does Disney own 'Tea Cups'?

[Minnie Imagineer]

Did Disney start the whole Tea Cups ride? And do they 'own' the rights to it? Because every other amusement park in the world has spinning tea cups. I was just curious!No pun intended (alice in wonderland, curious!) :hatter:

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

I don't think they started the idea of the spinning ride. I'm fairly certain it was an old Coney Island-style ride that Disney modified. Which really, is all they did for most of the rides.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) Spinning "teacup" rides have been in existence since the 1890's.
2) I think the first actual patent was filed in 1923.
3) This was by John Fisher, and it was for a Cedar Point ride.
4) Since then, there have been several patents on variations.