CoasterGallery.com -- California's Great America

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California's Great America
Santa Clara, California

Just 45 miles from San Francisco, Marriott's Great America debuted in 1976. (Marriott also opened a Great America in Gurnee, Illinois the same year.) The City of Santa Clara Redevelopment Agency purchased Great America from the Marriott Corporation in 1985. Kings Entertainment Company (KECO) was recruited to manage the park. The resulting five-year contract included an option for KECO to buy the park business and assets. A year later, the 10,000-seat Redwood Amphitheater opened. In 1992, Great America, along with three other U.S. parks owned by KECO, was acquired by Paramount Communications. The park was renamed Paramount's Great America shortly thereafter. In 2006, Cedar Fair purchased all five Paramount parks for over $1.2 billion. Great America's name will change to California's Great America for the 2008 season. The park will open a GCI wooden coaster in 2009 (details below).

In addition to renaming several of their coasters, the park has also removed four:

Whizzer (called Willard's Whizzer for a while) was a large Schwarzkopf 'speed racer' coaster that ran from 1976 to 1988.
Gulf Coaster was a small kiddie ride from 1976 until the early 1980s.
Greased Lightnin' (pictured below) was removed after the 2002 season. It was returned to the manufacturer and is currently waiting for a buyer.
Stealth (pictured below) was removed after the 2003 season. It opened in 2004 as Borg Assimilator at Paramount's Carowinds.