Luna Park, Osaka

[1] In operation from 1912 to 1923, the 132,000 square meter[2] park in the Shinsekai section of Osaka featured a unique entrance: an aerial tramway from the original Tsutenkaku Tower.

[3][4] The park was constructed and owned by Ken'ichi Kawaura after he sold his interest in the Japanese motion picture company Yoshizawa Shōten to Shōkichi Umeya in the wake of the destruction by fire of Luna Park, Tokyo and two Osaka theaters in 1911.

[5] Rather than rebuilding in Tokyo, Kawaura decided to build his second Luna Park in Shinsekai ("New World"), an Osaka subdivision that was under construction at the time.

[8][9] The Osaka Luna Park featured an arcade, mechanical rides (including one called the Circular Wave, which had seated riders rise and fall as the revolve in a circular motion), a funhouse, a music hall, a theater, and a hot springs spa.

[10] The Osaka Luna Park closed permanently after the 1925 season; in January 1943, the first Tsutenkaku Tower was destroyed by a fire and was subsequently closed and demolished by the Japanese government.