George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
It's not an homage, it's a rip-off.
Disney and Tony Baxter both claim that America Sings was planned to close before the idea of Splash Mountain was created by Tony and the reusing of America Sings figures was part of the initial pitch (back in the early 80’s). This is generally the more accepted story.
But, there is another
Alice Davis (who was Marc Davis’s wife) claimed that America Sings wasn’t planned to close until Splash Mountain went over budget in 1988. Disney made the decision to close America Sings and move the figures to Splash Mountain to save the money that was spent on reworking the flumes.
Makes you wonder who was telling the truth.
I'd say it's the Davis/Coats duo that's greater than Baxter. Davis when left alone gave us very character based attractions like Bear Band, and Coats gave us very environmental- like Adventure Thru Inner Space.Marc Davis > Tony Baxter > Joe Rohde
Everest is a fun concept but very poorly executed.I'd say it's the Davis/Coats duo that's greater than Baxter. Davis when left alone gave us very character based attractions like Bear Band, and Coats gave us very environmental- like Adventure Thru Inner Space.
They were at their best when forced to collaborate, like on Pirates and Mansion. But if I had to pick someone to helm a project creatively, I'd pick Baxter over each of them if taken individually.
It's also worth noting that Coats and Davis peaked in the late '60s- when Disney was a very different company than what Baxter was forced to deal with. I'd be curious to see what Baxter's attractions would have looked like if he was designing in the '60s, and how Coats/Davis would handle the '90s and 2000's Disney.
Rohde? I've never understood the hype. His attractions and style of Imagineering have never appealed to me.
Everest is a fun concept but very poorly executed.
I'd be curious to see what Baxter's attractions would have looked like if he was designing in the '60s
Look up Tony's Mary Poppins themed Attraction ' Jolly Holiday'
concept he developed while still in college.
It was the 60s, and its a impressive effort even today.
YouTube features a D23 video of Tony showing his original concept designs for it -
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Everest is a fun concept but very poorly executed.
It's just poorly maintained.
It’s not unfixable. Nobody wants to accept blame for it and pay for the fix. The yeti may have been poorly engineered (and should ABSOLUTELY have been fixed or replaced a long time ago) but the coaster itself, the mountain itself, and the surrounding area were executed beautifully, to say nothing of the fact that it’s the last non-IP E ticket built stateside.It's main effect broke and is "unfixable". I'd say that's poor execution
The exposed lift hill and drop both look badIt’s not unfixable. Nobody wants to accept blame for it and pay for the fix. The yeti may have been poorly engineered (and should ABSOLUTELY have been fixed or replaced a long time ago) but the coaster itself, the mountain itself, and the surrounding area were executed beautifully, to say nothing of the fact that it’s the last non-IP E ticket built stateside.
Disney Parks really are a culture. Fond memories of visiting the parks really strikes a cord with people, and this site has shown me how deep the rabbit hole goes.In the days before the internet, I used to think nobody on the planet could posssibly be as interested in DL ride details as me. When internet forums became a thing, I found that I wasn't just not-alone, I was a LIGHTWEIGHT.
I disagree. I think they are well-positioned and add great kinetics to the area.The exposed lift hill and drop both look bad
It looks cheap and ruins the forced perspective.I disagree. I think they are well-positioned and add great kinetics to the area.
They were at their best when forced to collaborate, like on Pirates and Mansion. But if I had to pick someone to helm a project creatively, I'd pick Baxter over each of them if taken individually.
One notion I appreciate Tony Baxter doing when implementing Splash Mountain, is unifying Bear Country with New Orleans Square. Making both areas into a "Dixieland".
Disney often tends to break thematic cohesion than rectify it.
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