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Lake Buena Vista Chronicles: Selling The Magic, 1972

Despite the fact that the Lake Buena Vista area is a critical element of the early Vacation Kingdom aesthetic, it often seems that Disney itself had a poor handle on what, exactly, the development was and why it existed. Trying to track the history of the Lake Buena Vista village’s intended purpose is a […]

Reedy Creek Randomness, October 1973

Walt Disney World was awesome.

OK, maybe “hilarious” is the word. Whatever the case, cast publications in the early years included pictures like this:

"Don Poole instructs Sylvia Tait (right) and Willie Willis on how to use a fire hose at Orange Vista Hospital."

Walt Disney Productions was pretty excited that they suddenly […]

The Horizons Story, Part III: Disney’s House Of Magic

Filmmakers attend to the massive Sea Castle set for the Horizons "Choose Your Future" finale

The final story in the General Electric promotional booklet for Horizons concerns the wizards of WED that brought the attraction to life. Without further ado…

Related Posts…The Spaceship Earth StorySub For One…The Horizons Story, Part II: Robert McCallNew […]

The Horizons Story, Part II: Robert McCall

The 1983 General Electric promotional booklet for Horizons contains a brief feature about artist Robert McCall. McCall, a renowned illustrator of science fiction and science fact, was a constant presence in space-related publications during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. His highly-detailed work helped define the look of futurism in that period, so it was […]

The Horizons Story, Part I

Corporate sponsorships had gone a great way towards paying for EPCOT Center when it opened in 1982, and with so many tens of millions of dollars apiece sunk into the new park the sponsor companies were keen to recoup their investment. It’s remarkable how extensively these corporations tied their identities into EPCOT; “their” attractions […]