In addition to Santa Monica and the Pike , Looff built and operated amusement parks and carousels at Ocean Park , Redondo Beach , Venice Beach , and Santa Cruz , as well as Griffith Park in Los Angeles ( still in operation ) which coincidentally is the carousel that helped inspire Walt Disney to design and eventually build Disneyland and Disney World . Disneyland Resorts has on display the actual park bench that he sat on as he watched his daughters ride the merry-go-round and day-dreamed about a new type of totally immersive theme park experience . There has also been a Looff carousel horse added to the exhibit at the entrance to the " Moments with Lincoln " attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim . Looff built a short-lived amusement park in Seattle called Luna Park . The carousel at Luna Park had been planned for San Francisco , but the infamous earthquake prompted Looff to create Luna Park in Seattle instead . Today that carousel has returned to San Francisco and is thrilling new generations of children
earthquake
1906 San Francisco earthquake
Charles I. D. Looff