In the mid-1990s, Gaylord Entertainment (owner of Opryland Themepark) decides that it no longer wants to operate an amusement park in Nashville. In our timeline, this decision prompts Gaylord to shutter Opryland in December of 1997 and to replace it with a giant, terrible shopping mall, which serves as the centerpiece of a new, improved, and yuckier "Opryland USA".
In my (preferred alternate) reality, Gaylord decides to sell the theme park, whole, or in part, to Herschend Entertainment. Herschend is a good fit, as it already operates 2 other country-oriented theme parks (Silver Dollar City & Dollywood, duh) in white-person tourism Meccas. From 1998 to the present, the Opryland park expands in much the same fashion as the Branson and Pigeon Forge parks did in our timeline, adding a dozen or more new rides along with several new themed "lands" to the park (for example, a "mountain music & crafts" section that is reminiscent of similar areas at SDC and DW). Among the notable ride additions during the decade plus of Herschend ownership is the historic "Zippin Pippin" roller coaster (Elvis' favorite amusement park ride), purchased from the defunct Libertyland park in Memphis, which is made the centerpiece of an expanded "Do Wah Diddy City" section of the park.
No comments:
Post a Comment