Rockin' Big Thunder

In November 1980, TV and film star John Davidson (The Happiest Millionaire; The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band) presided over opening ceremonies for the next thrilling addition to the Magic Kingdom, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

For two years, Walt Disney World Guests watched the mountain growing on the western shore of the Rivers of America in Frontierland. Inspired by the buttes and mesas of Monument Valley in Utah, Big Thunder's rockwork slowly took form as "cages" of shaped rebar and chicken wire were affixed to a steel superstructure. The cages were covered in cement and sculpted into the familiar forms we know today. Imagineering Character Paint Artists then worked from the top down, giving the mountain its realistic look.

Covering nearly 2 1/2 acres, the rockwork for Big Thunder was carefully designed to create the impression that railroad track had been laid down to conform to an existing landscape, as opposed to a phony landscape having been built up around a roller coaster ride. The following image provides an excellent overview of the site. Look closely, and you can even see rockwork in every stage of the process, from superstructure to cages to cement to primer and finished paint. (All photos are ©Disney, of course, except one. Can you guess which one?)

Today, Big Thunder Mountain rises 197 feet 6 inches (above sea level, that is... the main spire actually only reaches about 100 feet from the ground). The attraction closes for refurbishment periodically for regular maintenance and to get repainted. Take a look at the difference between the photos above and below.

The Florida sun works overtime to fade those colors. To compensate, every time the mountain is painted, it's done about six months "hot," meaning the initial coloring is a bit more vibrant than intended. This way, it can go a while longer before needing another coat.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is one of the true masterpieces of Imagineering. For all the development, construction and artistry involved in its creation, Big Thunder's Guests find themselves immersed in a completely believable natural environment, spirited away on a Gold Rush adventure aboard a runaway train.

The "wildest ride in the wilderness" also happens to be a personal favorite. Maybe it has something to do with the time I spent working down in that mine a couple decades back...

To Space Mountain... And Beyond!

Space Mountain is the iconic symbol of Tomorrowlands (and one Discoveryland) the world over. The attraction, originally conceived in 1965 as Space Port, was Walt Disney's idea. He wanted to duplicate the success of the Matterhorn at Disneyland with a roller coaster in the dark, simulating a rocket ride through outer space. It would be a decade before the first Space Mountain became a reality, finally making its debut at Walt Disney World.

The main building of Space Mountain encloses a space roughly 300 feet in diameter, reaching a height of 183 feet (to the top of the highest spire). The structure was built first, and all of the track, trains and other interior elements were then brought in through the side before the walls were completed. (images ©Disney)

One of the most unique elements of the Space Mountain design is the concrete ribs along the exterior. Imagineer John Hench describes how it came about in his book Designing Disney - Imagineering and the Art of the Show:

"In the construction of the building, the engineers selected precast concrete and steel T beams for the main roof structure. They wanted the beams facing inside the building, but I wanted them facing outside, to provide a smooth surface in the interior on which we could project images. The distance between the T beams varies, from narrow at the top to wider at the bottom; on the cone-shaped roof, this gives an appropriately dynamic effect of forced perspective. The resulting exterior design is strong, simple and visually effective."

The original sponsor of Space Mountain, RCA, provided the computer technology that made the ride possible. It became the first computer-controlled roller coaster, allowing the operation of multiple trains on the same track simultaneously, greatly increasing capacity.

Space Mountain made its debut in January 1975 to great fanfare, forever changing the skyline of Tomorrowland and launching a generation of new Disney thrill attractions.

A Royal Foundation

We begin our look at Disney under construction with the central icon of the Magic Kingdom, Cinderella Castle. Since opening day in 1971, the castle has looked pretty much the same, an easily recognized symbol of the joy and magic of Walt Disney World (first 3 photos ©Disney).

It didn't start that way, though. Before topping out at 189 feet, Cinderella Castle started below what is now ground level. The "first floor" of the Magic Kingdom is comprised of a series of facilities connected by passages known as Utilidors. The central corridor of the Utilidor system can be seen in the following image, along with the first signs of vertical construction on the castle walls. Much of this would soon be covered with earth claimed from the formation of Seven Seas Lagoon out in front of the park.

Once the superstructure was complete, detail work began on the castle exterior and interior spaces. Cinderella Castle was finished ahead of much of the rest of the park, so that promotional photos and film could be shot in advance of opening day. The castle stood as a reminder of the ultimate goal for the rest of the crews working on the Magic Kingdom. Take a close look at the clock face on the front of the castle, and you'll see it's a placeholder, stating "Remember Opening Oct. 1971."

Today, all that concrete, steel, Fiberglas and Imagineering artistry blend together seamlessly in the form of a sparkling jewel at the heart of a fairytale kingdom. It's as if Cinderella Castle just appeared here... like magic.

Previews of Coming Attractions

As a Disney Parks fan, there's nothing more exciting than getting the opportunity to see a new Disney attraction built from the ground up. With each new development in the construction process, anticipation builds toward the day when the walls finally come down and new wonders are revealed.

Guests visiting Disney's California Adventure these days are watching that park transform itself with the additions of World of Color, Ariel's Undersea Adventure, Cars Land and more. Construction walls and displays throughout the park and in the Blue Sky Cellar offer enticing previews of the attractions coming in the next few years.

Sneaking a peek behind the walls (or a bird's eye view from atop Mickey's Fun Wheel) offers a fleeting glimpse of how those attractions look right now. Once everything is open, the world will forever know them in their finished state. Today, we get to see them as they will never be seen again. It's a fascinating window on the construction process. The inner workings. The birth of magic.

With the advent of digital photography and the Internet, it has become easier than ever for Disney fans to follow the progress of new attractions. A simple online search can produce dozens of results for anyone interested in the state of expansion at Disney's California Adventure, Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom, Toy Story Playland at Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris, or the new realms coming to Hong Kong Disneyland.

For the next week or so on this blog, we'll instead turn our focus to the past for a look at the development of some of the iconic attractions we now know and love in the Disney Parks. Stay tuned...

On the Set with Buzz and Woody

Over the years, character greetings have grown more and more sophisticated, with some experiences becoming attractions unto themselves. Consider the example of Buzz Lightyear and Woody at Disney's Hollywood Studios. For the 1995 release of Toy Story, Buzz and Woody appeared in the daily Toy Story Parade and would occasionally pop up in the park to meet their fans. Several years later, a dedicated area was established for them on the Studio Backlot, in the form of the exterior set of Al's Toy Barn from Toy Story 2. Finally, with the opening of Pixar Place in 2008, Buzz and Woody moved into their fanciest digs yet.

The Pixar Place district at Disney's Hollywood Studios recreates the look of the Pixar Animation Studios campus in Emeryville, California, right down to the detail of the multi-colored brick selected by Steve Jobs for the buildings. Guests of Pixar Studios discover that the toys of Toy Story have taken over in a celebration of the very first computer animated feature film.

Guests are invited into the Camera Department under the giant Scrabble board to "Meet the Toys" in their very own screen test with some of the stars of the movie. Look out below as you head on in. The Green Army Men hoisting the board have dropped a few tiles on the ground. Hmmm... I wonder what we could spell with those letters...

Inside, young hopefuls can practice for the cameras by posing in some of the sets from the first two Toy Story films. There's Andy's Bedroom, the Claw game at Pizza Planet, Sid's Room and the Big One Rocket, the showdown with Emperor Zurg, Stinky Pete and the rest of the collection at Big Al's place, and the exciting Airport Baggage Room scene from Toy Story 2.

Finally, the big moment arrives... the live audition on the set with none other than Woody Pride and Buzz Lightyear! For my little boys, it was the highlight of their day (and a great way to get extra mileage out of those Halloween costumes). How did the audition go? Well, they said they'll have their people call our people.

An interesting detail about these sets...

You may notice that Andy's bedroom appears twice. In the first scene, though, it's Andy's room from the beginning of Toy Story, with clouds on the wallpaper and cowboy sheets on the bed. By the end of the experience, Andy now has Star Command sheets on his bed and the wallpaper features yellow stars. (Remember, Andy moved at the end of the first film. His room looks different in Toy Story 2.)

Characters of Disney Past

Over the years, many different characters have made appearances in the Disney Parks. Some have gone on to become regulars, while others have drifted off into obscurity. Today, we take a look at just a few of these characters of Disney past.

The photo above is a promotional shot from 1990, touting the newly-renamed Mickey's Starland in the Magic Kingdom. The Starland show and character greetings in the area drew heavily from the block of animated TV series known as The Disney Afternoon. From "DuckTales," Scrooge McDuck, Huey, Dewey, Louie and Launchpad McQuack can still be seen in the occasional parade or special event. When the mood strikes, Chip and Dale even sport their "Rescue Rangers" garb at times when they pop up in Adventureland. Fellow Ranger Gadget, however, hasn't been seen in these parts for quite a while (although she does live on in name and spirit with Gadget's Go Coaster at Mickey's Toontown in Disneyland). Other character appearances at the time included stars from "Gummi Bears," "Tale Spin" and "Darkwing Duck." (photos above and below ©Disney)

Hot on the heels of the hit film Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), the movie's star toon could be seen throughout the Walt Disney World Resort, most prominently at Disney's Hollywood Studios. In 1991, Roger became the face of the Florida property's 20th anniversary celebration. A large Roger Rabbit balloon float led the Surprise Celebration Parade through the Magic Kingdom, and Roger himself made surprise appearances in shows from Starland to the Diamond Horseshoe, awarding prizes to lucky Guests. Today, Roger resides exclusively in the Toontowns of Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, where he helps guide his Guests through Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin.

Some characters lend themselves better than others to appearances in the parks. Take Nemo, for example. Before the heartwarming theatrical interpretation of the little clown fish debuted in Finding Nemo: The Musical at Disney's Animal Kingdom, this larger-than-life Nemo regularly swam amongst Guests outside The Living Seas pavilion at Epcot.

The Muppets have taken a similar path. For years, starting with this early-90s appearance alongside Jim Henson, Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy greeted their fans in larger-than-life fashion.

Only recently have they come back down to Earth, appearing in the parks as themselves. Kermit and Piggy can now be seen leading off the "Disney's Honorary VoluntEARs Cavalcade" each day ahead of the Celebrate a Dream Come True parade at the Magic Kingdom.

Always Something New at Animation

The Magic of Disney Animation attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios was originally a tour of a working animation production facility. When Disney's animation operations were consolidated in 2003, bringing everything back home to the Burbank studio, the attraction went through a transition. Today, it has become the place to go to learn about the latest animated feature films, try your hand at being an artist, admire animation artwork, and meet some of Disney's newest character stars.

The main stage at the heart of the attraction changes with each film release. The first to be featured here was The Incredibles back in 2004. Due to their "incredible" popularity, they continued to greet Guests long after the movie left theaters. Bob and Helen Parr spent some time in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom, but can currently be seen on the upper level inside the Animation building.

Not all the characters featured here have stuck around that long, however. Chicken Little and Abby Mallard spent the winter of 2005-06 in the park, but the sky soon fell, sending them back to Oakey Oaks only to make occasional special appearances.

The big film release for the summer of 2006 was Cars. In keeping with the design intent of the attraction, the main stage area was updated for the new movie, but the characters from Cars just wouldn't fit inside the building. Instead, an oversize Radiator Springs postcard was created as a fun photo opportunity for Guests in the traditional character greeting spot, while Lightning McQueen and Mater toured the streets of Disney's Hollywood Studios to meet their fans in person.

Meet the Robinsons followed in the spring of 2007. Lewis, Wilbur and the Bowler Hat Guy were soon sent back to the future, though, replaced by Remy and Emile just three months later when Ratatouille opened in theaters.

The summer of 2008 brought WALL-E and an ambitious plan to bring the little robot to full Animatronic life for real-time Guest interaction. The idea turned out to be a little ahead of its time. The Research & Development Team at Walt Disney Imagineering field tested WALL-E a handful of times (see the YouTube video embedded below), but he was never quite ready for the demands of an all day every day appearance schedule, so a stand-in took his place in the photo op.

Bolt, Mittens and Rhino from Disney's Bolt took their turn in the spotlight from November 2008 to May 2009, before finally deciding to retire from show businesses and live a normal life with Penny.

Their departure made way for one of the most elaborate sets to date, Paradise Falls from Disney-Pixar's Up. Carl Fredrickson, Dug and Russell meet young Wilderness Explorers in the shadow of Carl's flying house... and with an occasional surprise visit from Kevin.

When the decision was made that characters from The Princess and the Frog would appear exclusively at the Magic Kingdom, Carl & Co. got an extended lease at the Animation building, but they can't stay forever. Although details have yet to be finalized, the gang from Up will likely see more adventures in the Disney Parks once they leave here. After all, Up has become one of the most successful animated features of all time.

So what's next? Well, the next animated event comes June 18 with the release of Toy Story 3. The characters from the other Toy Story films are already well represented elsewhere, so look for The Magic of Disney Animation attraction to introduce us to one of the biggest new stars from this newest adventure. Meet Lotso, the Lots-o-Huggin Bear from Sunnyside Day Care. The exact date of his first appearance this summer hasn't been announced, but until then you can check him out in the recently released preview trailer of Toy Story 3.

Wherefore Art Thou, Mickey?

Although Mickey started making regular appearances at Disneyland in 1961, it was sometimes a challenge to actually find the big guy. Sure, you could see him headlining the daily parade down Main Street, but getting a personal hug or picture came down to pure luck.

That all changed in 1988. In celebration of Mickey's 60th anniversary, a whole new land was added to the Magic Kingdom. For the first time ever, Mickey's Birthdayland provided an opportunity for Disney Guests to meet Mickey Mouse at a specific time and place.

The highlight of Mickey's Birthdayland was the "Minnie's Surprise Party" show, after which Guests could go "backstage" and meet Mickey in his dressing room. Birthdayland and the show were only intended to be temporary additions to the Magic Kingdom, but the concept of having a designated place to meet Mickey turned out to be a huge hit. When the birthday celebration was over, the land stuck around, changing to Mickey's Starland (and later Mickey's Toontown Fair).

In 1993, Mickey's Toontown opened at Disneyland, bringing a west coast opportunity to meet the mouse in the Movie Barn out behind Mickey's house. Today, any Guest visiting a Disney Park around the world can have the chance to get a little face time with Disney's biggest star.

Although those greetings have become far more structured and scheduled over the years, Mickey does still occasionally get a chance to "pop up" in the parks and surprise his fans with memorable one-on-one moments. Meeting Mickey Mouse has become a right of passage and a quintessential Disney Parks experience.

Meet the Gang

In the early years, the Disney characters didn't live at Disneyland.

For the park's grand opening in 1955, actors were hired to portray the characters, wearing costumes borrowed from the Ice Capades, but Mickey and Minnie were not intended to be an everyday feature in the park. In fact, since Roy and others were unconvinced that Disneyland would be a success, the Company only allowed Walt to use Dumbo and Tinker Bell, characters they felt would have no further use beyond the original films.

As time went on, of course, Disneyland proved to be hugely successful, and the public soon demanded to meet their favorite characters. For the 1961 summer season, Disney's animated stars made their first regular appearances, as touted in the ad pictured above.

This week on the blog, we'll take a look at some of the various character greetings that have been a part of the Disney Parks experience over the years.

Into the Fantasyland Forest

Past the castle walls is a magical realm, the Fantasyland Forest, where storybook worlds come to life. In Fantasyland proper, festival tents become portals through which we can enter the stories of Snow White or Peter Pan. Here, we can actually walk around and experience stories first hand.

The forest expansion of Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom, opening in phases starting in 2012, will fill the land previously occupied by 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Mickey's Toontown Fair. While the area is still under construction, we can get a good sense of what it will be like by exploring the Imagineering concept art for the project.

Close to the castle grounds is the Tremaine estate, the setting of much of the action in Walt Disney's 1950 animated classic Cinderella. From outside the mansion, we can see the tower where Lady Tremaine locked Cinderella away during the Grand Duke's visit, and we can almost hear Anastasia and Drizella torturing "Sing Sweet Nightingale" from the upstairs windows.

Inside at "Dreams Come True with Cinderella," we meet the Fairy Godmother and watch Cinderella transform from scullery maid to beautiful princess right before our eyes. Cinderella then steps forward for an audience with the young Knights and Ladies of the Kingdom, before hurrying off to the ball.

Heading into the western province of the forest, we find ourselves in a little town. It's a quiet village, where every day's like the one before. A visit to the cottage of Maurice the inventor shows us where young Belle grew up. Inside, a Magic Mirror transports us to the library of the Beast's castle for "Enchanted Stories with Belle." (Although depicted in some of the art as appearing outside their respective homes, the Disney princesses will typically be seen inside.)

Elsewhere in the castle is the "Be Our Guest Restaurant." This location, counter service by day and table service for dinner, places us in the grand ballroom surrounded by beautiful stained glass windows and that spectacular golden chandelier. The art even seems to indicate that Lumiere and the other enchanted objects from Beauty and the Beast might make appearances (a la Remy at Les Chefs de France).

Belle wants much more than her provincial life, but we can choose to return to the village to browse through the book shop or gnaw on a turkey leg at Gaston's Tavern, where he uses antlers in all of his decorating. The fountain in the square promises to be a particularly fun detail, an homage to that man among men, Gaston. Barrels of ale floating in the fountain are spewing forth their contents, as Le Fou tries to capture every last drop in his mugs.

A few existing sections of Fantasyland will be incorporated into the forest area, most notably The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, which will undergo a facade change to take it from tournament tent to Hundred Acre Wood. Some of this work has already begun, with the slate roof at Mrs. Potts' Cupboard being replaced with thatch to better fit its forthcoming wooded surroundings.

In yet another neighborhood of the Fantasyland Forest, we come upon the cottage in the woods where the three good fairies raised Briar Rose, hiding her away from the evil Maleficent. Today is Rose's sixteenth birthday. In "A Birthday Surprise for Sleeping Beauty" we can join the fairies in creating the celebration, and then be joined for the party by Princess Aurora herself.

The grandest adventure of the Fantasyland expansion promises to be Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid. We can meet Ariel in her grotto or step past Eric's castle for a trip fathoms below to the place where Triton is King and Merpeople sing.

The attraction, similar here and at Disney's California Adventure, will be an effects-filled voyage beneath the sea. The Audio-Animatronics figure of Ariel should be particularly impressive. In fact, it's two figures in one: Ariel and her hair, separately animated to create the illusion of floating underwater.

The rest of the Fantasyland Forest takes us to different places entirely. Dumbo's Circus expands upon one of the most popular and iconic Disney attractions. Instead of standing in a long line for a short ride, Guests will be entertained under the Big Top with fun interactive activities until it's time to fly with their favorite elephant.

Pixie Hollow, expected to be the last phase of the expansion to open, will take us to the Neverland home of Tinker Bell and her fairy friends.

As Walt Disney once said in describing his future Florida project, "The plans in this room will change time and time again." By the time the Fantasyland Forest opens for Walt Disney World Guests, it will likely be different from the images accompanying this article, but it will also be filled with countless details we can now only imagine.