News

• Jim and I are doing the second annual Gingerbread Challenge in Walt Disney World, starting Friday December 2, 2022.  
  

• We’re doing a live podcast recording on December 2.  Tickets available at https://touringplans.com/2022-disney-dish-tp
  
• Topic: March of the Wooden Soldiers
• Location: Disney’s Contemporary Resort, walking distance to the Magic Kingdom

• Breakfast starts at 8 a.m., podcast starts at 8:30 and should run for no more than 3 hours.

• It’s a Friday/Saturday (Dec 2 and Dec 3)
  

• I’m speaking at IAAPA (Int’l Ass of Amusement Parks and Attractions) in Orlando on November 18.

• Disney’s released Galactic Starcruiser dates for 2023, and Jim and I - and Hank Lonely - are doing the voyage on March 30, 2023.  We’ve already got somewhere between 22 and 26 cabins booked, and that’s a decent portion of the ship for the Dish.  There are only 23 cabins left on the ship.  If you’d like to join a band of stellar misfits on a journey for the ages, visit http://storybookdestinations.com/disneydish/ to get a quote.
  

• Disney has announced a price increase for Genie+ in both DLR and WDW, as well as variable pricing by day:
  

• WDW price range is now $15-22 plus tax
• DLR upper price is $25
  
• Speaking of Genie+, we got this note from our friend Ryan, who was recently at Walt Disney World:
  
  Had some issues with our room at BLT. Mentioned it to front desk (one of them is the glass door for the shower which doesn't close correctly, so could break, etc). We hadn't bought Genie+ because, well, Touring Plans. But giving us free Genie+ for the day was the Make-Good. I feel silly for not seeing that coming.
  
• Individual Lightning Lane prices (ROTR is now $25), preferred parking, PhotoPass also increased
  
• Disneyland ticket prices also increased an average of 8%
  
• Food & bev prices went up at both resorts.
  

• Rumors are that a beloved *thing* might be returning to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in the first week of November.  That’s all I can say right now.
  
• Speaking of rumors, our friend Spiro sent in this news article, which suggests Disney Cruise Line might be interested in buying the world’s largest cruise ship:

Disney Cruise Line is said to be buying the 9,000-passenger Global Dream cruise ship built by Genting Hong Kong Ltd (Genting HK) from Germany-based shipbuilder MV Werften’s insolvency administrator under the planned restructuring of Genting HK, which is facing severe financial difficulties following global movement restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which began in early 2020, according to news reports on Friday (Oct 7), quoting German news outlet NDR, a respected and well-known broadcaster in Germany.

Cruise Hive reported that the news was announced by insolvency administrator Christoph Morgen, who did not specify the transaction price for Global Dream.

Surveys

Jim, I’m still sorting through new surveys we’ve got over the past week. I do want to point out that after last week’s show, where we talked about a new dining survey Disney’s been sending out, I got emails from more than one person who works in food & bev - at both Disney and Universal - saying “Hey, can you send me a copy of that survey?”  So that’s interesting.

Listener Questions

From Tom:

I've been told that I'm crazy for making this plan - BUT - my kids' #1 priority (due to my son's pre-pandemic Nov 2019 memory and some pics we have) is to hit Cape May Cafe character breakfast ("Minnie's Beach House" as they call it).  As a connoisseur of an optimized WDW visit, I am unwilling to give up a rope-drop morning on a 2-day trip ... so I have grabbed an 11:10 reservation and aim to:

Leave Dolphin - I'm solo w/ 3yo and 6yo - (wife at conference) (we're staying there) and rope-drop Frozen (7:15-7:20 arrival w/ portable breakfast while we stand for 20-30 min), then hit the Future World dark ride trifecta of Spaceship Earth, Nemo, Imagination (my daughter sleeps with a lifesize Figment plush), then score a LL on Remy for the way out (let's say an arrival window including 10:20ish).  It certainly assumes no hiccups along the way.  The Lines app says I'm good to go.  Frankly, the biggest risk is my 3yo daughter's willingness to get in the stroller, but I'm pretty sure a "casual mention" of how we'll miss Minnie's Beach House will mitigate this.  We then have a nice breakfast - chill as the restaurant empties out, hit the pool and wait for Mom to get back from the conference to hit MK (of course with stacked LL for an action-packed evening).

Seems perfect to me.  Am I nuts?  Also thoughts on a strategy to get a mid-morning Remy- the move out of ILL really knee-capped me here.  Seems it's a 7am crapshoot?  You think a blue-umbrella friend would adjust a LL time to avoid a dining conflict?

Appreciate it if you've gotten this far and all the best!

From Derek:

Disney seem to have painted themselves into a corner with the land being set in the era of the “sequel trilogy”, but I think I’ve come up with a solution and would be interested to hear your thoughts.

What if the land went through the era’s?

Starting from Toy Story Land, the area from the Droid Depot around to Oga’s Cantina could be the “prequel” era. The First Order Tie fighter would need to be moved - replaced with a Pod Racer perhaps? And a simple rename of “First Order Cargo”.

The arch next to the Cantina transitions you into the “original era, including the Millennium Falcon. This era would go right up to Ronto Roasters and include the market.

In Smugglers Run, the Falcon is loaned to Hondo by Chewie, so I suppose if it was moved to another era it doesn’t specify that Han is no longer around, so we’re OK.

Finally, rounding the corner through the trees would transition you to the “sequel” era, with its X-Wing, Resistance supply and of course Rise of the Resistance.

Anyway, these are just the ramblings of an old Star Wars fan that would love to see a wider variety of Star Wars represented… I’d be interested to know your thoughts.

From Jeanette:

But labeling issues I couldn’t resist!   I have worked in pharmaceutical packaging and labeling for over 15 years.  The idea that QR codes lead to the wrong webpage is intriguing and quite frightening to me. It is literally part of my job to make sure that doesn’t happen. (Of course not being able to charge your magic band plus probably isn’t life threatening, where taking your medication incorrectly can be). I’ve always wondered if my skills here could ever transfer to working at Disney and you have restored my hope!

Disney Patents

Journey into Imagination Redo

Part 2

Where we left off last time … The Kodak Company had fallen on hard times due to the rise of digital photography. The contract that this corporation had signed with Walt Disney Productions in the late 1970s to sponsor a Future World pavilion at EPCOT Center specifically stated that – every 10 years – Kodak must pay to upgrade this pavilion (So that Future World remains a showcase for the latest & greatest in American know-how).

1994 should have been when Kodak made a significant reinvestment in Epcot’s “Journey into Imagination” ride. But since – on November 21st of that same year – “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience” opened in the Magic Eye Theater at this Future World pavilion, Disney decided to let Kodak’s contractual obligation to upgrade the “Journey into Imagination” ride slide for a while. Largely because they had already spent millions on upgrading the Magic Eye Theater out ahead of the load-in of the “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience” 3D movie.

Now jump ahead four years to 1998. And Disney Parks & Resorts knows that Epcot Center will be the theme park that will serve as the centerpiece of Walt Disney World’s millennium celebration. Which means that Kodak can’t delay the updating Future World’s “Journey into Imagination” ride any longer. Mouse House managers insist that Kodak execs commit to a significant upgrade of this Epcot attraction.

Kodak’s reaction rocks Disney Parks officials. Not only is this Rochester, NY -based corporation unwilling to invest heavily in upgrading this Future World attraction, but Kodak now wants to significantly lower the fee that this company has been paying annually for the upkeep & maintenance of the “Journey into Imagination” ride.

So what do the Imagineers do in a situation like this? Simplify.

They start by targeting the most expensive-to-maintain moment in the original “Journey into Imagination” ride. Which is that three minute long scene where the Dreamfinder – while he’s aboard that flying machine while he’s out collecting things which will spark our imagination – first introduces that audience to Figment.

To pull off this three minute long scene (which sets up the entire premise for the original version of “Journey into Imagination”) was an engineering marvel. It made use of five different sets of Dreamfinders, Figments and their flying machines (which were all identical in every way) which were all housed in a rotating theater set up. Then four omnimovers (which were typically holding four Guests each. For a total number of Guests viewing “Journey into Imagination” ‘s establishing scene at 16) would be loaded into that show scene, make a full circuit around that theater-go-round space and then enter into this Future World attraction’s first stationary show scene. Which was the Dreamport.

Anyway … This introductory scene (which was known in-house at WDI as the “Flight to the Imagination”) was obviously the most expensive one to maintain. It had the most moving parts. The most animatronic (5 Dreamfinders in total. Plus 5 Figments) and a large number of FX projectors. The Imagineers could lower the cost of maintaining “Journey into Imagination” by nearly half annually by eliminating just this one sequence in this Future World attraction. So that’s what they did.

The Imagineers then went through the rest of this Future World pavilion and pulled out every other Dreamfinder & Figment animatronic. Because these AA figures – while not nearly as complex as the ones used in “Journey into Imagination” ‘s “Flight to the Imagination” scene – were still expensive to maintain. At least on an annual basis.

And then – since there was now far less for Epcot visitors to see as their omnimover rolled along the “Journey into Imagination” ride track … Well, the Imagineers simplified the route that this Future World attraction used to follow as it traveled through its show building. Eliminating almost a third of the track that Epcot guests used to travel along when they experienced the original version of “Journey into Imagination.”

Now I know hearing what happened to this Future World pavilion – even to this day – upsets a number of “Journey into Imagination” fans. But the worst is yet to come. All of this removal of animatronic figures and simplifying of the track route of the original “Journey into Imagination” ride cost money. A lot more money than the Imagineers had originally budgeted for this part of the project. Which meant that there was now far less money for new show scenes than WDI had initially planned for.

Which is why the many big, brightly lit rooms that had previously made up many of “Journey into Imagination” ‘s original show scenes gave way to 10 or more tiny, darkly lit scenes. After all, people can’t see how badly the budget got cut on a ride if they’re continually forced to peer into a dimly lit scene. See “Countdown to Extinction / Dinosaur: The Ride” over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom as a prime example.

Anyway … To now fit in better with the overall science & technology aspect of Future World, the new storyline for “Journey into Your Imagination.” (Please note the newish version of this ride’s name. For – now that Dreamfinder & Figment are gone – the Guest is now the star of this Future World attraction. Everything that they see & hear as the Guests travel along that ride track is supposedly only happening to them at that time) is the Guests are first scanned using a new device, the Imagination Scanner.

When they’re first scanned, Guests are told that “ … there’s nothing much going on upstairs.” EDITORS NOTE: That’s not exactly an inviting way to start off an attraction. In the first minute or so of this experience, telling Guests that they’re unimaginative or – worse than that – infer that they’re not all that bright. This introduction (to my way of thinking, anyway) had to factor into the extremely negative reaction that “Journey into Your Imagination” got when it first opened in early October of 1999.

After this, the Guests traveled through a series of what the Imagineers liked to call perceptual exercises. Scenes that were supposed to stimulate your 5 senses. And – in theory, anyway – jumpstart your imagination.

These scenes leaned heavily on Imagineering’s decades-in-the-making bag’ o’ tricks. Things like 3D sound (The train scene / hearing test) to optical illusions that were previously considered for the Haunted Mansion and then discarded (Butterfly in the cage, fish swimming outside of its tank).

The Imagineers knew that – for lack of a better term – the tiny budget that they were working with when it came to all of those new show scenes for “Journey into Your Imagination” was like trying to butter an entire loaf of bread with a single pat of butter. It just wasn’t going to cut it.

But they did have an ace up their sleeve. Which was they were going to get a celebrity to serve as the host of this revamped Future World attraction. And that was Robin Williams.

Here was the concept: Disney’s “Flubber” (The reimagining of the Studio’s “Absent Minded Professor” & “Son of Flubber” science-based family comedies from the 1960s) had been released to theaters in December of 1997. And in that film, Robin Williams had played Phillip Brainard (which was supposed to an updated version of the character that Fred MacMurray had played in “The Absent Minded Professor” & “Son of Flubber.” Who was called Ned Brainard rather than Fred), the inventor of Flubber.

Anyway, the conceit of “Journey into Your Imagination” was that – just like with Wayne Szalinski over in the “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience” 3D movie – Phillip Brainard had just been named Inventor of the Year. Which meant that he was now the scientist in residence at the Imagination Institute.

The storyline of the show was that Phillip Brainard was supposed to tell folks who were visiting the Imagination Institute during its annual open house that anyone could do what he did (become a great inventor). It just involved harnessing the power of your imagination. There’s that name again.

WDI’s hope was that Williams’ star power (not to mention his ability to improve any script with wild ad-libs) would then make “Journey into Your Imagination” seem like a far better show than it actually was.

And if you remember the original queue space for “Journey into Your Imagination,” this “Flubber” -based storyline was actually set up. As Guests walked through the queue, they passed along some of Phillip Brainard’s inventions. Including Weebo, Phillip’s hovering robot assistant.

There was only one problem. The Imagineers showed Robin Williams all of their storyboards and their models for “Journey into Your Imagination” and he passed on the project. Some of that was because “Flubber” hadn’t gotten all that great reviews when it had been released to theaters back in December of 1997. And Robin wasn’t all that eager to reprise a role that he’d gotten low marks for.

And the other was … Well, Williams could see that this new version of this Future World pavilion was going to compare poorly to the “Journey into Imagination” ride that had preceded it. So he politely declined the opportunity to host this Epcot attraction.

And the Imagineers – now lacking a host for “Journey into Your Imagination” – went instead for a piece of low hanging fruit. Eric Idle – of Monty Python fame – was a last minute replacement for the actor who was originally supposed to play the President of the Imagination Institute in the “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience” 4D movie. So WDI reverted to form. When Robin Williams refused to host “Journey into Your Imagination,” they recruited Idle to come play that attraction’s host.

The thinking – at that time, anyway – was “Well, this will create greater story continuity between ‘Honey, I Shrunk the Audience’ and ‘Journey into Your Imagination.’ We’ve got the same comic actor appearing in two shows at this Future World pavilion. It’ll make this part of Epcot seem more cohesive.”

That said, there was no getting around the idea that “Journey into Your Imagination” would seem like a considerable step down from the original “Journey into Imagination” ride. Which had huge elaborate sets, animatronic figures and that catchy Sherman Brothers show. There were Imagineers who insisted that – once this Future World pavilion re-opened – theme park fans were going to revolt.

Worth noting here that this was the early days of fan push back at the Disney Parks. Year previous, Fall of 1998, was when the “Save Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride” effort happened. Which shook the Imagineers and WDW management. They’d never experienced anything like that before from Disney’s fan base.

WDW management pooh-poohed WDI’s concern. WDW’s millennium celebration featured the Millennium Village, “Reflections of Earth” show out on World Showcase Lagoon, the “Tapestry of Nations” parade, the Sorcerer Mickey Wand over Spaceship Earth. So much new stuff. Who was even going to notice that Epcot’s “Journey into Imagination” ride had been changed.

“Journey into Your Imagination” opened October 1, 1999 and immediately got terrible reviews. Fans went straight to Guest Relations and lodged complaints about the removal of Dreamfinder & Figment. Figment cameos in the queue / connect the dots moment along the course of the ride.

Complaints got so loud that Eisner himself – during his very next trip to Florida – made a special trip over to “Journey into Your Imagination” to experience this revamped Epcot attraction. Michael didn’t mince words. This was terrible. It needed to be fixed.

That said, because Epcot Center had so few rides (then and now), the Imagineers would have to wait ‘til WDW’s millennium celebration was over before they could then attempt to fix “Journey into Your Imagination.” And it fell to Imagineer extraordinaire David Mumford to figure out how exactly to do that.

In the third and final installment of this series, we’ll talk about how “Journey into Your Imagination” was changed into “Journey into Imagination with Figment.” More to the point, what the future may hold for this Future World pavilion. Which may or may not key off of that Figment movie project that was just announced earlier this month.

So at this point, Rafferty took a cold hard look at California Adventure and tried to figure out what exactly this theme park was missing. In particular what would lend itself to the creation of a whole new land. One that would then make Disneyland’s second gate seem more like the original Disneyland.

So Kevin started researching California Adventure (Just so you know: Rafferty never worked on any aspect of the original version of DCA. That was one of the main reasons that Barry Braverman recruited him for this project. He wanted a fresh set of eyes on the Disneyland Resort’s troubled second gate). And what he noticed was – when you went all the way back to the early, early days of this project – Disney’s California Adventure Park was originally supposed to have celebrated California’s car culture.

Case in point: Right in the center of the cover of the press kit for the original announcement of Disney’s California Adventure, there’s this image of a first-generation red Corvette streaking across the page.

It was right there. An idea that had originally been proposed for DCA that – as development of the project proceeded – had somehow fallen off the table. All because the right idea, a way to actually celebrate California’s car culture hadn’t come along.

But now Rafferty had a new set of marching orders. Create a Disneyland-like land for DCA that featured a new ride. And here was this California car culture idea that the Imagineers had originally talked about but never actually pursued.

As Kevin recounts in “Magic Journey” …

Would it be possible to wrap an entire land around the single theme of the automobile? I was lucky enough to have spent my wonder years in the 1950s, a time when the automobile became less of a means of basic transportation and more of a form of personal expression, style and freedom.

That era – the 1950s in America – would be the perfect time period to set a new land in. The “Where” should be small-town America. A 1950s, small-town main street done in the spirit of Main Street, U.S.A. Would that bring some Disneyland DNA to DCA?

To Rafferty’s way of thinking, the math worked out. When Disneyland Park first opened in July of 1955, 50 years separated Main Street, U.S.A. turn-of-the-century setting from the Guests who were entering Walt’s family fun park. And now that it was 2006 … Well, a similar 50 year span separated modern day Guests from the 1950s small-town America area he was thinking of developing for DCA.

Which brings us to “Cruise Street,” which is what Kevin first called this project. Before he then settled on a different name: “Carland.” Not “Cars Land,” but “Carland” (singular).

Here’s how Rafferty originally described this proposed addition to Disney’s California Adventure Park:

Carland

Time Period: Late 1950s – Early 1960s

Keywords: Drive-ins, Drag Racers, Teenagers, Classic Cars and Rock’n’ Roll

Carland puts California Car Culture on the map at Disney’s California Adventure Park. The time is late 1950s to early 1960s when songs like “Little Deuce Coup,” “409,” and “Drag City” became the soundtrack of this classic era when the car became a symbol of personal freedom and expression.

Cruise Street, this land’s “main drag” is home to Marty’s Malt Shop, the Ride-n-Shine Car Wash (an interactive water-play area), the California Classics Showroom (which will feature car-themed merch & displays), the Carland Dine-Theater (An West Coast version of the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater from Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Florida) and the Be-Bop Garage, a live show where mechanics discover the musical potential of car parts.

Cruise Street also plays host to classic car shows and cruise nights. Major attractions include Drag Racer, a racing-themed roller coaster and Scoot 66, a Midget Autopia-type driving adventure for younger Guests that travels a meandering highway that’s dotted with California Crazy icons.

Mind you, because Rafferty had been an Imagineer for nearly 30 years at this point, he recognized that Mouse House managers liked having alternatives, he proposed one big E Ticket Deluxe ride that could potentially serve as a replacement for the Drag Racer coaster and Scoot 66. And this was Road Trip U.S.A.

Road Trip U.S.A. was kind of Kevin’s tribute to Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland, where Guests – as they rode in classic cars from the 1950s & 1960s – would roll past all sorts of comical roadside attractions. With the finale of this proposed Carland attraction being a drive through a recreation of Disneyland’s old Rainbow Caverns.

Kevin realized that a project like this would be expensive. And since The Walt Disney Company had just spent $7.4 billion to acquire Pixar Animation Studios in January of 2006, it just seemed unlikely that anything this ambitious – a whole new land like Carland – would ever make it off WDI’s drawing board.

Still, as a lifelong classic car fan, Rafferty was thrilled that he actually got this opportunity to put all these ideas down on paper. And as he turned in his Carland proposal to Braverman, Kevin thanks Barry for the opportunity.

Which is when … Well, let me read this part verbatim from Kevin’s book …

That’s when we got wind of the timely, unbelievable rumor that Pixar was making a movie about cars. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Who knew?

I’m sure that when Pixar found out that Imagineering was working on a land about cars they said the same thing. It was, I must say, the strangest of coincidence.

So what happens next? How does Cruise Street go from being just an idea on paper to an 11-acre, $450 million recreation of Radiator Springs. Len & I will tell that story on the next installment of this Bandcamp Exclusive series.