ராதே கிருஷ்ணா 12-03-2013
Walt Disney World
The Walt Disney World Resort, commonly known as Walt Disney World and informally as Disney World, is the world's most-visited entertainment resort, located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Covering 30,080 acres (12,173 ha; 47 sq mi), it is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Companythrough its Parks and Resorts division and is home to four theme parks, two water parks, twenty-four themed resorts (excluding eight more that are on-site but not owned by The Walt Disney Company), two spas and fitness centers, five golf courses, and other recreational and entertainment venues.
The resort was developed by Walt Disney in the 1960s to supplement Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California. In addition to hotels and a theme park similar to Disneyland, Walt's original plans also included an "Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow", a planned city that would serve as a test bed for new innovations for city living. After extensive lobbying, the Government of Florida created the Reedy Creek Improvement District, aspecial government district that essentially gave the Walt Disney Company the standard powers and autonomy of an incorporated city. Walt died in 1966 before his original plans were fully realized.
The resort opened on October 1, 1971 with the Magic Kingdom as its only theme park, and has since added Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, andDisney's Animal Kingdom.
 | |
| Type | Division |
|---|---|
| Industry | Theme Park operator |
| Founded | October 1, 1971 |
| Headquarters | Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA |
| Key people | George Kalogridis, President |
| Parent | Walt Disney Parks and Resorts(a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) |
| Website | Official website |
| Walt Disney World |
|---|
| Theme parks |
| Other attractions |
| Resort hotels |
History
In 1959, Walt Disney Productions began looking for land for a second park to supplement Disneyland, which opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955. Market surveys revealed that only 5% of Disneyland's visitors came from east of the Mississippi River, where 75% of the population of the United States lived. Additionally, Walt Disney disliked the businesses that had sprung up around Disneyland and wanted control of a much larger area of land for the new project.[1]
Walt Disney flew over the Orlando site (one of many) in November 1963. Seeing the well-developed network of roads, including the planned Interstate 4and Florida's Turnpike, with McCoy Air Force Base (later Orlando International Airport) to the east, Disney selected a centrally-located site near Bay Lake.[2]
To avoid a burst of land speculation, Disney used various dummy corporations to acquire 27,443 acres (11,106 ha) of land.[2] In May 1965, some of these major land transactions were recorded a few miles southwest of Orlando in Osceola County. Also, two large tracts totaling $1.5 million were sold, and smaller tracts of flatlands and cattle pastures were purchased by exotic-sounding companies such as the Latin-American Development and Management Corporation and the Reedy Creek Ranch Corporation (Some of these names are now memorialized on a window above Main Street, U.S.A. in the Magic Kingdom). In addition to three huge parcels of land were many smaller parcels, referred to as "outs."
Much of the land acquired had been platted into 5-acre (2 ha) lots in 1912 by the Munger Land Company and sold to investors. Most owners were happy to get rid of the land, which was mostly swamp. Another issue was the mineral rights to the land, which were owned by Tufts University. Without the transfer of these rights, Tufts could come in at any time and demand the removal of buildings to obtain minerals. Eventually, Disney's team negotiated a deal with Tufts to buy the mineral rights for $15,000.[3]
After most of the land had been bought, the truth of the property's owner was leaked to the Orlando Sentinel newspaper on October 20, 1965. A press conference was soon organized for November 15, when Walt Disney explained the plans for the site, including EPCOT, the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, which was to be a futuristic planned city (and which was also known as Progress City). He envisioned a real working city with commercial and residential areas that also continued to showcase and test new ideas and concepts for urban living.
Walt Disney died from lung cancer on December 15, 1966, before his vision was realized. His brother and business partner, Roy O. Disney, postponed his retirement to oversee construction of the resort's first phase.
On February 2, 1967, Roy O. Disney held a press conference at the Park Theatres in Winter Park, Florida. The role of EPCOT was emphasized in the film that was played, the last one recorded by Walt Disney before his death. After the film, it was explained that for Disney World, including EPCOT, to succeed, a special district would have to be formed: the Reedy Creek Improvement District with two cities inside it, Bay Lake and Reedy Creek (nowLake Buena Vista). In addition to the standard powers of an incorporated city, which include the issuance of tax-free bonds, the district would have immunity from any current or future county or state land-use laws. The only areas where the district had to submit to the county and state would beproperty taxes and elevator inspections.[1]
The legislation forming the district and the two cities was signed into law by Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. on May 12, 1967. The Florida Supreme Court then ruled in 1968 that the district was allowed to issue tax-exempt bonds for public projects within the district despite the sole beneficiary being Walt Disney Productions.
The district soon began construction of drainage canals, and Disney built the first roads and the Magic Kingdom. Disney's Contemporary Resort,Disney's Polynesian Resort, and Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground were also completed in time for the park's opening on October 1, 1971. The Palm and Magnolia golf courses near the Magic Kingdom had opened a few weeks before. At the park's opening, Roy O. Disney dedicated the property and declared that it would be known as "Walt Disney World" in his brother's honor. In his own words: "Everyone has heard of Ford cars. But have they all heard of Henry Ford, who started it all? Walt Disney World is in memory of the man who started it all, so people will know his name as long as Walt Disney World is here." After the dedication, Roy Disney asked Walt's widow, Lillian, what she thought of Walt Disney World. According to biographer Bob Thomas, she responded, "I think Walt would have approved." Roy O. Disney died on December 20, 1971, less than three months after the property opened.
Much of Walt Disney's plans for his Progress City were abandoned after his death, after the company board decided that it did not want to be in the business of running a city. The concept evolved into the resort's second theme park, EPCOT Center (renamed Epcot in 1996), which opened in 1982. While still emulating Walt Disney's original idea of showcasing new technology, it is closer to a world's fair than a "community of tomorrow". Some of the urban planning concepts from the original idea of EPCOT would instead be integrated into the community of Celebration much later. The resort's third theme park, Disney-MGM Studios (renamed Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2008), opened in 1989, and is inspired by show business. The resort's fourth theme park, Disney's Animal Kingdom, opened in 1998. Although his idea for the progress city were abandoned, the ride called the carousel of progress is still open in the Magic Kingdom park to educate people on walt disneys idea of changing ways and also to keep some original ideas of walt's in the park.
George Kalogridis was named president of the resort in December 2012, replacing Meg Crofton, who had overseen the site since 2006.
In 1959, Walt Disney Productions began looking for land for a second park to supplement Disneyland, which opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955.
Timeline
Location
Despite marketing claims and popular misconceptions, the Florida resort is not located within Orlando city limits and is actually located about 21 miles (34 km) southwest of downtown Orlando within southwestern Orange County, with the remainder in adjacent Osceola County. The property includes the cities of Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake which are governed by the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The 25,000 acres (10,117 ha; 39 sq mi)[4] site is accessible from Central Florida's Interstate 4 via Exits 62B (World Drive), 64B (US 192 West), 65B (Osceola ParkwayWest), 67B (SR 536 West), and 68 (SR 535 North), and Exit 8 on State Road 429 (Florida), the Western Expressway. At its peak, the resort occupied approximately 30,000 acres (12,141 ha; 47 sq mi), about the size of San Francisco, or twice the size of Manhattan. Portions of the property since have been sold or de-annexed, including land now occupied by the Disney-built community of Celebration.
Attractions
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park, also known as Magic Kingdom, is the first of four theme parks built at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake,Florida. It opened on October 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, its layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland Park inAnaheim, California, and is dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters. In 2011, the park hosted approximately 17 million visitors, making it the most visited theme park in the world
The park is represented by Cinderella Castle, a replica of the fairy tale castle seen in the 1950 film
  Cinderella Castle, the icon of Magic Kingdom. | |
| Slogan | The Most Magical Place On Earth |
|---|---|
| Location | Walt Disney World Resort, Bay Lake,Florida, United States |
| Coordinates | 28°25′07″N 81°34′52″W |
| Theme | Fairy tales and Disney characters |
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company |
| Operated by | Walt Disney Parks and Resorts |
| Opened | October 1, 1971 |
| Operating season | Year-round |
| Website | Official website |
| Walt Disney World |
|---|
| Theme parks |
|
| Other attractions |
| Resort hotels |
History
Although Walt Disney had been highly involved in planning The Florida Project, The Walt Disney Company began construction on Magic Kingdom and the entire resort in 1967 after his death. The park was built as a larger, improved version of Disneyland Park in California. There are several anecdotes relating to reasons for some of the features of Walt Disney World, and Magic Kingdom specifically. According to one story, Walt Disney once saw a Frontierland cowboy walking through Tomorrowland at Disneyland. He disliked that the cowboy intruded on the futuristic setting of Tomorrowland and wanted to avoid situations like this in the new park.[3] Therefore, Magic Kingdom was built over a series of tunnels calledutilidors, a portmanteau of utility and corridor, allowing employees (called "cast members") to move through the park out of sight from guests.
Because of Florida's high water table, the tunnels could not be put underground, so they were built at the existing grade, meaning the park is built on the second story, giving Magic Kingdom an elevation of 107 feet (33 m). The area around the utilidors was filled in with dirt removed from theSeven Seas Lagoon, which was being constructed at the same time. The utilidors were built in the initial construction and were not extended as the park expanded. The tunnels were intended to be designed into in all subsequent Walt Disney World parks, but were set aside mostly because of financial constraints. Future World at Epcot and Pleasure Island each have a smaller network of utilidors.
Magic Kingdom opened as the first part of the Walt Disney World Resort on October 1, 1971, opening concurrently with Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. It opened with twenty-three attractions, three unique to the park and twenty replicas of attractions at Disneyland, split into six themed lands, five copies of those at Disneyland and the unique Liberty Square. The Walt Disney Company promised to increase this number with a combination of replicas and unique attractions. While there is no individual dedication to Magic Kingdom, the dedication by Roy O. Disney for the entire resort was placed within its gates.
Since opening day, Magic Kingdom has only been closed for five incidents: Hurricane Floyd, the September 11 attacks, Hurricane Frances, Hurricane Charley, and Hurricane Wilma.[4]
Magic Kingdom had often been used as an unofficial nickname for Disneyland, before Walt Disney World was built. The official tagline for Disneyland is "The Happiest Place On Earth", while the tagline for Magic Kingdom is "The Most Magical Place On Earth". In 1994, in order to differentiate it from Disneyland, the park was officially renamed to Magic Kingdom Park, but is known as Magic Kingdom. Like all Disney theme parks, the official name of the park does not start with an article ("the"), though it is commonly referred to that way, and a sign on the railroad station at the front of the park states "The Magic Kingdom".
Attractions: Magic Kingdom:
- { Parades}
- Astro Orbiter
- The Barnstormer
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
- Casey Jr. Splash 'N' Soak Station
- Cinderella Castle
- Country Bear Jamboree
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- Enchanted Tales with Belle
- Frontierland Shootin' Arcade
- The Hall of Presidents
- Haunted Mansion
- It's a Small World
- Jungle Cruise
- Liberty Square Riverboat
- Mad Tea Party
- The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
- Main Street Vehicles - Themed Area
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Mickey's PhilHarmagic
- Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor
- Peter Pan's Flight
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
- Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom[1]
- Space Mountain
- Splash Mountain
- Stitch's Great Escape!
- Swiss Family Treehouse
- Tom Sawyer Island
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
- Walt Disney World Railroad
- Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress
- Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room
Epcot
Epcot, originally EPCOT Center, is the second of four theme parks built at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida. It opened on October 1, 1982, and spans 300 acres (120 ha), more than twice the size of the Magic Kingdom park.[1] Epcot is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely technological innovation and international culture, and is often referred to as a "Permanent World's Fair."[2][3] In 2011, the park hosted approximately 10.83 million guests, making it the third most visited theme park in the United States, and sixth most visited theme park in the world
The park is represented by Spaceship Earth, a geodesic sphere that also serves as an attraction.
  Spaceship Earth, the icon of Epcot | |
| Location | Walt Disney World Resort, Bay Lake,Florida, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 28°22′16″N 81°33′00″WCoordinates: 28°22′16″N 81°33′00″W |
| Theme | Technological innovation and international culture |
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company |
| Operated by | Walt Disney Parks and Resorts |
| Opened | October 1, 1982 |
| Previous names | EPCOT Center |
| Operating season | Year-round |
| Website | Official website |
History
EPCOT is an acronym of Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, a Utopian city of the future planned by Walt Disney, often interchanging "city" and "community." In Walt Disney's words: "EPCOT... will take its cue from the new ideas and new technologies that are now emerging from the creative centers of American industry. It will be a community of tomorrow that will never be completed, but will always be introducing and testing and demonstrating new materials and systems. And EPCOT will always be a showcase to the world for the ingenuity and imagination of American free enterprise. It will be a planned, controlled community, a showcase for American industry and research, schools, cultural and educational opportunities. In EPCOT, there will be no slum areas because we won't let them develop. There will be no landowners and therefore no voting control. People will rent houses instead of buying them, and at modest rentals. There will be no retirees; everyone must be employed."[5] His original vision was for a model community, home to twenty thousand residents, which would be a test bed for city planning and organization. It was to have been built in the shape of a circle, with businesses and commercial areas at its center, community buildings, schools, and recreational complexes around it, and residential neighborhoods along the perimeter. Transportation would have been provided by monorails and PeopleMovers (like that in Magic Kingdom's Tomorrowland.) Automobile traffic would be kept underground, leaving pedestrians safe above-ground. The original model of EPCOT can still be seen by passengers riding the Tomorrowland Transit Authority attraction in the Magic Kingdom park; when the PeopleMover enters the showhouse for Stitch's Great Escape!, the remaining portion of the model is visible on the left (when facing forward) behind glass. Walt Disney was not able to obtain funding and permission to start work on his Florida property until he agreed to first build Magic Kingdom. He died nearly five years before Magic Kingdom opened.
After Disney's death, The Walt Disney Company decided that it did not want to be in the business of running a city without Walt's guidance. The model community of Celebration, Florida has been mentioned as a realization of Disney's original vision, but Celebration is based on concepts of new urbanismwhich is radically different from Disney's modernist and futurist visions. However, the idea of EPCOT was instrumental in prompting the state of Florida to create the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) and the Cities of Bay Lake and Reedy Creek (now Lake Buena Vista), a legislative mechanism allowing the Walt Disney Company to exercise governmental powers over Walt Disney World. Control over the RCID is vested in the landowners of the district, and the promise of an actual city in the district would have meant that the powers of the RCID would have been distributed among the landowners in EPCOT. Because the idea of EPCOT was never implemented, the Disney Corporation remained almost the sole landowner in the district allowing it to maintain control of the RCID and the cities of Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista; Disney further cemented this control by deannexing Celebration from the RCID.
The original plans for the park showed indecision over the park's purpose. Some Imagineers wanted it to represent the cutting edge of technology, while others wanted it to showcase international cultures and customs. At one point, a model of the futuristic park was pushed together against a model of aWorld's Fair international theme, and the two were combined. The park was originally named EPCOT Center to reflect the ideals and values of the city. It was constructed for an estimated $800 million to $1.4 billion and took three years to build, at the time the largest construction project on Earth.[6] The parking lot serving the park is 141 acres (57 ha) (including bus area) and can accommodate 11,211 vehicles (grass areas hold additional 500+ vehicles). Before it opened on October 1, 1982, Walt Disney World Ambassador Genie Field introduced E. Cardon Walker, Disney's chairman and CEO, who dedicated EPCOT Center. Walker also presented a family with lifetime passes for the two Walt Disney World theme parks. His remarks were followed by Florida Governor Bob Graham and William Ellinghouse, president of AT&T.
As part of the opening-day ceremony, dancers and band members performed We've Just Begun to Dream. The Sherman Brothers wrote a song especially for the occasion entitled, "The World Showcase March". During the finale, doves and many sets of balloons were released. Performing groups representing countries from all over the world performed in World Showcase. Water gathered from major rivers across the globe was emptied into the park's fountain of nations ceremonial containers to mark the opening. Located at the front of the park is a plaque bearing Walker's opening-day dedication, as seen above.
In 1994, the name was changed to Epcot '94 and subsequently to Epcot '95 the following year, reflecting a similar naming convention used at world's fairs and expos. In 1996, the name was changed to simply Epcot.
Areas
Epcot is divided into two areas, patterned after the types of exhibits found at world expositions. It is designed in an hourglass shape.
Future World
Future World consists of a variety of pavilions that explore innovative aspects and applications of technology. Originally, each pavilion featured a unique circular logo which was featured on park signage and the attractions themselves. The logos, including that of Epcot itself, have been phased out over recent years, but some remnants still remain scattered throughout the park.
- Spaceship Earth
- Innoventions
- Universe of Energy
- Mission: SPACE
- Test Track
- The Seas with Nemo and Friends
- The Land
- Imagination!
Each pavilion was initially sponsored by a corporation who helped fund its construction and maintenance in return for the corporation's logos appearing prominently throughout the pavilion. For example, Universe of Energy was sponsored by Exxon from 1982 to 2004, and The Land was sponsored by Kraft from 1982 to 1993, then Nestlé from 1993 to 2009. Each pavilion contains a posh "VIP area" for its sponsor with offices, lounges, and reception areas hidden away from regular park guests. In the years since the park's opening, however, some sponsors have decided that the branding wasn't worth the cost of sponsorship and have pulled out, leaving some of the pavilions without sponsors. Disney prefers to have sponsors helping to pay the bills, so pavilions without sponsors have an uncertain future. After General Electric left Horizons in 1993, it closed for a couple of years, then reopened temporarily while neighboring attractions Universe of Energy and World of Motion were renovated. Horizons closed permanently on January 9, 1999 and was demolished in the summer of 2000 to make room for the opening of Mission: SPACE on October 9, 2003. Metlife sponsored Wonders of Life from 1989 to 2001, until that area was closed. However, the Wonders Of Life pavilion is still mostly intact and is used for both the Flower and Garden Festival and the Food and Wine Festival. Test Track opened in the World of Motion pavilion and is sponsored by Chevrolet. Mission: SPACE is sponsored by Hewlett-Packard. Spaceship Earth was sponsored by Bell System from 1982 to 1984, then AT&T (Bell System's parent company, following the Bell System Divestiture) from 1984 until 2003. It was not sponsored between 2003 and 2005. It is now sponsored by Siemens.
[edit]World Showcase
World Showcase contains pavilions representing eleven countries. In clockwise order, the pavilions are:
Of the eleven pavilions, Norway and Morocco were not present at the park's opening, and were added later. Each of these contains representative shops and restaurants and is staffed by citizens of these countries, as part of the Cultural Representative Program. Some also contain rides and shows. The only pavilion that is sponsored by the country it represents is Morocco. The remaining country pavilions are all sponsored by private companies. Pavilions for Russia, Switzerland, Spain, Venezuela, United Arab Emirates, and Israel have never made it past the planning phase to date. An Equatorial Africa pavilion was planned but never built. It would have featured a large African presentation film hosted by Alex Haley. A small African themed refreshment stop is now in its place, known as the Outpost. After Disney's Animal Kingdom—an African-and-Asian-themed animal preserve and park—opened, any plans for an African Pavilion were dropped.
The World Showcase usually opens two hours after park opening and remains open later than the Future World section of the park; however, most major attractions in Future World including Test Track, Soarin', Mission Space, The Seas with Nemo and Friends, and Spaceship Earth remain open until park close. There is an entrance to the park between the France and United Kingdom Pavilions known as the International Gateway. Guests staying in a number of the Epcot Resorts and guests coming from Disney's Hollywood Studios can access this gate by walkway or boat.
Unlike the Magic Kingdom, which only offers beer and wine on a limited basis and until 2012 did not serve alcohol at all,[7] many stores and restaurants in the World Showcase serve or sell alcoholic beverages from their respective countries, and beer is sold at refreshment stands throughout the park.
Originally based on the Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible, the World Showcase Adventure is an interactive attraction taking place in several pavilions. The attraction is an electronic scavenger hunt that has guests using special "Kimmunicators" (in actuality, stripped-down cell phones) to help teenage crime-fighters Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable solve a "crime" or disrupt an evil-doer's "plans for global domination." The "Kimmunicator" is able to trigger specific events within the pavilion grounds that provide clues to completing the adventure. Launched in January 2009 and presented by Verizon Wireless, the Adventure is included in park admission. It was succeeded by Agent P's World Showcase Adventure, based on Disney's Phineas and Ferb, on June 23, 2012.[8]
World Showcase Lagoon is a man-made lake located in the center of World Showcase, with a perimeter of 1.2 miles. "FriendShip" launches ply the waters of the lagoon, transporting guests from Future World to the opposite end of World Showcase.
Epcot Character Spot
Epcot Character Spot is a meet-and-greet attraction providing guests the opportunity to pose for photos with Disney characters.[10] This attraction, originally named Character Connection, welcomed its first guest in May 2007. On June 8, 2010, Kevin and Jacqueline Fink became Epcot Character Spot's 3 millionth guests, while celebrating their one year wedding anniversary.[11]Guests can meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto at the Character Spot.
IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth
IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth is an award-winning show taking place in the World Showcase Lagoon every night at the park's closing time (usually 9:00 pm).[12] It features fireworks, lasers, fire, and water fountains timed to a musical score over the World Showcase Lagoon. A large rotating globe with curved LED screens is the centerpiece of the show and is used to display images of people and places. The current version premiered as part of the park's Millennium Celebration in 2000. The show tells the story of Earth and is divided into three movements titled "Chaos," "Order," and "Meaning." The music has an African tribal sound to it, to emphasize the idea of humanity as a single unified tribe on this planet; the lagoon is surrounded by nineteen large torches signifying the first 19 centuries of the common era, and the show culminates in the globe opening like a lotus blossom to reveal a twentieth torch, representing the now-completed 20th century.
EPCOT:
- Advanced Training Lab
- The American Adventure
- Bijutsu-kan Gallery
- Captain EO
- The Circle of Life
- Disney Phineas and Ferb: Agent P's World Showcase Adventure
- Ellen's Energy Adventure
- Gallery of Arts and History
- Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros
- House of the Whispering Willows
- ImageWorks - the "What If" Labs
- Impressions de France
- Innoventions West
- Journey into Imagination with Figment
- Kidcot Fun Stops
- Leave A Legacy
- Living with the Land
- Maelstrom
- Mexico Folk Art Gallery
- Mission: SPACE
- O Canada! (film)
- Reflections of China
- SeaBase
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
- Soarin'
- Spaceship Earth (Epcot)
- The Spirit of Norway
- Stave Church Gallery
- Test Track
- Turtle Talk with Crush
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Hollywood Studios:
- The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame
- American Film Institute Showcase
- The American Idol Experience
- Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage
- Block Party Bash
- Disney Junior
- Fantasmic!
- The Great Movie Ride
- Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: Movie Set Adventure
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular!
- Jedi Training Academy
- Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show
- The Magic of Disney Animation
- Muppet*Vision 3D
- Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
- Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
- Studio Backlot Tour
- Toy Story Midway Mania
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
- Voyage of the Little Mermaid
- Walt Disney: One Man's Dream
Disney's Hollywood Studios, originally Disney-MGM Studios, is the third of four theme parks built at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake,Florida, opened on May 1, 1989. Spanning 135 acres (55 ha), it is dedicated to show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s. In 2011, the park hosted approximately 9.7 million guests, making it the fifth-most visited amusement park in the United States, and eighth-most visited in the world.
The park is represented by The Sorcerer's Hat, a stylized version of the magical hat from Fantasia. It replaced the Earful Tower as the park's icon in 2001.
  The Sorcerer's Hat, the icon of Disney's Hollywood Studios | |
| Location | Walt Disney World Resort, Bay Lake,Florida, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 28°21′25″N 81°33′22″WCoordinates: 28°21′25″N 81°33′22″W |
| Theme | Show business |
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company |
| Operated by | Walt Disney Parks and Resorts |
| Opened | May 1, 1989 |
| Previous names | Disney-MGM Studios |
| Operating season | Year-round |
| Website | Official website |
History
A team of Disney Imagineers led by Marty Sklar and Randy Bright had been given an assignment to create two new pavilions for Epcot's Future World section. The fruits of the brainstorming sessions were theWonders of Life and Great Movie Ride pavilions. The latter was to look like a soundstage backdrop, with a movie theater-style entrance in the middle, and would have sat between the Land and Journey Into Imagination pavilions. When newly-appointed CEO Michael Eisner saw the plans for the pavilion, he requested that, instead of placing the ride in an already existing park, it should be surrounded by a new park themed with Hollywood, entertainment, and show business.
In 1985, Disney and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer entered into a licensing contract that gave Disney worldwide rights to use the MGM name and logo for what would become Disney-MGM Studios, which included working production facilities for movies and television shows and a satellite animation studio, which began operation prior to the park's debut. In 1988, MGM/UA responded by filing a lawsuit that claimed Disney violated the agreement by operating a working movie and television studio at the resort. On May 1, 1989, the theme park opened adjacent to the production facilities, with MGM's only affiliation being the original licensing agreement that allowed Disney to use the brand name and lion logo in marketing, and separate contracts that allowed specific MGM content to be used in The Great Movie Ride.
Disney later filed a countersuit, claiming that MGM/UA and MGM Grand, Inc. had conspired to violate Disney's worldwide rights to the MGM name in the theme park business and that MGM/UA would harm Disney's reputation by building its own theme park at the MGM Grand hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. On October 23, 1992, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Curtis B. Rappe ruled that Disney had the right to continue using the Disney-MGM Studios name on film product produced at the Florida facility, and that MGM Grand had the right to build a Las Vegas theme park using the MGM name and logo as long as it did not share the same studio backlot theme as Disney's property.[2] The 33-acre (130,000 m2) MGM Grand Adventures Theme Parkopened in 1993 at the Las Vegas site and closed permanently in 2000.
Disney was contractually prohibited from using the Disney-MGM Studios name in certain marketing contexts; in those instances, the park was called The Disney Studios.
On August 9, 2007, Walt Disney World President Meg Crofton announced that Disney-MGM Studios would be re-branded as Disney's Hollywood Studios, effective January 7, 2008, saying, "the new name reflects how the park has grown from representing the golden age of movies to a celebration of the new entertainment that today's Hollywood has to offer—in music, television, movies and theater.
Areas
Hollywood Boulevard serves as the park's main entrance and is lined with venues selling Disney merchandise. Parades such as the Pixar Block Party Bash travel down Hollywood Boulevard on their route through the park, and live street entertainment can be found here throughout the day. Michael Eisner, who had a major part in the park's creation ever since the earliest development, demanded the opening land operate on the same principle asMain Street, U.S.A. but in a style more fitting to the Studios. At the far end of Hollywood Boulevard stands the Sorcerer's Hat, the park's icon. Behind it, inside a replica of Grauman's Chinese Theater, is The Great Movie Ride, a dark ride paying homage to several classic films, including Casablanca,The Wizard of Oz and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Echo Lake
Echo Lake is the park's small oval-shaped lagoon, which was designed to form one of the ears in the enormous Hidden Mickey from the park's original layout. Surrounding it are numerous attractions and services, some in structures designed to mimic the "California Crazy" form of architecture from Hollywood's Golden Age. At The American Idol Experience, park guests can audition and sing for live audiences, and potentially win a special front-of-the-line pass for the popular TV series' actual tryouts.[5] Next door, the seasonal ABC Sound Studio pavilion is used for various Star Wars Weekendsevents. In between them is the A.T.A.S. Hall of Fame Plaza, a display of busts of past and present icons of the television era, such as Oprah Winfreyand Walt Disney.
Echo Lake includes three attractions based on characters and films created by George Lucas and produced by Disney's Lucasfilm studio. Star Tours: The Adventures Continue is a 3-D motion simulator ride set in the Star Wars universe. This attraction also exists at Disneyland Park. The Jedi Training Academy, a live-action stage show, invites children to become "padawan learners" and receive "lightsaber training" from a Jedi master. Lastly, the live-action Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! re-enacts various scenes from Raiders of the Lost Ark while illustrating how movie stunts are performed.
Streets of America
Originally the New York street backlot set that was part of the park's original Backlot Studio Tour, the section was later opened to pedestrian traffic. Architectural treatments were later added to create street sets resembling San Francisco and New York. The current version of the Studio Backlot Tour features the American Film Institute Showcase, a rotating exhibit of movie props and memorabilia, and a tram ride through the backlot areas and through Catastrophe Canyon, an effects-laden "movie set". Muppet*Vision 3D is a 3-D film featuring Jim Henson's Muppets from the The Muppet Show. It utilizes multiple effects to display the characters inside the theater during the presentation. Younger guests can play amongst oversized plants and toys at the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: Movie Set Adventure, based on the 1989 Disney film. Added in 2005, the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show is a behind-the-scenes look at how vehicle action sequences are created for films, and was adapted from a similar show at Walt Disney Studios Park.
Animation Courtyard
This section of the park originally was the starting point for the tours of the park's active production studios. Its entrance is marked by a square "studio arch," much like a real Hollywood studio lot entrance might be marked. The Animation Courtyard is home to a number of attractions based on Disney characters. The Magic of Disney Animation is an attraction that examines the development process of an animated character. It also includes interactive games and exhibits, along with meet-and-greet areas for Disney and Pixar characters.
Mickey Avenue, a sub-section of Animation Courtyard, is home to a walk-through exhibit, Walt Disney: One Man's Dream, which explores the life and legacy of Walt Disney through photos, models, rare artifacts, and a short biographical film narrated by Julie Andrews. The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow, is an immersive special effects attraction centered on the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean series. The Courtyard section also hosts two live shows. Playhouse Disney Live on Stage! entertains guests with puppet characters from the Playhouse Disneyblock of programming on The Disney Channel, including Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, and Little Einsteins. Across the plaza, Voyage of the Little Mermaid uses glow-in-the-dark puppets, lasers, music, projectors, human actors and water effects to re-create favorite scenes and songs from the animated Little Mermaid film.
Pixar Place
The park's newest section includes many of the original soundstages used when the park hosted actual production facilities. Today, Pixar Place resembles the Emeryville, California campus of Pixar Animation Studios. Its sole attraction is Toy Story Midway Mania!, an interactive 3D attraction inspired by classic carnival midway games, each hosted by characters from the Toy Story film series.[6] Pixar Place was also the home of Luxo Jr., a six-foot-tall audio-animatronics version of Pixar's desk-lamp mascot.[7] The moving character performs periodic shows throughout the day and evening across from Toy Story Midway Mania.[7]
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard was the first expansion to Disney's Hollywood Studios, opening in July 1994. The visual focal point of Sunset Boulevard is The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, a thrill ride based on the classic television series. Located nearby is Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, an indoor roller coaster in the dark with three inversions and a high-speed launch.
Sunset Boulevard has two outdoor amphitheaters for live stage shows. The covered Theater of the Stars hosts Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage, a stage show featuring highlights of the film. The open-air Hollywood Hills Amphitheater is the home of Fantasmic!, a nighttime show featuring Mickey Mouse and many other Disney characters in a story filled with fireworks, lasers and water effects.
Live entertainment
Disney's Hollywood Studios has featured numerous forms of in-park entertainment throughout its history. During its early years, the park featured the "Star Today" program, with a daily celebrity guest. The celebrity would often be featured in a motorcade along Hollywood Boulevard, or would take part in a handprint ceremony at the Great Movie Ride's entrance, or even participate in an interview session.
At other times, Disney has imported characters that were not part of its own library of films and television shows. Some of these characters have included the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ace Ventura, Pet Detective and characters from the Goosebumps series by author R. L. Stine. The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers made appearances in the park during the first seasons of the television series, but then vanished. Disney had ownership of the Power Rangers franchise through its purchase of Saban Entertainment until May 2010 when Saban Entertainment purchased the franchise back, and were regular members of the park's cast of characters through that time.[8]
Many of the park's costumed entertainers are not related to any particular film or TV show. Instead, they are live-action caricatures of figures from Hollywood's history. Originally dubbed "streetmosphere" by Disney and now called the "Citizens of Hollywood", they appear at regular intervals on Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards. Some of these characters include directors, talent agents, starlets or hopefuls, and will often take part in streetside shows that will include audience participation.
Today, guests are treated to a wide array of characters and performers, many of which make their only Walt Disney World appearances at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Some examples include characters from JoJo's Circus, Little Einsteins and Kim Possible. Similarly, characters from new Disney and Pixar animated features will make their Walt Disney World debuts at the park, such as those from Bolt and Pixar's Ratatouille. Live musical acts, such as the cover band Mulch, Sweat and Shears and the a cappella quartet Four For a Dollar, will perform on the park streets or as pre-show entertainment at the larger shows.
Like the Magic Kingdom and Disney's Animal Kingdom parks, Disney's Hollywood Studios also runs daily parades down Hollywood Boulevard. The "Pixar Block Party Bash" parade features Pixarfilm characters performing in a street party along Hollywood Boulevard and near Echo Lake. Several times each day, the "High School Musical 3 Senior Year : Right Here Right Now" show will travel Hollywood Boulevard before performing a live street show in front of the Sorcerer's Hat.
Annual events
Disney's Hollywood Studios hosts a number of events during the year that often draw thousands of fans to the park.
- ESPN The Weekend (late winter) features commentators from the Disney-owned cable sports channels as well as sports celebrities.[9]
- Star Wars Weekends (May - June) brings Star Wars fans and celebrities together for special park events. Running Fridays-Sundays throughout June, they feature the 501st Legion (a worldwide Star Wars costuming group) parading through the park in Stormtrooper costumes, several Star Wars actors appearing each weekend for photos and autographs, Jedi Training Academy classes for younger guests, and other activities.[10]
- The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights (November–January) take over the Streets of America during the Christmas season.[11] The display features over five million Christmas lights on more than 350 miles (560 km) of wire.[12]
One former event of note was the ABC Super Soap Weekend. Scheduled in November, the event paid tribute to the legions of fans of soap operas fromABC. Guests could meet stars from All My Children, One Life to Live and General Hospital. The event's final presentation was in November 2008, with ABC instead planning to schedule multiple, smaller regional events around the country for its fans.[13]
Production history
The Walt Disney Company's original concept of the Disney-MGM Studios was to operate it as a full fledged television and motion picture production facility, not just a theme park. In 1988, among the first feature-length movies filmed at the facility, prior to its completion and opening as a theme park, were Ernest Saves Christmas and Newsies. When the park opened in 1989, the studio/production facilities housed two major components, the first of which was Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida, where Disney produced a number of projects, including Mulan, Lilo & Stitch, Brother Bear, and sequences from other 1990s-early 2000s Disney animated features. The second, larger component was Walt Disney Studios Florida, which consisted of three sound stages used for various Disney projects including The Disney Channel's Mickey Mouse Club, Teen Win, Lose or Draw and Adventures in Wonderland. Several third party productions also used the Studios, including Superboy (first season only, from 1988–1989), Thunder in Paradise, a revival of Let's Make a Deal, special broadcasts of Wheel of Fortune and airplane interior sequences for the feature film Passenger 57. In addition, a number of music videos and several tapings for World Championship Wrestling (as well as live broadcasts of WCW Monday Nitro) were also shot there. Even The Post Group had a Florida-based post-production facility located on the Studio lot throughout the 1990s. All these production and post-production facilities were constructed to be an integral part of the theme park's Backstage Studio Tour as well.
During the closing credits of the Mickey Mouse Club (later, MMC in its final seasons) and Adventures in Wonderland, the lit Disney-MGM water tower appeared on the screen and one of the cast said, "(insert show title here) was taped at the Disney-MGM Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida." Disney management (including CEO Michael Eisner) decided to downsize Disney's Florida operations by closing the animation studio, laying-off personnel and then moving the operations to the main animation studio in Burbank, California.
A radio studio is also located on the lot, appropriately behind "Sounds Dangerous". It originally housed the first children's radio network Radio Aahs which rented the studio. Later, Disney foundedRadio Disney and essentially drove Radio Aahs out of business. Radio Disney decided it was no longer profitable to operate in Florida so they moved all of their shows from the Disney-MGM Studios to the Radio Disney headquarters in Dallas, Texas and the once bustling Disney Studios Florida radio studios are now used as remote studios for radio shows that are visiting Disney or the Orlando area and need a broadcast facility.
Sister park
Disney's Hollywood Studios has a sister park at Disneyland Paris, named Walt Disney Studios Park. Originally, a Disney-MGM Studios Europe was to open in 1996. However, the plans were scrapped as a result of the resort's under-performance, though they were revived when the resort made a profit in 1995.[citation needed] Both are themed after show business, and have provided attractions to each other. The French park debuted with a Backlot Tour that included a version of Catastrophe Canyon, and a re-themed version of Florida's Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. For the Happiest Celebration on Earth in 2005, a state-side version of Walt Disney Studios' popular auto stunt show was built at the Florida park, known as Lights! Motors! Action!
The Hollywood Land district within Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California is a condensed version of the two larger parks. It contains the Walt Disney World counterparts to The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, The Magic of Disney Animation, and Muppet*Vision 3D, and formerly housed Who Wants To Be A Millionaire - Play It!. In 2006, the area, then known as Hollywood Pictures Backlot, was given a facelift to match the red-and-black color scheme of the Florida and Paris parks, and was renamed as Hollywood Land in 2012 as part of the park's larger renovation project. It maintains some of its original backlot decor, but more closely resembles Hollywood as it appeared in its Golden Age, one of the original themes of the Florida park.
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