Herschend Family Entertainment ( HFE ) is a privately owned entertainment company that operates several amusement parks and tourist attractions in the United States.
Founded by Jack and Pete Herschend from Branson, Missouri, in the early years HFE was known simply as Herschend Enterprises . In the 1980s its name was changed to Silver Dollar City Inc. , and in 2003 the company obtained its current name. HFE is currently headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The company's mission is "Create Recurring Recurring Memories."
Video Herschend Family Entertainment
Histori
The HFE traces take root back to Hugo and Mary Herschend from Chicago, Illinois along with the sons of Jack and Pete. The family was vacationing in the Ozark Mountains region of Missouri and fell in love with the nature that the area offered. In 1951, Hugo obtained a 99-year lease at an area attraction in Branson, Missouri called Marvel Cave. Hugo suffered a heart attack and later died in 1955, but Mary and her two sons continued to enhance the cave's appeal by installing electric lighting and building cement sidewalks. Cable trains were installed in 1958 to take guests out of the depths of the cave at the end of the tour. The presence is almost double and a small frontier town was set up to entertain visitors as they waited for their cave tour. In order to increase further presence at the attractions, the gimmick is used by naming the village of "Silver Dollar City" and distributing silver dollars as a change to each visitor in the hope that when they will spend rare coins they will tell the people where they got them from. The idea was a success, and the Herschend family soon found themselves involved in the amusement park business.
In 1969, Silver Dollar City attracted national attention when producer Paul Henning took players and crew of the popular television show Beverly Hillbillies to the park to film five episodes.
The park is also home to many bats that the park takes steps to try and protect from diseases that can be fatal.
In 2010, Herschend Family Entertainment was featured on the reality TV series Undercover Boss.
The company also collaborates and collaborates with partners Dolly Parton and his company The Dollywood Company, dinner and theater company, Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and Dolly Parton's Stampede (formerly Dixie Stampede).
Maps Herschend Family Entertainment
Current property
Amusement park
Owned/operated
Water park
Aquarium
Attractions
Dinner Events
Lodging
Sports Entertainment Franchise
Dollywood Company
The Herschends renewed their brand in 1976 after purchasing a small tourist attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, called Goldrush Junction. The following year, the attraction was renamed Silver Dollar City Tennessee as part of a development plan to transform the property into a theme park that began after the original Silver Dollar City in Branson. For the Pigeon Forge park, the original Ozark City Ozark Mountain theme is slightly reworked to represent the Great Smoky Mountains and Appalachia culture instead, matching the location at the foothills of the Smokies.
In 1986, singer and actress Dolly Parton, who grew up near Pigeon Forge, became a co-owner, and the park's name was changed to Dollywood, reflecting her involvement. At this point, Pigeon Forge park branches into a separate division of HFE called The Dollywood Company, which oversees all the properties that Dolly Parton interests.
Together with the Herschend family, Dolly Parton shares a chain of diners at Dolly Parton's Stampede (formerly Dixie Stampede), which has locations in Pigeon Forge (opened in 1988), Myrtle Beach (1992), and Branson (1995). A location in Orlando opened in 2003 and closed in early 2008.
In 2001 a new water park opened adjacent to the Dollywood theme park called Dollywood's Splash Country.
Past property
HFE built several water parks in the 1980s which have since been sold to other companies such as Wet 'n Wild, Frontier City, and Six Flags. White Water Branson, built in 1980, is a pioneer and still owned by HFE; while White Waters in Oklahoma City (1981), Grand Prairie, Texas (1982), Garland, Texas (1982) and Atlanta (1983) have been sold.
The 4,000-seat Grand Palace Theater opened in 1992 by Herschends. The theater is shared by singer Kenny Rogers. Together with the main leaders Rogers is Glen Campbell, Louise Mandrell, and Barbara Mandrell. In 1994, HFE signed a ten-year contract with Radio City Entertainment. The Grand Palace Theater will be the first to host the famous Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring Rocket in the world outside Radio City Music Hall of New York City. The show was a success and caused Radio City Entertainment to launch their show tours in other cities across the United States.
HFE built a $ 10 million Grand Village Shop with Kenny Rogers adjacent to The Grand Palace Theater in 1993. British Ozark and bone china items filled twenty-six New Orleans-themed stores. HFE then purchased the entertainer Kenny Rogers and sold The Grand Palace in 1996 and The Grand Village in 2005.
American Adventures, children's playground opened next to White Water Atlanta. The park was sold to Six Flags in 1999.
In 1994, The Dollywood Company built a large musical theater in Pigeon Forge called Music Mansion. Aimed at by James Rogers, the highly successful theater was operated by HFE until 2001, when it was sold to Anita Bryant. In 2005 the theater was sold again and converted to WonderWorks location. A Music Mansion Theater is planned for Myrtle Beach, but never materialized.
In 2003, Dollywood Company opened a new Dixie Stampede location in Orlando, Florida along Interstate 4. Location was operated until early 2008, when the property was sold to Simon Property Group for an undisclosed amount. The building was torn down, and an extension of the Orlando Vineland Premium Outlet was built on the ground. HFE has plans to build another Dixie Stampede in the region at some point, although specific plans have not been disclosed.
In 2004, HFE purchased a Hawaiian Falls water park located in Dallas, Garland, and The Colony, Texas. In 2006 three parks were sold.
Due to unreliable peak season peak access, Ride The Ducks in Memphis closed in 2007.
The Celebration City in Branson closed on October 25, 2008. The company has plans to restructure the site.
References
External links
- Official website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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