Over Thanksgiving weekend, one-half of one of the most unique duos in entertainment history passed away. Marty Krofft, the younger brother in the puppetry and producing duo of Sid and Marty Krofft, died at age 86 on Saturday.
The Krofft brothers began as puppeteers, opening for artists like Liberace and Judy Garland before developing their own headlining show. They initially broke into television designing sets for shows like “The Banana Splits Adventure Hour" and "All in the Family."
Sid and Marty Krofft's bread and butter came in the form of unique children's entertainment like “H.R. Pufnstuf,” “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters,” "Land of the Lost," and “The Bugaloos,” shows that had short runs of usually a couple of seasons but later became staples of syndicated TV for GenX kids like me.
The Kroffts moved on to lavish variety specials and series. The duo produced a special for Raquel Welch and a short-lived show featuring the Bay City Rollers, but their biggest impact in the variety-show landscape of the '70s was "Donny and Marie," which the Kroffts produced for one season before the Osmond family gained creative control.
"Donny and Marie" featured complex production numbers, special guests, and the singing and, umm, acting talents of Donny and Marie Osmond.
Later, the Kroffts produced a children's show starring Richard Pryor (no, seriously), as well as remakes and reboots of their classic material for the big and small screens. But my biggest association with Sid and Marty Krofft came with a visit to a hotel in Atlanta when I was a toddler.
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In May 1976, the Kroffts opened The World of Sid and Marty Krofft, an indoor amusement park inside the Omni International Complex. It was an ambitious opening, with national fanfare, including a broadcast on the "Krofft Supershow" featuring the park.
The idea wasn't a slam dunk, but that didn't quell the enthusiasm. The Atlanta History Center recalls the heady opening:
Atlanta’s rank as the murder capital of the U.S. in the early 1970s made developing the Omni a precarious business venture. However, Cousins and the Kroffts persisted, not anticipating that this decision would contribute to the demise of the theme park.
Despite the high crime rate in the area, more than 3,000 dignitaries and celebrities attended an exclusive pre-opening of the World of Sid and Marty Krofft on the Sunday before the grand opening.
During the ceremony, Mayor Maynard Jackson proclaimed, “This is the greatest opening in Atlanta since ‘Gone with the Wind'” and “the most fantastic thing that ever hit any downtown in the world.”
The well-attended and glorious opening day further fueled the mayor’s vision.
Visitors to The World of Sid and Marty Krofft entered through the top floor of the facility, riding the world's longest freestanding escalator to get to the top. That's one of my biggest memories of that trip as a three-year-old (major kudos to my pregnant mom for putting up with a toddler at such an unusual venue).
The World of Sid and Marty Krofft looked exactly like you would imagine — colorful, fanciful, larger than life — and it had everything you would expect from a theme park, including shows, rides, dining, and shopping. The upsides to the park were the obvious creativity the Kroffts brought with them, as well as the park's indoor location, which meant that metro Atlantans didn't have to worry about sunburn or fatigue from the hilly trudge around Six Flags Over Georgia.
The attraction I remember the most was the pinball-themed dark ride, in which guests boarded spherical vehicles and careened through the attraction from the perspective of the pinball. The Crystal Carousel promised a quiet, smooth ride that relied on an innovative air cushion to ensure the experience; however, it was too heavy to operate properly.
The Crystal Carousel's troubles characterized much of the travails of The World of Sid and Marty Krofft. The attractions were too ambitious. Many of them, like the carousel, weighed too much to operate properly, while others had different mechanical issues. But the rides were secondary to Sid and Marty Krofft, who were intent on creating an immersive experience around the Krofft brand, including puppet shows and costumed meet-and-greets.
Guests spent three hours at a park that was supposed to take six hours to enjoy. The ambitious experiences came with exorbitant operating costs, which meant high ticket prices. The waste of time and high cost, coupled with guests' skittishness to spend part of a day in the crime-ridden city, spelled doom for The World of Sid and Marty Krofft.
"The bank funding the park refused to continue financial support," the Atlanta History Center writes. "As a result, the park closed its doors with little to no warning to employees and potential visitors. The brothers fought to bring in new investors, hoping to reopen at least a month later, but they couldn’t strike a deal."
The World of Sid and Marty Krofft closed in early November, less than six months after the hyped opening. It was a spectacular failure for a city that needed a boost. The facility later became the CNN Center, which the network abandoned earlier this year.
Of course, Sid and Marty Krofft would go on to more exciting things, and Atlanta would rebound. But that ambitious, flawed indoor amusement park was a brief moment of excitement for one three-year-old kid.
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