Where is Mr. Lincoln??

Originally Posted By ChurroMonster

Disneyland was never meant to be a museum. If you honor what walt said he wanted for his park then you would realze that constant change and innovation were always part of the formula. Abe had a good run. Does anyone seriously think that Walt, were he still alive today, would still have that tired old show in his park?

 

Originally Posted By teddibubbles

I instead think. as MAIN STREET is a OLD HAS BEEN!

Walt WAS thinking of our future!
As in WHERE we came from ! is a HISTORY >> worth << retaining!

 

Originally Posted By teddibubbles

And when everyone wants to wipe out OLD ABE.

You may as well wipe out all OTHER historic things at that park to!

old main steet with its buldings and out dated horse drawn carts!

and the old wild west theam. in that land!

OH MY a Old bucket steam ship! and sailing ship!

Lets get real! Walt never wanted Disneyland to be meant to be a museum.

We have SO much more cuting edge technology ,ships and transportation. and buildings!

COME ON!

Walt said To all who come to this happy place, welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past. And here, youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, >((((((((and the hard facts that have created America, with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.)))))))

 

Originally Posted By SIR at X-S Tech

There's a post on the wedway blog about just this topic: <a href="http://the-wed-way.blogspot.com/2007/03/importance-of-mr-lincoln.html" target="_blank">http://the-wed-way.blogspot.co
m/2007/03/importance-of-mr-lincoln.html</a>

 

Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt

"You may as well wipe out all OTHER historic things at that park to!"

So often people here take things to such rediculous extremes. No one is talking about a complete "wipe out" or removal of the basic principles and features that make Disneyland Disneyland. What is being said is that the overall guiding spirit that makes the place special is imagination and creativity. It's a 40 year old show that doesn't draw a large proportion of guests and its technology has lost its lustre over the years. A talking Abe Lincoln. Big whoop.

 

Originally Posted By SIR at X-S Tech

Yes and to echo a previous poster (Churro monster I think), Walt would not have kept the Lincoln show around this long. As Hall of Presidents was a goal of his, once it was doable, he would have done it. And once he could "one-up" Hall of Presidents he would have. It's true, he wouldn't have let Disneyland become the museum that it is, that we all love. However I don't have much confidence in the Company to properly upgrade the parks.

 

Originally Posted By avromark

You do know though if they ever did a "History" attraction, Abe would make a wonderful pre-show.

 

Originally Posted By DlandJB

Does anyone seriously think that Walt, were he still alive today, would still have that tired old show in his park?>>

I'd like to think that he would have been interested in keeping a sense of history and pride in the country alive. It might have been through other means, but he was clearly an unabashed lover of his country.

I actually think that he would have been in the forefront of making museums more interactive and bringing history to life.

 

Originally Posted By Socrates

Since this subject has come up, I have always felt patriotism plays a major role in Disney theme parks.

At the risk of going off on a tangent, what do people consider real patriotism in this day and age?

Socrates
"The unexamined life is not worth living."

 

Originally Posted By gadzuux

Real patriotism is a willingness to sacrifice.

Real patriotism comes with humility.

Real patriotism requires a larger awareness of the individual's place and value within the community, state and nation - and the contributions that they bring.

Real patriotism is not a fourth of july parade, a lapel pin, a flag in the front yard, or a yellow ribbon on the back of the minivan.

Talk is cheap - actions speak volumes.

 

Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt

Well stated Gadzuux.

 

Originally Posted By Socrates

I was hoping someone would say something like that!

Socrates
"I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance."

 

Originally Posted By The Goddess Mara

When Walt first commisioned the design of the Lincoln figure, Abe had been dead almost 100 years. He was not "out of date" or "tired" or any of those sorts of things in 1964: the ideas Lincoln espoused are universal, important, and vital even to this day.

And if Lincoln and his ideas were not tired in 1964, they certainly aren't today. In fact, they are more relevant today than ever. Racism, power grabbing, and all the crap that Lincoln fought against are still festering in this country.

His words are still important today.

Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln is still important today.

Make it better: create a top of the line show that draws people in! Spend some damn money and be be proud of the fact that it's meaningful and you won't make any plush sales afterward. And stand up and tell your stockholders about it--make them feel like the greedy bastards they are if they think there's no room in Disneyland for something Walt felt was so important and that is so important to the people of this country.

 

Originally Posted By ChurroMonster

Walt was indeed patriotic. To a fault even, so some say. However, the Abe Lincoln figure was more about showcasing a new technology than it was about presenting a novel patriotic message. AA's have been around for five decades now. Walt's message may still be the same but his delivery would undoubtedly have changed. Technology was his last passion.

 

Originally Posted By thmar

Bring back "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln"!! I loved this. As for some of the comments regarding 'Main Street USA'...come on, what's the big deal? After all, Disneyland and DisneyWorld are located in the USA!!

 

Originally Posted By jonvn

I think what would be really cool is if they took out lincoln and the walt disney story, and replaced it with a giant video arcade. WIth skeeball, and those crane games that you can win a stuffed toy with.

Maybe they could have a bunch of those cool games where like you have a gun and you kill zombies? Oh, I also saw one where you like put this helmet on and you shoot things as if you were in a tank. I liked that one.

Not to mention the little counter where you can redeem all your tickets for toys!

I think that'd go good in there.

 

Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt

Be careful what you wish for.

 

Originally Posted By trekkeruss

<<And if Lincoln and his ideas were not tired in 1964, they certainly aren't today. In fact, they are more relevant today than ever. Racism, power grabbing, and all the crap that Lincoln fought against are still festering in this country.

His words are still important today.

Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln is still important today.

Make it better: create a top of the line show that draws people in! Spend some damn money and be be proud of the fact that it's meaningful and you won't make any plush sales afterward.>>

The thing is, in 1964 people weren't going to see the show because of the impotance of the words Lincoln spoke a century earlier, they went to see something they had never seen before: the world's first Human AudioAnimatronic.

So what could Disney do today that would possibly wow a crowd enough to pack the Opera House, without it being too gimmicky as so many seem to think the last incarnation of the show was?

 

Originally Posted By DlandJB

I'm going to take what gadzuux said about patrotism a step further.

I think he is right, but I also think that patriotism is empty without the sense of duty and responsibilities that are very much a part of being American. Those duties of citizenship include registering to vote and voting, serving on a jury when called, defending the country when called.
Also, participating in the political process, dissenting, when needed, in a civil and responsible manner, keeping current on the state of the nation and respecting diversity in opinion in a diverse society, again, in a civil manner.

All good things in and of themselves - but where does motivation come into it? What makes people want to vote or even feel like their vote matters? While the number of young people (18 21) is on the rise, it still only encompasses about 13% of the population in that age group. How do we make it relavent to them and capture their imagination about why it is important?

Does a motorized Abe Lincoln do it? Well, maybe not for a teenager and above, but certainly for a young child there is still going to be a sense of wonder about it all. We can teach kids the importance of wearing a seat belt, of recycling and how to "stop, drop and roll" so I think we can teach them from an early age to be proud of their country. And Mr. Lincoln may still inspire a sense of awe in some kids just like the 4th of July and fireworks can.

 

Originally Posted By SIR at X-S Tech

Mmmmmm.... Binaural Sound perhaps?