Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians and author of Jim’s Gems in The easy Guide, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.
BOB HOPE AND THE OPENING OF THE MAGIC KINGDOM
By Jim Korkis
Comedian Bob Hope was a guest on a pre-recorded 90-minute special in “living color” on NBC titled The Grand Opening of Walt Disney World, which aired on October 29, 1971, to publicize the opening of the newest Disney theme park.
Hope entered the Contemporary Hotel via monorail and launched into his monolog.
“It’s really two buildings leaning against each other. And I want to congratulate the architect … Dean Martin. I have a lovely room with complete privacy, except in the bathtub which Donald Duck shares with me. Have you ever tried bathing with a duck who was playing with his rubber man?
“I ordered lunch from room service. Snow White brought it in and I was afraid to eat the apple. I don’t dare drink the water because that was delivered by Pluto.
“This is the biggest vacation-entertainment complex in the world. And to think it all started with a gentle mouse, a bad-tempered duck and seven mixed-up dwarfs. It’s a fantastic achievement. They took a swamp and turned it into a Magic Kingdom. It wasn’t easy. Have you ever tried to relocate 8,000 angry alligators?”
“Walt Disney always believed in the beauty and natural wonders of the world. But he felt as we passed through that we should try to add a little wonder and beauty to it. Maybe you’ll understand that Walt’s dream was just a beginning. The dream doesn’t stop here. This is the start of it. I think you’ll want to tell your grandchildren you were there when it happened.”
Near the end of the program, Hope returned with an even more moving tribute:
“Walt Disney World is the culmination of a lifetime devoted to bringing joy and excitement and laughter to children and adults in America and throughout the world. There is a spirit here everywhere. All of this is Walt.
“This is what Walt wanted for all of us … an escape from our aspirin existence into a land of sparkles and lights and rainbows. Walt Disney loved America. He loved its children and their moms and pops. Walt Disney loved America because his dreams came true. The entire world owes Walt a great debt. He achieved much, but perhaps his greatest accomplishment is that he made children of us all.”
Tom Nabbe, who was in charge of the monorails during the opening of Walt Disney World remembered:
“For the filming of the opening special, we drove Bob Hope into the Contemporary Hotel concourse on the monorail to do his bit. I was standing on the platform waiting for him when one of the co-ordinators came up to me. These were the days when the monorails had individual air conditioners in them and they made quite a noise.
“So this guy says, ‘Tom, the noise is drowning out Bob’s monologue. Can you do something about it?’ And I went over and hit the power button. Then I picked up the phone and called the monorail roundhouse and said, ‘You’d better get over here because we’ve got to haul Bob Hope out of this building in fifteen minutes and you need to re-set the rectifiers because I just turned them off.’
“And they got over and were standing by so that the minute Hope finished they could re-set the rectifiers. The only way I could shut off the air conditioning units on the train was to kill the power to the train which I did. Then I had to get it started back up so we could take Hope on his merry way back to the Polynesian.”
Bob Hope loved the many worlds of Disney and often appeared at Disney events like the opening of the Disney MGM Studios in 1989. The Bwana Bob merchandise cart at the entrance of Adventureland was named in honor of Bob Hope’s 1963 comedy film Call Me Bwana.
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Thanks, Jim. Strange to think that we are just about five years away from the Magic Kingdom’s 50th anniversary…
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In the meantime, check out his books, including The Vault of Walt
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