Spaceship in Spaceship Earth

Demarke

Have I told you lately that I 👍 you?
Yup! It was rumored that the face was broken which is why he is facing away. In reality he is facing away so people don't draw attention away from the big machine next to him. It is a really strange decision.
Ironically, I think it’s always drawn my attention away from the machine more (even early on) because it’s so odd, in a place where all the animatronics are looking at you and blinking, that just one is noticeably facing away.
 

Dragonman

Well-Known Member
Yup! It was rumored that the face was broken which is why he is facing away. In reality he is facing away so people don't draw attention away from the big machine next to him. It is a really strange decision.
IIRC the change also had to do with it making more sense for him to be yelling out into the street rather than to us the audience who are supposed to be invisible.
 

celluloid

Well-Known Member
That's what Zach said......

Was he really the one or joshing Zach? Ha.


It goes back to some theater sensibility either way. Actors are told never to turn back on audience for long. There are times where one can do that for effect but the placement in SSE since has been odd. Original version and 94 were iconic to my family.

We could give benefit of doubt and say face mechanical aspect is broken but there have been multiple refurbs and changes that could have done that.
 

yensidtlaw1969

Well-Known Member
IIRC the change also had to do with it making more sense for him to be yelling out into the street rather than to us the audience who are supposed to be invisible.
The problem there is that it unfortunately draws attention to how not-particularly-successful the (empty) street mural is. Would have been better to leave us to imagine that we are passing invisibly through a bustling thoroughfare that he is hawking to, as it was staged before.
 

JoeCamel

Well-Known Member
Was he really the one or joshing Zach? Ha.


It goes back to some theater sensibility either way. Actors are told never to turn back on audience for long. There are times where one can do that for effect but the placement in SSE since has been odd. Original version and 94 were iconic to my family.

We could give benefit of doubt and say face mechanical aspect is broken but there have been multiple refurbs and changes that could have done that.
I think paperboy facing away predated Zach but I could be wrong
 

Wdwsince86

Active Member
It is rather distracting. It looks like someone put him in the corner because he misbehaved.. or didn’t sell enough newspapers, perhaps? Also, the Jeremy Irons version is the definitive version in my eyes. The ending was majestic. I ride the pre Irons version, in 92, but I don’t remember the space station, the astronauts or any of the portions that were changed. I would e only been 7. There may be a home video if it, but I believe my dad stopped filming before the end. Now I need to dig up our video tapes and look. Off subject, but we have discovery island from 96 on videotape as well.
 

WaluigiTime

Well-Known Member
It is rather distracting. It looks like someone put him in the corner because he misbehaved.. or didn’t sell enough newspapers, perhaps? Also, the Jeremy Irons version is the definitive version in my eyes. The ending was majestic. I ride the pre Irons version, in 92, but I don’t remember the space station, the astronauts or any of the portions that were changed. I would e only been 7. There may be a home video if it, but I believe my dad stopped filming before the end. Now I need to dig up our video tapes and look. Off subject, but we have discovery island from 96 on videotape as well.
I think the space station was removed before the Jeremy Irons version opened. They did add a incredible model of Walt Disney's EPCOT for that version though.

scan-n-Shot-2018-06-02-at-4.12.58-PM.png


Unfortunately this is the "best" picture of it.
 

Dragonman

Well-Known Member
Sorry i am lost what is this a photo of?
Part of the original 1982 space station set that was blackened out in 1994. Originally had an animatronic inside that could only be seen if you look backwards. What it originally looked like:
1692392719465.png


The location is in the room full of endless blue lights today, simply look behind you as you’re travelling down through that room.
 

muddyrivers

Well-Known Member
Since this has kind of become an "all things SSE" thread over the years, I was watching Martin's tribute to SSE 94 and was wondering, does anyone know who any of the actors are that appear in the various videos? For example you have the videos of the boy doing karate, the Japanese girl scoring a run in her baseball game, the news reporter talking about the space shuttle during the descent, etc.

There's a lot of human actors and it would be interesting to find out if anyone has been able to track them down, other work they may have done, their memories of recording the footage used in SSE, etc.
 

Demarke

Have I told you lately that I 👍 you?
It saw what EPCOT was becoming and could no longer look us in the face
No wonder his stack of papers hasn’t gotten any smaller over the years, he’s been shouting to an empty street. Meanwhile thousands and thousands of people are streaming by, right behind his back!
 
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Wdwsince86

Active Member
I think the space station was removed before the Jeremy Irons version opened. They did add a incredible model of Walt Disney's EPCOT for that version though.

scan-n-Shot-2018-06-02-at-4.12.58-PM.png


Unfortunately this is the "best" picture of it.
I think the space station was removed before the Jeremy Irons version opened. They did add a incredible model of Walt Disney's EPCOT for that version though.

scan-n-Shot-2018-06-02-at-4.12.58-PM.png


Unfortunately this is the "best" picture of it.
That’s what I meant. I rode the 92 version, wouldn't that have had the space station? If it did,I just don’t remember it. The version I rode the most was the irons version and I remember that model at the end quite fondly. The ending of the Irons version was quite majestic.
 

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