Remember soaring above treetops in the Sky Liner? Speeding on the Cyclone! And how about the cold splash-down of the flume on a hot summer day?
Rekindle these memories and more in the long-awaited encore of You Must Be This Tall: The Story of Rocky Point Park on Rhode Island PBS on Wednesday, August 19 at 8 p.m. For Rhode Islanders in their 20s only familiar with Rocky Point through stories from parents and grandparents, this broadcast will put substance to the mythical tales of seasonal fun at the legendary amusement park.
The feature-length film by local producer David Bettencourt, documents the long history of the amusement park and shore dinner hall once located on Warwick Neck, along the coast of the Narragansett Bay.
For more than 150 years, generations of New Englanders flocked to Rocky Point Amusement Park for a game of Sunday baseball, for a picnic, for a rock-n-roll concert, or to ride on the Tilt-a-Whirl.
Then, in 1996, the park closed. With its rides sold off, the park sat for years as a ghost town, scheduled for demolition and primed for the construction of condominiums.
You Must Be This Tall: The Story of Rocky Point Park, is told entirely by the neighbors, staff, and visitors who spent every summer at the park. The film uses archival footage, family photos, and memorabilia from the park, as well as photographs taken for this film of the inside of ruined buildings and the grounds of the former amusement park.
From Babe Ruth to George Bush, from the first presidential phone call to a devastating hurricane, the film captures all the fond memories left behind at Rocky Point.
First broadcast in 2007, join us for the long-awaited encore of You Must Be This Tall: The Story of Rocky Point Parkon August 19 at 8 p.m.
WSBE Rhode Island PBS transmits over the air in high definition on digital 36.1; Cox 08 / 1008HD, Verizon FiOS 08 / 508HD, and Full Channel 08; Comcast 819HD and Verizon FiOS 18 / 518HD in MA; DirecTV 36, Dish Network 36.
