If you hate the hat at DHS, now is the time to say something.

[Tom]

The original concept seemed to have the hat closer to the entrance with the ferris wheels as the ears. The image can be seen in the Imagineering Field Guide to Hollywood Studios.

...or, right here:

It was going to sit out in front of the park, on the lake. You can clearly see the Chinese Theater in its full glory in the far background (left side of picture).

I love some of the comments by disneydevil1 (such an appropriate screen name, btw). They're just so entertaining.

If Disney doesn't want the guests to know something, they're not going to tell a crew of freshman CMs. If something is meant to stay a secret from the guests, it will stay at the top.

Tour guides, whether from Guest Relations or whatever department gives CM tours, are notorious for dispensing fictitious information. Almost as much as bus drivers.

In the most simplest form, the studios changed names because the contract with MGM simply was not renewed. For what reason? We're not sure. But for one reason or another, Disney and MGM opted to part ways when it came to the naming of the theme park. That's all the CMs and guests really ever need to know.

The hat is not there to "remove the Chinese Theater" from the park. There are no legal reasons why the Chinese Theater can't be there. Maybe there were threats, and maybe Disney made the rash decision to put it there as a way to "settle" a dispute with the new owners of the real theater just to keep it out of court. Who knows? Definitely not a recruit tour guide.

If Disney doesn't want to make the theater it's icon again, that's fine with me. Just move the hat so we can see the work of art that IS the perfect replication of the original theater. There's almost nothing "Hollywood" about Disney's Hollywood Studios anymore, but looking down Hollywood Blvd and seeing the theater again would give me a tiny sense of hope that they might be headed toward making the studios a theme park I look forward to going to again.

ANYTHING can be taken apart and put back together. Heck, they just moved an entire tree over in the Magic Kingdom. And they tore down a "permanent" wand structure. The hat is just a bunch of steel welded and bolted together. Steel can be cut and re-welded. New foundations can be poured and new anchors welded to the bottom of the current supports. It would cost more than to just tear it down, but it would once again showcase the time and money they spent in the 80s on the theater facade. What a shame to waste such a showcase of Imagineering talents.

 

[BrerFrog]

...or, right here:

Wow! I absolutely love it!

 

[disneydevil1]

...or, right here:

It was going to sit out in front of the park, on the lake. You can clearly see the Chinese Theater in its full glory in the far background (left side of picture).

I love some of the comments by disneydevil1 (such an appropriate screen name, btw). They're just so entertaining.

If Disney doesn't want the guests to know something, they're not going to tell a crew of freshman CMs. If something is meant to stay a secret from the guests, it will stay at the top.

Tour guides, whether from Guest Relations or whatever department gives CM tours, are notorious for dispensing fictitious information. Almost as much as bus drivers.

In the most simplest form, the studios changed names because the contract with MGM simply was not renewed. For what reason? We're not sure. But for one reason or another, Disney and MGM opted to part ways when it came to the naming of the theme park. That's all the CMs and guests really ever need to know.

The hat is not there to "remove the Chinese Theater" from the park. There are no legal reasons why the Chinese Theater can't be there. Maybe there were threats, and maybe Disney made the rash decision to put it there as a way to "settle" a dispute with the new owners of the real theater just to keep it out of court. Who knows? Definitely not a recruit tour guide.

If Disney doesn't want to make the theater it's icon again, that's fine with me. Just move the hat so we can see the work of art that IS the perfect replication of the original theater. There's almost nothing "Hollywood" about Disney's Hollywood Studios anymore, but looking down Hollywood Blvd and seeing the theater again would give me a tiny sense of hope that they might be headed toward making the studios a theme park I look forward to going to again.

ANYTHING can be taken apart and put back together. Heck, they just moved an entire tree over in the Magic Kingdom. And they tore down a "permanent" wand structure. The hat is just a bunch of steel welded and bolted together. Steel can be cut and re-welded. New foundations can be poured and new anchors welded to the bottom of the current supports. It would cost more than to just tear it down, but it would once again showcase the time and money they spent in the 80s on the theater facade. What a shame to waste such a showcase of Imagineering talents.

How about this, get rid of the chinese theater and put an attraction that is actually fun and interesting in it?

 

[jt04]

How about this, get rid of the chinese theater and put an attraction that is actually fun and interesting in it?

I like the ride although it could be refreshed and updated.

Perhaps you would be happier at IoA riding potter over and over and over again.

 

[Tom]

How about this, get rid of the chinese theater and put an attraction that is actually fun and interesting in it?

I love the GMR. Apparently, you don't.

Its just about the only thing left in DHS that still has something to do with movies. I know they're gradually steering away from that "concept", but I think it's an awesome attraction that showcases some of WDI's best talents.

The sets are amazing, the cast does a great job, and it pays tribute to some of the truly most classic movies of all time.

No, it's not a thrill ride, but it's a hell of a lot more entertaining than Ellen's Monstrosity in Epcot.

 

[Tom]

I like the ride although it could be refreshed and updated.

Perhaps you would be happier at IoA riding potter over and over and over again.

Agreed. Sounds like he'd be much happier working there too. I don't think we really want the Disney Devil working at Disney!

 

[Skipper03]

If there's a choice between moving the hat or adding/updating an attraction, I think that would be money more well spent. But if Disney is asking, yes... move that hat!

 

[disneydevil1]

I love the GMR. Apparently, you don't.

Its just about the only thing left in DHS that still has something to do with movies. I know they're gradually steering away from that "concept", but I think it's an awesome attraction that showcases some of WDI's best talents.

The sets are amazing, the cast does a great job, and it pays tribute to some of the truly most classic movies of all time.

No, it's not a thrill ride, but it's a hell of a lot more entertaining than Ellen's Monstrosity in Epcot.

I agree with you that GMR is much much better than Ellen's snoozefest. But the ride is boring, outdated and not interesting. If you are going to keep it, update it a ton. Disney has so many properties that are not being used, why buy Marvel if you are not going to please us Marvel fans....Put a marvel ride in or something that is not just there to cool people off during the heat.

 

[Krack]

Disney has so many properties that are not being used, why buy Marvel if you are not going to please us Marvel fans....Put a marvel ride in or something that is not just there to cool people off during the heat.

Because they can't use any of the recognizable Marvel characters in their Florida parks.

 

[Tom]

I agree with you that GMR is much much better than Ellen's snoozefest. But the ride is boring, outdated and not interesting. If you are going to keep it, update it a ton. Disney has so many properties that are not being used, why buy Marvel if you are not going to please us Marvel fans....Put a marvel ride in or something that is not just there to cool people off during the heat.

If they put Marvel in the parks, I'd personally give the same response I gave when they put Power Rangers in the parks: "?"

Marvel is just another profit center for the Walt Disney Company, and I sincerely hope it stays that way. Marvel isn't Disney, and it won't "become Disney" just because they bought the rights to it. They can just keep that division of the company going and collect revenue. Keep it out of my beloved DISNEY parks.

Power Rangers didn't belong there, and neither to Marvel characters, in my opinion. I'm sure they're going to contaminate the studios even further by putting them in there, but I hope I can enjoy it a few more times before they put even more non-Disney fodder in my face.

As for GMR, sure, they could probably add a scene or update the final film again, but it showcases classic movies. The movies depicted throughout the ride will never un-become classics, and thus will never "need" to be replaced.

If they want to update it, they're welcome to replace some of the cheaper scenes like Casablance with something more interesting, but I wouldn't want them to start putting in movies from the 90s or later - in set format - quite yet.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I like the ride although it could be refreshed and updated.

Perhaps you would be happier at IoA riding potter over and over and over again.

I'd much rather ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey over and over again than the Great Movie Ride. The ride is an amazing combination of ride system and special effects.

That park is quite solid, and with a few modifications (mainly the removal or theming of Dragon Challenge and The Hulk) could exist in concept as a Disney theme park.

Edit: Does anyone know why my trip countdown in my signature isn't working?

 

[disneydevil1]

If they put Marvel in the parks, I'd personally give the same response I gave when they put Power Rangers in the parks: "?"

Marvel is just another profit center for the Walt Disney Company, and I sincerely hope it stays that way. Marvel isn't Disney, and it won't "become Disney" just because they bought the rights to it. They can just keep that division of the company going and collect revenue. Keep it out of my beloved DISNEY parks.

Power Rangers didn't belong there, and neither to Marvel characters, in my opinion. I'm sure they're going to contaminate the studios even further by putting them in there, but I hope I can enjoy it a few more times before they put even more non-Disney fodder in my face.

As for GMR, sure, they could probably add a scene or update the final film again, but it showcases classic movies. The movies depicted throughout the ride will never un-become classics, and thus will never "need" to be replaced.

If they want to update it, they're welcome to replace some of the cheaper scenes like Casablance with something more interesting, but I wouldn't want them to start putting in movies from the 90s or later - in set format - quite yet.

DHS is about the movies, why not incorporate the awesome marvel movies like Iron Man, or THor, or Captain America all of which are not being used by Universal right now.

 

[RSoxNo1]

DHS is about the movies, why not incorporate the awesome marvel movies like Iron Man, or THor, or Captain America all of which are not being used by Universal right now.

I think Universal has the rights to Captain America as a walk around character. I'm not a huge comic book fan, but I'm pretty sure I saw him there on Wednesday.

 

[Captain Chaos]

DHS is about the movies, why not incorporate the awesome marvel movies like Iron Man, or THor, or Captain America all of which are not being used by Universal right now.

Because Disney can't...

 

[NTI2002]

here's mine (waiting on moderation)

The hat makes no sense. I really wish DHS would go back to it’s original theme of the place where the “Golden Age of Hollywood” never died. That was the charm and the draw of the park! Hollywood these days has no such charm, no razzle dazzle, no more magic of Hollywood. This park used to do such a good job of making the guest feel like they’re “on set” at all times. It brought back the charm and prestige of the cinema every time you walked down Hollywood Blvd.

There’s so much they can do these days to show the guests the experience of making movies and keep it exciting! The interactive element of “the show” at DHS is almost non existent. With all the new technology available people are more interested than ever in creating their own films! Show them how it’s done and add some magic to it! Add a Mo-Cap studio, and get some guests to motion capture their movements into a CGI Disney Character, Update the Great Movie Ride (but not TOO much. keep the classics, they’re important), make every guest who walks through that gate feel like a principal performer, the famous director, or a coveted screenwriter.

MGM used to force guests to get creative. Bring back that sense of discovery!

 

[BrerFrog]

How about this, get rid of the chinese theater and put an attraction that is actually fun and interesting in it?

How about this, give GMR a massive update since it is vital to the whole theme of the Hollywood Studios.

Taking GMR out of DHS would be like removing KS from AK.

EDIT: That is a lot of acronyms on that last sentence.

 

[Tybee]

Is it weird that I hated the Mickey arm at Epcot with the heat of a thousand searing Suns, yet I've always kind of liked the sorcerer's hat? Yeah, it's frustrating that it blocks the theater, but somehow it never bothered me as much as it seems to bother others (and I'd been to MGM-Disney in the pre-hat era). I think it makes a very nice park icon (as opposed to defacing an already great one like Spaceship Earth). Earful Tower was never a very effective icon IMO.

 

[RSoxNo1]

How about this, give GMR a massive update since it is vital to the whole theme of the Hollywood Studios.

Taking GMR out of DHS would be like removing KS from AK.

EDIT: That is a lot of acronyms on that last sentence.

DHS has a more solid future than AK in my mind for upcoming projects. The problem/question becomes how accelerated these projects take place.

Star Tours 2.0 - Opens 2011
Monster's Inc Coaster - possibly 2013-2015
Carsland - possibly 2016-2018
A refurbishment to the Great Movie Ride should come when Star Tours 2.0 re-opens. It should be substantial and include new show scenes as well as a new, cleaner video at the end. All of these projects are reasonable for an 8-10 development plan for that park, and if that timeline was announced, set in stone and budgeted for, I think we'd all be quite happy with where that park is headed.

 

[mp2bill]

I like the hat, just not where it is.

 

[BrerFrog]

DHS has a more solid future than AK in my mind for upcoming projects. The problem/question becomes how accelerated these projects take place.

Star Tours 2.0 - Opens 2011
Monster's Inc Coaster - possibly 2013-2015
Carsland - possibly 2016-2018
A refurbishment to the Great Movie Ride should come when Star Tours 2.0 re-opens. It should be substantial and include new show scenes as well as a new, cleaner video at the end. All of these projects are reasonable for an 8-10 development plan for that park, and if that timeline was announced, set in stone and budgeted for, I think we'd all be quite happy with where that park is headed.

I know I would be, but I find it hard to believe that Disney has no plans for AK whatsoever.