Comments on: They Did Have Wings…

By: disneyanaworld

disneyanaworld — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 05:39:19 +0000

there was a 16mm 1970s wdw projector sitting in the utilidors a few weeks ago.

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:34:07 +0000

Orville – I was the same way. Those air-conditioned Omnimovers were a blessing for the thrill-averse child haha… The speed rooms are indeed still in Buzz. There were three, I think, in WOM.

Bruce – I think Disney was pretty used to making their own stuff back in the day. It’s amazing how much of the WDW equipment, vehicles, even watercraft, were built by the shops. I guess there wasn’t much of a consumer market then for looped-projection, remote-controlled projectors! That’s why it bugs me whenever they outsource anything these days – I was always impressed at their ability to construct anything they wanted to their exact specifications.

Phil – I can’t imagine how often they had to replace these things. It must have been crazy. Think of what they’d have been able to do with digital projection!

By: philphoggs

philphoggs — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:51:47 +0000

Wow, looking at that shot just screams maintenance – all this and before polyester film. The roar of “force projector” once deployed definitely left its mark on me.
I wonder how many kids interest was sparked in film and staging from this ride. And oh yea, the air conditioning with the good looking flight attendants didn’t hurt either

By: Bruce

Bruce — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:42:53 +0000

Really great post. I’m always interested in how it’s done behind the scenes. Also surprised that Disney itself built the projectors to suit particular needs, though I guess Disney’s always been the kind of company to say “if it doesn’t exist, we’ll build it,” instead of “if it doesn’t exist, we’ll change our design to fit what DOES exist.” Probably one of the secrets to their success.

By: Cousin Orville

Cousin Orville — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 01:24:45 +0000

Great post Michael! Always excited to see something about If You Had Wings. It was my favorite ride as a little kid, mostly b/c I was such a big wuss when it came to rides for the first 10 years of my life or so…ha! That said, I always thought IYHW was cut from the same mold as many of the first wave of EPCOT rides which is why I still have such fond memories of it. WOM in particular made use of those big dome rooms, pre-simulator rides. I think they’re actually still present in WDW’s Buzz ride too, no?

And as WC said, it was ALWAYS a great way to cool off from the brutal FL heat!!! That blast of cold air as you’re entering the globe was the best.

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 01:13:09 +0000

Haha thanks

By: WC

WC — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 00:14:08 +0000

Well I never knew that ride was so complicated. It truly was a “flight of fancy”.Your piece brings back memories of a simple yet fun ride that helped riders escape the heat of the Florida Sun and travel to distant lands in a travelogue kind of format. Once again you helped me “remember the magic”.