Rumor Hall of Presidents Replaced by Muppets American History Show???

[The Leader of the Club]

Sorry if I’m crossing a line but anyone who thinks the Hall of Presidents is divisive doesn’t belong in this country.

The thing with Hall of Presidents is that it goes up through modern politics. Modern politics are divisive right now. Around half of the country hates the 45th President, the other half hates the 46th.

People don’t want to be reminded of modern politics in these parks. We go there to escape. I do think there is a place to celebrate American history (AA, COP, Great Moments, etc.) but I don’t think anything political from this century needs to be plastered in the Magic Kingdom.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

The thing with Hall of Presidents is that it goes up through modern politics. Modern politics are divisive right now.

“I may have invented these bifocals- but I can assure you they are not rose-tinted!”

There is no celebration of one side or the other - the celebration is “the idea of a president.”

I’m not trying to go off the rails here though, I just get frustrated when something as beautiful and perfect as the hall of presidents is considered “divisive”

 

[RosR9]

I feel like with the way the world/media is even if you’re not looking for it the news about politics is so in your face it seems inescapable. When I come to wdw I want a break from that, which is why I skip HoP, I just don’t want to see Biden or Obama or trump or anyone that I could literally see on my twitter feed right now, but I love American adventure because it’s more of a celebration of history.

Unless it’s the muppets as presidents. I’m all for that.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Sorry if I’m crossing a line but anyone who thinks the Hall of Presidents is divisive doesn’t belong in this country.

It celebrates the history and achievements of our nation - and the men we, as a nation, have elected to lead us.

Every President on that stage deserves to be on stage for the simple reason we as a collective nation trusted them to lead us and that each of them led us to where we are right now.

On top of that - Walt Disney himself wanted the parks to be about the “
the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America”

Unfortunately people have varying levels of tolerating public discourse. I have personally heard boos dating back to George W, and I have anecdotally heard that they took place during the Clinton administration as well. I understand what the attraction is trying to accomplish and I've been able to appreciate it once or twice an administration. But realistically, it's divisive because we as a country are divisive. We are simply not mature enough as a society to be able to handle the attraction.

Per your commentary on Walt, I do believe the attraction has stayed true to those ideals. However, Walt passed away over half a century ago. As forward thinking as he was, he couldn't predict everything, let alone this level of discourse. He was an optimist.

Speaking personally now, I run a family owned accounting business. I took it over from my father who is still very much involved in the business. My father could be classified as an amateur Presidential historian. As such, many of the bookshelves in our office have Presidential biographies and / or other works of historical significance. We made a conscious choice to not have anything visible that was more recent than Ronald Reagan. It's a small business, and I'm careful who I talk politics with. I have plenty of clients whose politics differ from my own and I've become fairly proficient at navigating those waters. The traffic in my office is slightly less than the 17.72 million people that enter the Magic Kingdom on an annual basis.

As a side note, several years ago I had a fascinating conversation with Imagineer Eric Jacobsen about his work on the Hall of Presidents update for President Obama. I don't remember the exact details on how much time he had with the President, but it was minimal (say 15 minutes). They were minutes away from the White House for a month basically waiting for their window. They would have time to setup (say an hour), 15 minutes with the President and then time to break it down. Everything was very precise and they had to be ready to go at all times for a month.

 

[Brer Panther]

Not even opposed to Seth McFarlane narrating SSE...

After the countless anti-Disney jokes that Family Guy has made, Seth MacFarlane does not deserve a place in the parks.

 

[Lilofan]

The thing with Hall of Presidents is that it goes up through modern politics. Modern politics are divisive right now. Around half of the country hates the 45th President, the other half hates the 46th.

People don’t want to be reminded of modern politics in these parks. We go there to escape. I do think there is a place to celebrate American history (AA, COP, Great Moments, etc.) but I don’t think anything political from this century needs to be plastered in the Magic Kingdom.

What was really special but made the cast scramble last minute was when Disney was advised by the White House that Obama wanted to speak to a private audience of guests and cast in front of the MK Castle. There was a morning that week in 2012 that MK was closed all morning to guests while Obama talked about tourism specifically international tourism coming to WDW and to help make it easier for international visitors to visit WDW and our country. . Even Iger and Staggs flew last minute from CA to attend.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

After the countless anti-Disney jokes that Family Guy has made, Seth MacFarlane does not deserve a place in the parks.

Family Guy has no place in the parks, period. It’s a raunchy comedy.

 

[bwr827]

Family Guy has no place in the parks, period. It’s a raunchy comedy.

Does this mean you wouldn’t support the mashup attraction Ted Meets Figment: An Imaginary Adventure? Starring the voice of future Disney Legend Seth Macfarlane as both titular characters?

More on topic, for the similar reasons @RSoxNo1 is careful with his accounting clientele, international visitors like me do give thought, and pause, to the extreme political climate when planning a Florida theme parks vacation.

Disney has also learned some recent lessons about the implications of modern politics on its business.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Sorry if I’m crossing a line but anyone who thinks the Hall of Presidents is divisive doesn’t belong in this country.

It celebrates the history and achievements of our nation - and the men we, as a nation, have elected to lead us.

Every President on that stage deserves to be on stage for the simple reason we as a collective nation trusted them to lead us and that each of them led us to where we are right now.

On top of that - Walt Disney himself wanted the parks to be about the “
the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America”

I think my eyes rolled back so much they're out of my head. Hall of Presidents is divisive. Full stop. There was a time to say it wasn't perhaps. A lot of people go in there and would not agree that they picked the President (especially since quite a few of them lost the popular vote). The office hasn't been respected the same way in years and to be honest, there is a good reason why as its turned into a circus-like spectacle instead of being about "the people we elected and trusted to lead us" There was a time where the President role might have been held in that high a regard. Not anymore. It will continue getting more divisive each election cycle at this point and I frankly don't really want to see stuff from right now leak into my Disney trip where I escape from all of that. Many people feel the same way. There are far better uses of the space imo and it could better relate to everyone.

 

[Magenta Panther]

The thing with Hall of Presidents is that it goes up through modern politics. Modern politics are divisive right now. Around half of the country hates the 45th President, the other half hates the 46th.

People don’t want to be reminded of modern politics in these parks. We go there to escape. I do think there is a place to celebrate American history (AA, COP, Great Moments, etc.) but I don’t think anything political from this century needs to be plastered in the Magic Kingdom.

It's not politics - it's American History. Duh.

 

[Magenta Panther]

I think my eyes rolled back so much they're out of my head. Hall of Presidents is divisive. Full stop. There was a time to say it wasn't perhaps. A lot of people go in there and would not agree that they picked the President (especially since quite a few of them lost the popular vote). The office hasn't been respected the same way in years and to be honest, there is a good reason why as its turned into a circus-like spectacle instead of being about "the people we elected and trusted to lead us" There was a time where the President role might have been held in that high a regard. Not anymore. It will continue getting more divisive each election cycle at this point and I frankly don't really want to see stuff from right now leak into my Disney trip where I escape from all of that. Many people feel the same way. There are far better uses of the space imo and it could better relate to everyone.

Well, a lot of people don't like the Muppets, as evidenced by their many failures (flop movie, flop TV shows). So putting them in HoP would be divisive as well - according to your criteria.

Anyone who is offended by HoP has this nifty option - skipping it. Double duh.

 

[John park hopper]

To say the Presidency is more divisive now shows a clear ignorance of American history and the Presidency ---as was posted if it is too much for you don't go.

 

[Lilofan]

It's not politics - it's American History. Duh.

It is also American history that included the Confederate flag. A number of years ago without any fanfare the flag was taken off the wall of flags at American Adventure .

 

[LittleBuford]

Family Guy has no place in the parks, period. It’s a raunchy comedy.

I don’t think anyone has suggested it does, and there’s no indication whatsoever that Disney is considering such a thing.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

I don’t think anyone has suggested it does, and there’s no indication whatsoever that Disney is considering such a thing.

Agree, but I would note that Deadpool has a presence in the parks now and is flirting with adult humour.

 

[LittleBuford]

Agree, but I would note that Deadpool has a presence in the parks now and is flirting with adult humour.

But Deadpool is part of the MCU, no? Family Guy isn’t among the IPs or brands that Disney promotes as part of its image. I don’t think it’s just an issue of adult humour; Family Guy is totally lacking in heart or anything that Disney might realistically work with.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Well, a lot of people don't like the Muppets, as evidenced by their many failures (flop movie, flop TV shows). So putting them in HoP would be divisive as well - according to your criteria.

Anyone who is offended by HoP has this nifty option - skipping it. Double duh.

Okay we're so much in the realm of fantasy that we are comparing the Muppets popularity to the office of presidency as a whole. We're talking about Liberty Square, not Fantasyland

Muppets is a beloved IP (look at people being upset at Muppetvision) Beloved IP have flops, all of them do. MCU has flopped, Cars has flopped. The difference is that when Muppets flops people don't remember it very well, well a President flops we get increased tensions worldwide. Hope this helped!

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

But Deadpool is part of the MCU, no? Family Guy isn’t among the IPs or brands that Disney promotes as part of its image. I don’t think it’s just an issue of adult humour; Family Guy is totally lacking in heart or anything that Disney might realistically work with.

Deadpool wasn't part of the MCU until a month ago, so anything is possible.

The Simpsons wasn't really something that screamed Disney either, but they have incorporated it including doing Star Wars themed cartoons for streaming.

 

[Earlie the Pearlie]

The difference is that when Muppets flops people don't remember it very well, well a President flops we get increased tensions worldwide.

I need this on a t-shirt!

 

[The Leader of the Club]

It's not politics - it's American History. Duh.

Where is the line between American history and American politics? There’s a current Presidential candidate on that stage who is defined by the cult of personality surrounding him. There’s a speech by the current President, who plenty of people don’t like.