Anton Schwarzkopf
Encyclopedia
Anton Schwarzkopf was a German engineer
of amusement ride
s, and founder of the Schwarzkopf Industries company, which built numerous rides
and large roller coaster
s for both amusement parks and travelling funfairs.
equipment. The company eventually transitioned into creating amusement rides. In 1960, Schwarzkopf took over his father's company leading to the creation of his first actual roller coaster
, The Wildcat, in 1964. Schwarzkopf also designed the first launched roller coaster in the world by means of weight-drop technology, King Kobra at Kings Dominion in Virginia. This coaster was later moved to Alton Towers
, where it became well-known as Thunder Looper
. After its third move, it now resides at Hopi Hari
in Brazil as Katapul.
Schwarzkopf Industries grew rapidly with the vast support of various customers praising the company's creations. Outside of Germany, the company was represented by the Intamin AG
firm; and as a result, many older rides credited to Intamin were actually designed and created by Schwarzkopf.
Schwarzkopf's prowess as a businessman was relatively lacking. His company suffered through several bankruptcies
, resulting in the scrapping of many designs and deals with parks.
Schwarzkopf retired from the industry in 1995, and died on 30 July 2001 after suffering from Parkinson's disease
for many years. His son Wieland reportedly remains in the amusement business, designing rides for another company.
One of his former employees, Werner Stengel
, is now a prestigious designer of roller coasters and amusement rides.
See also :Category:Anton Schwarzkopf roller coasters
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
of amusement ride
Amusement ride
Amusement rides are large mechanical devices that move people to create enjoyment. They are frequently found at amusement parks, traveling carnivals, and funfairs.-Notable types:*Afterburner*Ali Baba*Balloon Race*Booster...
s, and founder of the Schwarzkopf Industries company, which built numerous rides
Amusement ride
Amusement rides are large mechanical devices that move people to create enjoyment. They are frequently found at amusement parks, traveling carnivals, and funfairs.-Notable types:*Afterburner*Ali Baba*Balloon Race*Booster...
and large roller coaster
Roller coaster
The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...
s for both amusement parks and travelling funfairs.
Biography
Anton Schwarzkopf was introduced into the industry with his father's involvement with the design of specialized trailers used to transport circusCircus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
equipment. The company eventually transitioned into creating amusement rides. In 1960, Schwarzkopf took over his father's company leading to the creation of his first actual roller coaster
Roller coaster
The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...
, The Wildcat, in 1964. Schwarzkopf also designed the first launched roller coaster in the world by means of weight-drop technology, King Kobra at Kings Dominion in Virginia. This coaster was later moved to Alton Towers
Alton Towers
Alton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
, where it became well-known as Thunder Looper
Thunder looper
Thunder Looper was a Schwarzkopf Shuttle Loop roller coaster, that operated at Alton Towers Theme Park between 1990 & 1996. When it opened it was classed as part of Aqualand, which is now split between Mutiny Bay & Katanga Canyon, although its actual location was situated where Forbidden Valley is...
. After its third move, it now resides at Hopi Hari
Hopi Hari
Hopi Hari is a Brazilian theme park located at Km 72 of Bandeirantes Highway, Vinhedo in the state of São Paulo. It is located 30 km from Campinas and 80 km from São Paulo....
in Brazil as Katapul.
Schwarzkopf Industries grew rapidly with the vast support of various customers praising the company's creations. Outside of Germany, the company was represented by the Intamin AG
Intamin AG
Intamin Worldwide is a designing and manufacturing company in Wollerau, Switzerland. It is best known for creating thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The U.S. division of the company is located in Glen Burnie, Maryland, and is headed by Sandor Kernacs. The Intamin brand name is an...
firm; and as a result, many older rides credited to Intamin were actually designed and created by Schwarzkopf.
Schwarzkopf's prowess as a businessman was relatively lacking. His company suffered through several bankruptcies
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
, resulting in the scrapping of many designs and deals with parks.
Schwarzkopf retired from the industry in 1995, and died on 30 July 2001 after suffering from Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
for many years. His son Wieland reportedly remains in the amusement business, designing rides for another company.
One of his former employees, Werner Stengel
Werner Stengel
Werner Stengel is a German roller coaster designer and engineer. Stengel is the founder of Stengel Engineering, also known as Ingenieur Büro Stengel GmbH ....
, is now a prestigious designer of roller coasters and amusement rides.
Notable Rides
- Alpina Bahn - large portable non-looping coaster, found on the German funfair circuit.
- Aconcagua - Parque de la Ciudad (Custom Super Speedracer model)
- Big Bad WolfBig Bad Wolf (roller coaster)The Big Bad Wolf was a suspended roller coaster in the Oktoberfest section of Busch Gardens Williamsburg. First opened in 1984, the ride operated for 25 years and the ride closed on September 7, 2009...
- Busch Gardens Williamsburg (finished by Arrow DynamicsArrow DynamicsArrow Dynamics was a roller coaster and amusement ride design company based in Clearfield, Utah, United States. In 2002, the company went bankrupt but was quickly bought by fellow amusement ride manufacturer S&S Power to form S&S Arrow. During its peak, Arrow Dynamics was responsible for some of...
, now defunct) - Black HoleBlack Hole (roller coaster)Black Hole was an enclosed steel roller coaster at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England. It operated from 1984 until 2005. The coaster was located within a huge silvery black tent that ensured the ride took place in total darkness. The coaster itself was a Jet Star 2, designed by Anton...
- Alton TowersAlton TowersAlton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
(formerly "Black Hole II", a Jet Star 2 model, now defunct) - The Bullet, Flamingo Land. First operated 1991 and removed in 2005.
- Cascabel - La Feria Chapultepec Magico (Shuttle Loop model)
- Colossus the Fire DragonColossus the Fire DragonColossus the Fire Dragon is the name of a double looping roller coaster by Anton Schwarzkopf that opened at Lagoon Amusement Park in Utah in 1983.-Description:...
- Lagoon Amusement ParkLagoon Amusement ParkLagoon is an amusement park in Farmington, Utah, United States located about seventeen miles north of Salt Lake City. It is privately owned...
(Double Looping model, with additional trackway curve) - EnigmaEnigma (roller coaster)Enigma is a roller coaster located at Pleasurewood Hills, Corton, Near Lowestoft, Suffolk.It is the only Schwarzkopf Jumbo V in the world, as it was the only one manufactured....
- Pleasurewood Hills (World's only Jumbo V coaster) - Dante's InfernoDante's Inferno (ride)Dante's Inferno was a dark ride created by Anton Schwarzkopf that was located at Astroland on Coney Island; a similar ride called Dante's Dungeon is at Morey's Piers at Wildwood, New Jersey...
- AstrolandAstrolandAstroland was a amusement park in Coney Island first opened in 1962. It was located at 1000 Surf Avenue on the boardwalk... - Golden Loop (Originally Named White Lightnin') at Gold Reef CityGold Reef CityGold Reef City is a large amusement park in Johannesburg, South Africa. Located on an old gold mine, the park is themed around the gold rush on the Witwatersrand. Park staff wear period costumes of the 1880s, and the buildings on the park are designed to mimic the same period...
in JohannesburgJohannesburgJohannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. - Greezed Lightnin’ - Six Flags Kentucky KingdomSix Flags Kentucky KingdomKentucky Kingdom is an amusement park located in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. The park is located on of land which includes a collection of 27 amusement rides and a water park named Splashwater Kingdom...
(Shuttle Loop model) Formerly located as Six Flags Great America as Tidal Wave (ride). - Greezed Lightnin'Greezed Lightnin' (Six Flags Astroworld)Greezed Lightnin is a steel Shuttle Looper roller coaster at Joyland Amusement Park in Lubbock, Texas, relocated from Houston's Six Flags Astroworld....
- AstroWorld - not to be confused with the ride of the same name in Kentucky, this was a flywheel launched shuttle loop built in 1978. Is now in storage. - Greased Lightnin' - a third model with a slightly different spelling, this model operated at Great AmericaGreat AmericaGreat America is a name shared by two American amusement parks opened by the Marriott Corporation in 1976.Both parks are now under different ownership and are known as:* California's Great America, Santa Clara, California, owned by Cedar Fair...
in CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
but is now in pieces. - Jet Star (Särkänniemi roller coaster)Jet Star (Särkänniemi roller coaster)Jet Star is a roller coaster located at Särkänniemi in Tampere. This Jet Star is the last Jet Star roller coaster ever built, although the model belongs to the first production model group. This is possible because the roller coaster was built from spareparts remaining in the factory...
- Last Jet Star roller coaster ever built - Jet Star 2 - Lagoon Amusement ParkLagoon Amusement ParkLagoon is an amusement park in Farmington, Utah, United States located about seventeen miles north of Salt Lake City. It is privately owned...
(Jet Star 2 model) - KatapulThunder looperThunder Looper was a Schwarzkopf Shuttle Loop roller coaster, that operated at Alton Towers Theme Park between 1990 & 1996. When it opened it was classed as part of Aqualand, which is now split between Mutiny Bay & Katanga Canyon, although its actual location was situated where Forbidden Valley is...
- Hopi Hari (Shuttle Loop model, formerly King Kobra at Kings Dominion and Thunder Looper at Alton TowersAlton TowersAlton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
) - Knightmare - Camelot Theme ParkCamelot Theme ParkCamelot Theme Park is a resort and theme park located in the English county of Lancashire. It is based on the legend of Camelot. It is located on a site near the village of Charnock Richard, west of Chorley. The site is owned by The Story Group, and operated by Knights Leisure...
(Custom Design) - Laser (roller coaster) - Dorney Park & Wildwater KingdomDorney Park & Wildwater KingdomDorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is an American amusement and water park located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The park features nine roller coasters, other adult and children's rides, and a waterpark, Wildwater Kingdom....
(Double Looping model) Closed at the end of 2008 - LisebergbananLisebergbananLisebergbanan is a steel roller coaster at the Liseberg amusement park in Gothenburg, Sweden. It opened in 1987.When Anton Schwarzkopf's company went bankrupt, Schwarzkopf worked with the Zierer company to produce several roller coasters. Lisebergbanan was the first of these rides, and it has been...
- LisebergLisebergLiseberg is an amusement park located in Gothenburg, Sweden, the park opened in 1923. Liseberg is one of the most visited amusement parks in Scandinavia, attracting around 3 million visitors annually. Among the noteworthy attractions is the wooden roller coaster Balder, voted twice as the Best...
in SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
(custom design) - Looping StarLooping Star (Nagashima Spa Land)Looping Star is a roller coaster which is located at Nagashima Spa Land in Mie, Japan. Built by Anton Schwarzkopf in 1982. It is one of the identical models of Looping Star at other parks. Built by Anton Schwarzkopf in 1982. It was actually built right after two years since Shuttle Loop was...
- Nagashima Spa LandNagashima Spa Landis a major amusement park in Kuwana, Mie Prefecture, Japan. It features several roller coasters, a giant Ferris wheel, and a water park.-Roller coasters:*Children Coaster*Corkscrew*Jet Coaster*Looping Star*Shuttle Loop*Steel Dragon 2000*Ultra Twister... - Looping Star Dreamland Margate UK(1982)
- Looping Star - Playcenter - São Paulo - Brasil
- Dreier Looping, AKA Magnum Force and Montana Infinitum - 3 loop coaster, which toured German funfairs before being sold. Operated at Flamingo Land from 2000 to 2005.
- Mind Bender (Six Flags Over Georgia)Mind Bender (Six Flags Over Georgia)Mind Bender is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Georgia near Atlanta, Georgia. Billed as "the world's first triple-loop roller coaster" when it opened on March 31, 1978, Mind Bender maintains its popularity some three decades after it opened...
- Six Flags over GeorgiaSix Flags Over GeorgiaSix Flags Over Georgia is a theme park located west of Atlanta, in unincorporated Cobb County. Opened in 1967, it is the second park in the Six Flags chain, after the original opening in 1961 in Texas.... - Mindbender (Galaxyland)Mindbender (Galaxyland)The Mindbender is the world's largest indoor triple loop roller coaster. It is located in Galaxyland Amusement Park, a major attraction inside West Edmonton Mall, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada...
- GalaxylandGalaxylandGalaxyland, previously known as Fantasyland, is the world's second largest indoor amusement park, situated in the West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is home to the world's tallest , and longest indoor roller coaster, the Mindbender. It is also home to the Space Shot, the world's...
at the West Edmonton MallWest Edmonton MallWest Edmonton Mall , located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, is the largest shopping mall in North America and the fifth largest in the world. The mall was founded by the Ghermezian brothers, who emigrated from Iran in 1959. It was the world's largest mall until 2004.West Edmonton Mall covers a gross... - Montezooma's RevengeMontezooma's RevengeMontezooma's Revenge is a steel shuttle roller coaster at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It opened on May 21, 1978. Designed by Anton Schwarzkopf, it is one of eight flywheel-launched units manufactured for theme parks around the world...
- Knott's Berry FarmKnott's Berry FarmKnott's Berry Farm is a theme park in Buena Park, California, now owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, and a line of jams, jellies, preserves, and other specialty food, now part of The J. M. Smucker Company based in Placentia, California....
in Buena Park, CaliforniaBuena Park, CaliforniaBuena Park is a city in northwestern Orange County, California. As of Census 2010 the population was 80,530. The city is adjacent to the city of Anaheim and is 12 miles northwest of downtown Santa Ana. The Current OMB metropolitan designation for Buena Park and the Orange County Area is "Santa... - Nightmare at Crack Axle CanyonNightmare at Crack Axle CanyonNightmare at Crack Axle Canyon was a steel roller coaster of twister at The Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom in Queensbury, New York. This simple steel coaster was enclosed in a warehouse-like building allowing the cars to run in the dark giving a heightened sense of disorientation as the cars go...
- The Great Escape & Splashwater KingdomThe Great Escape & Splashwater KingdomThe Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom is an amusement and waterpark located in Queensbury, New York. It is advertised as being located in Lake George, New York...
(Jet Star model) (SBNO) - Nightmare at Phantom Cave - Darien Lake (Jet Star Model) (Defunct)
- Olympia LoopingOlympia LoopingOlympia Looping is a portable steel roller coaster built by Anton Schwarzkopf. It is the largest portable roller coaster in the world, and the only one with 5 loops. It appears at many carnivals in Germany, most notably the Oktoberfest. Olympia Looping is named for its 5 vertical loops, which...
- Portable roller coaster, the largest in the world - Rat Ride (now Raptor AttackRaptor AttackRaptor Attack is an enclosed steel roller coaster at the Lightwater Valley theme park in North Yorkshire, United Kingdom.-History:In 1987 Lightwater Valley constructed an Anton Schwarzkopf Wildcat roller coaster. The ride was constructed inside a warehouse-type building which is hidden by trees and...
) - Lightwater ValleyLightwater ValleyLightwater Valley is a theme park in Ripon, North Yorkshire, England. The park is perhaps best known for being the home of Europe’s longest rollercoaster - The Ultimate....
(Wildcat model) - RevolutionRevolution (roller coaster)The Revolution, formerly known as Great American Revolution and La Revolución, is a steel roller coaster manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf of Germany and designed by Werner Stengel. The coaster is located in the Baja Ridge area of Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California...
- Six Flags Magic MountainSix Flags Magic MountainSix Flags Magic Mountain is a theme park located in Valencia, California north of Los Angeles. It opened on Memorial Day weekend on May 30, 1971 as Magic Mountain, by the Newhall Land and Farming Company. In 1979, Six Flags purchased the park and added the name Six Flags to the park's title. In...
The world's first modern looping roller coaster. - Ripper - Thrill-Ville USAThrill-Ville USAThrill-Ville USA was an amusement park in Turner, Oregon, United States. The park was located next to the Enchanted Forest south of Salem on Interstate 5. Opened in the 1970s, the park grew to more than 20 rides before closing in 2008...
(Jet Star Model) - Scorpion (roller coaster)Scorpion (roller coaster)Scorpion is a steel looping roller coaster located at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida, United States. It opened in 1980 as a part of the newly added Timbuktu section that gave the park a complete circuit, linking the Congo section to the Nairobi section of the park. Scorpion, to this day,...
- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay - ShockwaveShockwave (Six Flags Over Texas)Shock Wave is a steel roller coaster located at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, Texas.Contrary to popular belief, it was not the first roller coaster to feature back to back vertical loops. That distinction goes to the Double Loop roller coaster at Geauga Lake, near Cleveland, Ohio, which...
- Six Flags Over TexasSix Flags Over TexasSix Flags Over Texas is a major amusement park located in Arlington, Texas , east of Fort Worth and about west of Dallas. It is the oldest park of the Six Flags chain. The park opened on August 5, 1961 following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate... - Shuttle Loop - Nagashima Spa LandNagashima Spa Landis a major amusement park in Kuwana, Mie Prefecture, Japan. It features several roller coasters, a giant Ferris wheel, and a water park.-Roller coasters:*Children Coaster*Corkscrew*Jet Coaster*Looping Star*Shuttle Loop*Steel Dragon 2000*Ultra Twister...
(Shuttle Loop model) - SooperDooperLooperSooperDooperLooperThe SooperDooperLooper is a ride at Hersheypark, and the first looping coaster on the East Coast. It was designed as a terrain coaster by Werner Stengel, and built by Anton Schwarzkopf.-Rider Experience:...
- HersheyparkHersheyparkHersheypark is an amusement park located in Hershey, Pennsylvania, near the Hershey Chocolate Factory.Hersheypark was opened on April 24, 1907 as a leisure park for the employees of the Hershey Chocolate Company, an American confectionery company. Later, the company decided to open the park to the... - Thriller - A portable multi-looper.
- Twist N' ShoutTwist n' ShoutTwist n' Shout was a steel looping roller coaster located at Loudoun Castle Theme Park in Galston, south-west Scotland. It opened in 2003 as a part of the new rides line-up brought in by new owner Henk Bembom. Twist n' Shout remained one of the most popular rides in the park until its closure in 2010...
- Loudoun CastleLoudoun CastleLoudoun Castle is a ruined 19th century country house near Galston, in the Loudoun area of Ayrshire, Scotland. The ruins are protected as a category A listed building.-History:...
(Silverarrow model) - Viper - Six Flags AstroworldSix Flags AstroworldAstroWorld was a seasonally operated theme park located on approximately of land between Kirby Drive and Fannin Avenue, directly south of Loop 610 in Houston, Texas, USA...
(Looping Star model) demolished in 2005 - WhizzerWhizzer (roller coaster)Whizzer is the name of two identical roller coasters built for the Marriott Corporation for each of their “Great America” parks at their debut in 1976. One was built in Gurnee, Illinois, at Six Flags Great America and the other in Santa Clara, California, at what is now California's Great America....
- Six Flags Great AmericaSix Flags Great AmericaSix Flags Great America is a Six Flags theme park in the Chicago metropolitan area, located in Gurnee, Illinois. It first opened in 1976 as Marriott's Great America. Six Flags purchased the park from the Marriott Corporation in 1984, making it the seventh park in the chain...
(formerly "Willard's Whizzer", a Speed Racer model) - WildCatWildCat (Cedar Point)WildCat, designed by Anton Schwarzkopf, is a roller coaster located at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. It is an Anton Schwarzkopf Wildcat model where small cars take many tight turns and small hills that produce negative g-forces as well as strong lateral forces...
- Cedar PointCedar PointCedar Point is a 364 acre amusement park located in Sandusky, Ohio, United States on a narrow peninsula jutting into Lake Erie. Cedar Point is the only amusement park with four roller coasters that are taller than...
A 65m Wildcat model that features two vertical spirals.
See also :Category:Anton Schwarzkopf roller coasters