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Park Hoppin
In association with Park Hoppin’with Susan Storey E
ach year, theme parks welcome guests by touting something new. Along with rides and attractions, shows and entertainment,
the introduction of a beloved and popular intellectual property (IP) or the celebration of an anniversary all work to attract new and repeat visitors. When it comes to the use of IP, we have seen global park operators like Universal, Disney, Palace Entertainment and Six Flags create rides, themed lands, merchandise and even food tied
to known characters and storylines. In my house, Jurassic Park is a favourite. It started when I read the
Michael Crichton novel and then saw the Steven Spielberg film adaptation. Years - and subsequent sequels - later, Universal Orlando Resort made my dinosaur dreams come true at Islands of Adventure. Its Jurassic Park-themed land transports you to Isla Nubar and over the years, additions like Raptor Encounter and Velocicoaster have added to the immersive experience. 11 June marked the 30-year anniversary of the first film while also
coinciding with my son’s birthday. His wish was to take part in all things InGen and dinosaur. Universal Orlando Resort was the perfect destination. We began our day with Velocicoaster, in the front row. It truly is the perfect coaster, and it was hard not to get back in line for a second time. Next, we were challenged at Jurassic World: Escape. The unique escape room is billed as an adventure, and it immediately placed us in an exclusive story with the franchise’s IP, complete with raptors and Dr. Woo’s frozen dinosaur embryos. From there, we saw the original movie in the theatre. While we have seen it countless times, it was special to share the surround sound and big screen experience together. Universal also had the famous Jeeps from the park…I mean, movie…on display, along with interactive characters in CityWalk’s plaza. We even met John Hammond, who proudly showed us his cane with the amber-encased mosquito. The best part of the day was a visit to Universal Studio’s new Jurassic
Park Tribute Store. Universal has mastered the creation of limited-run merchantainment locations. Mostly known for its Halloween Horror Nights Tribute Stores, the park perfectly combines shopping with nostalgia and memorabilia. The Jurassic Park Tribute Store features photo ops from some of the movie’s key scenes such as the raptors in the kitchen, Rexy attacking the restroom, and even the iconic park entrance. It’s selfie heaven. It also features props and trivia from the movie and, of course, new merchandise - there are even homemade Ian Malcolm brownies. (We definitely positively helped the park’s per caps that day!) My favourite part of the Tribute Store is the triceratops now known as Trixie.
One of the best scenes in the original movie was when Dr. Grant leaned on a sick triceratops so he could feel her breathe. After the movie debuted, Universal Studios Florida added a model of the movie’s trike to the outdoor Boneyard attraction. After the attraction closed, Universal generously donated the dinosaur to Give Kids The World Village. Children with critical illnesses and their families have enjoyed seeing ‘Sleeping Trixie’ as they pass her while riding the Village’s train ride ever since. Sleeping in cinematic anonymity, Trixie is the last remaining original full figure sculpture cast from Dr. Grant’s original animatronic triceratops. Given Jurassic Park’s special anniversary, it made sense that she once again returned to Jurassic Park. Give Kids The World loaned her back to Universal so she could meet a new
generation of fans as part of the Tribute Store experience. Universal Creative picked her up, fully intact, with the help of a forklift and a flatbed truck and drove her back to the park. She now rests, still on her side, just outside the store’s doors. I was so excited to see the triceratops again, I actually dashed past her. My son grabbed me and pulled me back so that together we could
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stand in wonder, thinking what it would be like if she were real. That is the power of using IP in theme parks. We are transported from
our daily lives to become immersed in our favourite stories, often with new chapters and extensions. Parks tap into our imagination, and bring to life the heroes we admire, the villains we fear, and the creatures we want to see. I do not believe there is a right or wrong answer in the debate about the use
of IP, but I fully embrace it when done right. 33 years ago, an author made us question if science could bring back extinct species. Hollywood showed us what that concept could look like and Universal Parks around the world breathed life into the idea inside their park gates. The parks have introduced walking animatronic dinosaurs, created up-close encounters with hatching eggs and taken millions of guests for riverboat tours with hadrosaurs. While the experiences are exclusive to the parks, each honours the films and the iconic IP. Thank you, Universal Parks and Resorts, for embracing anyone who has wanted to see a dinosaur and welcoming us to Jurassic Park.
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