No more hollywood?

[Glasgow]

Not to be too much of a downer, but you can't just keep expanding. Sometimes you need to tear down old rides and put in new ones. A huge portion of the cost of a ride is the maintenance they have to do on it, which gets to be ridiculous when the ride is older and parts and experienced technicians are harder to come by.
For example, if you had an old computer and you kept upgrading it and it was costing a ridiculous amount of money every year to keep it up to date, wouldn't you just go ahead and invest that money in something new? The answer is most likely.
Of course, sentimental value factors in for old rides, but remember they aren't a non-profit organization, so profit margins are a concern

 

[Fievel]

We've discussed the monorail idea over and over and over and over and over and over..... ( get it? )

Fact is that they won't be expanding the monorail anytime soon....if ever. There are too many costs involved. It would be cheaper to re-route a road if MGM wanted to expand. I'd see that before any monorail expansion.

 

[jmarc63]

Originally posted by Fievel
We've discussed the monorail idea over and over and over and over and over and over..... ( get it? )

Fact is that they won't be expanding the monorail anytime soon....if ever. There are too many costs involved. It would be cheaper to re-route a road if MGM wanted to expand. I'd see that before any monorail expansion.

There have been some talk floating around years ago that TDS would expand across World Drive linking it with a tunnel or bridge, with the downturn in attendance this wouldn't happen anytime soon

 

[Fievel]

Originally posted by jmarc63
There have been some talk floating around years ago that TDS would expand across World Drive linking it with a tunnel or bridge, with the downturn in attendance this wouldn't happen anytime soon

Yep...that's just it. All the plans for expansion that were slated for almost every park were put on hold after 9/11. Until the economy improves, I wouldn't count on anything right now.

 

[JLW11Hi]

Originally posted by hthbellhop
However, when this was going on, MGM was going to be pulling from the park...the merchandise even started being replaced with "Disney Studios" instead of "Disney-MGM Studios." And seeing as how GMR is at least half made up of MGM classics...it would have been a reasonable cause of removing GMR altogether.

Now that's the strange thing, not all of the movies in the Great Movie Ride are from MGM. At least James Cagney and the swimming girls at the beginning of the ride aren't, they're from Warner Bros. In other words, I don't think dropping MGM would have that much effect on what movies they could or could not use, since they apparently got the rights to use some of these movies without having to put the movie company's name in the title of the Park.

I never did understand the whole MGM contract thing. I mean, are there really that many places in the park where MGM is represented besides the Great Movie Ride? Disney apparently has the rights to a ton of their movies, but the Imagineers never seem to do anything with them. Any one know why this is?

 

[danesporty]

NOOOOOO

PLEASE DONT DO THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The GMR is a classic and one of my favorites. The GMR is what the Disney Studios is all about and helping us remember the old movies and the Hollywood of yester year.

 

[SirNim]

Re: NOOOOOO

Originally posted by danesporty
PLEASE DONT DO THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The GMR is a classic and one of my favorites. The GMR is what the Disney Studios is all about and helping us remember the old movies and the Hollywood of yester year.

It is a classic... Even a general rehab, however, with replaced movie scenes, more updated movies or more different older classics, could keep it fresh

 

[disneydisney]

I really like the GMR and I would be disappointed if they took it away. Its a classic but I dont think it need to be update right now. There are plenty of other places/attractions/rides that need that money more and a update. If yall want an spiderman type ride, you can put somewhere else cant they? I dont think GMR is going anywhere for a long time.

 

[skipperg]

Disney MGM Studios Expansion

I went on the "Hidden Treasures of Epcot" tour on May 15, 2001. Our tour guide Angelene explained to us that she had started working at WDW during the construction of Disney MGM Studios. She told our group that the Studios were originally designed to be an ad on to Epcot being accessed through the International Gateway entrance. The feeling at WDW was that the studios would handle an average of half a day's attendance. Epcot was considered a a day and a half. After the park was well into construction it was decided that the Studios would be a Separate park. This was the reason that the parking lot set up was so bad. The parking lot area was originally to be only large enough to handle the working staff of the Studios. Those that went to Disney MGM the first couple of years didn't have the entire Sunset Blvd. which currently has (Tower of Terror, Rock'n Roller Coaster, Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic) this area along with the Theater that housed the "Hunchback of Notre Dame" were all added about 5 years after park opened. During my first visit to WDW in 1990 my son and I hit almost everything that was opened in about 6 hours.

Change is inevitable, but let's hope any change is for the better.

Keep up the great work WDW! My wife and I just got back from a great week their. (Nov 30 thru Dec 6) We both felt that everything was looking better all over WDW. Service was great, the parks were much cleaner and it seem like WDW in general was looking forward to going in the future.

 

[DisneyHog6]

Originally posted by MKCustodial
You know, I really like the GMR. I think it's such an original concept, not only it's a dark ride like many others from Disney, but you get your guided tour like you were in a Hollywood lot and you also have the little act that enhances the "inside the movies" experience. It'll be a shame to see it go if they really plan on doing it...

I gotta say, I think GMR is a great "classic" attraction, and I would hate to see it go. I agree that the whole "tour guide" part is great, but my last two trips, the CMs that were perfoming really did a lousy job. They just talked very monotone, and seemed uninterested. If WDW could keep excited, enthusiastic CMs there, it would greatly increase the experience. I remember GMR from the beginning of MGM, and the CMs were so over the top, it was great. Ah...the good old days...:lol:

 

[jmarc63]

Re: Disney MGM Studios Expansion

Originally posted by skipperg
I went on the "Hidden Treasures of Epcot" tour on May 15, 2001. Our tour guide Angelene explained to us that she had started working at WDW during the construction of Disney MGM Studios. She told our group that the Studios were originally designed to be an ad on to Epcot being accessed through the International Gateway entrance. The feeling at WDW was that the studios would handle an average of half a day's attendance. Epcot was considered a a day and a half. After the park was well into construction it was decided that the Studios would be a Separate park. This was the reason that the parking lot set up was so bad. The parking lot area was originally to be only large enough to handle the working staff of the Studios. Those that went to Disney MGM the first couple of years didn't have the entire Sunset Blvd. which currently has (Tower of Terror, Rock'n Roller Coaster, Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic) this area along with the Theater that housed the "Hunchback of Notre Dame" were all added about 5 years after park opened. During my first visit to WDW in 1990 my son and I hit almost everything that was opened in about 6 hours.


change is inevitable, but let's hope any change is for the better.

Keep up the great work WDW! My wife and I just got back from a great week their. (Nov 30 thru Dec 6) We both felt that everything was looking better all over WDW. Service was great, the parks were much cleaner and it seem like WDW in general was looking forward to going in the future.

I highly doubt the accuracy of the information that you were given by your guide. The reason I say this is because the studios are too far away from the international gateway for a comfortable walk and the Swan and Dolphin hotels were already built by the time the studios started construction. If Disney were going to have made the studios part of Epcot it would have been built on the other side of Buena Vista Drive on the sites now occupied by the Yacht and beach club and The Boardwalk is now located and it would have been a tight squeze in that location.



EDIT

when I originally made this post I hadn't considered the movies pavilion concept with my answer

 

[WDWfan2209]

I heard on a travel channel "secrets of WDW" that Disney MGM Studios was designed to be another pavillion or land. It said that the idea got so big they designed an entire park for it.

 

[jmarc63]

Originally posted by WDWfan2209
I heard on a travel channel "secrets of WDW" that Disney MGM Studios was designed to be another pavillion or land. It said that the idea got so big they designed an entire park for it.

In part thats true. The original studios concept came out of the ideas that were originally envisioned for the first E.P.C.O.T. concept, but as the concept for Epcot grew and was modified, and the movies pavillion concept grew it became clear that there were too many good ideas that would have to left out of a pavillion. so the pavillion idea was left out with the intent to do something else with it. With the expansion of WDW it became time to resurect the movies pavillion they went to MGM to get permission to use MGM prouduct to offer some more thrilling attractions to become The Disney-MGM studios. It is my understanding that the park is only half of what the park is supposed to be in size and the number of attractions, with film production at the studios being mostly nothing , I suspect that the soundstages will be either converted or raized to accomadate new attractions and the future expansion to the west side of World drive won't happen

 

[Mag1575]

I enjoy the GMR, but if it isn't going to be gutted then it should be updated.

Mark

 

[Trickster]

MGM is my favorite park and despite the fact that I love thrill rides, the Great Movie Ride has been one of my favorites since I was a kid (That, Star Tours, and the Backlot tour were the only things I was tall enough to go on). I'd be quite upset if they tore it down or changed it. I didn't even like the spiderman ride that much, lol. Busch Gardens had to work into their parking lot when they built the Egypt section (Montu takes up most of that room), so if they can do it, I don't see why Disney can't.

 

[CREEKWAYNE]

Please don't get rid of The Great Movie ride! That would be really sad!

Though it would be nice to have a ride like spider man.:veryconfu

21 days and counting.:wave: