Former Kings Island general manager named to the Hall of Fame | People

MASON, OH (FOX19) - Former Kings Island executive Ed McHale will be inducted as the newest member of the 364-acre amusement and waterpark’s Hall of Fame.

McHale will be inducted as the lone member of the 2012 Hall of Fame class Saturday, October 27 at Kings Island during a 10:45 a.m. ceremony on International Street.

McHale began his career in the amusement park industry in 1952 at Cincinnati’s Coney Island.  He moved into a management position in 1959 and played an instrumental role in the planning and development of Kings Island and oversaw the transportation of rides and attractions from Coney Island to Kings Island in the fall of 1971.  

After spending the 1972 season as the park operations manager at Kings Island, McHale was promoted to general manager, a position he held until 1976 when he was asked by the Taft Broadcasting Company to return to Coney Island to oversee its rebirth as an amusement park. 

The class of 2012 was selected by the Kings Island Hall of Fame Selection Committee, raising the number of inductees to 10. 

Kings Island Hall of Fame information:  www.visitkingsisland.com/online-fun/ki-hall-of-fame