A Friday Visit with Jim Korkis: Voices in the Hall of Presidents

By Dave Shute

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.

TALKING PRESIDENTS AND ONE TO COME

By Jim Korkis

Every U.S. President since Harry Truman, with the exception of Lyndon Johnson, has visited a Disney theme park. Of course, every president since George Washington is represented in the Hall of Presidents at the Magic Kingdom.

With the upcoming election and a new president in office soon, many Disney fans are wondering when that head of state will make its appearance in the attraction, especially since Disney now outsources all audio-animatronics to Garner Holt.

Beginning in 1993, an audio-animatronics representation of the current sitting President of the United States speaks as part of the finale. The actual presidents recorded their presentations at the White House under the supervision of WDW Imagineers. Amazingly, in almost twenty-five years, there has only been the need to do so three times. Here are those speeches:

Bill Clinton in The Hall of Presidents:

My fellow citizens, we are the heirs of the great American Revolution. As this millennium draws to a close and the 21st century approaches, let us pause to honor the very idea of America. America mirrors the world’s diversity, yet it remains united in the struggle to uphold fundamental freedoms. We believe our nation’s happiness still evolves from liberty, from opportunity and from the vision of equality set forth by our country’s Declaration of Independence. And today our nation stands as a symbol of freedom and inspiration to people all over the world.

There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America. And there is nothing wrong with the world that cannot be cured by the ideals that America represents. Those principles have no borders, and we look forward to a day when those principles, extended beyond our borders, will have circled the globe. The quest for democracy must continue until all of the people of the world enjoy the freedom we must always fight to preserve. The spirit of America is as bright and hopeful today as it was in July of 1776. And we are ready to carry our great national experiment forward into the next millennium.

George W. Bush in The Hall of Presidents:

My fellow Americans, when we look back on the history of this country, we see a record of almost unbelievable energy, sacrifice, hard work; of impossible dreams that our ancestors dreamed and made real. We see injustice, too, that weighs on our hearts even today. But for every injustice there has always been a voice crying out to right it. And America has always listened to those voices. We are listening today. And perhaps it falls to us, to this first generation of 21st century Americans, to say, once and for all, that no child, no race, no creed, no ethnic community will ever again be left out of the American dream.

Through education, through the opportunity to work and to enjoy the fruits of that work, we can open every closed door, expand the horizons of all Americans. Again and again, we return to the same simple principles: freedom, equality. The freedom to create, to prosper, to dream. Equality before the law, in the workplace, and a chance for a better life. And each time, in the process, America grows stronger. The beacon of democracy grows brighter. The world looks with new astonishment at what free people can do. We the people are just getting started.

Barack Obama in The Hall of Presidents:

The American dream is as old as our founding, but as timeless as our hopes. It is reborn every day in the heart of every child who wakes up in a land of limitless possibilities, in a country where “we, the people” means all the people. We may come from different places and believe different things, but what makes us American is a shared spirit; a spirit of courage and determination; of kindness and generosity. It is a spirit grounded in the wisdom of the generations that have gone before us, but open to the unimagined discoveries and possibilities on the horizon that lies ahead. Let us enjoy it, cherish it, defend it, and pass it on to our children as the bright and beautiful blessing it is: this enduring American dream.

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Thanks, Jim!

At least to me, it’s a bit interesting that with these candidates, The Hall of Presidents will become a scary ride!

And if–as is appropriate–you don’t care what I think about the election, then just come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, and The Vault of Walt: Volume 4, and his contributions to The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit, all published by Theme Park Press.

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