Planet FunFun was an indoor amusement park located in Kerava, Finland. Originally the park was called Fanfaari but soon after the opening, new owners took over and renamed the park Planet FunFun. Among others, the

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

director

Renny Harlin Renny Harlin (born 15 March 1959) is a Finnish film director, producer, and screenwriter who has made his career in Hollywood and China. His best-known films include '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master'', '' The Adventures of Ford ...

was one of the new owners. The new name came partly as a pun from the old name (Fanfaari pronounced in Finnish sounds similar as FunFun in English), but partly it was influenced by the other business ventures of the new owners, especially Harlin's. At the time, Harlin was running a

Planet Hollywood Planet Hollywood International Inc. (stylized as planet Hollywood, planet Hollywood observatory and ph) is a themed restaurant chain inspired by the popular portrayal of Hollywood. The company is owned by Earl Enterprises corporation. Earl Ent ...

restaurant in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, so naming the amusement park Planet FunFun was also influenced by the name of the restaurant. After few years of operation, it was clear to the new owners that Planet FunFun was not going to be commercially successful. This happened despite the fact that Harlin was one of the most followed Finnish celebrities at the time, and he brought many "Hollywood things" to the park, such as film props from his films. In addition, he and producer

Markus Selin Markus Selin (born 16 March 1960) is a Finnish television and film producer. Career Selin was born in Vihti. His first feature was conceived in the mid-1980s. At a party in Los Angeles, he was introduced to fellow Finn Renny Harlin. The two ...

started the Finnish version of the television show American Gladiators, called

Gladiaattorit ''Gladiaattorit'' is a Finnish competition television program part of the international ''Gladiators'' franchise. Original series The show originally ran for three seasons from 1993 to 1994; it was directed by Hollywood director Renny Harlin, ...

, which was shot in Planet FunFun. All of these efforts were short-lived and didn't do much to attract people to the park. So in 1995 the park was closed for good and the rides were sold other parks. The Planet Hollywood restaurant was also closed and the Gladiaattorit television show was cancelled, both around the same time that Planet FunFun closed. Today not much remains of the Planet FunFun, except for the rides which were sold and relocated. Planet FunFun's only roller coaster is now in

Fort Fun Abenteuerland A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

and its new name is ''Devil's Mine''. Many people still recognize the name "Planet FunFun" and remember it having been a park run by Renny Harlin - the original park name Fanfaari and previous ownership is not as well remembered, because of Harlin's "celebrity gossip" influence. The building that housed the park was an old

Nokia Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finlan ...

rubber factory building that was renovated to amusement purposes. The building is known today as ''Klondyke-house''. After the park was closed, the building was once again suited for new purposes. Today it houses Kerava Art Museum, and parts of the building are used as restaurant space, floorball arena, conference and exhibition space, etc.

References

External links

Kerava Art MuseumKlondyke-house, information about office spaces
Defunct amusement parks in Finland Indoor amusement parks Buildings and structures in Uusimaa Finnish companies established in 1991 1995 disestablishments in Finland Amusement parks opened in 1991 Amusement parks closed in 1995 Kerava {{Amusement-park-stub