The MousePlanet Mailbag is a regular compilation of some of our reader feedback and writer responses that may be of interest to our readers. We encourage you to drop your questions, opinions, or comments to us in care of our mailbag.
In his most recent column, “Next on the Chopping Block” Mouse Tales author and MousePlanet columnist David Koenig speculated on what attraction might soon see the axe now that the Nemo Subs have opened. In this week’s mailbag, David answers questions and addresses reader speculation in response to his writing. Tom S. writes:
Thanks for writing another excellent column! If money for Cast Members (CMs) and if confusing guests weren’t considerations, I would love to have Honey I Shrunk the Audience (HISTA) replaced with a 360-degree theater that rotated the films shown at different times of the year. They could present a new world tour film, the EPCOT China film (but not Canada’s—no offense tou our neighbor to the north—they deserve a better movie), and could show “America the Beautiful” and other earlier 360 films as sort of a semi-permanent 360 film fest.
A new 360 world tour movie could be shows at other Disney parks, and could even plug each other’s parks and hotels. Many Disney fans are very interested in all the Disney parks and hotels, and teasing looks at Tokyo, Hong Kong and Paris Disneylands could each be shown in under a minute. (“Around the World with Disney”) And, of course, I would like to see international natural scenes like Victoria Falls and Antarctica; as well as new man-made wonders like Dubai and Shanghai.
If replacing HISTA with a 360-degree theater is out of the question, and if the Disney Resort could find the space, I think they could make a little money by setting up a dark tent and charging many film fans a separate admission for a short 360 film fest of the restored old films.
Any update on your Walt Disney World book? Also, so much has gone on at the Disneyland Resort over the last few years that many of us would like another Disneyland book from you.
Thanks for the note! Great ideas, although I don’t believe Disneyland would invest in retrofitting the theater for CircleVision—unless of course there were Pixar characters somehow involved.
My long-rumored Walt Disney World book, “Realityland,” is at the printers as we speak. Although the official publication date is October 1, there should be pre-release copies available at the NFFC show and sale July 15 in Garden Grove. Hope to see you there!
Perhaps another Disneyland book one day, but it would be a while.
KD writes:
Per your article of 31 May and the attractions allotted to lands—the Rivers Of America Big Boats are not assigned to Frontierland, instead they are attached to New Orleans Square/Critter Country.
I am not sure if you are aware of the current divisions—I am not fully able to speak for East Side, but West Side is as follows:
Adventureland/Frontierland/Main Street—Disneyland Railroad, Opera House, Main St. Vehicles, Tiki Room, Jungle Cruise, Tarzan’s Treehouse, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
New Orleans Square/Critter Country—Pirates, Mansion, Island Rafts, Mark Twain/Columbia, Splash Mountain, Adventures of Pooh
Stores and shops are attached to the “stores and shops” division and should not be lumped in with attractions.
Thanks for the update! Rather than on how the attractions are viewed internally, my groupings were based on how the attractions are classified on the park maps handed out to guests (although, admittedly, the one I used was more than a year old). It did list the Disney Gallery as an “attraction” (even though we all know that it’s operated by the Merchandise folks).
Jeff M. writes:
As the naval architect responsible for the hull replacements over the past few years on Columbia and Mark Twain, I disagree that these two can survive. Team Disney Anaheim’s (TDA’s) attitude is very, very grudging towards both vessels. Columbia is seen as a Fantasmic! prop, and the Mark Twain is seen as a vast hole in the water with no redeeming features whatsoever. The recent repairs are slapdash at best (being done by Disney show shop personnel, with no meaningful engineering guidance.)
I had to redesign the Columbia cleat foundation since their repair after the fatal incident with the flying cleat was actually worse than the original installation. I’ve repaired and tuned up the Mark Twain steam engines repeatedly since the Roundhouse gang can never get enough available hours budgeted to fix the engines.
In my opinion, these are two of the most vulnerable, and most visible, attractions in TDA’s sights. When we have worked on the Mark, we would never, ever have allowed the shoddy tarps that now mask her in Fowler’s Harbor—the boat is merely a nuisance to the suits.
Thanks so much for the note. You may be right, but I still have a hard time envisioning the Mark permanently pulled off the river. Permanently tethered at Fowler’s Harbor to sell pirates merchandise? Maybe.
Jay writes:
On your latest article on MousePlanet: I agree with you on the potential “sacrificial lambs” to the reopening of Subs. My sources at Lincoln Theatre have told me that one of Walt’s offices moved to Walt Disney World will be returning to Disneyland. Then both offices will be moved to Disney’s California Adventure.
Disney Gallery CMs are “holding on by their fingernails” as they were told that Club 33 will be making an aggressive push to take over within the next year. If this happens, a beautiful place that could be enjoyed by guests and CMs will be only accessible to a select few Club 33 members, which I feel is kind of selfish. The merchandise department is struggling to find ways to keep the place from being taken over. I personally think it should be refurbished and decorated as it was supposed to be had Walt lived: a museum with how creating and running Disneyland became part of his life.
I agree with you and could see a potential closure on Canoes. Those who operate the crafts on the Rivers of America are already worrying of a potential disaster this summer. Pirate’s Lair has a third raft only used for shuttling CMs to the island that docks at Hungry Bear Restaurant. This past week it had several close calls with the Columbia and the Rafts.
God forbid that Tiki Room closes. I have heard that the suits up in TDA are still hoping to close the attraction as soon as Dole ends its sponsorship, but I heard that won’t be anytime soon, which makes those guys in TDA very unhappy. The two things that could weigh on something closing is lack of personnel. We are stretched to the limit on CMs operating locations, and Maintenance has to worry about both parks. Not many people know that DL and DCA do not have their own maintenance crews. Plumbers, electricians, machinists and carpenters, for example, have to cover both parks.
You brought up a point I should have included in the article: Tiki Room does become vulnerable in a few years, when/if the sponsorship deal expires. I’m sure that was the primary, if not only, reason why it was restored.
Doug H. writes:
Well written as usual but so depressing! Geesh.
Snow White and Pinocchio are pure ‘Flavor’…the park can not afford to lose any more of its classic ‘taste.’ The scary ones for me are Mr. Toad and Casey Jr. Both of these are my favorites and neither is generating any ‘junk’ money in the stores. Either one of those will unleash my sign making skills… I’ll sew the fake bird crap on the shoulder (for sympathy) and hit the bricks. I don’t know how the Floridians let Toad get taken away. We can’t let it happen here.
If either Mr. Toad or Casey Jr. were targeted, I’d joined you on the picket line.
John M. writes:
That was a well written but depressing article. I had no clue that Disney was so ruthless in cutting park rides. I still don’t understand why it’s not in their best interest to keep the park full of working rides, thus increasing park capacity and giving customers more reason to spend multiple days there. Wasn’t there even talk of opening a third park? Why, when all they’re doing is reducing attractions? Walt Disney World as a whole keeps expanding. How is that different than Disneyland?
Thanks for the great questions!
Unfortunately, Disney bases its decisions more on hard numbers, than on what’s best for the guest. They probably figure that with fewer attractions, wait times increase at the most popular attractions, thereby limiting the number of attractions you can ride in one day and presumably encouraging you to return the next day. If Disneyland had, say, twice as many attractions, wait times would plummet and guests could ride perhaps twice as many rides on Day One, perhaps eliminating the need to return on Day Two.
Yes, they have land to (hopefully) one day build a third park, but won’t commit to it until they figure out a way to convince guests to pay full fare to enter the second one. The advantage in adding a third gate versus adding attractions to Disneyland is if you can convince the guests to pay full fare to get in.
Donn M. writes:
I enjoyed this article, and have enjoyed your books. I have just finished the new authorized Walt Disney biography and am now reading the earlier Bob Thomas bio, but my own fascination is with the kind of creative and operational information you write about. I’ve heard all about Marceline! The Imagineers’ books seem to be long on coffee table photos and shallow comment.
I would love to read about all the unexpected hurdles involved in creating, engineering, fabricating, installing and maintaining an attraction. What didn’t fit, what didn’t work, what did, etc.
I loved your comment about “it’s a small world” vexing the Imagineers when, under the pressure of three other World’s Fair attractions, Walt mentioned “something with little boats.” He really took the old “tunnel of love” and expanded it with huge rooms, high ceilings, and colorful pageantry rather than darkness. Also that originally the dolls were to sing their various national anthems, which would have created a cacophony.
I wonder things like: how do they keep the water algae-free and odorless. How often are the doll costumes changed? Which mechanics tend to go wrong? How do they dust all that stuff? Does the cleaning department have any input when attractions are being designed?
I recall seeing a life-size mannequin, some of whose strings came loose one night at Epcot’s Mexico pavilion; he was being dragged around on his knees in a Mexican dance. That kind of thing—how it happens and how it is remedied—intrigues me. Anyway, thanks for your writing!!!
Thanks for the note—and perhaps the idea for a new book!
Dave K. writes:
I just want to say that I believe your opinions expressed in this article are dead on!
Years ago they had a model of Space Mountain on display (before it was constructed) and one of the signs said they would add a new ride every two years. At that point a bit of the Disney magic was gone forever. (How can you hope for great things when you know nothing will happen for two years?)
We can only hope that the “Open One / Close One” policy will be thrown out if their goal is to increase overall park attendance. I personally would like to hand Innoventions and HISTA to the Imagineers and say let’s see what you can do with this space! (I don’t think the Disney fans would mind too much!)
Keep up the great work.
Great point. Thanks for writing!
Mark writes:
Great article. Your article mentions a scrapped proposal for a Storybook Land expansion. Do you know what that expansion would have entailed? Storybook Land captures my imagination like no other ride.
Tony Baxter had designed a pirate ship restaurant, patterned after the old Chicken of the Sea “tuna boat,” which would be in the middle of a lagoon behind Storybook Land (where boat storage is currently). After completing the traditional route, the boats—instead of turning right to return to the dock—would turn left into “Never, Never Land” to sail around the tuna boat. Diners could have a nice meal while watching the boats pass as well as Peter Pan and Captain Hook sword-fighting in the riggings. A few years ago they added something similar at Disneyland Paris.
Greg J. writes:
I was disappointed when they got rid of the Captain Hook ship and Skull Rock Cove in 1983. I wish my little niece and nephew could have seen them. They were landmarks on par with Sleeping Beauty’s Castle and really added to the atmosphere. And the Pinocchio Ride wasn’t that good. No wonder attendance dropped. They drew the wrong conclusions. It was their remodel, not putting money into something like Fantasyland that was a waste of money.
Yes, that was the pirate ship they had hoped to remodel and relocate behind Storybook Land, but it fell apart in transit and then they decided that it wouldn’t be worth the investment to rebuild. I would have loved to see it!
