Just an update for those interested in D23’s EPCOT Center 30th Anniversary Celebration; tickets did indeed go on sale this morning but the higher-tier tickets (which included an evening dessert party) sold out almost immediately. In well under a minute, apparently. The good news is that $65 tickets remain for purchase, and those offer all the same information and historical goodness at a fraction of the calories.
Speaking as an EPCOT nerd, it’s nice to see such interest. This kind of goes back to what I said when the Citrus Swirl and the Orange Bird returned; the better such geek-friendly things perform, the more we’ll get of them. And hopefully Epcot park management will see the success of this event and try to capitalize on it with a slate of activity on the 1st…
And then they’ll announce the return of Horizons, World of Motion, and Journey into Imagination, right? RIGHT????
This October 1st marks the 30th anniversary of EPCOT Center’s opening, an event that I’m sure one or two of you might be interested in. Good news, then, that D23 is holding a special event on September 30th to celebrate that anniversary with a day of intense, historical, geeky goodness. Tickets go on sale tomorrow, June 21st, and are available online to D23 members.
Tickets for the event (the “Worldpassport” level) are $65, and include all presentations on the 30th. The event will be held in the World Showplace, the former “Millennium Village” between the United Kingdom and Canada Pavilions. There’s also a $185 “World Key” pass, which gets you into the presentations but also a dessert party that evening in the Spaceship Earth sponsor’s lounge. The Disney Legends and other EPCOT insiders from that day’s presentations will be on hand for the reception. If you’re just there for the history and info, though, the $65 ticket should have you covered.
Here are the highlights from the event on the 30th, taken from Disney’s press release:
When the Disney Channel debuted in 1983, it bore many differences to the Disney Channel we know today. For one thing, they featured films and programs that were, well, Disney-related. So that was a change.
As part of their original programming, the Channel aired a weeknight news magazine show called EPCOT Magazine. This kind of show was common in syndication at the time; hosts would introduce a variety of segments dealing with various lifestyle topics. Disney tied this in with EPCOT by using the various pavilions as jumping off point for segments about food, fashion, or whatever they managed to line up. Host Michael Young was always joined by a celebrity co-host, usually of the “lovely lady” variety. His hair was always immaculate; his pants were always tight. It was the 80s.
A kind reader pointed out this video to me; it shows the program’s intro, but also includes a pan across World Showcase containing – if you look to the right of the frame – those famous Danish bathrooms of yore. Check out how pristine World Showcase is. Not only is the landscaping immaculate, but the promenade is free from the clutter of food carts, merchandise carts, outdoor vending fixtures… Nary a DVC kiosk to be seen.
But EPCOT Magazine was more than a show – it was a lifestyle! Try this helpful hint, taken from the pages of Disney Channel Magazine…
I was pointed towards this video by Foxx at Passport to Dreams Old & New; it shows a still-pristine Walt Disney World in the flower of its first decade, and also features an unexpected surprise. According to whoever posted the video, it’s from 1977; I have no idea what this could have been for, as it’s obviously a part of a larger presentation, but doesn’t appear to be from a Disney production. That being said, it shows a lot of “behind the scenes” things that must have come direct from Disney.
Take a look and we’ll discuss; please try and ignore the incredibly irritating watermark and timecodes that the poster has embedded. The real craziness kicks in around the three minute mark:
Crazy, eh?
What’s funny is that while the narration talks about “World Showcase”, that model we see as the camera pans down is actually EPCOT Center. The sign even says so! This is the first version of EPCOT Center to bear that name, after the Future World Theme Center and World Showcase concepts were merged into a single location at some point in 1976. What you can’t tell from the film is that the park’s layout was flipped from its final orientation; the north-facing entrance would have led guests through World Showcase before they crossed a bridge into Future World. This World Showcase, as you can see in the film, retained the idea from an earlier concept of keeping all the international pavilions in a large, “modern”, semi-circular building.
Surrounding the EPCOT Center model in 1976 are Marty Sklar, John Hench, and John DeCuir Jr. Note World Showcase towards the bottom of the model, where guests were originally intended to enter the park; by this point, it’s possible that Future World has been changed to serve as the entrance. Also notice how enormous the Lake Buena Vista development is on the map between Hench and DeCuir; also notice Marty’s pants.
At around 3:20 in the film, you can even make out the load area for the Japanese omnimover attraction, which files off over a hill into the distance.
How much do I want this to be an actual thing? More than you can know.
One wonders why the entire EPCOT concept isn’t mentioned; it’s amusing to think that the concept for the attraction changed so much between the time the narration was written and recorded and the film was shot, that the narration was totally outdated. But such was the nature of EPCOT development in the 1970s.
Other things of note in the film: First, how incredibly nice and pristine the entire resort looks. White sand beaches on every beach, and around every island. Discovery Island and River Country in perfect condition, neither of them overgrown, moldy and desolate. At the 25 second mark we even get a great shot of the lovely Fort Wilderness Railroad in action. Osceola-class steamers ply the lagoon, and down at the Village everything is immaculate, unified in design, and inviting. Even the Contemporary is sleek and iconic, unburdened by the circus tent convention center or the unfortunate DVC tower.
In the parks we see a number of lost treasures, from the Skyway to the spotless and streamlined Tomorrowland to the always-impressive 20,000 Leagues lagoon. We even get a shot of Center Street, before it was assimilated by the Main Street Mall. Behind the scenes we get a rare shot of the character zoo, some great “making of” footage (no one could paint a fish like WED Enterprises!) and some really cool shots of a Nautilus being assembled. Too bad there couldn’t have been more insight into the fantastic laser beam holographs.
The concrete bunker used for “CASTING” really cracked me up; I guess with Walt Disney World’s ties to the Nixon administration they had to be prepared for first-strike capability. There’s also a rare shot of the building where all the trash sent rocketing through the AVAC wound up.
EPCOT Center’s Equatorial Africa Pavilion, as seen from World Showcase Lagoon in this Imagineering model
One of the seldom-heralded benefits to the theme park history nerd that the internet provides are the many, many artist portfolios that have appeared online over the years. Disney is notoriously stingy about releasing Imagineering art, especially that of a historical nature, so a nice back-window into the Imagineering process comes when ex-Imagineers are out looking for jobs and post samples of their previous work. Lots of treasures can be found that way.
Recently someone was kind enough to point out the online portfolio of artist Jon Seisa, which includes quite a bit of art, illustration and model work. Of interest to us is the work Seisa showcases from the old WED Enterprises model shop, featuring some fantastic model work for EPCOT Center. You can find a lot more on Seisa’s site, but here are a few highlights.
Another shot of the Equatorial Africa model, this picture shows the treehouse from which guests would look out over a moonlit African watering hole. Via rear projection and dimensional sets, animals would appear to emerge from the jungle to sip at a pool.
This photo of the Equatorial Africa model shows part of the interior courtyard. The structure on the right was meant to be a shop. Through the giant tusks to the left, guests would enter a “sound safari” which would re-create a jungle trek using audio tricks and directional sound.
Here’s a model we’ve seen before; World Showcase circa 1978.
At last – something that did actually get built. This model shows one of many humorous scenes from General Motors’ World of Motion
Finally, here’s another “Lost Epcot” classic. Tony Baxter’s original vision for a “Land” pavilion. This fascinating concept of a series of glass-enclosed biomes containing several attractions was eventually abandoned when Kraft signed on as sponsor and a more food-oriented pavilion was designed.
From the Progress City archives comes this collection of 33 tall tales and true from Disney history. Available in paperback, hardback, and ebook formats.
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