Progress City, U.S.A.

Herbert Ryman was working on Disneyland projects right up to the time of Walt’s death in 1966, doing quite a bit of artwork for both the New Orleans Square and New Tomorrowland expansions. It seems only natural, then, that Herb would begin work on Walt Disney World when development began on the new resort. Much of Walt’s attention before his passing was devoted not to the Magic Kingdom park, but rather to his city of the future – EPCOT. Tragically, Walt seems to have died without seeing much artwork for the Magic Kingdom; this sketch of Cinderella’s Castle from January of 1967 is one of the first pieces of art done specifically for the new project.

Sketch of Cinderella Castle by Herbert Ryman, 1967

It doesn’t seem like Herb did very much art for the Magic Kingdom itself; certainly, it’s hard to find nearly as many renderings for early Walt Disney World as one can find for Disneyland. One section that Ryman worked heavily on, though, was Liberty Square. Based on many of his original designs for the unbuilt Liberty Street at Disneyland in 1956, the area featured the Hall of Presidents – itself based on an attraction originally intended for Disneyland. Herb had presented ideas for this attraction to Walt way back in 1954, and he was pleased to see the concepts take shape decades later in a format very similar to his original design. Ryman’s renderings for Liberty Square are wonderful, full of detail and excitement that makes the actual area seem rather lifeless by comparison.

Rendering of Liberty Square’s “Concord Bridge”, 1969

Ryman did a magnificent rendering of an alternate concept for the Magic Kingdom’s Haunted Mansion which you can find in the art book A Brush With Disney.

Oil painting of the Richard F. Irvine, 1971. This painting might be familiar if you’ve stayed at the Dixie Landings resort at Walt Disney Room; prints of it and other Ryman pieces are featured in various guest rooms.

Sketch of proposed covered bridge in Adventureland, never built

Concept for Tomorrowland Entrance, 1970

Perhaps the most famous piece of art for Cinderella Castle, this was painted in 1969 and was featured prominently in much of the park’s early marketing and on numerous souvenirs

Ryman left WED in 1971; the official story is that he retired, but it seems that instead he was ushered out. He flew to Orlando on his own dime to attend the opening of Walt Disney World, and after that took a long journey in Europe to see how things had changed since his adventures there in the 1930s.

Herb would return to Disney, though, in 1976. This time, he would be working on a project that would utilize all his skills as an artist and draw extensively on his life experiences and far-ranging travels – EPCOT Center.

From the Disney Channel, in 1988:

It’s hard to believe that 1988 was the last time the Disney company publicly celebrated Mickey’s birthday – in this case, his 60th. Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, Disney park celebrations were often centered on specific anniversaries or events. In 1981 it was Walt Disney World’s “Tencennial”. In 1984 it was Donald Duck’s 50th birthday. Walt Disney World celebrated its 15th birthday in 1986, and 1987 marked the bicentennial of the United States Constitution. This approach gave the celebrations the feel of a real “event,” and the result was that they were far more distinctive than today’s “Celebrate Dreams”, “Celebrate Wishes”, and “Celebrate Celebrations” approach.

Despite this clip’s justification for the “Happy Birthday from Across the USA” theme of Mickey’s birthday parade, the actual reason for the theme was that it allowed for the re-purposing of 1987’s “All-American Parade.” Not that I can blame the company; this was a massive and lengthy parade with many elaborate floats and set pieces and it was re-used several times in the late 1980s.

Of course, the other in-park recognition of Mickey’s 60th was the all-new Mickey’s Birthdayland, a “temporary” attraction that would eventually turn into today’s Mickey’s Toontown Fair.

In the summer of 1988, EPCOT was celebrating the arrival of Norway – World Showcase’s 11th pavilion. The pavilion had soft-opened that May, with a grand opening celebration following in June. So by the time of Walt Disney World’s 4th of July parade, it was time to give people a glimpse of the pavilion and its new ride, the Maelstrom. And who evokes the spirit of Norway better than… Willard Scott? Really? Oh well, let’s take a look:

I vividly remember watching this for the first time. Jeff and I had taped the old Walt Disney Presents classic From the Pirates of the Caribbean to the World of Tomorrow off of the Disney Channel, and watched it approximately a billion times afterward. That was the high water mark of park promotion; with full filmed ride-throughs of attractions, it was like being in the park! So with that precedent set, I had high hopes when we tuned in to the annual 4th of July parade and found out they were going to preview the new Norway ride. Remember, I was an EPCOT freak at even that young age, and a whole new pavilion and attraction was about the most exciting thing possible. I was so ready to see footage of this new ride.

You see what we actually got. What’s hilarious is that I remember being so livid at the time; it was my “drink more Ovaltine” moment. But actually, when watching this video now, it actually does pretty much show the entire ride. It’s just blended up some, and the dialogue isn’t there. But that’s pretty much it. Of course, without the internet I had no way of knowing that. I thought we had a grand new EPCOT E-ticket, and they were pulling the old bait-and-switch on me.

In a way, it’s funny to think that not so long ago we had to depend entirely on Disney News to shape our perceptions and awareness of new projects until we were lucky enough to visit the parks again. Of course, there was also the annual report – a once-a-year arrival that was greeted with just as much excitement as Santa Claus.

For more insight into the grumpy young man I was, I always remember being furious at the irritating lady for the kind of ridiculous line about how much she enjoyed the “tour of the North Sea.” I really had it in for that lady. For some reason, I don’t really remember realizing how kind of scary and disingenuous Willard Scott was, with his weird bug-eyed patronizing responses to the guests. I did, however, pick up on how uncomfortable the poor Norwegian cast member was.

Twenty-two years ago! It’s hard to believe we haven’t had a new pavilion, or even an updated Norwegian film, since.

When the Disney-MGM Studios opened in 1989, there was a great deal of hoopla about how the city of Orlando was now “Hollywood East”. With Universal Studios Orlando opening soundstages a few miles up I-4 from Walt Disney World, there was suddenly an arms race for soundstage space in town, and with plenty of plans for future expansion it seemed certain that productions would be flocking to Florida to take advantage of its lower taxes and economic incentives.

Obviously, that didn’t happen.

Of the three Disney soundstages that were built, two have been converted to ride and show space. A third is earmarked for conversion into the Monsters, Inc. roller coaster. None of them have been used for actual filming purposes in years, and the Disney “backlot” has been slowly pared away as well. Looking back, the hype seems so silly now. But at the time, it was very, very exciting.

Back in the 1970s and 80s, there was a syndicated television show called PM Magazine. The evening entertainment and lifestyle show aired in markets across the country, packaging syndicated features with wraparound segments featuring local hosts.

In 1989, the nation’s media descended on Orlando to cover the opening of the Disney-MGM Studios. Lest we forget, this was only Disney’s fifth theme park, and it was kind of a big deal at that time. Disney knew how to throw a party and crank up the hype machine, and that’s just what they did.

Luckily, my then-local PM Magazine hosts were on the case, with a special episode covering the opening live from the park itself. After all, it was a working studio! Here’s an optimistic and excited look at a new theme park from WBTV in Charlotte, N.C., with hosts Bob Lacey and Sarah Van Allen.