And now it's time for who Smarty?
Psssss. Hey, Smarty Pants, trusty narrator here on a long line waiting to get on the Smarty Force 5000, the biggest, fastest, craziest roller coaster in Smartyland.
Oh yeah, did I mention who Smarty has its own theme park now?
Well, not really, just in podcast land.
Whoa. But, just go with it.
So, Smarty Pants, do you like amusement parks?
Because I love them. Ever since I was a young narrator, I begged my Smarty parents to take me to an amusement park so I could ride roller coasters.
Bumper cars. And that thing that spins around way too fast.
But guess what? You don't even have to like rides to love amusement parks because there's so much stuff to do.
There's arcade games. Carnival games where you can win prizes.
Live shows and yummy food.
Which I promptly barfed after the spinning ride.
Yep, amusement parks have everything.
Don't forget costume, characters.
Um, are you supposed to be a giant walking brain or a funnel cake?
I'm Smarty Face. Smarty lands a very old mascot.
And I know all there is to know about amusement parks.
Oh yeah? Well, that's great because the Smarty Pants and I have lots of questions about amusement parks.
Like, how many amusement parks are there?
And which country has the most?
Well, the USA has the most amusement parks with 620 of them.
California alone has 33 amusement parks.
It's hard to tell exactly how many there are in the world.
But let's just say, it's a lot.
Millions of people visit amusement parks every year.
And together, they bring in about 70 to 80 billion dollars a year.
Wow, that's so cool. And since you're here, Smarty Face, maybe you can help answer some more questions about amusement parks.
Things like, what was the first amusement park?
How were rides invented?
And what's the difference between amusement parks and theme parks?
Ray? Questions? And I can answer them all.
Like, everything at the amusement park, we gotta make it fun!
So, you'll need this all-axis Smarty Land Pass to get into every amusement park attraction.
That's about amusement parks.
It's very meta. Great. Sounds like it's time for another amusing whiff of science and history on.
Hello, Smarty. Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
Who's Smarty? Who's Smarty?
I wore Winterbrood's every day for two years.
I hate climbing trees. I'm Deborah Goldstein, host of the podcast The Big Fib and half of those statements were indeed Fibs.
On every episode of The Big Fib, we bring on two grown-ups.
One is an expert and the other is a liar.
And it's the job of our human child contestant to help us figure out who is who, because no one can spot a liar better than a kid.
We've had episodes on everything from Minecraft to Mythology and from Lego to Libraries.
Join me and my robot co-host Lisa on The Big Fib on Apple Podcasts or on GZMshows.com.
Hey Smarty pants, we're here in Smartyland.
Who smarteds very own amusement pretend amusement park?
And guess what? I just ran into two Smarty pants who love amusement parks.
Say hi to my friends Vincent and his older sister Chelsea.
Hi Trasti. Hi everyone.
Hey Smarty face, can you hook Vincent and Chelsea up with some all-access passes too so they can join us on our mission?
Of course, here you go. Thanks Smarty face.
Ooh, it's so pretty. Okay, so where shall we begin?
Let's start at the beginning of a amusement park history with a ride on the time you per...
Hold on tight Smarty pants.
You might feel a little tapzy turvy as we take a quantum leap back to Inch Inch Tide.
Hey, are we in Ancient Rome?
Am I wearing a Toga? Yup, it looks good on you.
We're riding through Ancient Rome because the history of amusement parks can be traced back to Ancient civilizations around the world.
You'll notice the Ancient Romans created large public spaces for people to enjoy different festivities and games.
I see chariot races and gladiator contests.
They sure love their entertainment.
They were the only ones, different ancient cultures around the world.
Including Ancient China, Ancient Persia, and Egypt.
And outdoor spaces called, leisure gardens.
Designed with beautiful landscapes and architectural features for people to take a break and have fun.
Ooh, so relaxing. True, but centuries of unawaited, Lulaan!
Hey, are we in Medieval times?
Am I wearing a tunic? Shugglers!
Does anyone want e-old rumpstick?
Me! Me! Me! Me! Me! Me! Me!
Me! Me! Me! Me! Me! Me! Me!
Me! Me! Shousting as in two nights on horseback charging each other with long poles.
Swardy pants, have you ever seen or heard of shousting?
First of all, trusty, those poles are called wances.
Second of all, smarty pants.
Can you guess which popular amusement park ride can be traced back to Medieval jostling tournaments?
Is it A, a Ferris wheel? B, the carousel?
Orc, a rail coaster? I'm not sure.
Swardy pants, what do you think?
I'm hearing lots of answers.
Well, e-old correct answer is B, the carousel!
Night's train for jostling competitions by riding on wooden horses built on a device that rotated when it was pushed or pulled by either humans or horses.
Device was the prototype of the carousel you see at amusement parks today!
Wow, who knew? Did you know that Vincent and Chelsea?
Nope, me neither. That's cool.
It sure is. Where to next?
We've got one more historical stop and time!
Are we at the Renaissance?
Wow, it's a lot! And so pretty.
The old is abusive park according to Guinness World Records started as a Blizzard garden near Copenhagen, Denmark in 1583.
It's called Faken, which roughly translates as the hill.
Did you know a version of that park is still open today?
Wow. Swardy face, how did all these early forms of fun turn into the amusement parks that we know in love today?
I'll show you, I bought the time worker and follow me to Swardy Land's amusement parks.
Oh, hey! I'd like to introduce you to Animatronic Swardy face, a McGatagumi, crossing press the button on this noggin.
Hello, Swardy pants. Welcome to Swardy Land's Hall of Fame.
Under gardens also became popular in the United States as did the world's fair, which also inspired modern amusement parks.
These international fairs brought people together from countries around the world to showcase innovations in technology, industry, architecture, arts and sciences.
At the 1893 world's Colombian exhibition in Chicago, the very first version of another popular amusement park staple was shown.
Any ideas what it is? Swardy pants, what do you think?
Was it the roller coaster, the Ferris wheel, or the bumper car?
Why it was the Ferris wheel designed and named after American engineer and inventor George Washington Gale Ferris Jr.
Great job if you got that Swardy pants.
The first Ferris wheel was 264 feet or 80 meters tall with 36 passenger cars that could carry 60 people.
That's up to 2160 passengers per revolution.
That's like a cruise ship.
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Whoa! It's a great, powered by steam engines from the top of the Ferris wheel.
Writers could see the entire fairgrounds and the city of Chicago.
George's invention was revolutionary.
Literally. So Swardy face, we learned about the invention of the carousel and the Ferris wheel.
What about roller coasters?
It wouldn't be an amusement park hall of fame without a shout out.
We are screaming out to the roller coaster.
See if you can guess what inspired the invention of the first roller coaster in the USA?
Was it a motorized toy train set that could do loop the loops?
Be a locomotive that traveled across the mountains of Alaska or see a railway used to transport coal up and down a mountain side?
Swardy pants, do you know the answer?
If you listened to our roller coaster episode, you probably do know the answer.
Either way, it's coming down the track right after this quick break.
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That's greenlight.com, backslashsmarted, to try Greenlight for free.
Now back to who's smarted.
Okay, smarty pants. I'm here with Smartyface and a metronomic smartyface and my friends Vincent and Chelsea.
So was the roller coaster based on a motorized train set?
Be a locomotive that traveled Alaska or see a railway that transported coal.
Is that what you said to Smartypants?
If you did, you're right.
Congrats, you just want a giant stuffed smartyface.
Awesome! The first roller coaster designed for amusement in the United States was called the Switchback Railway, invented by Lamarcus Atna Thompson, the father of the American roller coaster in 1884.
Years later, Lamarcus had ridden the Mauschuk Switchback Railway in Pennsylvania, a former mine track that transported coal up and down a mountain side.
It became a popular attraction for tourists to ride.
From the 15th century on, Russian ice slides were built from lumber covered in thick ice, which drops as high as 70 feet.
They were built for public festivals and royalty, like Catherine the Great to slide down.
The French also created wooden roller coasters in the early 19th century and called them the Montagne Rousse, meaning Russian Mountains.
Nowadays, almost every amusement park has at least one roller coaster.
Where did that start? Amusement parks with roller coasters really took off in the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The theater points in Sandusky, Ohio, opened in 1870 and became known as the roller coaster capital of the world were pioneering coaster innovation.
Lamarcus Atna Thompson Switchback Railway opened at Coney Island in 1884.
Their eye was 600 feet long, lasted one minute and cost five cents.
It was a golden age of amusement parks.
Ah, I know this part. From the 1890s through the 1920s, amusement parks were built all over the country.
Industrialization in which machines made factory work more efficient gave people more time off to have fun.
There was also more public transportation like trains and streetcars for visitors to get to the parks.
And rides were also engineered to be taller, faster and more thrilling.
From there, amusement parks really took off.
Uh, what's with this sad carnival music animatronic smarty face?
During the Great Depression in the 1930s and World War II in the 1940s, fewer people went to amusement parks, some parks closed and others burnt down because wooden rides were not maintained.
Oh, I guess I glossed over the sad parts.
Yes, but just like a roller coaster goes up and down, so does the story of amusement parks.
You the happy music! When Walt Disney opened Disneyland in Anaheim, California on July 17, 1955, it marked the birth of the modern theme park.
Ooh, Smarty Pants, do you know the difference between an amusement park and a theme park?
Vincent, Chelsea, what do you think?
I'm not sure, trusty, me neither trusty.
That makes three of us. Animatronic Smarty Face, what's the answer?
An amusement park features rides, games and other attractions.
While the theme park is a type of amusement park where rides, games and attractions are designed around themes like Disney characters, Universal Studios, Legoland, Hershey Park, and Six Flags.
And Smarty Land. Yeah, Smarty Land.
That's right, Smarty Land is a theme park, but amusement parks are great too.
As long as there are plenty of rides, games and food, I am in.
Smarty Land is closing.
We hope you enjoy your stay and that you learned lots of amusing amusement park facts.
Please head to the nearest exit.
No, no! Aw, do we have to go?
Do we have time for one more ride, Smarty Face?
You're the trusty narrator.
You won't, Smarty Land.
In your mind. That's right, to the Smarty Force 5000.
Woohoo! Yay! A big shout out to Super Smarty fans Sophia in Chicago, when asked what she likes about who Smarty.
Sophia simply replied, everything.
Well, we love everything about you and that answer, Smarty Pants, and we're so happy to have you smarting with us.
This episode, amusement parks, was written by Leanne, Logs, Loom, French, and voiced by Alan Wonder Wheel Winter, Vincent and Chelsea Garzellini, and Jerry Colburn.
Technical direction and sound design by Josh Ghost Hole, huh?
Who Smarty is recorded and mixed at the Relic Room Studios?
Where Associate Producer is Max Steeple Chase, Kamaski.
The theme song is by Brian Cyclone Suarez, lyrics written and performed by Adam, the tickler Davis.
Who Smarty was created and produced by Adam, text Davis, and Jerry Colburn?
This has been an atomic entertainment production.
If you and your family would like to be guests on Who Smarty, like my Smarty friends, Vincent Chelsea, please subscribe on our website, WhoSmarty.com and select Be On Who Smarty.
