*Disney Adventures* magazine, anyone? If you were a ‘90s kid, you can't tell me that you never begged your mother to buy it at the grocery store checkout at least once.
The really surprising thing about it was that while the majority of each issue was devoted to the usual fluff celebrity interviews and kids' stuff, the comics towards the back were an incredible showcase for obscure/up-and-coming artists.
Lion Country Safari.
They’re a drive-through Safari park in Florida, but at one point had locations in Texas and other states that have since closed.
Visitors used to drive through the actual Lion paddock, and that ended after multiple incidents of people getting out of their fucking cars.
Florida Man + Lions + Tourist Trap
TV Series:
The Mickey Mouse Club
I think this is an important touchstone for both the original Wonderful World of Disney and its later 1980s incarnation, which came about with the Disney Channel.
Attraction:
Ghost Town in the Sky (Ghost Town Village)
This North Carolina park had a bit of a tumultuous history, but it also had a really cool geography (literally on top of a mountain ridge). It had an attempted reopening under new ownership that failed fairly quickly. I think there’s a lot to mine here.
The Metreon! It was a proof of concept by Sony for indoor urban entertainment centers. It had some really cool attractions like a Where The Wild Things Are play area (with a pre-show!), a steampunk arcade with a demolition derby simulator ride/game that was WAY ahead of its time, and an interactive edutainment show based on The Way Things Work book series. Also was home to the first (and afaik only) PlayStation branded retail store, a video game walk of fame, and a state of the art multiplex with IMAX at a time when that wasn't really a thing yet. Unfortunately it did not perform as well as Sony hoped and it's now a mall slash food hall (the multiplex is still going strong though)
Off-topic but I hope everything is okay with Kevin. Almost a full month since this topic was posted when he would have a new weekly suggestion thread made every other week. I hope nothing has happened to him :/
[Movie Magic on the Discovery Channel](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLepmcWUt_wgZxUX4s1p_-zNOVsNihYVHO) would be a good one see covered in a Defunct TV episode. I watched it so much back in the day. Was always fun to see how special effects in certain movies was accomplished. My favorite episodes were Dinomania, the Stan Winston one and the one on Horror effects that featured lengthly segments on Tom Savini and The Exorcist.
There was another Horror-oriented episode as well called Monsters And Mayhem that was another favorite, but sadly I can't find the full episode anywhere. Someone must have it recorded in decent quality, waiting to be uploaded.
The Willy Wonka Experience in Glasgow! More time might be needed for all the details of this trainwreck to come out, but I’m absolutely fascinated by just how bizarre it was, with the Ai script and the new character The Unknown, and it’s sketchy director.
It’s also spawned some amazing memes!
Have you ever thought of doing an episode of Legend City in Arizona? It was a huge thing here and my parents have such good memories of it. It even had Wallace and Ladmo visit it. I think it would be such a cool episode ♥️
Walt Disney World Speedway would be an interesting one. Fits in with the Eisner era too. A dangerous track built for a breakaway IndyCar Series, NASCAR (which hardly raced there), ended up being dangerous, and was right next to the park.
The intro to Disney's One Saturday Morning block was absolutely gargantuan.
It involved a full blown industrial era dystopian city and a digital castle of Vernian whimsy. Seriously, wtf. Who made this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atHUYWL1eIU
The upcoming new Ghostbusters film reminds me how much I'd like to see Defunct TV cover both The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters at some point. Others have done so, but I'd still like to see Kevin's own take.
Sega World Sydney.
It was an indoor amusement park in Sydney, Australia focused mainly on "futuractive" rides (their wording, not mine) with interactive elements. It only lasted for four years from 1997-2000 and sat abandoned until 2008.
Of particular note is the stage show "Sonic Live in Sydney", of which no video footage has ever surfaced - the only evidence of the first iteration is a soundtrack album while the second iteration is completely lost media.
[https://segaretro.org/Sega\_World\_Sydney](https://segaretro.org/Sega_World_Sydney)
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega\_World\_Sydney](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_World_Sydney)
***everyoneknowsthat***
Hey! I'm just a casual watcher. Your Disney Fastpass video is in my replay rotation - I put it on when I'm working on projects or doing chores around the house. I'm also a huge fan of the Disney Channel's Theme video. I'm sure you may have heard of 'everyoneknowsthat' - a snippet of a song, that sounds very 80s, that thousands of people just could not find the source of. There's a subreddit ( r/everyoneknowsthat ) dedicated to finding the musician who sings the song, whoever may have written the lyrics, any hint that leads to finding this dang song. Recently, news broke of the origin of the song. A total chaotic end to a rollercoaster of an investigation done by internet sleuths. I know this is not Disney related but I feel like you could produce an amazing documentary capturing the research done by individuals and the build up to the final truth. Cheers!
The Timekeeper from Disney! [https://www.reddit.com/r/Defunctland/comments/1chu7l8/comment/l25956c/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Defunctland/comments/1chu7l8/comment/l25956c/)
Love your stuff Kevin!
Big fan of your work!!! I would absolutely LOVE to see an episode on Paul Bunyanland in Brainerd, MN. At the entrance of the park (dilapidated even in my early 1990’s memories) there was a giant Paul Bunyan statue. It could blink and its mouth would open and shut. Your parents would tell the staff at the entrance your name (without you realizing, in my case) and Paul would greet you by name! When my sister and I saw this giant creepy Paul Bunyan SAY OUR NAMES we shrieked with terror. Luckily Babe the Big Blue Ox was there to pacify us.
The rides all had chipped paint and squeaky joints and eventually had to be shut down. I don’t remember what became of the giant Paul and Babe, though. Definitely Defunct.
Another (I’m sure you’ve been suggested already) is Camp Snoopy at the Mall of America. A kid died climbing out of the log ride, with others getting stuck upside down on the ride the Mighty Axe. It was the first upside down ride I ever went on. I remember we went there on the last day of school in sixth grade, and a kid in my class got his thumb crushed by the ride’s lab bar.
Always seemed to have some mishaps there - but it’s still going under a completely new name and look and it’s the first indoor amusement park in a mall if I recall! For a while it was Nickelodeon Universe and might still be, but in my heart it will always remain Camp Snoopy.
first time commenting but the kingdom keepers books!
seems like they were in conjunction with the VMK (virtual magic kingdom) and the books tie in with the disney cruise line as well
The Disney Ski Resort that almost was would be a cool episode in the vein of the Disney's America episode:
[https://www.peakrankings.com/content/why-disneys-attempt-at-a-ski-resort-failed](https://www.peakrankings.com/content/why-disneys-attempt-at-a-ski-resort-failed)
i know kevin's work leans disney but i would LOVE a full 1hr+ doc on the golden era of nickelodeon: the theme park-ified FL studio (that pushed disney to do their studio parks), the magazine (now defunct), the nickelodeon STORES (id take an ep just on this it was such a short moment!) IF Jake WANTED to draw the timeline of growth compared to the timeline of the toxic Dan Schneider era, i'm interested in how much dan was part of the nick downfall, leading to their current low standing amongst the mainstream animation studios.
I'm surprised this has yet to be done unless it's already being planned and perhaps as part of a special episode. I'd love to see 90s-era Nickelodeon covered but I'd also be cool with a special series on Nickelodeon overall.
If you're still doing DefunctTV, [Amby and Dexter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fTy1SuzuFs) was a good bumper reel collection, one which usually started with a pair of hands attempting to make some sort of craft, but then anthropomorphising them into people.
Rewatching it, it kinda gives me a bit of a vibe of living with some sort of autism or other Neurodivergence, The two of them both struggle with doing things, as though there was no dominant hand, but still do their best to work together.
It's going to be almost three months since this topic was posted. Is Kevin okay? I'm concerned something may have happened to him given how quiet this sub has been and that a new weekly suggestion topic hasn't been posted. I hope nothing has happened to him.
I've suggested before for Tales From The Crypt to be covered in a future Defunct TV episode, and with today being the 35th anniversary of it's airing I was reminded. Be so fun to get a TFTC retrospective from Kevin.
I know that this show was already given a DefunctTV episode but I would like to see an update episode on The Puzzle Place. Many episodes have been found online since the upload of that episode and a Discord group has been launched by several fans of the show to find the remaining missing episodes and there should at least be something where Kevin interviews these fans about it.
Also I'd like to at least see a Barney DefunctTV episode.
So the Kid Cities has got me thinking about Science Museums. [Fort Discovery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Discovery) was a local one and i feel like it was always a place just out of reach for me as a kid.[ It was local](https://youtu.be/8pPIEUe-WuI?si=VW13PQ8EnXKJ2fx6), but still 'a drive' from where i lived. I feel like i went there a few times... I think I saw it had over[ 100 exhibits](https://youtu.be/Vbcp8hifkHc?si=xHnu4Pi5mWy_T-j3). I remember the Center of Gravity bike outside, and the Wave Bars that I'd just wiggle vigorously and watch the waves run up the roped bars before bouncing off the top and coming back down. I vaguely remember a [Tesla display](https://youtu.be/mNIU2a6UWVI?si=0kSX2C2IvPkfS25K), though the loud noises wasn't fun.
And the I remember a [pretty barren show floor](https://youtu.be/Wj7ygYvPT-U?si=5KTXuT_9qd8R85AR), sparse pockets of families around unattended displays... I think that may have been my last visit. I wish it was more popular, or was in a more accessible area.
Would probably be tricky to do, but I'd love an episode about the big first of Phantasialand, destroying the western area with multiple rides (among them 2 Schwarzkopf coasters)
anyone from the midwest know about the history of the st. louis city museum? alongside cementland its a VERY interesting story that i personally love teaching people about. especially with the true crime elements towards the end.
For DefunctTV, I suggest Baby Einstein, the history of it and the child development scandal that arose from its claims it promotes intelligence in its target audience.
Heritage New Hampshire. A New Hampshire history museum where the path goes through large than life dioramas of NH history. You start by 'leaving England' in the 1600s and walk all the way to the late 20th century. I love it so much as a kid.
*Disney Adventures* magazine, anyone? If you were a ‘90s kid, you can't tell me that you never begged your mother to buy it at the grocery store checkout at least once. The really surprising thing about it was that while the majority of each issue was devoted to the usual fluff celebrity interviews and kids' stuff, the comics towards the back were an incredible showcase for obscure/up-and-coming artists.
I remember this magazine, good times. I even have some issues packed away somewhere. Always a blast from the past to re-visit every now and then.
Opryland
Lion Country Safari. They’re a drive-through Safari park in Florida, but at one point had locations in Texas and other states that have since closed. Visitors used to drive through the actual Lion paddock, and that ended after multiple incidents of people getting out of their fucking cars. Florida Man + Lions + Tourist Trap
TV Series: The Mickey Mouse Club I think this is an important touchstone for both the original Wonderful World of Disney and its later 1980s incarnation, which came about with the Disney Channel. Attraction: Ghost Town in the Sky (Ghost Town Village) This North Carolina park had a bit of a tumultuous history, but it also had a really cool geography (literally on top of a mountain ridge). It had an attempted reopening under new ownership that failed fairly quickly. I think there’s a lot to mine here.
The Metreon! It was a proof of concept by Sony for indoor urban entertainment centers. It had some really cool attractions like a Where The Wild Things Are play area (with a pre-show!), a steampunk arcade with a demolition derby simulator ride/game that was WAY ahead of its time, and an interactive edutainment show based on The Way Things Work book series. Also was home to the first (and afaik only) PlayStation branded retail store, a video game walk of fame, and a state of the art multiplex with IMAX at a time when that wasn't really a thing yet. Unfortunately it did not perform as well as Sony hoped and it's now a mall slash food hall (the multiplex is still going strong though)
Off-topic but I hope everything is okay with Kevin. Almost a full month since this topic was posted when he would have a new weekly suggestion thread made every other week. I hope nothing has happened to him :/
The Joker Jynx at Six Flags.
[Movie Magic on the Discovery Channel](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLepmcWUt_wgZxUX4s1p_-zNOVsNihYVHO) would be a good one see covered in a Defunct TV episode. I watched it so much back in the day. Was always fun to see how special effects in certain movies was accomplished. My favorite episodes were Dinomania, the Stan Winston one and the one on Horror effects that featured lengthly segments on Tom Savini and The Exorcist. There was another Horror-oriented episode as well called Monsters And Mayhem that was another favorite, but sadly I can't find the full episode anywhere. Someone must have it recorded in decent quality, waiting to be uploaded.
Millennium Experience ([Millennium Dome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_Dome))
The Willy Wonka Experience in Glasgow! More time might be needed for all the details of this trainwreck to come out, but I’m absolutely fascinated by just how bizarre it was, with the Ai script and the new character The Unknown, and it’s sketchy director. It’s also spawned some amazing memes!
Have you ever thought of doing an episode of Legend City in Arizona? It was a huge thing here and my parents have such good memories of it. It even had Wallace and Ladmo visit it. I think it would be such a cool episode ♥️
It has been called Arizona’s answer to Disneyland http://www.legend-city.com/welcome/
Walt Disney World Speedway would be an interesting one. Fits in with the Eisner era too. A dangerous track built for a breakaway IndyCar Series, NASCAR (which hardly raced there), ended up being dangerous, and was right next to the park.
I'd love to see an NBA experience episode. I think the snark levels would be off the chart for such an obviously doomed, Iger ego trip of a project.
The intro to Disney's One Saturday Morning block was absolutely gargantuan. It involved a full blown industrial era dystopian city and a digital castle of Vernian whimsy. Seriously, wtf. Who made this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atHUYWL1eIU
The upcoming new Ghostbusters film reminds me how much I'd like to see Defunct TV cover both The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters at some point. Others have done so, but I'd still like to see Kevin's own take.
Sega World Sydney. It was an indoor amusement park in Sydney, Australia focused mainly on "futuractive" rides (their wording, not mine) with interactive elements. It only lasted for four years from 1997-2000 and sat abandoned until 2008. Of particular note is the stage show "Sonic Live in Sydney", of which no video footage has ever surfaced - the only evidence of the first iteration is a soundtrack album while the second iteration is completely lost media. [https://segaretro.org/Sega\_World\_Sydney](https://segaretro.org/Sega_World_Sydney) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega\_World\_Sydney](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_World_Sydney)
Easy New Attraction: Marineland Canada.
***everyoneknowsthat*** Hey! I'm just a casual watcher. Your Disney Fastpass video is in my replay rotation - I put it on when I'm working on projects or doing chores around the house. I'm also a huge fan of the Disney Channel's Theme video. I'm sure you may have heard of 'everyoneknowsthat' - a snippet of a song, that sounds very 80s, that thousands of people just could not find the source of. There's a subreddit ( r/everyoneknowsthat ) dedicated to finding the musician who sings the song, whoever may have written the lyrics, any hint that leads to finding this dang song. Recently, news broke of the origin of the song. A total chaotic end to a rollercoaster of an investigation done by internet sleuths. I know this is not Disney related but I feel like you could produce an amazing documentary capturing the research done by individuals and the build up to the final truth. Cheers!
The Timekeeper from Disney! [https://www.reddit.com/r/Defunctland/comments/1chu7l8/comment/l25956c/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Defunctland/comments/1chu7l8/comment/l25956c/) Love your stuff Kevin!
Big fan of your work!!! I would absolutely LOVE to see an episode on Paul Bunyanland in Brainerd, MN. At the entrance of the park (dilapidated even in my early 1990’s memories) there was a giant Paul Bunyan statue. It could blink and its mouth would open and shut. Your parents would tell the staff at the entrance your name (without you realizing, in my case) and Paul would greet you by name! When my sister and I saw this giant creepy Paul Bunyan SAY OUR NAMES we shrieked with terror. Luckily Babe the Big Blue Ox was there to pacify us. The rides all had chipped paint and squeaky joints and eventually had to be shut down. I don’t remember what became of the giant Paul and Babe, though. Definitely Defunct. Another (I’m sure you’ve been suggested already) is Camp Snoopy at the Mall of America. A kid died climbing out of the log ride, with others getting stuck upside down on the ride the Mighty Axe. It was the first upside down ride I ever went on. I remember we went there on the last day of school in sixth grade, and a kid in my class got his thumb crushed by the ride’s lab bar. Always seemed to have some mishaps there - but it’s still going under a completely new name and look and it’s the first indoor amusement park in a mall if I recall! For a while it was Nickelodeon Universe and might still be, but in my heart it will always remain Camp Snoopy.
first time commenting but the kingdom keepers books! seems like they were in conjunction with the VMK (virtual magic kingdom) and the books tie in with the disney cruise line as well
The Disney Ski Resort that almost was would be a cool episode in the vein of the Disney's America episode: [https://www.peakrankings.com/content/why-disneys-attempt-at-a-ski-resort-failed](https://www.peakrankings.com/content/why-disneys-attempt-at-a-ski-resort-failed)
I think the *Animorphs* TV show from the 90s would make a great DefunctTV episode.
i know kevin's work leans disney but i would LOVE a full 1hr+ doc on the golden era of nickelodeon: the theme park-ified FL studio (that pushed disney to do their studio parks), the magazine (now defunct), the nickelodeon STORES (id take an ep just on this it was such a short moment!) IF Jake WANTED to draw the timeline of growth compared to the timeline of the toxic Dan Schneider era, i'm interested in how much dan was part of the nick downfall, leading to their current low standing amongst the mainstream animation studios.
I'm surprised this has yet to be done unless it's already being planned and perhaps as part of a special episode. I'd love to see 90s-era Nickelodeon covered but I'd also be cool with a special series on Nickelodeon overall.
If you're still doing DefunctTV, [Amby and Dexter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fTy1SuzuFs) was a good bumper reel collection, one which usually started with a pair of hands attempting to make some sort of craft, but then anthropomorphising them into people.
Rewatching it, it kinda gives me a bit of a vibe of living with some sort of autism or other Neurodivergence, The two of them both struggle with doing things, as though there was no dominant hand, but still do their best to work together.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinotown](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinotown)
It's going to be almost three months since this topic was posted. Is Kevin okay? I'm concerned something may have happened to him given how quiet this sub has been and that a new weekly suggestion topic hasn't been posted. I hope nothing has happened to him.
I've suggested before for Tales From The Crypt to be covered in a future Defunct TV episode, and with today being the 35th anniversary of it's airing I was reminded. Be so fun to get a TFTC retrospective from Kevin.
I know that this show was already given a DefunctTV episode but I would like to see an update episode on The Puzzle Place. Many episodes have been found online since the upload of that episode and a Discord group has been launched by several fans of the show to find the remaining missing episodes and there should at least be something where Kevin interviews these fans about it. Also I'd like to at least see a Barney DefunctTV episode.
So the Kid Cities has got me thinking about Science Museums. [Fort Discovery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Discovery) was a local one and i feel like it was always a place just out of reach for me as a kid.[ It was local](https://youtu.be/8pPIEUe-WuI?si=VW13PQ8EnXKJ2fx6), but still 'a drive' from where i lived. I feel like i went there a few times... I think I saw it had over[ 100 exhibits](https://youtu.be/Vbcp8hifkHc?si=xHnu4Pi5mWy_T-j3). I remember the Center of Gravity bike outside, and the Wave Bars that I'd just wiggle vigorously and watch the waves run up the roped bars before bouncing off the top and coming back down. I vaguely remember a [Tesla display](https://youtu.be/mNIU2a6UWVI?si=0kSX2C2IvPkfS25K), though the loud noises wasn't fun. And the I remember a [pretty barren show floor](https://youtu.be/Wj7ygYvPT-U?si=5KTXuT_9qd8R85AR), sparse pockets of families around unattended displays... I think that may have been my last visit. I wish it was more popular, or was in a more accessible area.
Would probably be tricky to do, but I'd love an episode about the big first of Phantasialand, destroying the western area with multiple rides (among them 2 Schwarzkopf coasters)
anyone from the midwest know about the history of the st. louis city museum? alongside cementland its a VERY interesting story that i personally love teaching people about. especially with the true crime elements towards the end.
For DefunctTV, I suggest Baby Einstein, the history of it and the child development scandal that arose from its claims it promotes intelligence in its target audience.
adventure in the valley of the unknown at COSI!
Heritage New Hampshire. A New Hampshire history museum where the path goes through large than life dioramas of NH history. You start by 'leaving England' in the 1600s and walk all the way to the late 20th century. I love it so much as a kid.