This post will reveal the script. But first let me tell you some of the physical updates: nothing much at first. The new sponsor of the ride, Siemens AG, will be referenced here as well, just as AT&T once was. One thing that will be changed will be one of the three movie screens that plays a clip from Snow White. Now it will play a clip from Pinocchio. Towards the end, though, is where true updates will be seen. I won't tell you what they are; all I will say is that involves cell phones and the Internet. Plus, at the end, there will be Global Neighborhood-style exhibits in an area called the Siemens Center. Anyway, here's the script, with Morgan Freeman replacing Jeremy Irons as narrator...
Passing directly below the incredible structure, we proceed up a short ramp passing two posters, a sign, and a large mural before entering the pavilion. The two posters on either side of the entrance queue show a painting of Spaceship Earth with stars in the distance behind it. Both read, "Ride the Time Machine from the Dawn of Civilization to the Beginning of Our Tomorrow. SPACESHIP EARTH." The sign which is along the right side of the ramp reads, "Spaceship Earth is a slow moving attraction that explores the history of human communications. Since travelers will be transported to the furthest regions of our solar system, the attraction is not recommended for those who experience anxiety in dark, narrow or enclosed spaces." The mural depicts astronauts working on a satellite with Earth in the distance. Surrounding them are smaller images of cavemen, the Egyptians, the Romans, Gutenburg and his printing press, and modern day people. Announcements are heard as we enter the ride.
MALE ANNOUNCER: Please take small children by the hand and look down as you step onto the moving platform. The platform is moving at the same speed as your time machine vehicle.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: Please take small children by the hand and watch your step onto the moving platform. The platform and your time machine vehicle are moving at equal speed.
MALE ANNOUNCER: The moving platform is traveling at the same speed as your time machine vehicle. Please take small children by the hand, look down, and watch your step onto the platform.
Once in the small room, we board blue, constantly moving "time machine" vehicles. Another announcement continuously plays over speakers in the room.
MALE ANNOUNCER: Your time machine doors will close automatically. Please keep your hands, arms, feet and legs inside your time machine vehicle and remain seated throughout your journey. Parents, watch your children.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: The sliding doors on your time machine will close automatically. Please remain seated and keep your hands, arms, feet and legs inside your time machine vehicle during your journey. Parents, watch your children.
MALE ANNOUNCER: Your time machine doors slide closed automatically. Please keep your hands, arms, feet and legs inside your time machine vehicle and remain seated while traveling. Parents, watch your children.
The doors close and we hear the introduction.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: Siemens AG welcomes you aboard Spaceship Earth. Join us as we travel through time to explore the fascinating story of human communication.
The vehicle enters a dark tunnel and rises sharply upward. A starfield appears and we hear soundbites from famous people such as Susan B. Anthony's "We ask equality be guaranteed...", JFK's "Putting a man on the moon," and FDR's famous line, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Along the walls, light surges up colored "wires" towards the top of the tunnel. As we near the top, we see a projection of purplish clouds and an occasional lightning bolt as Morgan Freeman begins his narration.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Ever since the beginning of time, our planet had been in orbit in the solar system like a mighty satellite. But where did we come from and where were we going? In the dust from which we were formed, the walls of time have recorded the answers to these questions and so many others. And from the very beginning with our ancestors, we have always wanted to reach out to each other... to bridge the wide gaps between us... to communicate.
Once at the top of the tunnel, images of early human pioneers, men with spears or holding rocks, and mammoths are projected onto a large screen. Every few seconds the images ripple with a wave and then reappear. We then enter a cave and see a Shaman, or medicine man, with a fur cape and antlers on his head. Two men sit around the fire listening to the Shaman. His large shadow is reflected by the fire onto the cave wall. A woman is also listening while working with a fur. On the far right wall, a man and a woman are painting a message on the wall. The drawings are similar to those found in the Salon-Niaux cave in Ariège, France, circa 10,000 B.C. Sounds of animals growling echo through the caves.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Sweeping across a vast, lonely, hostile planet, our early ancestors had set out in every direction, for they were intent on their search for food and shelter. With the development of speech came a very significant answer to survival. Now we could share and learn from one another. On the walls of caves, we inscribed our utmost victories, an increasing proof of our deeds to share with others so they too may greet tomorrow's sun.
Moving into an Egyptian temple, representing 1567 - 1085 B.C., a man on the left is making paper out of papyrus. On the right, next to an elaborate entrance to a building whose archways are decorated with hieroglyphics, a man stands high upon scaffolding carving a ventilation hole near the top of a tower. Further ahead on the left, an Egyptian pharaoh is dictating a message as a scribe copies it onto the new paper. His wife is seated next to him while a servant fans them.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Within a few thousand years, the Egyptians created more walls, each of which covered in the first written form of communication: hieroglyphics, a multifaceted language of symbols and pictures. Now we could release our thoughts from carved walls and set them down on papyrus scrolls, the first form of paper. Pharaohs could now deliver declarations to subjects throughout the land.
In the Phoenician scene, 9th century B.C., two ships meet in the ocean to exchange goods. Another man on the larger ship, behind the smaller ship, holds a rope that is connected to the smaller ship so that both ships stay together. Fog surrounds the ships. Smoke rises from small fires in pots at both ends of the larger ship. To the right of us is a wall showing the ocean going to the horizon and stars above.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Then came the Phoenicians who not only helped institute the first means of trading goods to distant ports of call, but also created the first common alphabet and delivered it from one area of the Mediterranean to another.
Up next on the right is the Greek Theatre. Two men wearing masks are performing "Oedipus Rex" written by Sophocles circa 428 B.C. Another man holding his mask is standing towards the back of the scene probably waiting for his part to come up.
MORGAN FREEMAN: In the land of ancient Greece, the written word solidified the advent of a new art. While philosophers deliberated in piazzas, storytellers created a new medium for expression. Euripides, Aeschylus and Sophocles. The theater was born.
Ahead on the left, a young Roman man holds the reins to a two horse-drawn chariot. The man, dressed as if he is in the Roman army, who arrived in the chariot is now exchanging information with another man dressed in a toga. The man holding the reins is standing on the ground with the horses, the army man is standing one step up, and the man in the toga is standing one step up from there on a marble platform. He is between four large columns, two on each side. Smoke rises from two small fires in metal pots/stands on both ends of the scene. In the back is a painted wall showing the streets of Rome. An animated horse-drawn cart with a man riding in it dashes out of one street and off into the distance.
MORGAN FREEMAN: The great Roman Empire intertwined three continents with roads, one of the fastest information highways the world had ever known. No matter what road you took, they all led to and from Rome.
We then see a building in ruins with smoke rising from it. The smell of the burning building fills the air.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Alas, these same roads spelled doom for Rome, thanks to invaders who left Rome and centuries of knowledge in the ashes of the Dark Ages. But all was not lost. Far from the smoldering embers, Jewish and Islamic teachers would not give up the quest for knowledge. As they traveled, they debated ideas and shared new breakthroughs to anyone who would listen.
In the Islamic Empire scene, on the right, four men sit around a table on pillows on the floor discussing topics. One man has two books right next to him and another has a wooden book holder that holds the book open to a specific page. On the left is a library with some books on the shelves. They aren’t stacked full. Two men, one standing, one seated on pillows on an elevated platform, are reading. Standing up high on the balcony on the right is an astronomer looking at the stars through a quadrant, which is an exact replica of the real thing. Further ahead on the left, two Benedictine Monks, 11th and 12th century, are seated at their desks copying text. The one on the right has fallen asleep at the job. His chest rises and falls as he breathes in and out.
MORGAN FREEMAN: In western abbeys, monks toiled endlessly in silent seclusion, copying old books of wisdom and revelations for future generations. At long last, from the depths of the Dark Ages, came the Renaissance and a wonderful new invention, the printing press. Now for all: the printed word.
On the left, two men are working with a large wooden printing press. Johann Gutenberg is studying a piece of paper that just came off the press (1456).
MORGAN FREEMAN: Scientists, scholars and explorers expanded their discoveries into books and essays. Poets, musicians and artists all fanned the flames of the Renaissance, swelling it into a time of priceless works of beauty and majesty.
In Renaissance Italy (1500s), on the right, one man is reading a book to two listeners on the steps. Also, two musicians are playing just beyond in front of a closed doorway. An Italian town can be seen through the columns and arches in the background. On the left, in an artist's studio, we see a man mixing paint, another painting some fruits with a bowl of fruit as a guide, and another chiseling marble to create a statue. Sketches of the female subject are on the wall behind him and to the left of him is a small statue that he also uses as a guide. Further ahead and up on the left, we see Michelangelo painting the Sistine ceiling while lying on his back high upon scaffolding. Below, the stained glass church windows are illuminated with black light. To the right is a conveyance system that allows buckets of paint to be hoisted up the scaffolding to Michelangelo.
MORGAN FREEMAN: On this wave of inspiration, we sail into a bold, new era: an age of amazing inventions and ever-increasing progress in communications, bringing people worldwide together as never before. As our appetite for knowledge and information continued to swell, the world began to shrink.
Now we move into the Age of Invention (19th and 20th centuries). First, we see a large steam-powered printing press by William Bullock in 1863. Just like Gutenberg inspected his printed paper, a man stands in front of the press and inspects a newspaper that was just printed. Nearby, on a street corner, a boy stands with a stack of New York Daily papers calling out to try to sell them.
NEWSPAPER BOY: Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Radio, telephone links two continents. Read all about it. Telephone crosses Atlantic. Get your evening paper here!
On the right, one man is dictating a message and the other is using a telegraph to send the message. Through the window and door behind them, we can see train tracks crossing the plains to the mountains in the distance. On the left is a switchboard that three women, two seated and the third standing, are operating. Behind that are several windows that represent homes and apartments throughout the town. Fiber optic telephone lines stretch from the switchboard across poles to the homes. We can hear conversations coming from the shadows of people in some of the windows. On the right, is a woman in a ticket booth. Above that and also spanning above us is a lighted "Cinema" sign. There are three screens to the left of the booth that show scenes from an old black and white movie about a guy on a runaway trolley ("Stop that trolley!" is one of the captions), PINOCCHIO (1940) and 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954). The screen showing the old movie is surrounded by red curtains and gold trim to look like the fancier theaters of its time. Back on the left is the WDP radio station. WDP is, of course, short for Walt Disney Productions. A man and a woman inside the sound booth are live on the air acting out a story. A man outside the booth is checking sound levels and directing. To the right of that is a radio tower with a red light blinking on top. On the wall behind it is a painting of another radio tower in the distance. Surrounding its red light are drawings of the radio waves spreading from the tower. Just beyond that is a family (mother, father, and daughter) sitting in their living room around the TV. The mother changes the channel using a large, by today's standards, remote control. Three other TVs hang on the wall up behind the family TV. The TVs are playing Ozzie and Harriet, the 1964 NFL Colts vs. Browns Championship Game and Walt Disney introducing an episode of Disney's Wonderful World of Color.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Now we have the ability to connect with everyone anywhere in the world.
Ahead on the left, we see a boy lying on the floor of his typical American room using his computer. He is checking e-mails on his computer that came from a Japanese girl and he is talking to her on his cell phone. Everything he says is translated into Japanese for her to understand and everything she says is translated into English, except once when she says, "Jason, you are one cool dude" in English. The video downloads include a written translation showing both languages. She plays a video clip of her baseball game for him to see. Fiber optics zip from his room up and across the ocean to her room in Japan, showing the transfer of the information. She is sitting on the floor of her home in Japan with a similar computer to the boy's, talking on a similar cell.
KAIKO: Jason, do you want to see my team’s winning run?
JASON: Cool. Launch it over.
KAIKO: Okay, wait...
JASON: Kaiko, it’s you! Excellent! I knew you were a star.
KAIKO: Oh, no...
Missing lines here...
JASON: Yeah, I can see. Hey, check this out!
KAIKO: Launch it over.
JASON: Hold on a second. There...
Missing lines here...
JASON: Wait, wait. Watch this. (hit) Yes!
KAIKO: Oh, Jason. You're master of [ ? ] too.
JASON: You were right. You won the match.
MORGAN FREEMAN: The Internet, our new communications system is growing before our very eyes. Spaceship Earth glows with billions of interactions carrying news and information at the very speed of light.
Fiber optic lights then transfer the information to a large sphere representing Earth. We pass through a satellite transmitter that has little fiber optic lights representing Internet informatoin jumping from city to city and sometimes across continents to computers. We then enter a tunnel that surrounds us with lights blinking and whirling past. The sounds of jumbled conversations and visuals of words (e-mails) join the music.
MORGAN FREEMAN: But as we face ever more challenges of a new tomorrow, will these seemingly infinite communications become one big electronic chatterbox? Or will we use this power to fulfill our greatest dreams and usher in a new age of understanding and teamwork on this, our Spaceship Earth.
The music picks up to a crescendo as the vehicle makes its way out of the tunnel. At this point, we are at the top of the geosphere and the vehicle turns 90 degrees to the right. We see the stars and planet Earth in the distance. An instrumental rendition of "Tomorrow's Child" now plays. The vehicles then turn another 90 degrees to the right so that we are now moving backwards. Slow moving clouds are projected right above us.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: Attention, travelers of time. Please remain seated at all times. Your time machine is rotating backwards for your return back to earth.
MORGAN FREEMAN: No longer can physical distance hamper communication. Today, the whole world is just a click or a call away. Our news is their news and vice-versa. We share our hopes and concerns with the whole planet. Today we truly live among people in a Global Neighborhood.
We pass below a large TV screen that displays news clips from around the world. Every 10 seconds or so, the image switches to a different anchor from a different part of the world including the 2000 Presidential Debates with candidates Gore and Bush.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Wondrous new tools will help us learn more about ourselves, each other and the planet we share. We'll find new ways to share our dreams and ideals and create a better for us, today, tomorrow and tomorrow's child.
The lyrics to "Tomorrow's Child" begin to be heard at this point and the song plays throughout the rest of the attraction, even during some upcoming dioramas.
MORGAN FREEMAN: No longer just words, but now images and videos are sent in a flash to every corner of our world. Cellular communications make it possible for us to be on-the-go and connect with others freely. Wireless computers and smart phones give us new information anywhere, any time we need. And as we enter a new century, yet another revolution in communication is upon us as profound as all the progress that has come before. By using our new communication tools to build better bridges between us, we will discover we all share the common bonds of hope and sorrow, dreams and joys.
On the right, we pass clouds, a star field, and an occasional lightning strike. The vehicles, still descending backwards, pass four dioramas, each depicting how telecommunications will help people around the world stay closer together. The first one shows a girl talking with her mom via cell and video phones. The daughter is sitting in bed with her father's arms around her shoulders. The mother is in another place like a hotel.
MOTHER: Goodnight, sweetheart.
DAUGHTER: Goodnight, mommy, I miss you.
MOTHER: I miss you too.
DAUGHTER: Can you sing my song one more time? Please?
MOTHER: Of course.
MOTHER AND DAUGHTER:
Hush-a-bye.
Don’t you cry.
Go to sleep our little baby. (loop)
Dr. Nap receives her diploma while her grandparents are watching her via videophone from their home.
PROFESSOR: Juanita Nap, Doctor of Clinical Psychology and class valedictorian! (clapping) Congratulations, Dr. Nap.
DR. JUANITA NAP: Thank you, professor, and thank you, all my fellow classmates. This means so much to me! And especially to grandma and grandpa who couldn't be here! I did it! I did it! Thank you. (loop)
The third diorama shows a pregnant mother in a hospital bed. A nurse is assisting the woman's doctor, who is at another location but is directing the nurse via video phone, with taking a sonogram. The mother's husband stands next to their son as the boy is talking to his mother's doctor.
TOMMY: Can we you see, doctor?
DOCTOR: Well, this is not exactly what any of us expected.
The doctor shows the sonogram of the womb and they see that there is more than one baby.
TOMMY: Is my baby brother okay doctor?
DOCTOR: Surprise, Tommy, your baby sister is doing just fine. Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins, you have beautiful, healthy baby twins on the way!
TOMMY: When will they be here?
DOCTOR: Let me take a look. I think you'll only have to wait another three more months. (loop)
The last diorama depicts an archeologist showing his fellow scientists what he has found at the site. This screen contains both English and Spanish translations.
MAN: From the hologram, it looks like a full mandible.
EDDY: It is. Except for this. How'd you like to get bit by a set of these babies! Their cranial structure's almost perfect!
WOMAN: Es increible. Felicidades, Eduardo. (It's incredible. Congratulations, Edward.)
MAN: Great, Eddy. It's more than we ever hoped for.
These four dioramas are followed by two small-sculpted scenes. The first shows a person in a cave reviewing diagrams and the second shows a woman in the jungle. Both are sending information through the network to the vast, fiber optics filled, modern city on the waterfront beyond. Fiber optic lights spread away from the city up and over the vehicles.
MORGAN FREEMAN: Since the dawn of recorded time, communication has transformed our ways of life and changed our world. We boast the ability and accountability to build new bridges of acceptance and assistance between us, to create a better world for our children and ourselves as we continue our astounding voyage on board Spaceship Earth.
The fiber optic strands join into one line of lights that curves from the upper left over us and around a model of Spaceship Earth on the right. That line ends with little points of light coming out of it. From there, three solid lines that criss-cross above us change colors as we continue to work our way to the base of the geosphere. Those lights end at a fiber-optic version of the geosphere. The final announcement is heard.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER (named Siem): May I have your attention please! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, you are approaching the Siemens Center. Now that you've seen the future, we invite you to experience it yourself. Soon your vehicle doors will open automatically. Then please gather your belongings and watch your step on the moving platform. Then, walk through the portal to the Siemens Center and a whole new way to communicate. Come on, I'll meet you there!
A sign on the right reads, "Entering the Siemens Center." Through the windows, we can see parts of the exhibit area. Upon exiting the vehicle, we then proceed down the ramp into the Global Neighborhood where we can see some of the latest technological advances in telecommunications through interactive exhibits.
So, what did you think, guys? Impressive, isn't it? :dazzle: Please respond soon.
