443: Amusement Park
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What does the prologue reveal about Worlds of Fun and its young staff?
From WB Easy Chicago, it's this American Life. I'm Robert Glass. Okay, so we're going through the gate here into the park.
Yeah, we're going this is this is our morning this is the morning walk into the park. So everybody will split up into their different sections and get the park open and we'll start putting out prizes and getting ready.
We're at an amusement park in Kansas City, Missouri called Worlds of Fun. We're going to be spending the entire hour today at amusement parks. It's five minutes before opening, and I'm walking with Cole Lindbergh who's 25 with permanently mustair and the cheerful vibe of the bosom buddies era Tom Hanks. He's been coming to this park since he was a little kid, started working here as a summer job at 14, and then basically just never left. It became his real job. Eleven years later he is a full time year round employee.
I love amusement parks. Anytime my family would go on vacation, we'd schedule it around an amusement park. Because I love roller coasters because I loved amusement parks. I mean I've walked this pathway that we're taking right now, I've walked it thousands and thousands and thousands of times.
When he was little, his family had season passes here and they would come a lot. He travelled to any new roller coaster to try it out, daydreamed about a job where he would design parks and build roller coasters. And when his dad drove him here at the age of fourteen for a job interview, he wore a suit to that interview, just sitting inside the parks offices, which are utilitarian. Picture the principal's office at a public high school. Even that was exciting.
I remember being like kind of like, Oh wow, this is the inner sanctum, you know, this is the inner working, this is where all the cool stuff happens and then, you know, then first time actually getting in the uniform, actually working in the park. I mean, I remember to me, it was like, Wow, this is this is kinda surreal, you know, I'm actually working in an amusement park now. And th to me that was kind of like Awesome, you know, that awesome. I'm so excited about this.
You might think that enthusiasm would diminish over time, but what's incredible about Cole is that even after a decade here, even after becoming an adult and working 60, 70 hour weeks every week, all summer, even with the pressure in his current job of running a whole department and hitting financial targets and buying all the supplies and hiring and supervising over a hundred young people. He is still pretty psyched about working in an amusement park. And it is not a glamour job. The department co runs is the games department at Worlds of Fun. This is thirty-two games, the kind that you would see at any carnival or midway, where you get, you know, three softballs to try to throw them into a milk can or you throw beanbags at targets or you shoot darts to knock over a stack of cups.
Nobody comes to an amusement park for the games. Cole himself never went to an amusement park for the games. But he's an extrovert and he has filled the department with extroverts. Like Mallory. The park is barely open, hardly any customers here at all when Cole stops by your game on his morning rounds.
Yeah, Mallory loves talking on the mic. Mallory does a good job on the mic. I appreciate it. Like let's scary. Go, go for it. Try to get people to play. Alrighty. We're over here at three point challenge today looking for our first winner.
You come on over here, you have forty seconds on the clock, twelve shots up, and you can be walking away with some awesome presents.
We are This is exactly how Cole trains the kids to talk on the mic. Don't stop, get a flow, have fun. If you have fun, that's what's gonna sell the game. Watching Cole run the games department at Worlds of Fun is watching somebody who was raised here and who completely, thoroughly mastered everything. It's rare to witness somebody so happily great at any job.
Alright, let's gather around guys. There's still people in cash control, anybody know?
It's the first shift meeting of the day.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What does the prologue reveal about Worlds of Fun and its young staff?
0:01–11:12
2
How does Cole Lindbergh keep his teenage games crew motivated and competitive?
11:12–22:34
3
What are the rules and highlights of the Sweet Sixteen tournament for the games department?
22:34–32:02
4
How do the staff’s creative contests (Deathmatch, Toss‑the‑Boss) boost sales?
32:02–42:46
5
Why does Cole consider his job the best he’s ever had despite its low revenue impact?
42:46–56:30
6
What memorable stories did listeners share about fear, love, and mishaps at amusement parks?
56:30–1:02:08