Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: In Florida at the Magic Kingdom they recently renamed the Transit Authority to People Mover and it seems to be QUITE popular. We often see long lines for it, as a matter of fact. I have no doubt the same thing would be true in California's Disneyland if the People Mover there could be brought back.
Originally Posted By DlandDug I've never seen a line for the People Mover in Florida, but then I don't get there that often. >>Every municipality in the world has declined to build a People Mover.<< Has this been vetted? I seem to recall People Movers in at least three municipalities (off the top of my head). Dallas: <a href="http://www.exploringmonkey.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/dallas_dwf_airport_skylink1.jpg" target="_blank">http://www.exploringmonkey.com...ink1.jpg</a> Houston: <a href="http://greg-vassilakos.com/houstonpm/hpm03.JPG" target="_blank">http://greg-vassilakos.com/hou...pm03.JPG</a> Detroit: <a href="http://www.detroit-travel-guide.com/detroit-people-mover.html" target="_blank">http://www.detroit-travel-guid...ver.html</a> Granted, Dallas and Houston installed their People Movers at the airport, and Detroit's is a notorious boondoggle. But they do exist out there. Anyone know of any others?
Originally Posted By gadzuux Are we calling any old automated transportation system at places like vegas and airports "peoplemovers"? That's being rather broad with the term. Many locations have automated transportation that travels between terminals and other areas, but they come to a full and complete stop like a train. It's the continuous motion that separates a true peoplemover from your garden variety automated shuttle.
Originally Posted By leobloom >> Anyone know of any others? << >> Are we calling any old automated transportation system at places like vegas and airports "peoplemovers"? That's being rather broad with the term. Many locations have automated transportation that travels between terminals and other areas, but they come to a full and complete stop like a train. << If you're going with Doug's examples, then the Orlando and Atlanta airports have "peoplemovers," although the one in Atlanta is all indoors.
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>Merely from a practical standpoint; Does a slow, plodding attraction running through the tree canopy of Tomorrowland have that much appeal, especially in today's world of the ADHD Disney guests?<< In the 1990s (over a decade ago) .... I would say – Yes. Disney reacted to that trend, by shortening the Enchanted Tiki Room show. Answered to the rage of “X-treme” thrills of the time – With taking a 16 minute tour of Tomorrowland .... to the thrilling 3-minute Rocket Rods. Continued the trend a bit into the Aughts with a 2 minute Pooh ride, over the 15 minute Country Bear Jamboree show, and into designing the shorter version to WDW’s Tower of Terror from the 3:10 to DCA’s paltry 2:10. However, there has been a shift. One that makes me wonder if some heads within Disney are remembering – It’s the longer experiences are what count. Starting with taking Superstar Limo’s attraction facility and creating the 4:05 Monsters Inc. dark ride. Next up, the ‘crawl’ speed Buzz Lightyear to a 5 minute ride. Next up – taking the 8 minute “Submarine Voyage” and INCREASED it to 13:45 in search of Nemo. From there ... had those “ADHD” guests had the ‘say so’ to what imagineers do ... then the methodical Sleeping Beauty Castle walk-through and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln would have been nicked in favor of something with rapid-fire editing, and done within 90 seconds! Which now takes us to the 20+ minute World of Color show, the 6+ minute family ride – Little Mermaid. And I can only guess Luigi’s Flying Towers, Mater Junkyard Jamboree, and Radiator Spring Racers are going to be longer than 1 minute! So .. if any of that is an indicator for what’s to come this decade .... Then I think I can rest and think Disney is not going to react to the few “ADHD” guests who should have no say-so what goes in …… and what doesn’t. >>There were too many dead zones along the route. Sure, every ten feet was a new splendor for the eyes. << You know .... the trip through the “Sphagetti Bowl” is the perfect example of a dead space. But look what Disney did – They let that section grow out of control. For 5 decades .... what was a nicely trimmed landscaped area at one stage .... is a full FOREST hiding what little kinetics are going on .. with the Monorail, and Autopia below. So .. that was of no fault to the Peoplemover .. but to those in charge of landscaping who forgot the area was Tomorrowland – Not Frontierland! >>But the attraction overall held no real appeal other than a place to rest sore feet.<< Going into it’s last years – (as the land around it just continued to “sag”) and never any update in it’s history since ’67) .... I have to agree with you, to a point. After reading Schmitty’s words about the politics, and other “dramas” going on from imagineer to imagineer .... It’s apparent there have been ideas to make a dramatically improved “P.M.” type attraction, that would be fun and exciting. Putting the “tomorrow” back into Tomorrowland. But if we don’t hear of anything to take it’s place – I think we should not go down the simplistic road, and insert OUR OWN reasonings. But realize .. that perhaps there’s just a little too much “red tape” from heads in Disney who just simply would rather carry on with their “cat and dog fighting” .... and let the bean counters win out! Who would rather cheat the public with a proper reboot of Tomorrowland! >>And I loved People Mover and I still love People Mover. But I would love it as a point to point transportation system, not a pointless romp.<< Because Tomorrowland is really a tight, and limited area in space .... making it a ‘point to point’ transportation system is rather hard. Why make stops .... that would be just a couple hundred feet apart from each other? Kind of invalidates the concept. Now .. if Tomorrowland were as big as EPCOT’s Future World .... then that’s a possibility. “Not a pointless romp” Need to look at the whole wide picture ..... 1. It would be a “pointless romp” if they recreated the exact same 45 year old design .... and Tomorrowland continues for the next 30 years .... with it’s current 1967 and 1977 buildings! 2. A entirely brand new look so “out of this world” .... alters that perception 3. Disneyland has capacity issues. The ’67 Peoplemover had an hourly capacity of nearly 4,500 per hour. That’s even greater than today’s top Capacity Eaters – like PotC, and Small World 4. This is Disneyland. The special and unique land, where “pointless romps” if built outside, would be pointless and boring. There are no “pointless romps”. If that is the case, then the same could be said for the DLRR, all the river craft on Rivers of America. (Talk about “dead zones” – I can think of a few along Rivers of America. LOL) Casey Jr. Circus train. Storybook Canal boats. What I’m getting at – Everything is either coated in unique theming, or is surrounded by other great theming. 5. Since when should every Disneyland attraction be a Hard Selling-Instant Gratification-Thrill machine? I liked the diversity the Peoplemover brought for so many years. There were “thrills” to be enjoyed in the land, while the Peoplemover nicely “complimented” it’s other offerings. A nice mixture/variety ... if you ask me. 6. Offering gentler attractions to people older than the teen/20-something set is important in what is a Family Theme Park. The last 6 years of new attractions (2005 – 2011) seems to have re-cemented the importance of attractions that older people can ride. Anyway .... so crapshoot .... please don’t interpret anything I wrote as “ganging up” on anything you said. I happen to have tons and tons of respect for you, and always enjoy everything you have to say ..... I’m just taking the time to methodically respond to some key (and good) points you mentioned. Thanks
Originally Posted By crapshoot <<If that is the case, then the same could be said for the DLRR, all the river craft on Rivers of America. (Talk about “dead zones” – I can think of a few along Rivers of America. LOL) Casey Jr. Circus train. Storybook Canal boats.>> So we then disagree on what constitutes a pointless romp. Each of the attractions that you list I would not consider "pointless romps". 1. Mark Twain Steamboat or Sailing Ship Columbia are set within a carefully themed environment that transports guests to a different era with visual and audible storylines that go with it. 2. Davey Crocket Canoes tell the same story differently through human propulsion. 3. The Rafts are a true transportation system on an amazing scale. 5. DLRR is another true transportation system that I frequently use to save my sore feet. 6. Casey Jr. Circus Train maybe a romp, but it is a well themed and uniquely immersive and tells a visual story throughout. 7. It is hard to imagine that anyone would consider the Storybook Canal Boats as a pointless romp. The immersiveness, the audible stories being told is a testament to Walt Disney's storytelling abilities. But them we go back to the People Mover attraction. It was wonderfully kinetic, where the PM interacted with the TL buildings, it provided an immersive showcase depicting the spirit of TL quite well. Once it entered the spaghetti bowl, then the story dropped off and it ceased being a transportation system and became instead a meandering question mark. "Why are we way out here?" "What's the point of this part?" "What message can I take away here? The other attractions that you mentioned never stopped telling story whether audible or visual. That's the difference.
Originally Posted By Bellella The only rides in Tomorrowland that I love unconditionally are Space Mountain, the Monorail, and Captain EO. I think these three are absolutely perfect. I do accept the fact that Star Tours and the Nemo subs are in for the long haul, but everything else needs some drastic changes to make them enjoyable for all. Especially Autopia and the Carousel/Innoventions building.
Originally Posted By gadzuux Many would put Captain Eo at the top of the list for TL attractions that "need drastic change". Perhaps you're not old enough to remember the original run of Captain Eo, or of the eighties in general. For those of us that are, having this attraction still around is a bit of an embarassment for DL. I was against bringing it back at all, and am even more disappointed that it's still there almost two years later. As much as something needed to be done with HISTA, Eo wasn't it. But it was cheap and easy, so Disney went with it. But it should have been a short term stopgap - a "tribute" and then on to whatever's next. We still don't know what's next - hopefully not MILF. But Eo a "perfect" attraction? I don't think so.
Originally Posted By oc_dean 2 things to consider: 1. 3D movies are no longer special to theme parks. Just check out your local multiplex for proof. From a Disney Marketer's point of view - How do you attract people to see your new attraction, when it's no longer new, or unique to Disney parks anymore? 2. Several people who claim to have a "source" within WDI .. say ... that this Blue Sky drawing was indeed for Anaheim's Tomorrowland: <a href="http://mintcrocodile.smugmug.com/photos/i-GztrtsS/0/O/i-GztrtsS-O.jpg" target="_blank">http://mintcrocodile.smugmug.c...sS-O.jpg</a> If that's true ..... then WDI/Disney ARE considering (just "considering") .. a complete eradication of the Kodak Eye Magic Theater ... in favor of wider/open spaces.
Originally Posted By oc_dean ^^^ typo - That's the Kodak "Magic Eye" theater. But I don't even think Kodak sponsors it anymore. (But I still like to "affectionately" dub it that.)
Originally Posted By gadzuux That artist's rendering is too highly stylized to determine anything. The roofline of space mountain is depicted, and a large fountain (they can keep it), but nothing that indicates actual spatial relationships to anything else.
Originally Posted By Manfried Kodak is gone from Disney sponsorship and if not in, are headed to bankruptcy court. Maybe even liquidation.
Originally Posted By patrickegan Is tomorrow dead? There are emerging technologies out there that would overlay themselves to the land. Possibly art is imitating life in that there is no money for the future? Maybe TL just needs a bailout?
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORWEN: I don't know. It may need some bail out money coming from some place.
Originally Posted By hbquikcomjamesl The Magic Eye Theatre (and personally, I *like* HISTA) originated as a temporary night redress of the Space Mountain Stage, so that the experimental 3D film, "Magic Journeys," could be shown at DL. I am still very much peeved that the only CircleVision theatre on the West Coast was first turned into part of the queue for Rocket Rods, then a paint shop for carousel horses, and then gutted for Buzz Lightyear. Even more peeved than I am about the aforementioned Rocket Rods shredding the PeopleMover track.
Originally Posted By Dreamerica I miss the Peoplemover and I was so disappointed when it closed. I used to love riding it day or night. The spaghetti bowl was great too! The peoplemover did alot for Tomorrowland and its never been the same since. At least I have my memories and no-one can take them away from me.
