ROA RETURNS SUMMER 2017

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Deleted member 107043

Is there anything in the park that looks better today than it did in 1966?

As much as I complain about the sad state of Tomorrowland it definitely looks better now than it did in 1966/67. :D

4_67_NewTLand.jpg
 

George Lucas on a Bench

Well-Known Member
It still looks better then. Look at it all coming together, the framework of what's to come. You know it's going to be a fantastic place. You can't wait for the future, for those walls to come down so you can go there and experience the wonder together. That's the essence of Tomorrowland.
 

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
Perhaps. But we'll leave that to history. Right now, we have a more pressing concern. The pirate overlay on Tom Sawyer's Island must be destroyed. Agreed?
Definitely agree. I want to be able to shoot rifles from the fort again and fend off Indian attacks.
 

George Lucas on a Bench

Well-Known Member
I'd like to use the guns against the Star Wars alien invaders.

Once again, the Anaheim Police Department is asking Disneyland guests not to fire their guns at the visitor spacecraft. You may inadvertently trigger an interstellar war.
 

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
I'd like to use the guns against the Star Wars alien invaders.

Once again, the Anaheim Police Department is asking Disneyland guests not to fire their guns at the visitor spacecraft. You may inadvertently trigger an interstellar war.
I hate when that happens. Someone go dig up Bill Pullman.
 

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
I really hate to quibble, but in no way does DL's Columbia have a draft of 11'. Columbia is about as exact a replica of Columbia Rediviva as the dinos in Jurassic Park/World are of real dinosaurs.

Look, I love Columbia. I know CMs who love her, even as they call her "the frying pan" because working on deck is blistering hot in the summer. I love the sea chanties, including an extended version of "Blow ye winds westerly" that was featured in the 1967 Circlevision America, the Beautiful.

But I hate the PR overreach. I love the tribute to a great, historic American sailing vessel. As a theme park attraction, it's way above average.

Yes, they could have just said "replica", or even dressed it up with "amazing" or something. "Exact" is a silly word to use in most cases.

P.R., and Marketing seems to be an endless source of entertainment for me. (How many real estate pieces have you seen touting such amenities as bathrooms, etc.?) Or the ever-popular LA Times "Hot Property" section where you read that a celebrity bought a home in the Beverly Hills area.

Another recent example is the Laguna Hills Mall. It was built as a classic '70s mall (two enclosed wings, 3 anchor stores). It's been in a steady decline for years, but they now have plans for remodeling. Part of the design is to leave one wind enclosed, while making the other open-air. The latest marketing included this quip:

"The renovation has commenced and all of our shops and restaurants will remain open during this exciting renovation! For more information, visit www.FiveLagunas.com."

That sounds like an astonishing feat! (...until you realize that they've been so far under 50% occupancy for so long that making sure that the few remaining tenants were sprinkled into one wing is really no big deal...)
 

Old Mouseketeer

Well-Known Member
Yes, they could have just said "replica", or even dressed it up with "amazing" or something. "Exact" is a silly word to use in most cases.

P.R., and Marketing seems to be an endless source of entertainment for me. (How many real estate pieces have you seen touting such amenities as bathrooms, etc.?) Or the ever-popular LA Times "Hot Property" section where you read that a celebrity bought a home in the Beverly Hills area.

Another recent example is the Laguna Hills Mall. It was built as a classic '70s mall (two enclosed wings, 3 anchor stores). It's been in a steady decline for years, but they now have plans for remodeling. Part of the design is to leave one wind enclosed, while making the other open-air. The latest marketing included this quip:

"The renovation has commenced and all of our shops and restaurants will remain open during this exciting renovation! For more information, visit www.FiveLagunas.com."

That sounds like an astonishing feat! (...until you realize that they've been so far under 50% occupancy for so long that making sure that the few remaining tenants were sprinkled into one wing is really no big deal...)

Great catch. I think one could create an entire blog about the numerous iterations of SoCal malls over the past 50 years. Several malls, including Buena Park, Orange, Santa Ana Fashion Square/Main Place, Anaheim Plaza, The City, and Huntington Beach went from outdoor to enclosed and, in some cases, deconstructed Big Box/discount/entertainment centers. (I don't remember if Laguna Hills was originally open air.) And then there's the great decaying beached whale carcass that is Westminster Mall. I think more than fifty percent of the storefront specialty locations are now of the local/revolving tenant variety. I have seen more than one shuttered tenant dark and fully stocked with merchandise for months on end. And now "The Village" aka Orange Mall is enduring yet another facelift.
Whole chapters could be dedicated to the aspirational ascent of South Coast Plaza (the Segerstroms are no fools), the developmental rollercoaster that is Irvine Spectrum, and the trainwreck that is Anaheim Gardenwalk (does that count as a mall?).

Yeah, I've spent WAY too much time in OC malls. And SoCal theme parks. And on the intertubes. So sue me.
 

Old Mouseketeer

Well-Known Member
As much as I complain about the sad state of Tomorrowland it definitely looks better now than it did in 1966/67. :D

4_67_NewTLand.jpg

Hey, that's my childhood you're talking about. I still remember devouring all of John Hench's renderings for the new Tomorrowland and my first visit, riding the PeopleMover and CoP.

At least in this picture Tomorrowland's future was Great, Big, and Beautiful (as I have said previously). Today--it's sad, worn-out, and uncertain. Anyone wanna try THAT attraction? (OOoops, I forgot. We already did--Rocket Rods, Innoventions, and the Captain Eo, Honey, I Shrunk Tomorrowland, Endless Promo Theater.

Anyone wanna eat some landscaping? (It's better than the Seasons of the Force menu offerings).
 

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