Crazy Facts About Adventureland

LongIsland.com

A staple among Long Island attractions generations of LI children have grown up going to this theme park.

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Photo: Adventureland Facebook page.

Adventureland first opened in 1962 and grew along with the suburban sprawl of Long Island. It is said to be an oasis in the busy Farmingdale business district along the 6-lane highway of Route 110. Since its humble beginnings (with just four attractions) the park has expanded over more than 50 years to 30 rides and has become the largest theme park on Long Island.

 

Below we gathered some interesting, crazy, and nostalgia-inducing facts about Long Island beloved amusement park.

  • The property was originally a broccoli, escarole and chicken farm
  • The park opened in 1962
  • It was originally known as “Adventureland 110 Playland.” The name was changed to “110 Adventureland” and then shortened to just “Adventureland”
  • The park started with 6 acres but soon expanded to 12
  • When it originally opened it had only four rides. It now has 30
  • The first four rides when it opened were: a mini golf course, a carousel, kiddie boats, and the Little Dipper Roller Coaster.
  • Long Island’s own heavy metal band Twisted Sister performed at Adventureland in the 1980s
  • Firework displays at the park had to be discontinued because crowds attending the shows were so big that Route 110 had to be closed for safety reasons
  • The owners of Adventureland opened Splish Splash in the early 1990s in response to customer requests at the theme park for more water rides
  • In 1978 the owners brought in an antique auto ride that had originally been in the 1964 New York World’s Fair
  • Despite an “unblemished safety record” the park had two fatalities in 2005. Previously there were no fatalities at the park since it opened
  • Chaka Khan’s music video for her song "Love of a Lifetime" was filmed there
  • The theme park and title of the 2009 movie “Adventureland” was modeled on the Long Island park, where writer and director Greg Mottola worked in the 1980s
  • Scenes from the movie “Music and Lyrics” starring Drew Barrymore and Hugh Grant were filmed in the park
  • Adventureland was used as the fictional 'Greemulax World' at Universal Studios in the Neytflix show “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
  • Other television shows, music videos, and movies have used the park as a backdrop
  • It has a long history of adding unique, European-manufactured rides
  • According to an industry magazine, In 2018, Adventureland brought in Mystery Mansion, the first two-level, suspended-gondola attraction in the U.S. from the Italian manufacturer Gosetto
  • The park has had eight different roller coasters over the years, two of which are currently in operation
  • The Turbulence roller coaster is Long Island’s only spinning coaster
  • Adventureland has a Twitter account