Ready when you are C.B.!

[Fantasmic Freak]

All fans of The Great Movie Ride let me hear you!

This is my all-time favorite attraction at WDW and have never met anyone that loves it as much as I do. I'm also a big film buff so that helps too. I think I've memorized the full GMR script by now.

I remember years back they had one of the actual pairs of ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz (my fav movie). I was so bummed when they were gone.

Was anyone else devastated when they built the ginormous sorceror hat in front of the theatre, blocking the classic view of the ride?! I was!!! Every time I see the hat I get kind of annoyed. To me, the Earful Tower is still the icon of the Studios.

Mary

 

[Hakunamatata]

Who is C.B.?

 

[Nut4Disney]

Cecille B. Demille

 

[barnum42]

Was anyone else devastated when they built the ginormous sorceror hat in front of the theatre, blocking the classic view of the ride?! I was!!! Every time I see the hat I get kind of annoyed.

The positioning of the hat to many people ranks down there in the list of good ideas alongside turning Cinderalla's castle into a pink cake and shoving an ugly hand onto the side of Spaceship Earth. You are not alone.

 

[joel_maxwell]

The positioning of the hat to many people ranks down there in the list of good ideas alongside turning Cinderalla's castle into a pink cake and shoving an ugly hand onto the side of Spaceship Earth. You are not alone.

yes, all moronic

on the rumor end of this (this will get the thread going, lol) the thought of cutting a hole in the side of SSE would be up there if completed.

 

[The cat]

Cecil B de Mille was a famous, innovative director who made blockbusters for 30+ years before they were known as blockbusters. The line 'ready when you are CB' is actually a corruption of 'ready when you are Mr de Mille' from a film (the name of which escapes at the moment), starring ?Bette Davis (or maybe Joan Crawford. Or maybe both). The provenance of the ruby shoes confuses me. I have been in two Planet Hollywoods which claimed to have had them. Anyone know the truth of where the originals really are?

As for the Sorcerer's hat. Great emblem, but why obscure the frontage of Graumann's Chinese Theatre? It used to be very impressive (more so than the original on which it was based), now it is impossible to take it in in all its majesty. How about moving the hat and pin station someplace else and making a second focal point for the park? It could easily be done I'm sure.

 

[Hakunamatata]

The provenance of the ruby shoes confuses me. I have been in two Planet Hollywoods which claimed to have had them. Anyone know the truth of where the originals really are?

We were in Washington DC in December 2004 and there were supposedly the orriginal pair in the Smithsonian....

 

[DisneyChik17]

Was anyone else devastated when they built the ginormous sorceror hat in front of the theatre, blocking the classic view of the ride?! I was!!! Every time I see the hat I get kind of annoyed. To me, the Earful Tower is still the icon of the Studios. Mary

I HATE the hat! I was so upset when they started building it. TGMR really makes it "Hollywood" and last time I checked that was the point. But, executives make disicions(sp?) for one reason or another. Personally, I like the wand and the cake/castle (pink's my favorite color). But TGMR is my Disney-MGM Studios.

BTW, I'm a movie buff too. I love all the old Audry Hepburn classics and my fav's are the "Brat Pack" movies.

 

[dave2822]

This thread is quickly turning off topic, but to the hat's defense, MGM was the only WDW park without a true center icon. Every other park had a definite emblem that could be approached, and MGM needed one.

I personally don't mind the hat all too much, I think it looks great at night with the spotlights around it, especially when you're leaving from Fantasmic, the hat seems to fit.
Well, somewhat back on topic now, don't know how many Great Movie Ride fans you'll find. Though it is one of the original attractions, a thread bashing it will surely bring more posts than one that is praising it. However, it is a good attraction that shouldn't (and won't) be going anywhere.

 

[barnum42]

We were in Washington DC in December 2004 and there were supposedly the orriginal pair in the Smithsonian....

I would think that several pairs were used in the making of the film and probably more than one survive to this day. I recall one of the dresses Judy Garland wore was auctioned off recently for quite a pretty sum.

 

[Hakunamatata]

This thread is quickly turning off topic, but to the hat's defense, MGM was the only WDW park without a true center icon. Every other park had a definite emblem that could be approached, and MGM needed one.

Hating to disagree, but Disney Studios had the water tower with the ears on it first and that was used as the Icon for the park. I definately remember seeing its image on shirts and promo material. The only problem, was that the water tower was not in a central location in the park, so they built the hat, which I actually like.

I hate to dissappoint, but the Great Movie Ride is not the central attraction at Disney Studios. If anything, ToT is.

 

[Fantasmic Freak]

Yes, if I recall there are actually 7 known pairs of ruby slippers that were used in the film production. The pair that TGMR had at one time was actually a combination of shoes from 2 separate original pairs (at least that's what I heard).

 

[imagineersrock]

All fans of The Great Movie Ride let me hear you

WOO!! :wave:

Was anyone else devastated when they built the ginormous sorceror hat in front of the theatre, blocking the classic view of the ride?! I was!!! Every time I see the hat I get kind of annoyed. To me, the Earful Tower is still the icon of the Studios.

AMEN... I really enjoy the hat, it looks particularly nice at night... but OOO the positioning of that thing TICKS ME OFF! It ruins the feel of Hollywood Blvd. and completely obstructs one of the best works of art WDI has ever created.

:brick:

 

[dave2822]

Hating to disagree, but Disney Studios had the water tower with the ears on it first and that was used as the Icon for the park. I definately remember seeing its image on shirts and promo material. The only problem, was that the water tower was not in a central location in the park, so they built the hat, which I actually like.

I hate to dissappoint, but the Great Movie Ride is not the central attraction at Disney Studios. If anything, ToT is.

You are correct, the Studios previous icon was the water tower. And as you said, I can justify the hat only because it wasn't an icon in the sense that every other park basically forced you to gravitate around the icon. Cinderella Castle and the Tree of Life work as the hub, and you can see Spaceship Earth from all over EPCOT. However, you could spend a long time at MGM, visit the major attractions, ToT and RnRC, see Fantasmic, and never see their "main" icon of the tower. From a marketing standpoint, I can understand why the change was made, and how the hat better fits in with the other Disney icons, and the overall theme of the Studios.

 

[Connor002]

Please don't get them started on the hat :brick:

Once they start about the hat they complain, then say stuff about the wand and all the other little things they don't like.

The Studios needed a icon, thats that, the earful tower isn't good enough becauce it isn't in a central part of the park, and the theater didn't resonate disney. At least the hat is relavant to movies.

So no whining or complaining, it's probably there to stay.

 

[imagineersrock]

You are correct, the Studios previous icon was the water tower. And as you said, I can justify the hat only because it wasn't an icon in the sense that every other park basically forced you to gravitate around the icon. Cinderella Castle and the Tree of Life work as the hub, and you can see Spaceship Earth from all over EPCOT. However, you could spend a long time at MGM, visit the major attractions, ToT and RnRC, see Fantasmic, and never see their "main" icon of the tower. From a marketing standpoint, I can understand why the change was made, and how the hat better fits in with the other Disney icons, and the overall theme of the Studios.

All of that is very true, and once they put that thing up it was pretty much inevitable it wasn't going anywhere because it really has become the park's centerpiece... I just still find it a shame that it has to cover up the chinese theater. With that said, how long do you think the chinese theater fascade will stay around for? In my opinion its most likely going to go... Now that it is detatched from the rest of Hollywood Blvd. and we now have the hat right there, its just too much going on in such a small area-- makes the theater feel somewhat out of place if you know what I mean. Ohwell, only time will tell.

 

[Hakunamatata]

.....its just too much going on in such a small area-- makes the theater feel somewhat out of place if you know what I mean. Ohwell, only time will tell.

Actually, it makes it feel more in place. For anyone who has visited the actual Chinese Theatre, at times, its almost impossible to get around in front of it due to crowds.

 

[Raven66]

I absolutely love the Great Movie Ride. It's a must whenever we go. And Wizard of Oz is my all time favorite movie. This past May we had to wait a loooooooooong time to get on. We have never had to wait. And we noticed they changed the line set up, when did they do that?

I don't care one way or the other about the hat. I'm just so glad to be at Walt Disney World!!! :sohappy:

 

[imagineersrock]

Actually, it makes it feel more in place. For anyone who has visited the actual Chinese Theatre, at times, its almost impossible to get around in front of it due to crowds.

LoL- thats a good point actually... I've seen photos of several premiers and other events taking place infront of that area and it did infact look rather cramped.

 

[Aurora_25]

LoL- thats a good point actually... I've seen photos of several premiers and other events taking place infront of that area and it did infact look rather cramped.

I have been there and you can never get a really good shot of it- like a full shot- plus all the people around, forget about it...