MGM Hat

[Tramp]

I know this subject has been beaten up but I wanted to give you a first hand account: The Location of the Sorcerer's Hat sucks BIG TIME.

This monstrosity nearly sits on top of the Chinese theater, dwarfing everything around it. The entire view of the theater is blocked except for a few spindles that protrude upward from the theater...
You cannot imagine the size of this thing until you see it in person and I say that the size can only match the stupidity of the imagineers who decided on it's location.

By the way, I made a point in telling every CM or manager I met that the hat's location was ugly....and not one disagreed with me....in fact, most expressed disgust about it.

There's a huge "100 years of magic sign" below the hat in celebration of Walt's Birthday....and the ground level view was blocked with walls until the work is completed.

I will post a picture of it when I get them developed...

 

[MickeyMoose15]

Rumors

Rumors are saying that they are doing this so that when they get rid of the MGM name, they can update the Great Movie Ride with little question of the quietness of the Chinesse Theater.

 

[markymark]

I know we have all had our say on this in the past, but it is interesting that now you have seen it, you hate it even more! But I think that the fact the CM's are thinking the same is quite interesting. It seems an extreme length to go to just for when MGM is dropped, unless they are going to get rid of the Chinese Theatre, in which case, the obviously need a focal point from the entrance rather than looking up towards a building site. But I don't see the point if, as has been mentioned, they are just changing it slightly to be more Disney. Even if they were completely changing it, surely they wouldn't have to board all round the Chinese Theatre as all the work would be on the inside.

 

[MickeyMoose15]

Reason

Since the Chinese Theater is the main icon of the park beside the Earffel Tower and if the attraction is closed, people will complain that the main attraction of the park is closed and Disney hates too many complaints. Maybe the Sorcerer Hat will distract people from the silent Great Movie Ride.

 

[mightyduck]

I'm with you, Tramp...the hat obscures the theater and changes the whole mood of that section of the park...

But I like the shiny stuff on the hat.

 

[Tramp]

Originally posted by mightyduck
I'm with you, Tramp...the hat obscures the theater and changes the whole mood of that section of the park...

But I like the shiny stuff on the hat.

If I were the imagineer in charge of locating the hat....I would've put it back another 50 feet....right on top of the Chinese Theater...and shaped it to look like a COOLIE HAT.

Perhaps a DUNCE CAP would have been a more appropriate icon, in honor of the imagineers who decided to put it up against the theater like that.....geesh....

 

[Fievel]

The word is that Disney plans to make the hat the main icon for the park (more so than the earful tower). This would take pressure off if they decide to change/remove/remodel the GMR. Plus it'll look nice on pins and buttons...get it?

I'm not saying it's a good idea, i'm just stating the logic behind it.

 

[MickeyMoose15]

That is the rumor, Fievel. This would make sense for them to do this so nobody complains about the silent Great Movie Ride because nobody will notice with the Giant Sorcerer Hat except hard-core Disney Fans. We shall see!

 

[Sheri]

ooook I havent been keeping up~TGMR is closed now? Or is it just rehab?

 

[jfeasiutsh]

TGMR is not closed or down for rehab, I was at MGM on Sunday.

 

[JAY-ROD]

just curious! If the theater wasnt there. would the hat still suck then?

 

[Tramp]

Originally posted by JAY-ROD
just curious! If the theater wasnt there. would the hat still suck then?

I don't have a problem with the hat....it's the location, location, location....

if they remove the theater....then there's no location problem...

the Chinese Theater is a beautiful structure and is an exact replica of the real thing....what would possess these people to put this giant hat in front of it, blocking the site line as you walk down the street.

I can't imagine they would want to remove the theater....or can I?

 

[DisneyFreak]

I think when all is said and done the Theater will no longer be there once GMR is gone. All indications point to any Indiana Jones ride will go in it's location similar to the one in Disneyland. This attraction will be set to open around the same time of the next Indiana Jones movie. Once they have a script for the movie the release date would be sometime in late 2003 or spring 2004.

 

[markymark]

Originally posted by Tramp



I don't have a problem with the hat....it's the location, location, location....

if they remove the theater....then there's no location problem...

the Chinese Theater is a beautiful structure and is an exact replica of the real thing....what would possess these people to put this giant hat in front of it, blocking the site line as you walk down the street.

I can't imagine they would want to remove the theater....or can I?

I think that this is the problem isn't it? It's the fact that they have blocked the sight of the Theatre, which has always embodied the true "movie feel" of the park. The hat itself is probably fine, it's just that we are all fed up that it blocks out the Theatre. It is like an underhand way of telling us that the GMR is no longer needed.

 

[MickeyMoose15]

TGMR won't close for awhile though it has been rumored for a very long time. The rumors about it have slowed down but I expect them to pick up soon with the celebration coming in October.

 

[Sheri]

The ride is kinda boring tho, I wouldnt be surprised if it does close ~but the Chinese theater or w/e would stay up~

 

[bonbon]

Yeah I think it's kinda boring too. I was just there two days ago and I pretty near fell asleep. The ride was probably ok when it first opened (15 years ago?). However, now that the people from the time of those movies are older, if not dead, the newer generations of kids have never even heard of them. The preshow is the best example of this. I only heard of two movies from it: Fantasia and Mary Poppins.

 

[Mattore]

You've never even heard of Casablanca? Or Alien? I agree that it is a bit old -- but it's not horribly so. And the finale film includes movies such as Shakespeare in Love. It's kept as up-to-date as it can be. You can't close down the ride just to update one scene... perhaps changes will be made to the whole ride after the 100 years celebration, but until then, it should remain th same.

 

[markymark]

I dont see what the problem with the GMR is either. I certainly can't see many people wouldn't have heard of the movies in there. In the preshow I dont think it is a matter of having heard of the movies, but I am sure that Indy is one of the trailers in there. But even if we haven't heard of these movies, the preshow is just giving examples of great films, and films that were classics for their time.

 

[Goofster]

You what I'm thinking and hoping, Tramp, maybe you're wrong, maybe in front of the theatre wasn't where they wanted to put the hat originally. Maybe they wanted to put it off in some other part of the park, (maybe in a new section with the spiderman ride). I mean, the imagineers obviously aren't OBSESSED with putting park icons smack dab in the center of the park. Look at Walt Disney Studios Paris, the Earful Tower there is off to the side not in the center. Anyway, they just decided it's an easy way to keep attention off the GMR during rehab.

I expect once the celebration is over and the GMR has been remodeled to be The Great Disney Moments Ride, or something like that. We'll also see a new street over by New York Street where the hat will go with an E-Ticket ride somehow involving Mickey, and the Chinese Theatre will remain, just housing a new ride.