The Abandoned History of Circus World and Boardwalk And Baseball Florida | Expedition Extinct

[@RonaldTotoJohnson]

I graduated from high school on June 9, 1985 and just 3 hours after my graduation I was on a plane flying from Connecticut to Florida because I started my very first full time job as a clown the next morning at Circus World. I had an incredible time performing at the park that summer. In September 1985 I left Circus World to attend the RBBB Circus' Clown College. From there I spent 4 years on tour with the RBBB Circus' Red unit. Flash forward to today...September 24, 2018...and I am still clowning full time on the local, national, and international levels!

[@deadchannel5018]

Ronald Johnson cool

[@randomguy24601]

A fantastic story! I hope you enjoyed your years, and continue to!

[@justinball5651]

Bro... I moved from Connecticut to Florida too...

[@Jason_Maier]

Wow, nearly 34 years as a clown! 1. Any idea of how many miles you've traveled? 2. Did the RBBB 'Red' Unit do the larger markets?

[@TrafalgarD.Shambles]

Ronald Johnson Question: Has there been a decrease in clowns, because of pop culture references?

[@debbiekoop3896]

My husband graduated from RBBB Circus Clown College in 1980. He was supposed to perform at Circus World but when another clown had to leave the Red Unit, he was sent there. I was already performing on the show and we fell in love and got married. We've been married almost 33 years now. I'm happy that things worked out as they did! I never did visit the park but have wonderful memories of our life together with the circus!

[@ExpeditionThemePark]

That is amazing!

[@seannorman9169]

That is a beautiful thing...very nice.... It's a tissue time kind of story....may your marriage be a healthier one...

[@areguapiri]

@@stephencook1625 ....You ran away and joined the circus!

[@RonaldTotoJohnson]

Who is he? I worked at Circus World right out of high school in 1985 then left to attend the RBBB Clown College that Fall. I clowned on the RBBB Red unit for 4 years...1986-1989.

[@naps3386]

@@RonaldTotoJohnson Do you know Shug (Sean Emery)? He has a channel on KZbin.

[@MrSurf35]

When circus world closed, a number of the ride technicians went to help build universal studios. Some of those guys are still around, and it's fun to hear their stories about this place.

[@TSoneonetwo]

I was actually at Circus World on the last day it was open, as part of a field trip. I was 13, at the time. I was at a small private school in Tampa, and there was less than 20 of us kids, that went. The park was virtually empty of visitors. needless to say, we kids had our run of the place. We rode the rollercoasters over, and over, and over. We even engaged in a few shenanigans, as kids that age tend to. All in all it was a great day for us, and I will always cherish that feeling of virtually having an entire theme park to myself.

[@vikiwalters8767]

I was really little and never went to Circus World but we did go to Boardwalk and Baseball. I have a few really distinct family memories from the park (and Cypress Gardens) before it closed and we moved further north. I'm so glad you chose to do a history because you never hear about it, even down in Central Florida, and I was starting to think it was a fever dream.

[@felicitousfeline9956]

I was at Circus World shortly after Zoomerang opened as a teenager from New York State visiting my grandmother who lived nearby. I loved that coaster. I kept my Circus World ticket for a long time because I liked the gilded circus themed art and the PT Barnum quote on it: “The noblest art is that of making others happy.”

[@monicahuck]

I remember going here when I was 6. It was our last day of vacation in Florida and we were heading home to TN. My friend and I had our faces painted like clowns. When we got home the next day, we scrubbed and scrubbed our faces and could not get the paint off. My mom was freaking out. My face was raw from so much scrubbing. This was 1976, so there was no internet to "Google" to figure out how to get the makeup off. A couple of days later I still had the makeup on my face. Somehow my mom finally called the park. The easiest way to remove the makeup with with baby oil. Magically with just a little bit of baby oil on my face and it was finally clean. Lesson learned.... lol

[@MatecaCorp]

You just have to love the fact that Boardwalk and Baseball’s main advertising push was just “we don’t have anything except outdated rides that have been made obsolete by newer and better products you can find at all the other theme parks in the area”

[@MsRedNebulaPlays]

My parents took me to Circus World in the early 80's. I remember only one thing: seeing Michael Jackson. I didn't get to meet him, but he did wave at me!

[@fidgetslugsumo]

Really!? Man just to have actually laid eyes on the man...that's awesome. I'm a huge MJ fan. So much so that I paused this video when they mentioned him and took a screenshot of him on that roller coaster lol I'm so jealous you got to see him. So jelly!

[@MsRedNebulaPlays]

@@fidgetslugsumo My parents were surprised when I mentioned "seeing Michael Jackson at a park that looked like a circus" later on in my 20s. I didn't even remember it had been in Florida, they had to fill in the rest of the details for me! I was pretty young at the time.

[@fidgetslugsumo]

@@MsRedNebulaPlays lol that's crazy! I'm still envious as all hell you could even say youd seen him. Cool memories!

[@NinaS___]

My parents and my uncle (who lived lived in Florida at the time) took me to Circus world in 1982 as well. Unfortunately not seeing Michael Jackson, though. Went to Disney World, Sea World and a lot other attractions as well. :)

[@RonaldTotoJohnson]

Michael Jackson came to Circus World twice during the Summer of 1985 while I was a clown there. I did not get a photo with him but the clowns who went on the roller coaster with him did.

[@thisismysea]

So Boardwalk & Baseball's advertising tactic was literally "not as exciting or state of the art as the competition"? Stellar idea. A circus-theme park sounds really fun and unique though. I feel like that concept could succeed if it wasn't in Orlando.

[@goodmorninguser]

My mom worked for HBJ in Orlando during their buying spree, and always speaks fondly of Boardwalk and Baseball. She said it was a great place to relax and enjoy a day. She’s not much a ride person, so I think that’s why she enjoyed it so much. She also loved Sea World, and always tells a story of how their entire office skipped work one day to go to Sea World to see a baby whale being born, and they would often just walk around Sea World after work since they could get in for free ☺️

[@rdt8]

Love this story! My mother was the marketing director of Circus World when it opened, and later Cypress Gardens. And my father randomly years later was the director of security and safety/park services/a few other departments at SeaWorld from I think like 1991 to 2001 (🤔?). Anyway, one really cool memory I have but had forgotten about until reading your comment just now is when I also was able to see a whale being born in Shamu Stadium! At this point they had stopped allowing virtually anyone and everyone from being in the facility when a whale was giving birth (this was shortly after that incident where a transient man had walked to Orlando from Miami/snuck into the park at night/stripped his clothing off and had decided to partake in some sort of spiritual swimming experience (lol whut? 🤨) with a whale and jumped into the tank with Tilikum, the largest whale SeaWorld had (who had already killed a lady when he was owned by an aquatic park in Canada). Tilikum quickly killed the man and then refused to release his body for several days (the whale thought the man's body was a toy and swam around the tank in circles for several days with the now blue lifeless transient man wedged under its fin). Once the body was recovered, it was was placed in a small training office right there in the stadium for a couple of days while the police worked on their investigation - my dad had to handle this whole fun fiasco and said it was the worst thing he's ever smelled and that it took months and months for them to get that office to not stink anymore 😬 sorry for TMI, lol). Anyway, after that fun event had transpired, the security in the stadium was much more restricted and basically no one other than trainers and medical staff was allowed to be present when a whale birth was going to occur. My father often used SeaWorld as my daycare facility, lol, and I spent a lottttt of time roaming/exploring the park in the summers when school was out (he could watch me from security cameras/so many employees knew who I was and looked out for me/if I ever had any issues or needed to contact him I was instructed to just find the nearest "house phone," typically located in the bushes or in a random planter, often behind/near a goofy faux-speaker-rock blasting out cheesie elevator Muzak (lol) and to just dial his extension (2161, later 2428 - gosh your one comment has me remembering soooo many random little details/memories! 😲) and he'd be just a golf cart ride away to come get me, lol!) (Totally sorry for the nasty dead guy story/TMI/absolute rambling but your comment made me suddenly remember all sorts of little random details and memories I'd completely forgotten about!!). Anyway, on one of these days while SeaWorld was basically my babysitter, I remember my dad mentioning to me that there was going to be a whale birth that afternoon and that I should go see it at the stadium, before he cut me loose for the day. I made my way over to Shamu Stadium and found that it was of course closed to the public / was roped off and there were park employees standing at each entrance, making sure no guests were able to enter. For whatever reason even the local news media personnel who had arrived to cover the whale birth were denied entry into the stadium. Thinking back now, I also recall that with this birth there had been some minor complications and the birth was a day or two delayed, and I think this was the main reason no one other than the animal medical team and the trainers was being allowed into the stadium. I'll never forget though... I walked right up to one of the stadium entrances and the park employee guardian the entranceway was just like "oh hi Rich!" and they unhooked the rope barricade so I could walk past, into the stadium and I totally remember the reporters being all, "Hey!! 🤨 Why does this kid get to go inside!?!! 😠" as I walked in, lol! I remember by this point, while they were still a couple of medical personnel / trainers right at the front of the tank monitoring the whale, most of the staff had gone back to their offices because the whale had been so delayed at this point and no one really knew exactly when to expect the birth. And as soon as I walked up to the front of the tank and peered through the glass the pregnant whale swam by and out popped baby whale, in a cloud of rust-colored/bloody water lol. Just such a surreal thing to experience! I could probably go back and look at news articles from the time but I wish I could remember what the name of that particular whale I saw being born was. They usually just ended up calling them all "Shamu" during the shows, lol.

[@bystanderbutch3509]

Oh yeah? What effect did that have on the U. S. mint making quarters? I bet you thought your comment was relevant. You don't know what your saying. Sometime a horse will bite people, do you wanna risk that?

[@videowatchingguy21]

I have the fondest memories as a kid going to Baseball City. My dad worked there as an audio technician and scoreboard technician. I’ll never forget going every spring to games and my dad would put my name on the board. We even got a stray cat from there which lived with us for about 15 years. Great memories! Thanks for the mass blast of memory, great video!

[@mjhopkins76]

I grew up right by there, and loved Boardwalk and Baseball. The area was known as Baseball City for a long time after the park closed. That area has changed so much, I can't stand to go back. Even the town I lived in, Loughman, is pretty much gone. Whenever I do stop by there, people say I have a strange accent, and ask me where I am from. I am like "I am from right here." Nobody is left there anymore... Used to be all cow pastures, orange groves and swamp land. Now, all of that is gone; replaced with little dollhouse homes and people from other states. Just shows how the entire history of an area can be erased.

[@meganstockman7737]

I love how passionately you talk about your life experience with this park and your home town and yes its a real shame because im not a big rides person so this park would have been perfect for me I would have loved to go its just so unfortunate I was born in the wrong era...... Thank you for sharing it xxxxx

[@NikkyJThemeParkHipster]

This video makes me so happy. Boardwalk and Baseball was my first theme park! Thank you!!! 💙

[@karlharvymarx2650]

My first job was at Boardwalk and Baseball before it opened. After all that very hard work in the heat, it is painful to see it is gone. I must have planted tens of thousands of bushes and hundreds of trees, some of which were full grown, and dug miles of trenches through the old Circus World tarmac for irrigation and plant beds. Most of the work had to be done by hand because old park blueprints had been "lost" so you never knew when your shovel would hit a water main or 440V electric cable. The asphalt wasn't too hard to get through but under it was 2-4 feet of stuff they called limerock which was pretty much like soft concrete that had to be removed with a pick ax. In Summer the temperature was 95F most of the day, full sun, and the humidity somewhere in the 90%'s IIRC, it was hot as hell for hard manual labor. I did like the people I worked with, even my boss, Dan the Man. First day he became frustrated with my digging speed even in sand and demonstrated how he expected a tree hole to be dug. He grabbed a shovel and mostly disappeared in a cloud of sand, spiraling down so quickly he must have gotten dizzy. I swear he dug a cone 5 feet across and 5 feet deep in about 2 minutes. It looked so insane to me, I thought he was joking or showing off, but no, he was right out there working with us at that speed most days. His long term boyfriend was also his boss, not sure if that had something to do with him working so hard or not. I'm not a homewrecker, but it wasn't easy to keep my eyes off his glistening hot Freddie Mercury bod working beside me. Oh and aloof cigarette smoking party boi with Caribbean beach water blue eyes. Sorry, got a bit distracted there. They really did spare no expense making the park look good so it did gradually become a visually appealing place to work. Sometimes there were perks like being ride testing guinea pig. One time I think I took 100 or so consecutive rides on the wooden roller coaster. The steel coaster I had nearly fallen out of as a kid was in good working order. When the park opened, I got my one and so far only chance to put my Norwegian language skills to practical use helping a family with directions. (Ok, mostly I just pointed and smiled a lot, but at least I knew what they had asked.) For work I didn't like, I have more good than bad memories of it. I think one of the main reasons it couldn't stay in business was the location. It wasn't far from Disney, but it came up kind of abruptly after turning off an Interstate Highway. There was a lot of visual clutter in the general area so it wasn't super obvious the park was there. The area looked like a place to find a gas station and buy fast food. It didn't help that the front of the park was the parking lot. Even though it was close, it was probably one of the worst locations for it. The rides were dated but I think it still could have turned a profit in a better location. It isn't like Disney had more thrilling rides at the time. I don't know if the price of admission was reasonable since I could go for free.

[@TanyaH321]

I went to Boardwalk & Baseball when I was 13 in July of 1988. I loved it. I went to the same site years later with my children and it was strange to think it used to be there.

[@vickibryant8937]

Yessss, I did go to Circus World in the 70's! My grandparents spent the winter at a camp ground down the road on 127. The Circus World performers lived at the same camp ground. They practiced their high wire routines at the camp ground. We would take our chairs out to the field and watch them practice! Such great memories!!

[@cathenathman5188]

Went to Circus World in 1983-1984, along with my Disney World, Sea World trip. Got picked out the audience to participate in the Trapeze Act. So exciting, I will never forget that. So sad it closed, it was an experience most never get to have!

[@thenakawulskis8611]

I am glad my Dad took me to experience Boardwalk and Baseball when I was a kid. I remember getting a small mini pink baseball bat as a souvenir. After watching this makes me want to find it =(

[@richkurtz6053]

There is a Circus World today, the Circus World Museum in Baraboo Wisconsin. This city is the original home of the Ringling brothers. While not a theme park, they to have a one ring circus, animal acts and a historic museum of all of the old circus wagons and paraphernalia. If you are in the Wisconsin Dells area take a trip over to Baraboo and visit. It is a great day trip.

[@ericzerkle5214]

Peru, Indiana has a circus museum too.

[@ScottWestra7]

My dad used to take me to Boardwalk & Baseball all the time, I remember freaking out when we found out it had closed. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

[@jmautobrokers6568]

I went to Boardwalk and baseball as a kid on a field trip. As a Florida native I have also been to all the other theme parks as well. Now that I have children I'm glad i am able to show them videos like this so they can see how our state progressed over the years. Thank you

[@velociraptor4you3291]

"Just down the road from Disney World." 🤔 After seeing this, I can't help but feel that perhaps the *proximity* to the former is at least another factor as to why both of these didn't last long. Shame, really. As something of a circus fan myself, I personally would've loved to have visited it when it was Circus World.

[@MakBot]

The opening of EPCOT Center and several on-property resorts really changed the game in Orlando.

[@Will_0001]

I remember the Double O and the Hurricane when I was a kid. These were the best roller coasters in the Orlando area until Universal opened.

[@samoanwmn]

In 1977 I was 18 and went on my first ever vacation to Orlando. Epcot didn't exist yet and I wanted to go everywhere and do everything. One of the brochures I saw at my Days Inn in Sand Lake lobby was for Circus World. Off I went! That day I was made up as a clown, walked a tightrope and swung on the trapeze. I also rode the Tiger. It was an amazing roller coaster. I could see that it was a budget operation as performers would get on wagons or jeeps to beat the public to the next tent as all the shows were done with the same dozen or so performers. What a wonderful day I had. I still can hear the workers calling me "Miss Clown."

[@mr.lawrence7321]

So many memories. I was fortunate enough to visit both parks. Its weird to see what use to be when ever visit home.

[@nationalist818]

I spent a summer going to every theme park in Florida , Boardwalk and Baseball was my favorite, not only batting cages but fielding and pitching cages, it was great fun as a baseball fan.

[@bowlman1967]

I met my wife when we both worked at boardwalk and baseball. My wife was there till i closed.

[@misshiss4040]

What does that mean lol..... like u guys got it on in the park afterhours ??!?!?!!? Lmfao

[@JJ-cg9nh]

@@misshiss4040 I think he meant "until it closed" as in closed down lol

[@mandasamp7511]

Brings back so many childhood memories. Being from Minneola/Clermont, many family members worked at Circus World. We visited often. Then Boardwalk and Baseball opened and we went there. Our school fields trips we there and I remember the last baseball game we saw. Bo Jackson was playing.

[@samh3480]

I went to Circus World with my family when I was 14 in 1976. There was only the loop shuttle coaster at that time. My father loved the place more than my brother and I. It had really great circus history museums and the hot dogs were real special.

[@lauracatania5063]

I have vague memories of visiting Circus World in the early 80s and walking on a low tightrope. It was fun

[@suitedpenguins4640]

Should look into the history of Medieval Times in Kissimmee Fl. Been around forever and a cool dinner show.

[@ohbogey]

That's a good suggestion! I share ur hope for this!

[@runi5413]

I went there once as a kid... It's not that different from other Medieval Times, is it?

[@kingposeidon4535]

Not only Medieval Times, but there's also some pirate dinner show in Orlando as well.

[@coyoteartist]

Arabian Nights was the place I wanted to go to because of the Arabians. They use to sponsor an Arabian show which we went to several times. But I never saw the dinner show.

[@DARTHKNOWS76]

I live in Buena Park ,ca we got a mid evil times but have you ever went to pirate adventure it’s next door to mid evil times it’s the same but pirate theme so awesome !

[@shawver83]

I live about 45 mins away from here, went to both Circus World and Boardwalk and Baseball several times. I still have a little miniature wooden baseball bat souvenir from my last Boardwalk & Baseball visit around 1987 or so.

[@bobo3034]

During a visit from the UK to Florida back in the early 1980s we were driving on the I4, we spotted the theme park while making our way to Tampa. As our children were in their early teens and keen to visit any and all theme parks during our 3 week of touring Florida, we decided to call and spend a little time at Boardwalk & Baseball. Our kids loved it, had a great time on the rides. Some 30 years later my wife and I happened to be driving along I4. I reminded her of the time we visited the theme park with our kids, so we decided to go visit again this time on our own. We were saddened to learn the park was no longer there. We still have happy memories when we visited with our kids back in the 80s. Time moves on I suppose!

[@porkscratchings5428]

I went to Circus World in 1980 with my family. We visited places now closed in Florida, so this was a real blast for me. It was the Christmas period and as a youngster, I remember it being pretty dead tbh. I still got my souvenir bag of there. As a kid, I would hoard things like the places I'd go to, always same format, leaflets, maps, tickets, souvenirs all got bagged up and labelled and shoved away in the loft.

[@CheersEars]

We went there mid 1980's from the UK. Very fond memories. Brilliant share

[@polkfl3510]

I grew up just south of there in Haines city. My family visited here quite often since the tickets were only $13 compared to Disney’s was 60 at the time. It was my favorite park and the hurricane was my first rollercoaster at 8 years old

[@rdt8]

Thanks for this video - really brought back some memories/loved seeing photos/videos of things I've heard about but never before seen in person! My mother was the Director of Marketing/Publicity on the opening team of Circus World (after initially starting her career as the youngest/first female publicist as part of the opening team with WDW in 71). I was not yet born when this park opened but growing up I did hear a lot about it from my mother. She also had/has all sorts of cool items she's saved from her time at the park (and from her time at Disney and several other attractions she worked for over the years). I was going through a closet a couple of years ago trying to find attachments for the vacuum cleaner and found a giant stack of brand new Circus World t-shirts and other park merchandise items lol. I know she has some pretty neat construction photos and negatives from the park that she took herself as well as various Betamax tapes with various raw footage/advertising projects and commercials. She has some of the old tickets and all sorts of other items as well, not just from this park, but from all of the various parks she worked at over the years. I'm hoping someday she will donate the items to a museum or something. She left Circus World after a couple of years to become the Director of Marketing/Publicity for nearby Cypress Gardens and helped oversee a large park expansion and redesign in the early 80s (she even accompanied the park's zoologists and biologists to the jungles of Costa Rica when they went to gather specimen and fauna for the newly constructed area of the park and wrote a series of articles documenting the experience which were published as a front page series in the Orlando Sentinel). After that she went to work for Six Flags for a little while and opened Six Flags' Stars Hall of Fame wax museum (which was right off of I-4, next to SeaWorld). She also helped open Six Flags' Atlantis water park in Hollywood, FL. Anyway, after I was born/years later, my father went to work as an executive for SeaWorld and was the director of various park departments for 10 years. By this time of course, Anheuser-Busch owned the property where Circus World (and later Boardwalk and Baseball) was located and I did get to go with him on several occasions over to the old Circus World property as he was helping to organize and manage various special events they were holding there. The last time I remember being there was when Anheuser-Busch had a contract with the Kansas City Royals MLB team for the Royals to use the property as their spring training facility. I believe this contract was around for a number of years. While the original boardwalk / attractions side of the of the property was definitely in a state of total disrepair/abandonment, the baseball stadium/fields/facilities had been well-maintained and kept up over the years. Anheuser-Busch had not originally built Boardwalk and Baseball but of course purchased it from (without looking at my notes) I believe Harcourt Brace Jovanovich (HBJ) when they purchased SeaWorld. I believe HBJ had purchased SeaWorld and B&B from the Mattel Corporation, and also separately had purchased Cyprus Gardens. Anyway, by the time my father worked with Anheuser-Busch they owned all of these properties and it is my understanding that they had never really intended to put much into the Boardwalk & Baseball site as it was too close to all of the other aforementioned nearby attractions they owned, as well as of course very near Busch Gardens, in Tampa. I remember spending time in the baseball stadium and watching The Royals play, and I remember sneaking away from my dad to go out from the front of the stadium onto the very creepy and overgrown/dilapidated-looking elevated "Boardwalk" walkway that connected the theme park area to the stadium and spent some time walking around the overgrown and shuttered attraction buildings and facilities that were still there at the time. I don't remember much except there were many super 1970s-style outdoor walkway lights (the kind with big, round spherical glass globes on them). And I remember seeing off in the distance the giant circus "tent" building (I remember my mother always saying that this was originally/at the time the world's largest IMAX theater), looking super creepy and abandoned and wanting to walk to there but not being able to get too far down the overgrown boardwalk walkway/being super weary of snakes and other lovely native Florida creatures, lol. If I ever am able to get more information or photos / materials from my parents I'd love to share them! And if you had any interest I'm sure both my mother and father wouldn't mind giving an interview about any of these properties or historic Orlando-area attractions if you ever had any questions or needed content for future videos! :) Thank you again for this awesome video (and for ALL of your other awesome videos as well)! 🙂

[@rdt8]

Oh, one other small anecdote I remembered: years after leaving Circus World, in early 1986, my mother was visiting Boardwalk & Baseball and went on the Florida Hurricane roller coaster (she had originally helped open it) and got off the ride feeling very physically strange / a little sick, which never happened for her and she knew something wasn't right. She went to the doctor a few days later and discovered she was newly pregnant (with me!), lol.

[@philipjamesparsons]

I rode the Hurricane as an 8 year old in 1986 visiting from the UK. It is still one of my favourite coasters. Zoomerang, was my first "white knuckle" ride that went upside down. I plucked up the courage, took the lift to the top and made the height restriction. It was worth it. Visited Boardwalk, in 1988, still great but crowd numbers were unsustainably low.

[@michaelcrosby6322]

I grew up in Orlando and spent lots of time at Circus World and went to Boardwalk and Baseball a few times after the change. I loved the small feel of the park versus the big feel of Disney World. I really miss Circus World.

[@marcokeller3575]

My family went to Florida on a tour in 1979. Flew in from Canada and every day the tour company took us somewhere. We did Cape Canaveral, Disney World (of course), Cypress Gardens, Sea World and Circus World. Don't remember too much except that most of the Circus world rides were a bit much for me at 10 years old. Much preferred Disney World. Still do remember the southern women in big hoop dresses walking around Cypress Gardens.

[@neverenoughguitars8276]

This was a blast from the past watching this. I have a few memories of this place from around 1979 or 1980. I remember getting my face painted like a clown, seeing the lions and tigers show and watching from a distance as my Sister and my Dad rode the elevator up to ride the roller coaster.

[@LauraCrawford-cc3pn]

I was very young -mid 70’s when I visited Circus World. I remember getting my face painted as a clown and riding my very first roller coaster. My dad rode with me even though he gets severely motion sick. He paid the price later but he made my day in the best way! We still laugh about it today!

[@cakesbygaby]

I visited both these parks. In 1976 as a five year old and in 1988 as part of a band field trip to the new Boardwalk and Baseball. Good times but I can see how it couldn’t compete with Disney, Sea World and Busch Gardens. Glad I got to see them.

[@TheGreatNinjaBlu]

I just got a job at FELD entertainment this year- This video came on as I'm getting ready for work. I had NO IDEA of this place and I've lived in Florida my whole life

[@dappertom7722]

We went to Circus World in 1983 and 1985 when our sons were very young. We all loved it and the boys were super cute with their clown faces. I remember riding the roller coaster 7 times in a row! I guess the crowds were low.

[@robbo7961]

Great to see you cover this. My parents visited the park in its Boardwalk and Baseball time in 1989. I first visited Florida in 1990 and drove down to visit. Could not believe that apart from the Stadium it had all gone. No internet back then so had no idea of its demise. The massive roadside sign was still there. So my only memory was the VHS movies that my Dad shot of their visit. Adam the Woo has made an excellent vlog on Circus World well worth a watch. Cheers!

[@bengofton1648]

I used to go to Circus World in the late 70s as a child. I loved the Hurricane/Roaring Tiger. The park was always so empty you could ride that thing all day! In 86 or 87 I made a trip to Orlando and went looking for Circus World only to see it had changed into Boardwalk and Baseball. It was quite a shock. Also, Steve Miller made a music video there 'Living in the USA'. I can't find it anywhere...Good memories though.

[@danimal097521]

I went to Boardwalk And Baseball quite a lot when it was open. My dad and I went constantly. Great memories.

[@Tampajoe77]

My dad brought me to Boardwalk Baseball in the late 80's I believe.. it was ok, mostly a bummer though because it was about a 5-6 hour drive, only to not go to Disney lol. I remember it because on the way back home, my dad's tail light caught fire and had spread into the trunk. I found out by my dad ripping my sleeping ass out the back seat by my ankles yelling, "Get out! Fire! Fire!" We were towed the rest of the way, and I could smell for hours was burning plastic. Had a souvenir mini bat from BB.. I loved it.. miss ya dad.

[@alanj2741]

We loved Circus World. We would spend a day there every year on our trip down to Orlando. Park always looked a bit run down compared to Disney but the workers were so friendly! My kid loved the park. I bought a ton of memorabilia by mail after the park closed at 90% iff!

[@matthewcorrell734]

I remember going to Circus World for part of a sports team road trip in 84 it 85. I got picked at the circus training tent to learn how to walk the tightrope! It was so cool and so much fun! At the end you got to put on a performance for the next group that they choose the next group of volunteers from. You also got a picture of you doing your act and a certificate saying you did it.

[@kathrynkoehm4133]

Worked there in a dance show on one of the park's stages shortly before it closed when it was Boardwalk & Baseball. I used to ride the wooden coaster in-between shows. So fun!

[@jamismith4960]

I still have my souvenir spoon from the opening of Boardwalk and Baseball. It one of my most prized possessions

[@Theeightmilebend]

Went to Boardwalk and Baseball during our honeymoon trip to Florida in '89 ! We just celebrated our 30th anniversary ! We had a blast there !

[@josephaltman460]

I used to goto Circus World and Boardwalk and Baseball every summer until they closed. The Hurricane was my favorite coaster. It was an excellent alternative to the expensive parks. I remember seeing "Closed" on the sign for years driving past it on I-4. I was so sad to see it go.

[@BassAmateur99]

My Grand Parents took me and my Sister to Circus World as a kid .. We had a blast and its as a lot of fun ! Im thankful I got to go ..

[@leepurdy9069]

I went to both theme parks, as I grew and lived in Brandon and was very close to all of Central Florida's theme parks and attractions. I never was a huge fan of Circus World; although I was quite young when it was around (born in late '77; a product of the snow fall that January, in the Tampa area lol). Boardwalk and Baseball, however, has a special place in my heart. The Hurricane was the very first rollercoaster I ever road and is still to this day my favorite; although that, I am sure, is more from nostalgia than it is from the actual ride itself. That being said, I still remember it as a great coaster as a whole. That first drop was what sold me on coasters for life; right up until my head and neck injuries caused me to have to stop riding them. I did go on Space Mountain last year, big mistake, as my business partner and best friend had never been on an kind of coaster before; even though she was 60 years old. I was glad to get her on it; but even that little thing did a number on me. 😔 So, I look back on The Hurricane with fondness (not so much the Double O though, hated that thing; it literally almost killed my friend's sister and her friend on a ride. The harnesses didn't come down and lock) and miss being able to ride all of the new coasters out there; especially since I love speed (I use to race cars semi-professionally) and I am a straight up adrenaline junkie. Thanks for making this video; it brought back a lot of great memories. I haven't been able to get a straight answer on whether or not The Hurricane is in operation somewhere in the World. Some sites say it is torn down and scrapped and some say it is overseas somewhere (I forget), and some place it here in the US under a different name. I would love to know, as I would probably go to wherever it is and ride it; even if it did jack me up. Lol Any idea?

[@williambuxum9266]

I'm 37 now and as a kid my dad would take to boardwalk and baseball. I'll always remember how I loved the theme park, as a kid growing up in Florida i had been to all the theme parks but boardwalk and baseball was by far favorite...I think because my dad and I loved baseball and it had the baseball in the name 🤷‍♂️

[@mhman824]

I grew up just 5 minutes away from this park. It wasnt in Haines City,it was in Davenport. My cousin worked as a gunslinger in the Colorado Riders western show. He did all the pistol twirling stuff. I remember field trips to Circus World when I was in elementary school. Great memories and it makes me sad that it is gone. I was sad when the park was rebranded as Boardwalk & Baseball (B&B to us locals) although I did get to see Bo Jackson during spring training. Thanks for the vid.

[@jrodsun9401]

The hurricane was my first rollercoaster I ever rode. I was 8 years old. My pops and I rode in the front cart. I started crying and freaking out on our way to the top. Then the round about I slouched down by his feet. It was traumatic. He made me go on it again. But not in the front cart. I loved it. I loved Boardwalk n Baseball with my dad. RIP Pops.

[@jdozier3459]

Your Father MADE you ride it again, after seeing that you were traumatized!! That I don't understand. I could say more, but I won't since it was your Father. I rode it as a young man, and it scared me to death, and I was an experienced coaster rider. Riding that ride was the only reason that I went there...for that, it was worth it...but still very scary! The rest of the park did nothing for me.

[@jamesd493]

Living in Kissimmee, FL USA as a child I went to both Circus World and Boardwalk Baseball. They weren't like Disney. They were more like a State Fair with one or two awesome rollercoasters. It was a lot of fun! We were able to go often because it was more affordable than Disney. I was sad when it closed permanently.

[@SuperIrishDiva]

My parents took my brother and I to Circus World regularly in the late 70's and early 80's. I sat through many, many shows under the Big Top, but one in particular is forever etched in my brain. It was during the elephant show, and all of the girls were wearing little yellow outfits with fluffy pink feathers around their wrists and ankles. They were wearing tall headdresses with tall plumes of pink feathers. This was their standard costume. Their job was to kind of showcase themselves dancing around the elephants. A few would ride the elephants as they lined up behind one another to stand on their back feet while putting their front feet on the elephant in front of them. There was also the trick of the daring showgirl holding onto the elephant's trunk and being lowered to the underbelly of the elephant. Then the elephant would bring her back up to her feet and a crowd pleasing "TA DAAA!" Cheers and applause. Well, this particular time, the showgirl went under the elephant, and it just let loose with gallons of urine all over her. This poor girl was DOUSED! He soaked her from the ankle feathers all the way up to the top of her headdress. To her credit, the lady posed proudly for the "TA DAAA" moment literally dripping elephant piss from every wilted feather. As far as the coasters went, there was the Roaring Tiger and the Scorpion in the early days. I was afraid of the Scorpion for years, but pitched such a fit to ride the Roaring Tiger that my dad had to take me at least twice per visit..... at much peril to his spine. It was a bit jerky on the way up. In the late 90's, on a trip to Busch Gardens in Tampa, I rounded a corner to find the Scorpion tucked away there.

[@carlhoward8610]

This is an awesome video ....never knew the History of the Arkansas Twister ..this is one of my all time favorite wooden rollercoasters

[@kimmariefischer]

When I was working with Wendy's International in Jacksonville, Florida from 1976-1982, we had a contest and all the people who won were taken by bus to Circus World. I was the company representative on the trip. I don't remember anything about the entertainment inside the tent, because I really don't like circus acts, however, I loved the rides! Several years later, after we had two kids, we took them to Boardwalk and Baseball as it was included in our SeaWorld annual pass. Our little ones loved all the boardwalk/fair type rides that were perfect for little ones. They got their photos taken for their guest pass and had to pick baseball slugger type names. My daughter's name was Alabama Ashley!

[@vintagegal7376]

Boardwalk & Baseball was so fun. We went as a family 4 or 5 times. I loved the rides there.

[@gabrielmartinezmedina4162]

I had the chance to be there, on Boardwalk. Had a nice time, since my dad loved baseball.

[@funkyfreddurst]

I grew up in Orlando and went several times, Under both names. It always seemed like a dicount Disney World but never the less we always looked forward to going. Goes to show you that you cant post up to Disney and expect to compete. Circus World/BB, You will live on in my memories.

[@ResetDoitAgain]

Another great video, Sam! We went to Circus World Showcase at the very beginning for my little brother’s birthday. There really was very little there. Just a scale model of the planned park and the IMAX theater (Fifty years later, it’s the only IMAX movie I’ve ever seen.) Out back, they had elephant rides like you’d have in India, and a wooden wagon towed by camels. There might have been a trapeze act and/or high-wire act and that was it. It’s a shame they couldn’t have repurposed the big-top building. Thanks for doing this video.

[@CtPA-ee4vp]

I visited this park when I was 7 back in 1987. My memories are vague but I remember the wooden coaster and still have the picture they took of me dressed up in a Philadelphia Phillies uniform.

[@wamplertube]

I’ve visited Circus World when I was a child... One thing that sticks out my memory is a terrifying parachute ride.

[@taylerannsupergirl5587]

I was a kid when i rode the loop coaster. The restraint slipped while i was upside down. It was one of the scariest ride experiences of my life.

[@wadedupree9299]

Fun memories from my childhood. I wished Six Flags would have bought the land but now we have a movie theatre and a bunch of stores. Yippeeee

[@Realty1776]

My high school buddy and I went to Boardwalk and Baseball in 1988. It was fun, because there weren't long lines for rides.... but visiting once was enough.

[@barbarapetrzilka8381]

I remember going to Circus World as a teenager - I still have a souvenir glass from there! It was a nice park, it’s a shame it didn’t last.

[@cherramos3727]

I went to both parks, but only really remember it’s Boardwalk and Baseball version well. I’ve lived here in Central Florida all my life and I could not tell you where they ever were!

[@Mdrailer1]

I remember this park. I visited on my birthday in 1979. I remember riding the hurricane. It was a great coaster. My younger sister got to participate with one of the circus shows. she was one stage with a friend and a clown. It is sad what happened to the park. I have some real good memories there.

[@siobhanlawper1051]

I never knew this park existed! Your videos are really cool, you cover stuff that other channels don't think of. Thanks for making this!

[@maggienero1736]

I used to work at Circus world! I ran the huge Ferris Wheel and the zoomerrang/ flying daredevil… I loved to work there!! I always wanted to be one of the ladies that rode the Elephant s… I showed up to work on the last day Circus world was closed… we showed up and they gave us checks and the opportunity to work at Cypress Gardens or wait and come back when Boardwalk and baseball opened up. I came back to work at Boardwalk and Baseball I ran the same Rides as I did for Circus World.. sadly I think the park was just alittle too far outside of town. Davenport/Haines city has grown up sooo much! I still miss seeing the Ride called The Weinerlooping from I-4 as I was driving by!! Great Memories!!!!

[@stevewho100]

me and my family went to circus world in '82' had alot of fun there. bought some carnival type posters there that i still have hanging in my house today .

[@philiptrapper6646]

I was at both parks. I have some home videos of circus world and still the baseball card you could have made of yourself. Lots of good memories one is that of the loop roller coaster. First time ever on a loop coaster. Thank You for the great memories.

[@ExpeditionThemePark]

Oh I would love to see them!

[@amyabrams2871]

I went to Circus World in 1983, I was 5!! We were on our way to Disney. I remember it mainly from pictures of our trip and a park map that we still have!! Enjoyed this video so much!!!

[@janetalman2049]

I visited Circus World in March of 1980 and had almost completely forgotten about it until now. I don’t remember much but I do remember the IMAX theater.

[@shannonhall2541]

I remembered going to circus world as a kid loved it loved the coasters and remember getting our faces painted I was sad when it closed down

[@jefferyfite7122]

I was there in either the summer of 1976 or 1977. The elephant barn was an incredible sight to see as a young kid. I liked the place and had good memories of it. My folks thought it was a rip off.

[@snarkus63]

Thank you for this....while I never experienced Circus World,I did spend a day....or rather,half a day....at its short-lived replacement. It was my first solo trip to Florida,sometime in the late 80's...were I to guess the year,it would either be '87 or '88;I also went to WDW,but Disney-MGM was not yet open. The travel package I'd purchased included a ticket to and round-trip transportation to Boardwalk & Baseball. My sole source of information about this park was a brochure from my hotel. It described a turn-of-the-century style park,something akin to the glory days of Coney Island. I couldn't wait to see it. In the years to come,when I related my day at B&B to family members,I often referred to it as "the big fat lie story". Seemingly,the entire walking space of the park was covered in boardwalk,which I must admit,is quite a feat. But after being in the park a good ten minutes,I really didn't care anymore and immediately wanted to know "so where are the rides?". I do remember seeing the roller coaster,and a few others of the spinning-and-bobbing variety....what I did NOT see was any of them MOVE! I'm not kidding...for the first few hours there,I wandered the park,looking for SOMETHING TO DO. The gift shops were open,but what few restaurants there were didn't open until noon. I actually found two things I could also then find at Six Flags Great America (Gurnee,IL....I live nearby)...the above-mentioned IMAX film about the Grand Canyon,and an animated shooting gallery which was practically identical (obviously made by the same company). I've never really been into baseball,so the mini-Cooperstown exhibit didn't hold my interest very long. Contrary to one of the brochures biggest lies,there was nothing "quaint" or "old-fashioned" about this place....the buildings all looked pre-fab,and the seating for the indoor and outdoor shows,which I'll get to,was the same identical corrugated metal benches! If there were gas lamps there,they completely escaped my notice. The one high point of the day was the Wild West show....trick riding,roping and such. Very entertaining,I must admit. After that,I saw some indoor magic show...."Professor Bubbles' "enchanted-something-or-other,I don't know. The thing felt like it was aimed at grade-schoolers. My sole memory of it was some joke they made about "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" (the "joke" being an unfavorable comparison of this show to that). It was about three in the afternoon when I got out of there;that was it. I'd DONE everything there was to do! I took the first available bus back to my hotel. Funny thing is,I regret not having any evidence of that day. If I took any pictures,they vanished along with every other photo I've taken prior to the mid-90's. I apparently didn't keep the brochure,which is unusual for me...I started a collection in the early 80's,which I still have.

[@ExpeditionThemePark]

Interesting yeah it seems the second Park was very flawed from what I hear

[@tommyholiday9880]

What type of collection did you start?

[@snarkus63]

@@tommyholiday9880 Like I said,brochures...mostly for tourist attractions like wax museums and such. Most of my collection is of attractions found in Florida,Clifton Hill in Canada near Niagara Falls,the Wisconsin Dells and many southern-based attractions like Rock City and Confederama,which we passed by on a car trip to Florida back in the 80's.

[@tommyholiday9880]

@@snarkus63 My collection is Coney Island where I am a sign painter! New York transit history and may other pieces of local history and historical signage!

[@gregentclemory9285]

This video is made just for me and much appreciated. I went to circus world with a church group as a 7 year old and the loop coaster that ran in reverse to return to it's starting point produced a screamed profanity from me loud enough to remove any doubt in who did it. Double Dare. I was so rattled I didn't ride another ride unfortunately missing out on the wooden giant

[@zedseven50]

Really interesting. We stayed at a friend's house twice (2013 and 2017) whilst on vacation from the UK just up the road from the I4 and Hwy27 intersection and shopped a couple of times at the Posner Centre. I was struck by the open space around it and roadways to nowhere and actually wondered what was there before. Now I know, thanks...!

[@charlottedavis5120]

I went to Boardwalk and Baseball in about the 6th grade on a field trip!

[@rdsubjec2fluding]

I remember coming to preseason games here in middle school. My mom was pretty cool and let me skip school to see the Mets (favorite team) play. Mid game, got up to get a soda and saw my 7th history teacher!! I nearly died until he said, "I won't tell if you don't tell". Sadly I never got to go to the park but went to games for a few years.

[@cathconnelly]

I had no idea Posner Park used to be a theme park. That's so sad, I even have thought to myself while going to that Target, that wow, this area is so plain and undeveloped. Now I get why.

[@MisfitOff-Road]

I actually went to both as a child. I remember it looking almost empty both times. How sad a story.

[@benjaminrobinson3842]

This was one of my father's favorite attractions during the brief span it was open. He was a fan of both baseball and old-timey carnival games like ring toss so this was right up his alley. When relatives came from out of state, we'd always make B&B a stop. Some interesting points that didn't make it into the video: 1) The B&B version of the roller coaster was (in keeping with the general theme) built almost entirely out of wood, as they used to be. 2) There was a big emphasis on the carnival games. I wonder if they were just as rigged as the ones you'd find at your state fair. And come to think of it, why would I travel all the way to Central Florida to play something that's probably in my home county somewhere? 3) The ballpark field was custom-built to the same dimensions as the Royals' home stadium. I saw a game there once; it's surprisingly intimate compared to a regular-season home stadium. 4) The "big top" sported huge reproductions of Norman Rockwell paintings on the roof. These faded to nothingness within a year. The blues were the last colors to go, I remember. My dad loved it -- we even have a very 80s looking B&B jacket -- but I wasn't as impressed. Given how briefly it was open, I guess that was the most common reaction. I guess there's something to be said for fancy laser shows.

[@christophernagy1711]

Remarkable how Mattel has stayed in business when they seem to routinely make terrible business choices. Beyond beyond the Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey Circus, they also had the disastrous, overvalued purchase of The Learning Company (a organization that Kevin O'Leary served as president). Throughout the time they've had Hot Wheels, Barbie and later the Fisher Price brand, Mattel would have plenty of inspiration for a successful theme park. On a separate note, I am glad Mattel's original vision for the Circus World theme park was abandoned. To me, that Elephant hotel looked creepy.

[@rdt8]

Yes to all of this, haha. I remember that there had been a facility in the 80s next to SeaWorld, in the building that had originally housed Six Flags' Stars Hall of Fame wax museum (my mother opened that attraction as the head of publicity/marketing, and ironically also had opened Circus World and was the original marketing/publicity director there as well, and in between both of those roles was the head of publicity and marketing at nearby Cypress Gardens) that there was a place called "Places of Learning," and that it was basically a teacher's resource/education materials sales center "attraction" for educators to come see new techniques and ideas in teaching and to buy the latest teaching materials. I had always thought that Places of Learning was the creation of HBJ (being that they were a textbook publishing company) and that it had been opened by HBJ, several years after HBJ had acquired Circus World/B & B and SeaWorld to HBJ from Mattel, but now that you mention The Learning Company it sounds like Places of Learning might have had something to do with The Learning Company/Mattel? 🤔 There was also another attraction/shopping center/mall in that area for a short while that I believe was built by HBJ called "Florida Festival" that was popular but closed after only a few years in operation. HBJ also built the Stouffer Resort (now Renaissance) next to Sea World/in that area when they acquired all of these properties from Mattel. And of course eventually these properties were acquired by Anheuser-Busch.

[@robertewalt7789]

Soon after our marriage in 1978, we went to Florida and did five parks in four days, Circus World, Cypress Garden (I had gone with my parents maybe 20 years before), Sea World, Disney World, and Busch Garden, in Tampa.

[@eliaspadilla4348]

I use to love to go to Circus World ! We would go often. Thank you for this

[@anthonymorgan354]

I was the art director for both circus world and Boardwalk and baseball. I painted circus wagons and the big mural at the western show for both.There was one thing left out in the expedition extinct video. There was an attempt takeover by Maxwell publishing co. this was thwarted but at a cost. I don't understand a lot of the politics but in the end it was the primary reason the park closed. actually it was in the black at one time something circus world never did.Of corse this was after Monaham owned it. Even though I didn't like Bill Monaham who bought the park for 10 million and sold it for a great deal more,18 mill i think,. he sold off a lot of the valuable things to a NY auction and put in cheeper things . He also had obtained land across the street that he got in the original deal and Im not sure but i think he kept that out side of the deal when he sold the park. I had rebuilt the american beauty ,the lead horse on the Illion carrousel. After I had finished rebuilding it a stranger came into my office and tried to take it away. He said it was for the auction . I had chained it to the floor and denied him taking it until Monaham or someone official came to release it. LOL

[@genevievehawkins9856]

My parents took me to Circus World when I was younger than 5. I remember we were at a campground in a pop-up trailer and a boy had drowned in the pool during our stay.

[@robbbase4397]

The Roaring Tiger is the reason I am a roller-coaster junkie to this day!! 14 times in one day!! Glad to hear it was relocated, too. Any guesses on what just shot to the top of my "bucket list "?! 😉 Thank you SO much for doing a video on this much-missed (by me, anyway!) park! This is now my favorite KZbin channel!!

[@micoasters]

The Arkansas twister sucks, no airtime, uncomfortable and boring. Don’t put it on your bucket list

[@DangerDiego14]

Was driving to Legoland and my dad made a comment about Boardwalk and Baseball once was, now it’s a big retail area with a Best Buy and it feels like in the middle of nowhere. So I researched a bit about it on our trip. Loved the episode as always.