The Coney Island Cyclone opened to the public in 1927. It cost $175,000 to build, and its original ticket price was 25 cents. The Cyclone was purchased by the city of New York in 1971 and now operates as an official New York City Landmark. It's a wooden roller coaster with an 85 foot drop and a maximum speed of 60 miles per hour. The Cyclone often appears in the media. It featured in the 1978 movie "The Miz." A replica of The Cyclone called "The Screamer" appears in the video game "Grand Theft Auto IV."
The Wild One, originally known as "The Giant Coaster," operated in Paragon Park, Massachusetts between 1917 and 1985. At the time of its opening, it was famed as the world's tallest roller coaster, standing 98 feet high. In 1986, it was moved to Six Flags Over America in Maryland and renamed "The Wild One." The ride travels at a speed of 53 mph and was one of over 60 roller coasters designed by John A. Miller.
Kingda Ka is part of the Golden Kingdom area of Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey. It's a 456-foot tall roller coaster with a 418-foot drop. Its maximum speed is 128 mph. It was the fastest roller coaster in the world from its introduction in May 2005 until the opening of Abu Dhabi's Formula Rossa roller coaster in November 2010. The construction of Kingdom Ka was filmed and turned into a TV documentary as part of the National Geographic series "MegaStructures."
The original Space Mountain is an indoor roller coaster that's part of the Magic Kingdom theme park at Florida's Walt Disney World Resort. It opened in 1974 and stands 183 feet tall. Such is its fame that four other Space Mountains, each very similar to the original, opened at Disney attractions in California, Japan, France and Hong Kong. The name "Space Mountain" passed into pop culture as a nickname for professional wrestler Ric Flair.
