For kid-focused attractions, the job's even more difficult. Kids have a much more limited cultural palette than adults, given that they've only been alive for a few years and haven't had time to amass the cultural references that grown-ups can access. For toddler attractions, the options are even more limited.
I remember a children's musical concert that Laurie performed in about 15 years ago, in Lincoln, Nebraska. The conductor asked the kids in the crowd to identify the next song the orchestra would play, which turned out to be the theme to "The Muppet Show." The parents recognized the tune instantly, but not one kid in the crowd had a clue. None of them had ever seen "The Muppet Show," which had long been off the air then and not yet available on video.
Just because a theme appealed to grown-ups when they were kids does not insure that it will resonate with today's kids. Theme park managers and designers must spend time with children, and immerse themselves in their culture, in order to select the themes that will engage those kids for the next generation.
Ideally, given that theme park attractions often stand for 20 years or more, they will select a theme that will resonate beyond a single generation. Time-tested books, such as Dr. Seuss', and established movie franchises, such as Toy Story, provided the safest bets for these themes.
Comic strips used to provide a safe bet, too. Once established in newspapers' funny pages, top comics endured for decades, hooking new generations of fans with fresh material daily.
As many of you probably know, I have a side gig as a media critic, and spent more than a decade working as an editor, reporter and commentator for newspapers. The newspaper industry is dying, as decades operating as monopolies have left papers ill-prepared to handle fresh competition online. One of my former papers, Denver's Rocky Mountain News, has closed already. Others will soon, while the papers that survive lay off staff and trim their pages.
Almost all of what newspapers do will be done, and often better, online. Websites, including those produced by newspaper companies, are providing breaking news, investigations, commentary and analysis and more data than papers could ever have provided in print. The one feature that doesn't seem to be porting well to the online environment is... the funny pages: comic strips.
Sure, most strips have their own websites. But those appeal to established readers of the strips. New readers don't have a convenient place to go to find a variety of fresh strips each day, the way they did when the newspaper came to their doorstep each morning or afternoon. Today's kids are more likely to look to online-friendly formats like video for their daily dose of humor, rather than to static three- or four-panel comic strips. Classmates at my kids' school aren't talking about old Peanuts re-runs; they're watching Fred and Happy Tree Friends.
I predict that comic strips will be the first casualty of the newspaper industry's demise. And that will affect theme parks. Parks simply can't maintain attractions based on comic-strip themes and expect them to connect with kids beyond this generation, in the best-case scenario. Frankly, comic strip themes probably are already lost on today's kids.
That leaves parks using comic-strip themes with a choice: Dump them, or take the responsibility to recast these characters as the parks' own. The second option ain't cheap; it requires flooding the park with many more characters to introduce them to the kids, as well as writing and producing shows that will establish the characters' stories and personalities. Even then, these characters will resonate only with kids once they've visited the area, and the park will lose the potential for audience growth that comes from kids begging their parents to take them to see their favorite characters, the way that young Disney character fans beg for trips to Disneyland and Walt Disney World.
Of course, there is a third choice: Do nothing, and watch you kids' land languish as bored children wonder who those funny-looking characters are, with many of them just getting creeped out and begging to leave.
In this light, Cedar Fair's decision to expand, rather than discard, the Camp Snoopy theme threatens to become disastrously short-sighted. While saving the company on licensing fees in the short term, sticking itself with a comic-strip theme could cost the company significant growth in the long term, unless it assumes the responsibility to establish a narrative for these characters within their parks, then market the heck out of them to kids, especially online.
Universal's not off the hook, either. Disney will soon own the characters in Islands of Adventure's Marvel Super Hero Island. Much of the adjacent Toon Lagoon references comic strip characters. Once the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is open, Universal will need to take a hard look at the theming for the opposite end of IOA, and may need to make some changes to ensure the viability of that corner of the park for the decades to come.
I've spent too much of my professional life watching newspapers commit financial suicide. I have little patience for watching theme parks inflict costly wounds upon themselves, as well.
Previously: Should theme parks build kids' lands?
Tweet
The Barney show at universal however, is a good example of a dated attraction...if it weren't for an old Barney video I picked up at the discount rack at one of the big box stores she would have had no idea who Barney was.
It will be interesting to see if anyone climbs on this 'miss spider' series that seems to be gaining traction at least with my kids.
As for Barney, it still runs on our local PBS station, though at 5 am. It's definitely a franchise that theme parks should be watching for weakness.
A good designer, along with a good park to manage it and enough, can build a land using breakfast or the backyard as the theme and be successful. A prime example is Legoland. They created a whole park based on a boy's toy. Not big ticket Marvel Comics or Disney characters, but a simple plastic block that we all know and love. Legos aren't nearly as big as they used to be, but they are ageless because of their simplicity and because they are passed down from parent to child. The same goes with the Peanuts. What keeps them alive each year is it's simplicity the parents who grew up with them passing them down to their kids, as I am to mine. While that's not the ideal situation for theming a kids area, it will do if they can wow the audience with a great design. I'm not talking about a single ride or two, but rather a whole design with continuity and atmosphere, much like Nick Universe, who's sum was greater than it's parts. Only by that formula will Camp Snoopy enjoy the same success as Nick Universe has. Of course with Cedar Fair, it may be a pretty big if we are talking about.
I don't know about the newspaper, but I'm still waiting for the park company that cashes in on one of the fastest growing and most profitable forms of entertainment...the video game. Where is the Nintendo land?...I'll repeat, where is the Nintendo land? The other two platforms, XBox and Playstation, have their franchises that cater mostly to boys 10 and up, which could make for some great attractions. Very few images are as familiar to the 20-40 crowd, and an ever increasing amount of their children, as those classic Nintendo characters, who are still around and selling millions of games every year. Where is it park execs?
Got the point: Dick Tracy
But then again, Snoopy is known for those animated features (The Great Pumpkin, that whimpy little Christmas Tree, etc), but you are right, how relevent?
If that is the case, how was Disney able to keep their stuff so fresh? Is this the reason for the vault? I am just curious though I know that Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Mickey's House of Mouse helped alot.
Still, whenever I think of Mall of America, I think of Camp Snoopy. I am old.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/business/global/06lego.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=lego&st=cse
I don't think Robert is giving the Peanuts gang enough credit; they're an established international brand that is truly loved around the world. The Nick characters are flash in the pan with little staying power beyond their screen shelf life. Like Legos, the Peanuts holiday specials are passed down from parents to children so the comic strip aspect is not material to Snoopy's lasting success with kids. Cedar Fair made the right move dumping Nick for Snoopy as a financial decision to save money on IP and as a lasting connection to its young audience. If only CF would put some money into making Camp Snoopy look really nice with some decent non-carny rides, but that's another story.
Derek's idea for a Nintendo Land is perfect. There is little doubt that the vast landscape of today's video game franchises will eventually lead to the theme park characters of the future. Nintendo Land would be a huge success and it shocks me that no one has yet made the attempt.
Derek, lets hit Pres. Obama up for a some of that bailout money and make things happen!
Do you think that this IP will endure? Or, can you make it endure for future audiences with attractions that will remain fresh for years?
Let's put it another way: If your IP's continued cultural relevancy depends primarily upon the distribution medium of newspapers, you've got a problem going forward.
Terrence Gallman
This article has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.
