Diels-Alder reaction of 1,3-diarylbenzo[c]furan/cyclopentadienone with TTF followed by triflic acid mediated cleavage of the resulting adducts led to the formation of the respective 1,4-diaryl substituted naphthalenes, fluoranthenes, and fluorenones. The photophysical properties of representative diaryl-substituted hydrocarbons are also reported.