and Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). |