Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Magic Mountain, formerly known and colloquially referred to as simply Magic Mountain, is a amusement park located in Valencia, California, northwest of downtown Los Angeles. It opened on May 29, 1971, as a development of the Newhall Land and Farming Company and Sea World Inc. In 1979, Six Flags purchased the park and added "Six Flags" to the park's name.
With 18 operating roller coasters, Six Flags Magic Mountain is tied for second for the most coasters at any park, behind Energylandia in Zator, Poland and tied with other parks like Cedar Point and Canada's Wonderland. It became the first amusement park to offer 20 roller coasters with the opening of Wonder Woman: Flight of Courage in 2022. The 2025 removal of Superman: Escape from Krypton would put an end to this record, and it would stop being tied for first place after the closure of Magic Flyer in January 2026. In 2024, the park had an estimated 3.31 million visitors, ranking it 16th in attendance in North America.
History
In 1968, Sea World Inc. founder George Millay and his executives began looking for a place in Los Angeles county to build a theme park. Knowing that Newhall Land and Farming Company had enough undeveloped land in the new town of Valencia, he asked CEO John F. Dickason if they could build on his land. They eventually formed a partnership to build a 200-acre theme park. Construction began in November 1969 and continued until May 1971. The park was named after the nearby Magic Mountain, a peak located to the east of the Santa Clarita Valley.When the park opened, there were 500 employees and 33 attractions, many of which were designed and built by Arrow Development, which had previously worked on attractions at Disneyland. The admission price in 1971 was $5 for adults, and $3.50 for children between the ages of 3 and 12. Because the park was in a relatively remote part of Los Angeles County at the time, the Greyhound bus line provided bus service to and from the park and Los Angeles, and from Northern California, and optionally allowed purchase of park admission at the time the bus ticket was purchased.
At its 1971 opening, the rides and attractions included Gold Rusher, a steel coaster; the Log Jammer, a log flume; the Sky Tower, an observation tower; Grand Prix, similar to Disneyland's Autopia ride; El Bumpo, bumper boats; a carousel; and other smaller rides. There were four transportation rides to the peak: Funicular, a cable railway or funicular, which was renamed Orient Express, then Helpful Honda Express, and is currently named Magic Mover.
Attractions included The Metro, which was three monorail stations around the park, including the Whitewater Lake, Country Fair, and Mountain stations; and "Eagles Flight", a gondola lift ride that had two stations at the peak, the long one north to Galaxy Station and the short one west to El Dorado Station. The Showcase Theater was part of the original park and featured Barbra Streisand as the first of many headline performers who would appear at Magic Mountain over the years.
In the 1971 season, Magic Mountain obtained permission from Warner Bros. to use Looney Tunes/''Merrie Melodies'' characters. Six Flags Great America, has continuously used such characters since its opening in 1976, eight years before Marriott Corporation sold the park to Six Flags.
In 1972, Magic Mountain began using trolls as the park mascots. The trolls King Blop, also known as King Troll, Bleep, Bloop, and the Wizard became recognizable symbols of Magic Mountain. All King Productions, a contractor, provided the entertainers wearing the costumes until December 31, 1972, when Magic Mountain took on that role. The characters were used until 1985. Also in 1972, a second flume ride named Jet Stream was added.
In 1973, the park added its second roller coaster, the Mountain Express, a compact Schwarzkopf Wildcat model steel coaster. In 1974, the park also installed a new complex of spinning rides in what would later be known as Back Street. The new additions consisted of the Himalaya, Electric Rainbow, and Tumble Drum.
In 1975, the Grand Centennial Railway opened in the Back Street. It took riders on a train journey to Spillikin Corners and back. "...the Grand Centennial Excursion used a narrow gauge steam locomotive and employed "train conductors," decked out in old-fashioned three-piece black Western suits and bow ties, to take passengers on a trip through time, with stops at Spillikin Corners and at the northwestern tip of the park where Six Flags would later build "Batman: The Ride."... " Local television advertisements at the time described this new attraction as, "The other side of the Mountain".
The Coaster Revolution
With the opening of Great American Revolution in 1976, Magic Mountain became the first park in the world to have a modern, 360-degree looping steel coaster. Previous roller coasters with loops had been built and dismantled elsewhere due to safety issues). When it was built, there was very little in the way of surrounding vegetation. In the time since, the tracks have been surrounded by trees and bushes, which prevents the riders from knowing the track layout beforehand. Universal filmed part of the suspense film Rollercoaster at Magic Mountain in late 1976, which featured the Revolution as its centerpiece during the film's climax.In 1978, Colossus opened, and at the time was the fastest and largest dual-tracked wooden coaster in the world. Following its first season, it was closed and extensively redone. When it reopened, it was a much smoother ride.
In 1991, the camel hump before the last, or third, turn was replaced by a block brake. Though it decreased the speed of the ride after this particular brake, it allowed three trains to run per side at a time, greatly increasing capacity. One of the trains sometimes ran backwards for a few years in the mid-1980s. In the late 1990s this kind of ride was no longer possible due to the newer ride system in place, as well as different trains. During Fright Fest, the park runs one side backwards using a set of trains acquired from the now-demolished Psyclone, which was located on the other side of the park.
In 2015, the coaster was re-tracked with steel tracking and several inversions were added. It was rebranded "Twisted Colossus". This renovation was completed by Rocky Mountain Construction.
Six Flags era
In 1979, the park was sold to Six Flags and became known as Six Flags Magic Mountain. In 1981, Six Flags Magic Mountain introduced Roaring Rapids, a river rapids ride that was on the West Coast for the first time. It was developed by Intamin in conjunction with the now-defunct Six Flags Astroworld, which had opened a similar ride in 1979. Along with Rapids came the completion of the midway near Spillikin Corners to link with Revolution's area. A complete circuit could be made around the park.It was originally designed as a dual-sided station, but only one was fully developed, and all that exists of the possible second side is a few supports. It uses large pumps to circulate water, and each of the two pumps can circulate. The reservoir can hold of water, and one of the innovations used on it was the introduction of guide boards to help eliminate jam ups.
In 1982, the attraction Freefall was added. Also built by Intamin, it was considered a cutting-edge drop tower ride if not strictly a "roller coaster." It simply ascends the tower and then drops down, with the track curving horizontally, leaving riders on their backs. Others were built for other parks. Today, most of these rides are obsolete and have been removed. Some flat rides were added, and others were removed the following year.
In 1984, Sarajevo Bobsleds was erected. Yet another ride built by Intamin, the coaster was basically a bobsled without ice and snow. The coaster was built in honor of the 1984 Winter Olympics, for which Sarajevo was the host city. Six Flags Great Adventure added a similar ride that same year. In 1986, Sarajevo Bobsleds was removed and now operates at Six Flags Over Texas as La Vibora. The other bobsled was moved to Six Flags Great America and later to The Great Escape in Queensbury, New York, where it operated as Alpine Bobsled.
In 1985, Children's World was rethemed as Bugs Bunny World, as Magic Mountain had abandoned the Trolls in favor of Looney Tunes/''Merrie Melodies'' characters, licensed by Warner Bros. That year, Michael Jackson visited the park, riding rides such as Colossus, Revolution, and Roaring Rapids. In 1986, the park added a steel stand-up looping roller coaster called Shockwave, also designed by Intamin. This coaster was located in the back of the park, replacing Sarajevo Bobsleds.
At the end of 1988, the coaster was removed as part of a ride rotation program and went to Six Flags Great Adventure in 1990. It was removed from there in 1992 and was repainted white and rethemed upon its removal to Six Flags Astroworld. There, it was known as Batman The Escape. When Astroworld closed in 2005, the ride was put in storage at Six Flags Darien Lake, where it remained until 2018, when it was finally sold for scrap.
In 1987, the park rethemed the Back Street. Spinning flat rides were renamed Turbo, Subway, and Reactor. The dance club was rethemed as well and located near Reactor. After Hours, as it was now called, stayed open for one summer later than the rest of the park. It, along with Back Street, would remain open an additional two hours as a place for locals to hang out. This format lasted one season.
In 1988, Ninja, "The Black Belt of Roller Coasters," opened. Built by Arrow Dynamics, it was the first suspended swing roller coaster on the west coast. Ninja has gone through very few changes since it was opened in 1988; evidently, only the wheels and paint have been changed.
Tidal Wave opened in 1989. It is a short, wet ride featuring a large boat that travels up a low-angled incline to a level water trough. The trough, in the shape of a semicircle, ends in a steep drop into a large splashpool. The impact displaces large amounts of water on its riders. The ride's exit ramp crosses over the splash pool, allowing willing patrons leaving the ride to get soaked from the splash. The attraction was closed to make room for Wonder Woman: Flight of Courage in 2020.
In 1990, Viper, a multiple-looping coaster designed by Arrow Dynamics, opened. It features a drop, speeds up to, three vertical loops, a batwing turn that inverts riders twice, and a double corkscrew.
In 1991, Magic Mountain added Psyclone, a wooden coaster modeled after the Coney Island Cyclone. The Spillikin Corners area of the park was rethemed as Cyclone Bay to suit the new coaster, drawing guests into this area. The change was largely cosmetic, as the earlier theme relied on retail establishments that had been removed previously. The Shooting Gallery had replaced the Glass Blower, and the Candy Kitchen viewing area was redesigned. With Psyclone, the crowds returned. Psyclone's structure was damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, and the ride was eventually removed in 2007. After adding Ninja, Viper, and Psyclone within four years, the park was building a large repertoire of big roller coasters.
A new coaster from Intamin called Flashback was added to the park the following year in 1992. The prototype Space Diver model was a first of its kind that had already operated at Six Flags Great America and Six Flags Over Georgia prior to its arrival. Due to the excessive noise it generated near Hurricane Harbor, Flashback was closed in 2003 and eventually removed in 2007.