The announcement came in 1985 from then-CEO Michael Eisner and movie legend Bob Hope, who just happened to be in Central Florida at the time. Disney planned to expand the Walt Disney World Resort with a new Studio and Studio Tour attraction, set to open in 1989. Christened Disney-MGM Studios, the theme park would bring together the magic of Disney with the classic name, film library, and Leo the Lion logo of Metro Goldwyn Mayer.
In 1987, a preview center opened at the Magic Kingdom Park, temporarily displacing The Walt Disney Story on Main Street, U.S.A. Here Guests were given a glimpse into what the future might hold - a place where one could watch actual movies and television shows being made, and possibly even find oneself center stage in the middle of the action.
By June 1988, the Studio side of Disney-MGM Studios was ready for business. Early productions included Splash, Too; Ernest Saves Christmas; Superboy; and the New Mickey Mouse Club.
Leading up to the grand opening of the park itself, were several weeks of sneak previews and a gala press premiere party held the evening of April 29. Then on May 1, 1989, the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park welcomed its first official Guests. Bob Hope was back, this time to cut the filmstrip ribbon and dedicate the park. Thousands of balloons were released to the heavens. Dancing girls in enormous feathered headdresses pranced across the stage, and some of the biggest stars in Hollywood made special appearances.
The main attraction of Disney-MGM Studios was, naturally, the Backstage Studio Tour (Note: the photo below was taken in 2007, before the park changed its name, but after the name of the tour had undergone several changes). Lines for the tour often stretched to three hours, and wait times of nearly as long were seen at the other attractions in the park.
To handle the demand that first summer, park operating hours were extended to midnight, and the Entertainment division was pressed into service to help keep the Guests happy and occupied. Mickey and the gang made frequent appearances in their flashy new Hollywood outfits. Musicians in groups such as the Hollywood Hit Men, the Tuba-Fours, and the Screen Extras Band kept things lively. Actors in the Streetmosphere troupe (now known as the Citizens of Hollywood) kept everyone in stitches, and an impromptu fireworks show was put together on the lagoon just beyond the main entrance of the park.
It was the beginning of an era. Within the first five years, the park would double in size, expanding into the New York Street backlot and adding Sunset Boulevard and Mickey Avenue. Eventually, the Studios would morph from a production center and tour attraction into a full-blown theme park dedicated to the magic of Show Business, where the Hollywood dreams of Disney Guests can come true every day.
I loved this post. When this park opened, I was just getting into my teen years and I have very fond memories of the park and the yellow candy-striped themes all over the signs and such (see the backlot tour sign above). It wasn't quite the same as the Epcot Future World icons, but very cool.
ReplyDeleteDisney Studios seems to be the most overlooked park of the 4.
Do you have the date that the preview center opened in the Magic Kingdom? My 2nd visit to WDW was in 1987 and I don't recall this preview center.
ReplyDeleteI'm not completely sure when it opened. I visited WDW in June 87, and I feel like it was there then.
ReplyDelete