The Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster pre-show may come from the Golden Age of Pre-shows, but one little detail is surprisingly forward thinking.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Muppet Labs Creates Beaker’s Best Line
Last Saturday marked the reopening of MuppetVision 3-D, a Studio staple since the early 90s. The rehab included a new digital projection system, resulting in crystal clear images the likes of which haven’t been seen since Jim Henson’s mind-expansion experiments in the 70s. The show also got new carpet and seat coverings, shunting some […]
Monsters Before Monsters
Yesterday Universal finally announced an opening date for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Judging by the carefully retouched hi-res publicity photos and the always-accurate concept art, they have obviously knocked it out of the park. Oh, stop being so sarcastic, you say. It’ll be good. And I have to admit, I’m looking forward to […]
Guard Duty
Back when Disney’s Hollywood Studios first opened, there wasn’t much to it. Sure, the park was only slightly smaller than the Magic Kingdom, but if you looked at the map, you’d see that it fully half of the real estate was taken up by something called a “Backstage Tour.” Yes, this was a hearkening back […]
A Great Place To Meet Models
As a Disney World fanatic growing up, I would always end each trip with a collection of park guide maps, so that I could pour over them later back home in Indiana. Sometimes I couldn’t wait until I got back home, so I would pour over them in the hotel room. Remember back when it […]
Disney World Goes To the Oscars
In honor of the Academy Awards, I have decided to devote an entire post linking the most famous American award show to a 43-square-mile patch of Florida swampland. Here are the nominees and winners of the Oscars, Walt Disney World style. Best Supporting Actress The Great Movie Ride is packed with Supporting Actress nominees. Of […]
Atlantis is Waiting
When Christopher Robin backed up that giant dump truck, cackled maniacally, and pulled the lever, he buried Atlantis forever beneath several metric tons of pliable playground flooring. Now youngsters crawl through Winnie the Pooh’s house and clamor over Piglet’s Crypt-o-Wheel of Doom, never realizing that just 20,000 leagues below the surface, guests once explored the […]
Footprints in Cement
Disney’s Hollywood Studios likes to make a big deal out of the celebrity handprints around the Chinese Theater. And I’ve already called out the handprints of famous animators that were once easily accessible at the Animation Tour. But there are even more celebrity footprints over by Echo Lake, and most people just walk right over […]
Who Needs American Idol?
The original Disney MGM Studios had a location to showcase guests’ musical performance skills long before Ryan Seacrest showed up, and I’m not talking about SuperStar Television. It was a shop of sorts, very similar to those photo booths where they will green screen your head onto a movie poster. Only in this case, you […]