The Great Escape kicks off its 50th anniversary with "Grad Night" on Friday, May 21 -- on the eve of the park's official opening.  Junior and senior high school students have the run of the park from 5 - 11 p.m. in an exclusive drug-and-alcohol-free celebration.  Featuring free giveaways, continuous music and dancing and an all-American picnic, the event is designed to offer students one last party with their classmates in a fun, safe environment.

Less than 12 hours later, the park swings open its gates (10 a.m. on Saturday) for the start of its golden season.  Inside the gates will be an 8-foot tall wooden birthday cake adorned with 50 candles that will be electrified with flickering light bulbs.  Built specifically to commemorate the 50th anniversary, the cake will serve as a permanent fixture throughout the year.

Coca-Cola will continue the flow of excitement as guests will receive free soda refills with the purchase of a Souvenir/Sport Bottle.  There will also be two giant Coca-Cola inflatables at the park.

Originally a single-themed park dedicated to the popular nursery rhymes of Mother Goose, The Great Escape was founded on June 27, 1954, under the moniker Storytown USA.  After adding its first themed area, Ghost Town, in 1957 and its first roller coaster, The Steamin' Demon, in 1984 The Great Escape gradually evolved into the 40-acre park it is today -- complete with more than 125 rides, shows and attractions, including six signature roller coasters.

Opening weekend at The Great Escape is Saturday, May 22, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, May 23, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (The park will be closed the following week and will begin daily operations on Saturday, May 29).  Tickets for "Grad Night" are available for groups of 10 or more through prepaid orders of $16.99, plus tax, per person through May 14.  To order individual tickets for only $19.99, plus tax, call The Great Escape.  Tickets can also be purchased the day of the event for $21.99, plus tax.

Great Escape season passes are currently available at a special price of $61.50, plus tax.  The season pass, which is good for unlimited visits to The Great Escape, can be purchased at participating Price Chopper stores or online at sixflags.com via the park's all-new Print N' Go ticketing system. Patrons can log on to sixflags.com and purchase and print both season passes and daily admission tickets at home.

Patrons can also renew their season passes online and avoid processing lines.

For more information about The Great Escape's 50th anniversary season, call (518) 792-3500 or log on to sixflags.com and click on the link for The Great Escape.

Six Flags, Inc. is the world's largest regional theme park company.  Through its subsidiaries, it owns and operates a total of 31 parks in North America and Europe. Six Flags parks serve 34 of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the United States.  Six Flags, Inc. is a publicly held corporation with corporate offices in New York City and Oklahoma City.  The Company's stock trades on the NYSE under the symbol: PKS.