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

[Kman101]

They use Tower so that's probably all we're gonna get.

 

[Movielover]

My assumption has always been that the Chinese Theater doesn't translate well to a literal simplistic icon the way that a castle, sphere, tree, hat, and the Earful Tower do/did. Tower of Terror's "shape" works slightly better and is probably being used as a placeholder icon for the time being.

Tower was used as the icon much of 94-00.

So will Studios ever get a proper icon?

That was always a problem with the park. The official icon was always the Earful Tower, but you could never see it from the park itself except in a few places. As such they used everything from the Earful Tower and the Tower of Terror to the Chinese Theater as recognizable icons on marketing and signage. The Hat became the default Icon since it was front and center in the guest view and represented an aspect of the park itself. Honestly I still think it would make a good icon if it was in a different place, would look cool in the middle of the Crescent Lake as you approach the front gate.

 

[CastleBound]

Although now that I think of it, do you think the Arc of the Covenant in the display cases was simply a mold of the one in the ride? or the actual thing from the movie?

Sometimes fabrications are passed off as the real thing..it happens.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it was the real prop from the film. In the last few years, the Indiana Jones and the Adventure in Archaeology toured around several museums around the world... Once that exhibit ended, I believe the same ark that was on display in museums was shipped to GMR, which stated it was on load from the Lucas Museum of Narrative Arts.

 

[Tom Morrow]

Tower was used as the icon much of 94-00.

It was used for promotional images and such but the official park icon, seen on maps, tickets, signs, etc. was the Earful Tower until the Hat.

 

[asianway]

It was used for promotional images and such but the official park icon, seen on maps, tickets, signs, etc. was the Earful Tower until the Hat.

It was on a fair amount of signage - I have a few on my walls...

 

[PizzaPlanet]

I know this has probably been discussed a lot before but why can't Disney use the Chinese Theater as it's park icon? It's always tower of terror, but why can't the theater be the icon along with the castle, tree, and SSE?

They could be waiting to use it as the icon until the park is rebranded.

 

[Tom Morrow]

It was on a fair amount of signage - I have a few on my walls...

Interesting. Care to share a pic? I don't recall ever seeing it as an icon until the removal of the hat.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Fixed...

 

[No Name]

I think the Mission Breakout's 4 month, 23ish day turnaround is proof that Disney can operate quickly and efficiently when they choose to. I realy think The Great Movie Ride could've closed after Toy Story Land opened, and still made the Star Wars Land deadline, but they saw it as a better business decision to close it two weeks ago.

 

[asianway]

I think the Mission Breakout's 4 month, 23ish day turnaround is proof that Disney can operate quickly and efficiently when they choose to. I realy think The Great Movie Ride could've closed after Toy Story Land opened, and still made the Star Wars Land deadline, but they saw it as a better business decision to close it two weeks ago.

My question is - was it even necessary? It had a high capacity, and since MM+ it has been operating at a good utilization.

Converting it wont add any capacity. and you would think the added revenue from SWGE would offset any ongoing Opex at GMR - at least until they needed to squeeze at some point in the future.

 

[bclane]

Fixed...

View attachment 225607

Can you do one with a Storm Trooper helmet or maybe a Jedi robe wrapping the whole building? Lol!

 

[Goofyernmost]

Originally, it was, but because the "Hat" replaced it for so many years, people have forgotten what it once symbolized..... so they tend to use the Tower of Terror instead. I think they are waiting on the revamp on the park to anoint a new icon.

There's rumors that Graumann didn't like their theatre being used on Disney advertising, but I think that's hogwash because you don't allow people to build a replica of your theatre in the main sightline of your park and not allow them to use it promoting the park it's in.

No, it never was the official Icon. When the park opened it was the Earfull Tower, then they put a secondary title on ToT. The theater, although a major focal point in the park, (also known as a wienie) was downgraded by the addition of the Hat, which also was never officially considered the Icon. The theater along with the afore mentioned other attractions were highlighted on souvenirs and other merchandise because they were so recognizable.

EDIT: Sorry I should have read through before being redundant. I see it has been answered a number of times.

 

[Tom Morrow]

No, it never was the official Icon. When the park opened it was the Earfull Tower, then they put a secondary title on ToT. The theater, although a major focal point in the park, (also known as a wienie) was downgraded by the addition of the Hat, which also was never officially considered the Icon. The theater along with the afore mentioned other attractions were highlighted on souvenirs and other merchandise because they were so recognizable.

EDIT: Sorry I should have read through before being redundant. I see it has been answered a number of times.

For the entirety of the hat's lifespan, it was used as the literal icon for the park alongside Cinderella Castle, Tree of Life, and Spaceship Earth on just about everything. Sure, some leftover signage still had the Earful Tower, but the hat was, for all intents and purposes, the official icon from 2001-2015.

 

[Cesar R M]

Fixed...

View attachment 225644

 

[cheezbat]

For the entirety of the hat's lifespan, it was used as the literal icon for the park alongside Cinderella Castle, Tree of Life, and Spaceship Earth on just about everything. Sure, some leftover signage still had the Earful Tower, but the hat was, for all intents and purposes, the official icon from 2001-2015.

Thank God it's gone. I always hated it.

Now with Mickey becoming front and center at DHS with his new ride in the Chinese Theatre, maybe it's finally time to make this weenie the park icon. It's just stupid not having an icon in the center of the park.

 

[Sped2424]

Thank God it's gone. I always hated it.

Now with Mickey becoming front and center at DHS with his new ride in the Chinese Theatre, maybe it's finally time to make this weenie the park icon. It's just stupid not having an icon in the center of the park.

It's done for a very specific reason clearly. If disney could make it the park icon on all merch and etc with 0 issues and costing them nothing I am sure it would have been done by now.

 

[Tom Morrow]

Thank God it's gone. I always hated it.

Now with Mickey becoming front and center at DHS with his new ride in the Chinese Theatre, maybe it's finally time to make this weenie the park icon. It's just stupid not having an icon in the center of the park.

SSE is at the front of the park

But I know what you mean, it's weird not having the icon be the main focal point. But then when you consider how DCA and TDS don't really have one centralized icon either, or how both Universal's icons - the globe, the archway, and the IOA lighthouse are outside the front gates. it's less weird.

 

[HMF]

I think the Mission Breakout's 4 month, 23ish day turnaround is proof that Disney can operate quickly and efficiently when they choose to. I realy think The Great Movie Ride could've closed after Toy Story Land opened, and still made the Star Wars Land deadline, but they saw it as a better business decision to close it two weeks ago.

Mission Cashgrab is an example of cheapness and greed, not efficiency.

 

[HMF]

Thank God it's gone. I always hated it.

Now with Mickey becoming front and center at DHS with his new ride in the Chinese Theatre, maybe it's finally time to make this weenie the park icon. It's just stupid not having an icon in the center of the park.

I still find it ironic that they removed the hat only a few years before they turned GMR into a Mickey Ride. Not that I want it back.

 

[Goofyernmost]

For the entirety of the hat's lifespan, it was used as the literal icon for the park alongside Cinderella Castle, Tree of Life, and Spaceship Earth on just about everything. Sure, some leftover signage still had the Earful Tower, but the hat was, for all intents and purposes, the official icon from 2001-2015.

I think that is what I said (without the yearly numbers). We were talking about the Theater, which was also shown on promotions, but, was never considered the official Park Icon, nor was the BAH. We will call that the era of indecision on the part of company executives and also highlights the insignificance of making any single item an Icon unless it is what greets you as you walk into the park or what the park was build around. We as "guests" decide, for ourselves, which item that brings us the most significant memory and representation. Personally, I think, that with the inclusion of Mickey in the Theater, that will become the Icon. It encompasses all of Disney with the corporate Icon that started it all.