News Disney Not Renewing Great Movie Ride Sponsorship Deal with TCM ; Attraction to Close

[Tim Lohr]

An elegant version of the Sorceror's Hat (like in the top photo) might be a good idea if the park needs something uniquely Disney as the park icon while moving on from the Great Movie Ride.

I wouldn't mind a version of the Sorcerer's Hat either, I'm sure today there are all kinds of high tech ways to light it up at night, or give it a 1930's/1940's "Golden Age of Hollywood" flavor, and if the new ride is supposed to be about Mickey Mouse, his feature film debut, with the modern character design, was as the Sorcerer's Apprentice in 1940's "Fantasia", which currently appears in the Great Movie Ride. Sorcerer Mickey is also the version that appears in the DHS Meet and Greets as well as in Fantasmic! So the hat would make the most sense in for that type of ride, plus, like it or not, the Big Hat was the park's icon for over a decade, and it's something Disney owns the rights to, the Chinese Theater they don't, in terms merchandise, park maps ect... The Chinese Theater isn't really an option. Currently on the Walt Disney World website Tower of Terror is used as the park icon and there's talk now of getting rid of it's Twilight Zone IP as well

 

[LuvtheGoof]

You have to admit that DHS lost its identity the moment the BAH came down. And, the park has done steadily downhill ever since. So...

The hat was a blight on the landscape that should never have been put up in the first place. No, I completely disagree that the park has gone downhill at all, and the future sure is looking good.

 

[wdisney9000]

You have to admit that DHS lost its identity the moment the BAH came down. And, the park has done steadily downhill ever since. So...

Hi @Siren ! What exactly did the hat represent in terms of giving the park any identity?

 

[Mike S]

Hi @Siren ! What exactly did the hat represent in terms of giving the park any identity?

To her and Phil size is all that matters when it comes to a park icon. Oh, and it has to feel "Disney"

 

[BD-Anaheim]

To me, its not implausible that the entrance to the park is retrofitted to Mickey Avenue (Shanghai) with a new icon where the GMR stands. Those who still wish for the old Hollywood feel would still have it on Sunset Blvd, where people tend to hangout more anyway. Right now, the entrance to the park is underutilized.

 

[wdisney9000]

To me, its not implausible that the entrance to the park is retrofitted to Mickey Avenue (Shanghai) with a new icon where the GMR stands. Those who still wish for the old Hollywood feel would still have it on Sunset Blvd, where people tend to hangout more anyway. Right now, the entrance to the park is underutilized.

How exactly should it be utilized though? I think it works because it has good open space allowing people to spread out and it help prevents clogging for guests entering/exiting Hollywood Blvd.

 

[wdisney9000]

To her and Phil size is all that matters when it comes to a park icon. Oh, and it has to feel "Disney"

Hi @Mike S ! Thanks for you response. It allows me to respond in a manor which lets me emulate a Disney Guest Relations specialist/Mommy Blogger/Social Media rep!!!! And I will throw in a good ol' "Oh, @marni1971 I miss you so much", so people might believe I have some sort of life long friendship with Martin. And I almost forgot, let me name drop a few brand designers and claim I own some shoes but I will post stock photos of them! Oh, @Mike S , I miss you so much

 

[Bocabear]

If they are getting rid of the Great Movie Ride, why would they keep the Chinese Theater? They way the parks are becoming all about promoting IP's they own the Chinese Theater seems to not fit in so well with that. I think if they are looking for an iconic structure for a park about "Disney" movies, it be animation related... maybe something like this building?

This was built a few years after the MGM Studios opened, but Disneyland Paris' Studios has a version of the Roy E Disney Animation Building

or maybe some version of the original Disney Studios to tie in with the 1930's Hollywood theme, if the build is going to now house a Mickey Mouse ride this might be a more fitting facade

Disney Studios Park in Paris used the old Disney soundstage look and it looks horrible...not iconic, more like a warehouse district...

 

[Mike S]

Hi @Mike S ! Thanks for you response. It allows me to respond in a manor which lets me emulate a Disney Guest Relations specialist/Mommy Blogger/Social Media rep!!!! And I will throw in a good ol' "Oh, @marni1971 I miss you so much", so people might believe I have some sort of life long friendship with Martin. And I almost forgot, let me name drop a few brand designers and claim I own some shoes but I will post stock photos of them! Oh, @Mike S , I miss you so much

View attachment 167806

Nailed it

 

[DinoInstitute]

Disney Studios Park in Paris used the old Disney soundstage look and it looks horrible...not iconic, more like a warehouse district...

Yes. Disney should not be doing anything to replicate what is probably the worst park they've ever built

 

[lazyboy97o]

To me, its not implausible that the entrance to the park is retrofitted to Mickey Avenue (Shanghai) with a new icon where the GMR stands. Those who still wish for the old Hollywood feel would still have it on Sunset Blvd, where people tend to hangout more anyway. Right now, the entrance to the park is underutilized.

Mickey Ave would be a step backwards. It has no sense of place.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Mickey Ave would be a step backwards. It has no sense of place.

I feel like Mickey Avenue's issue lies in a lack of kinetics. The train station is just there for decoration, there's no public transit like the Main Street USAs or Buena Vista Street.

Also, it's really short, so it makes the effort at creating a populated animation neighborhood feel squished.

 

[NearTheEars]

Glad too see you're still able to get hours in while the parks are closed. At least you didn't have to take any PTO, unlike other CMs.

And yet even with the inevitable quotes being tossed about, Walt Disney still built parks full of nostalgia and harkening back to earlier eras. Now nostalgia is a marketing ploy. But, it helps pay your salary, so crack on....

Mr. Phil is about 1,000 times more annoyingly positive about TWDC but I don't see you accuse him in every single post about being an employee, just this Siren person, who has on several occasions expressed negative opinions, and openly brought up several unflattering topics for discussion.

Not every super fan is a CM. And I assume those higher level CMs lurk and read here, not post. If they did, we would have been inundated with damage control posts just in the last few months.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Those are issues with Mickey Avenue but it still lacks any sense of place. It is a collection of random facades with characters slapped onto them. There is no consistent narrative or conceit such as Toontown.

Conceit's pretty straightforward to me: "Toontown, but more grounded in real architecture versus the previous Fleschier-lite aesthetic that doesn't really reflect Disney's style". You know, same/similar mindset as Storybook Circus. The only things that really stick out like a sore thumb in there are the Ratatouille restaurant and Carthay Circle.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

In terms of the icon, I really don't know why they wouldn't just relocate the Earful Tower to a new spot and keep it as the icon. It worked perfectly for years, and if they're even vaguely keeping the studio conceit it will still work. They replicated it in Paris and it's a pretty effective park icon there. ToT doesn't work at all; that's a little like making Space Mountain the icon of the Magic Kingdom.

 

[Bocabear]

Anyway..... Siren, do you have any insider information? When something seems so completely off track the way a lot of these rumors are going, there has to be some sort of a plan that we cannot even fathom, because truthfully a lot of these changes make no sense to me and don't solve the current problems...

 

[danlb_2000]

In terms of the icon, I really don't know why they wouldn't just relocate the Earful Tower to a new spot and keep it as the icon..

Because it's been sent to the scrap yard.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Because it's been sent to the scrap yard.

Surely it's very cheap to recreate, though?

 

[Bocabear]

Surely it's very cheap to recreate, though?

I am sure...but a water tower? is that the best icon for a theme park celebrating the Golden Age of Hollywood and Movie magic?
a water tower?

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I am sure...but a water tower? is that the best icon for a theme park celebrating the Golden Age of Hollywood and Movie magic?
a water tower?

Well, all the studios had a water tower and this has the unique touch of the mouse ears. What else could they really choose? I don't think the Chinese Theatre works as it is a recreation of another structure and a decrepit haunted hotel seems an odd choice.