Happy Birthday Demon!
46 years of thrills
On opening day of California’s Great America on May 20, 1976, one of the most talked about attractions in the park was a steel roller coaster that featured a double corkscrew and two massive air-time hills immediately after the rides initial drop. At that time, the ride was known as “The Turn of the Century” and it was custom-designed and built for Great America by Arrow Dynamics. The ride was painted a sea-foam green color and remained popular in the first years of park operations.
After the 1979 season, “The Turn of the Century” was heavily modified. The airtime hills after the initial drop were removed and replaced with two back-to-back vertical loops. A tunnel was constructed to look like rock formations that had riders descend into a dark cave as they exited the loading station and approached the lift hill to the first drop. Similar rock formations were built coming out of the second loop and just before the double corkscrew. The entire ride was painted black and given the ominous “Demon” moniker.
To complete the transformation, fog machines and lighting effects were placed in the rock-formation tunnels and a new three-dimensional logo was added to the front of each train car and flames were added to the sides.
The Demon remains one of the favorite rides in the park and holds the distinction of being a Great America original!