COP... tear down?

Bacon

Well-Known Member
If COP has survived for decades with low attendance, it isn't going anywhere.

As for Walt, I'm sure he's already spun in his grave more times than every tire on Test Track.
Well Figment is horrible and thats stayed survived for about a decade so if Figment go's COP goes
 

Brad Bishop

Well-Known Member
I don't think there is a way to tear it down even with the Peoplemover Hugging the side of that building..If that was being taken down as well...I'd be very unhappy...

I didn't think about that but after you mentioned it I could see them closing the Peoplemover if they were to tear down COP. To me the idea would be: tear down COP and maybe build something in it's place (perhaps a new dance party stage!) but then their excuse would be something like, "It's cost prohibitive to fix/re-route the track so the Peoplemover is just shutting down - and it'd just be this dormant track that hung over Tomorrowland... just like Disneyland...
 

Dartha Stewart

Well-Known Member
New Rule: The phrase "Rumor Mill" can no longer be used to reveal a controversial rumor unless:
A). The person(s) stating said rumor comes back within three (3) to five (5) posts with more specifics upon how they received the before-mentioned rumor.
Or
B). A link to the source is provided.

2nd New Rule: Being a random person on the internet does not make one an expert on the happenings of Walt's deceased corpse in reaction to current events.

3rd New Rule: Interfering with COP now or ever should be a federal crime.

Could someone please notarize this.
 

mimitchi33

Well-Known Member
If anything were to happen to it, I think it's far more likely that they'd just shut it down and remove the sign but leave everything (mainly the building) in place. Look at other attractions that has happened to:
- Rocket Rods
- WoL Pavilion
- Odyssey Restaurant
- Millennium Pavilion
- 20,000 Leagues (a good decade plus)
- SkyWay loading areas
Don't forget the upstairs ImageWorks!
I don't think they'll tear it down. It's a classic!
 

George

Liker of Things
Premium Member
The shutting down of COP is one of the oldest and most persistent Disney rumors you will find on the net. Here are just some examples of the "COP moving to the Smithsonian" version of the rumor...


1/21/2009: "Rumor that I heard when I was at the park (from a guy who's cousin is a CM) is that they are moving the ENTIRE building to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC. Since it is a landmark building. "

1/31/2008: "While in line for SSE this past weekend, I overheard some people talking that next year they are dismantling the COP and moving it to the Smithsonian. The guy who said it claimed to be a cast member."

4/12/2007: "a friend of mine who is very much into keeping up on disney happeneing told me a few days ago that they're going to close carousel of progress and put it in the Smithsonian"

3/26/2007: "Also, unconfirmed rumors are circulating that Carousel of Progress will be entering the Smithsonian in 2009 along with the Enchanted Tiki Room but you didn't hear it from me."

5/11/2004: "Has anybody heard anything about Carousel of Progress being donated to the Smithsonian? It's probably just a rumor, but on the other hand, its something that I haven't heard before. "

It is mostly my fault because there was that one trip in 1997 where I tried to remove COP with a crescent wrench and a pry bar. I would've done it too, if it wasn't for those meddling kids.
 
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PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
The shutting down of COP is one of the oldest and most persistent Disney rumors you will find on the net. Here are just some examples of the "COP moving to the Smithsonian" version of the rumor...


1/21/2009: "Rumor that I heard when I was at the park (from a guy who's cousin is a CM) is that they are moving the ENTIRE building to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC. Since it is a landmark building. "

1/31/2008: "While in line for SSE this past weekend, I overheard some people talking that next year they are dismantling the COP and moving it to the Smithsonian. The guy who said it claimed to be a cast member."

4/12/2007: "a friend of mine who is very much into keeping up on disney happeneing told me a few days ago that they're going to close carousel of progress and put it in the Smithsonian"

3/26/2007: "Also, unconfirmed rumors are circulating that Carousel of Progress will be entering the Smithsonian in 2009 along with the Enchanted Tiki Room but you didn't hear it from me."

5/11/2004: "Has anybody heard anything about Carousel of Progress being donated to the Smithsonian? It's probably just a rumor, but on the other hand, its something that I haven't heard before. "

bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
 

Phil12

Well-Known Member
I'd rather it go to the Smithsonian, tbh. At least it might get better TLC there. The current state of such an iconic attraction is utterly disgusting.
CoP doesn't have the historical significance to be included in the Smithsonian collection. Since 2014 it has met the time criteria (50 years) to be nominated to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) but it fails to meet the criteria in most other areas.

And let's not forget that CoP was built as an advertising gimmick to sell GE appliances. And while GE was paying the bills Disney was more than happy to move the attraction multiple times cross country. But those days are long gone since GE pulled their sponsorship back in 1985.

For the last thirty years Disney has used CoP as a nostalgia piece as they have with the Tiki Birds and CBJ. I've heard the rumor that they might update CoP with a Frozen theme and call it Carousel of Olaf.
 

JonnyK

Active Member
Not Happening Im sure

COP is an Classic and its a good place to take a short nap in while the a/c is running in the summer time..
 

Nubs70

Well-Known Member
The ride is paid for. Does one simply throw away their car when the car is finally paid off?

A mortgage party is a party where you celebrate having paid in full for your house. Tradition is the burn up the mortgage papers not the house

Why would Bob want to remove an existing attraction and replace it with what???
 

prberk

Well-Known Member
CoP doesn't have the historical significance to be included in the Smithsonian collection. Since 2014 it has met the time criteria (50 years) to be nominated to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) but it fails to meet the criteria in most other areas..

And Fonzie's jacket or Archie Bunker's chair do?

Don't get me wrong: I do not want it in the Smithsonian. I want it at WDW -- perhaps updated, but that is a different topic.

I am just responding that, with its connection to the iconic 1964 New York World's Fair -- probably being among the best-remembered exhibits and clearly within the fair's topic of progress -- and its clear encapsulation of the optimism of the America of that time, it clearly would fit within the topics recognized at the American History Museum of the Smithsonian Institution.

That does not mean, however, that it would fit in the building!
 
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Brad Bishop

Well-Known Member
And Fonzie's jacket or Archie Bunker's chair do?

It's kind of interesting when you mention it.

I Love Lucy or Andy Griffith are iconic shows. Yeah, they may be fading into the past just a bit but so is Wizard of Oz.

With All in the Family or Happy Days those items were entered into the Smithsonian right after their hay day or, in Happy Days case, I think while the show was still on (Fonzie may have already left at that point). The point is, that everyone thought that the chair and the jacket belonged in there because they were both iconic pieces of American pop-culture. They didn't last very long. Both shows kind of fell off the radar shortly after they were canceled. You may still hear of people who will talk about I Love Lucy or Andy Griffith (even that is starting to fade) but the drop off both both All in the Family and Happy Days happened a lot sooner.

The biggest reference to Happy Days today is "Jump the Shark" but, even then I don't think most people under 35 would have much of an idea of the reference without looking it up. To me, in retrospect, Archie's chair nor Fonzie's jacket really belongs there. They don't do any harm by being there but they also really don't really live up to the iconic status that people thought they had.
 

prberk

Well-Known Member
It's kind of interesting when you mention it.

I Love Lucy or Andy Griffith are iconic shows. Yeah, they may be fading into the past just a bit but so is Wizard of Oz.

With All in the Family or Happy Days those items were entered into the Smithsonian right after their hay day or, in Happy Days case, I think while the show was still on (Fonzie may have already left at that point). The point is, that everyone thought that the chair and the jacket belonged in there because they were both iconic pieces of American pop-culture. They didn't last very long. Both shows kind of fell off the radar shortly after they were canceled. You may still hear of people who will talk about I Love Lucy or Andy Griffith (even that is starting to fade) but the drop off both both All in the Family and Happy Days happened a lot sooner.

The biggest reference to Happy Days today is "Jump the Shark" but, even then I don't think most people under 35 would have much of an idea of the reference without looking it up. To me, in retrospect, Archie's chair nor Fonzie's jacket really belongs there. They don't do any harm by being there but they also really don't really live up to the iconic status that people thought they had.

Good analysis. Interesting perspective on the impact and longevity (or lack thereof) of those shows in reruns.

I think that it is worthwhile to note the important turn in television that All in the Family represented in bringing social commentary so front-and-center, but I also think that that played a part over time in its becoming more stuck in time than the others. Perhaps likewise Happy Days, but less for the social commentary than its period references to the '50s, which had more meaning for boomers than others.

I Love Lucy and Andy Griffith, however, had the good sense to keep plotlines more universal, which, I think has given them legs, particularly for Andy Griffith, which I think was almost always written as a morality tale for the everyman.

I remember reading that Robert Reed ("Mr. Brady") always argued with producer Sherwood Schwartz that The Brady Bunch should deal more with current trends and topics. The time period was 1969-'74, during which war protests were going on and the women's lib movement was big. Sherwood and his son, Lloyd, who worked together on the show, made the conscious decision to keep current news and topics out of the show, and instead to focus on traditional family issues and things that kids dealt with. They knew that they planned later to syndicate the show. They proved to be right, as it became one of the most highly syndicated shows of all time. Kids of later generations identified with the characters, even as the clothing and set design showed its real age. Of course even that evolved, as the kitsch factor of the show's '70s culture and fun made it something to ridicule -- but even that was done with more fun and a sense of knowing the characters. Which, I think, is the point.

When the writing is good and the characters deal in universal truths or universal problems, the shows are more likely to survive for generations. And people will recognize good writing.

As for Andy Griffith and I Love Lucy and other genuine classics, I think that is the reason that they have had longer legs than most, and especially Andy Griffith, will survive. The thing that I think is hurting the classics the most today, however, is the reluctance of TV networks to show anything that is (a) in black and white and (b) not filmed in widescreen. (The '50s and '60s old shows, ironically, DO hold up better for HD than later reruns, because the older ones were usually FILMED, as opposed to videotaped as was popular in the '80s -- and film is already HD by definition.) So, I think that although they often look stunning on HD TVs, they are not wide-screen; so many networks, like the Disney Channel, simply won't show them. Of course, also like the Disney Channel, there are other reasons that they choose (wrongly I think) to leave out the classics, but I do think the screen dimension works against the classics, unfortunately.

And to bring this back on topic, I think that the theme of COP is a classic, something that is universal: progress. Right now it is stuck in time, but the theme of seeing how progress has changed things and portends for the future, is still a good one.

Its relevance to the NY World's Fair and the optimism of the '60s make it a good candidate for the American History at the Smithsonian, but it is and even better candidate for Walt Disney World... where it not only ties in with the genesis of EPCOT, but also, with proper care and updates, can still tell the story of human progress and optimism, even if it comes with a nod to the past.
 
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MississippiBelle

Well-Known Member
I don't think there is a way to tear it down even with the Peoplemover Hugging the side of that building..If that was being taken down as well...I'd be very unhappy...

I once overheard a bus driver talking to a ferry driver and, while I only heard fragments of the conversations, I was able to piece together (with information that I read in the darkest corners of message boards across the internet) that they will be speeding up the PeopleMover to Mach 2 so that you just glide smoothly over the gap where the COP once was. It could also be inferred that the COP was actually moving Hollywood Studios and will then house the old guys from the Muppets show and Walt's frozen head. Because the Muppets theater will be gone. To make way for Bob Iger's throne room. I hope this answers everyone's questions!
 

UncleMike101

Well-Known Member
I once overheard a bus driver talking to a ferry driver and, while I only heard fragments of the conversations, I was able to piece together (with information that I read in the darkest corners of message boards across the internet) that they will be speeding up the PeopleMover to Mach 2 so that you just glide smoothly over the gap where the COP once was. It could also be inferred that the COP was actually moving Hollywood Studios and will then house the old guys from the Muppets show and Walt's frozen head. Because the Muppets theater will be gone. To make way for Bob Iger's throne room. I hope this answers everyone's questions!
Wooosh!!!!!
Thanks for the update.
It's always good to hear important news from reliable sources like you've used...:hilarious:
 

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