Category — w. Most Recent Stuff

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

HERE COME THE MUPPETS

By Jim Korkis

With the premiere of a new Muppets television show, it is important to remember that Disney’s association with producing shows featuring the Muppets goes back a couple of decades.

In the late 1980s, legendary puppeteer Jim Henson had tired of having so much of his time devoted to business matters. He was in final negotiations with The Walt Disney Company to sell the rights to his famous Muppet characters and become a creative consultant just before his untimely death.

It looked so much like a completed deal that Henson was already at work on a variety of projects for Disney, including theme park attractions featuring the Muppets. In fact, there were plans for an entire new land to be called Muppet Studios with attractions, a restaurant, shops and more at Disney’s MGM Studios.

(c) Disney

While work was still proceeding on the major Muppet*Vision 3-D attraction, to help introduce the characters into the park, the fifteen minute stage show Here Come the Muppets was quickly opened in May 1990 in the theater in the Animation Courtyard that later housed The Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

To save time and money, the characters were portrayed by full-sized costumed performers with moving mouths, rather than puppets, except for two video inserts during the production.

The pre-show featured a video of the dog Rowlf playing the piano and being interrupted by Sam the Eagle.

Kermit is onstage and concerned because the other Muppets are late for the show. He receives a call on a videophone from Mickey Mouse who is checking in to see how things are going and Kermit lies that everything is fine. The scene with Mickey features the same set and animation as the Mickey scene in The Muppets at Walt Disney World television special from May 1990, but with different dialog.

Kermit calls the WDW picture phone operator who turns out to be actress Lily Tomlin doing her Ernestine character from Laugh-In. He asks to be connected with Miss Piggy who is relaxing in a robe and with mud on her face. Informed that she is on a videophone, she panics and instantly gets ready.

Kermit phones Fozzie Bear who claims to be lost but Kermit directs him to a green door behind him and it leads him to the stage.

Fozzie tells Kermit that Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem band will be arriving soon by monorail,l and the front of a WDW monorail crashes through on stage right and the characters disembark. That same mechanism was later used for Ariel sitting on a rock in The Voyage of The Little Mermaid, to move it on and off stage.

The show now starts with the Muppets performing the songs: Make ‘Em Laugh (Kermit/Fozzie), Personality (Miss Piggy), Bein’ Green (Kermit), The Heart of Rock & Roll and Shout!

The prerecorded voice track for the show uses all the main Muppeteers: Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Richard Hunt, Jerry Nelson and Steve Whitmire. In addition, there were two filmed video inserts of Frank Oz voicing and performing Fozzie and Miss Piggy. That video footage was reused in the PBS series Great Performances episode entitled The World of Jim Henson in 1994.

Two weeks after the show closed on September 2, 1991, another show using full sized Muppet costumed characters premiered on a loading dock stage near the exit of Muppet*Vision 3-D entitled Muppets on Location: Days of Swine and Roses. The premise was that the Muppets were shooting a movie but take a break to interact with the audience by signing autographs and posing for photos. That show closed in 1994.

*  *  *  *  *

Thanks, Jim!  And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, Disney Never Lands, about planned but unbuilt concepts, and Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: SEPTEMBER 19 TO SEPTEMBER 27, 2020

The material below details next week’s Disney World operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

Things are … a little different… as Disney World re-opens.  See this for park previews and key insights.

OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/19-9/27/20

The Magic Kingdom will be open from 9a-6p every day

Epcot will be open from 11a-7p 9/19 through 9/25, 11a-8p 9/26, and 11a-7p 9/27

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be open from 10a-7p every day

Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be open from 9a-5p 9/19, 9a-6p 9/20, 9a-5p  9/21 through 9/25, and 9a-6p 9/26 and 9/27

EXTRA MAGIC HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/19-9/27/20

There will be no Extra Magic Hours until further notice.

PARADES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/19-9/27/20

There will be no parades until further notice.

FIREWORKS AND EVENING SHOWS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/19-9/27/20

There will be no evening shows until further notice.

SHOW SCHEDULES FOR WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/19-9/27/20

See Steve Soares’ site here. Click the park names at its top for show schedules.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

REVIEW: REGAL EAGLE SMOKEHOUSE

The Regal Eagle Smokehouse opened in the American Adventure Pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase earlier this year.

It replaced the OK but uninteresting Liberty Inn with house-smoked meats and sauces highlighting a several of America’s different barbecue styles, and in so doing, fulfilled one of my wishes:

The moral here: keep your wishes small, and perhaps they will be granted.

Meat is the star at Regal Eagle Smokehouse, and is generally good, with the more expensive cuts—such as the ribs—being the weaker offerings.

The full menu is here,  and a good way to start is with the American Platter, letting you pick three different meats from among the options of Texas brisket, Kansas City chicken, Memphis pork ribs, North Carolina chopped pork, and South Carolina sausage.

There’s also a variety of sauces available separately at Regal Eagle Smokehouse, so you can either match with for example mustard sauce on the South Carolina sausage, or mix.

I had the chicken, ribs, pork butt, a side of baked beans with burnt ends, and the banana pudding. All but the ribs were quite good, and I also hear good things about the onion rings (cooked in batter, not from frozen rings), pickles, and s’mores brownie. Tom Corless’s crew has a review of every menu item here and I’m kinda surprised Josh has not yet published a similar review (at least that I can find), although he does address Regal Eagle Smokehouse in passing in his updated overview of the American Adventure Pavilion here.

On the walls, you’ll find a variety of Muppet’s stuff, as Sam Eagle is the sponsor of the Regal Eagle Smokehouse, but not enough for a special trip except for the most devoted of Muppets fans. Dining at Regal Eagle Smokehouse is also not worth a special trip, but is a great option for barbecue at Epcot, and a stronger offering than the old Liberty Inn.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

COMMUNICORE

By Jim Korkis

Some of the announced changes for Epcot have been cancelled or will be delayed because of the losses of the 2020 closure of the parks.

Epcot has always been a park of things changing, including the disappearance of CommuniCore that debuted with the park in 1982.

(c) Disney

Disney described CommuniCore as “Future World’s global Main Street of ideas and inventions”. CommuniCore was located in two crescent-shaped, 100,000 square foot buildings (CommuniCore East and CommuniCore West) that faced a large fountain just beyond Spaceship Earth.

The name was a combination of the words “core” and “community,” not “communication” as many Disney guests believed. CommuniCore was meant to provide guests with an introduction and more information about the park’s major themes in a somewhat tranquil setting.

It was supposed to embody Walt Disney’s original plan for Epcot to be a community. The logo for CommuniCore was two crescent shapes facing each other divided into north and south quadrants.

The buildings housed rotating exhibits related to technology, and were replaced in 1994 by Innoventions which was a combination of the words “innovation” and “inventions”. The new area was louder and flashier with more upscale corporate-sponsored exhibits.

CommuniCore had a central, tall, winding corridor that ran though each of the buildings from end to end, with a number of entry/exit points to the outside.

CommuniCore officially included the largest shop in Epcot, the two-story 13,000 square foot Centorium (an Emporium for the 21st Century). It also included two restaurants, the Stargate Restaurant (that later became the Electric Umbrella) and Sunrise Terrace Restaurant (that later became Pasta Piazza and then Fountainview Expresso & Bakery) that were both open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

CommuniCore East showcased the Astuter Computer Revue (later Backstage Magic) demonstrating the use of computers at the park, and SMRT-1 (Smart One), a purple and chrome robot sitting on a revolving pedestal surrounded by telephones who played games using voice recognition technology with the guests–both exhibits sponsored by Sperry/UNISYS; Compute-A-Coaster where guests could assemble their own roller coaster on a video screen with assistance from an animated beaver;  American Express’ Travelport, a fourteen foot red sphere showing different vacation destinations as well as a Travel Service desk to make plans for a trip; Exxon’s Energy Exchange with games, demonstrations, films and interactive experiences like generating enough electricity for a light bulb and getting the optimum gas mileage from a car; and the Electronic Forum which had the Future Choice Theater registering guests’ opinions on a variety of topics.

CommuniCore West showcased a communications themed area sponsored by AT&T called FutureCom that predicted services that would later be provided by the internet; ExpoRobotics with exhibits on precision maneuvering like painting by industrial robot arms was first on display at the 1985 International Science Exposition in Takuba, Japan but purchased from the manufacturers by WDW; the EPCOT Discovery Center, a research center all about E.P.C.O.T. Center and Walt Disney World (later called “Ask EPCOT” and finally EPCOT Outreach); and a Teacher Center.

CommuniCore was packed with many other displays including the Population clock that displayed the rough population of the Earth and changed with every passing second, as well as the Manufactory where guests could assemble an American flag.

Just outside of CommuniCore were the WorldKey Information System kiosks, a digital information system created specifically for Epcot by Bell Laboratories and Western Electric. The main station was in the post-show area outside of Spaceship Earth until 1994. By accessing the touch screen, guests could learn about different attractions and connect with Guest Relations cast members via closed circuit video for assistance or making dining reservations.

Actor Dallas McKennon, known for providing the old prospector safety spiel on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and the voice of Benjamin Franklin in the American Adventure, provided the host voice for the kiosks.

*  *  *  *  *

Thanks, Jim!  More on CommuniCore is on the Disney Parks Blog here.

And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, Disney Never Lands, about planned but unbuilt concepts, and Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: SEPTEMBER 12 TO SEPTEMBER 20, 2020

The material below details next week’s Disney World operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

Things are … a little different… as Disney World re-opens.  See this for park previews and key insights.

OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/12-9/20/20

The Magic Kingdom will be open from 9a-6p 9/8 every day

Epcot will be open from 11a-7p 9/8 every day

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be open from 10a-7p 9/8 every day

Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be open from 9a-5p 9/8 every day

EXTRA MAGIC HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/12-9/20/20

There will be no Extra Magic Hours until further notice.

PARADES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/12-9/20/20

There will be no parades until further notice.

FIREWORKS AND EVENING SHOWS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/12-9/20/20

There will be no evening shows until further notice.

SHOW SCHEDULES FOR WALT DISNEY WORLD 9/12-9/20/20

See Steve Soares’ site here. Click the park names at its top for show schedules.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

Disney World announced a new deal a few days ago that basically represents $25/night off at certain value resorts, $62.50/night off at certain moderate resorts, and $125/night off at certain deluxe and DVC resorts. You also save the associated taxes.

The new Disney World deal covers “most nights” through December 25th, and needs to be booked by December 25th.

Not all Disney resorts or room types are in the deal—some because of demand, and others because they remain closed.

Disney’s page on this deal is here. Disney is promoting this as “save up to $500,” but that would be for four nights in a deluxe or DVC resort. Other stay lengths and other resorts will yield different savings.

Other deals came out at the same time. The best way to sort them out for your specific circumstances is to work through a travel agent, who will get you the best price.

I recommend Kelly, the long-standing travel agent partner of this site. Contact her using the form below

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!