The Latest from Disney-MGM Studios

[Slipknot]

As for exterior damage, I didn't notice any new un-themed damage.

I figured as much as you didn't wait in the standby line. I got a picture of it from last Friday, but it came out crappy (at least it looked so on the display of my digital camera) and was hidden by the trees between the facade(SP?) and the queue(SP?). When you first notice it, it looks like a piece of "The Hollywood Tower Hotel" sign. After a while, it looks like a piece of peeled back foam with dots of what looks like sticky putty.

Next time your there, see if I am going crazy.

 

[Slipknot]

As for exterior damage, I didn't notice any new un-themed damage.

I figured as much as you didn't wait in the standby line. I got a picture of it from last Friday, but it came out crappy (at least it looked so on the display of my digital camera) and was hidden by the trees between the facade(SP?) and the queue(SP?). When you first notice it, it looks like a piece of "The Hollywood Tower Hotel" sign. After a while, it looks like a piece of peeled back foam with dots of what looks like sticky putty.

Next time your there, see if I am going crazy.

 

[Frank Stallone]

Regarding the Backlot Tour

A few things regardint he Backlot Tour:

Catastrphe Canyon has not been tamed down at all. The only reason any of the normal elements are not seen are due to malfunctions. For example, the tanker truck normally "gets pushed" by the water towards the shuttle. It hasn't been doing that for about the last month since the main part that controls that function is broke (in the process of getting a replacement).

Also, all of the fires are supposed to be the same as when the ride first operated (Tanker truck, two oil pumps, and the oil tank thing up top). Sometimes they all work, sometimes they don't, just depends on if the gasoline gets sent out appropriately.

As far as the earthquake effect not working, all the shaker tables are working currently, so the only reason you wouldn't feel that effect is if your driver missed their mark in the canyon (driver has to hit a target about 8 inches by 15 inches). So if that happens, just go yell at the driver since it's incredibly hard to miss your mark if you've been there longer than 2 weeks.

Captain Barbossa is in the AFI Showcase, Jack Sparrow is not (theme of the showcase is villains).

Any other Backlot Tour questions, I'd be happy to answer

 

[marni1971]

Hi Frank. Welcome! Can you elaborate more on what the walking tour encompasses nowerdays? How has it changed since my last visit (June 2001)? Even that paled compared to my first visit (1990) - the mammouth trek that was the backstage walk!

Cheers.

 

[Frank Stallone]

..

When you refer to the walking part of the tour, are you thinking of the old Backstage Pass? Where you saw the sets to From the Earth to the Moon (space miniseries), Mortal Kombat, Home Improvement, and 101 Dalmations?

That was a seperate attraction, which shut down essentially when Mortal Kombat and From the Earth to the Moon quit using the soundstages. It's hard to do a tour of soundstages when nobody is using the stages. Who Wants to be a Millionaire: Play It is locateod where those sets used to be.

Not sure if that's what you were thinking of, but that's the only walking part of a tour that I can think of, aside from the Animation Tour, unless you're thinking of the Backlot Tour that existed when the park first opened and was seperate stages, totalling about 90 minutes.

On a side note, a Power Rangers meet and greet is almost official. It will be located on Mickey Avenue in one of the small soundstage areas (similiar to what the Mickey Mouse meet and greet has).

 

[marni1971]

Hi Frank! Welcome to the boards.

I remenisce about the orininal 90 minute tour, but I mean the walk (probably backstage pass) that encompassed the water FX tanks, prop store, the area that had the chromakey bumble bee in it and yes, the gallery above the stages. I know a lot has changed, the tram queue has moved a few times, but is any of this left?

 

[longfamily]

While it is great that some elements of the original back lot tour have been kept as an attraction, it almost feels as though this is an attraction they don't wish to part with yet it doesn't have it's umph anymore. It would be nice if more hollywood pizazz would be incorporated in this attraction.

 

[askmike1]

I know I can't give you information about the rest of the Backstage Pass, but I can say what the FX tank is now. The scene now is set to Pearl Harbor. The first part is a cabin with a window on one side (and open on the other). The 'captain' pretends to talk on the phone when 1000 gallons of water hit them through the window. The second part is the 'battle' scene. This encappases 3 people 'cleaning' the ship. Suddenly we hear planes and submarines. We see cannons under the water blow up (getting both the participants and 1st row wet), fire effects, and effects that make it look like a machine gun is shooting at the water. The scene ends with two large cannons blowing up right in front of the crowd. We then see the finished footage on the screens and move on to the tram part. Hope this helps.

 

[Hakunamatata]

I know I can't give you information about the rest of the Backstage Pass, but I can say what the FX tank is now. The scene now is set to Pearl Harbor. The first part is a cabin with a window on one side (and open on the other). The 'captain' pretends to talk on the phone when 1000 gallons of water hit them through the window. The second part is the 'battle' scene. This encappases 3 people 'cleaning' the ship. Suddenly we hear planes and submarines. We see cannons under the water blow up (getting both the participants and 1st row wet), fire effects, and effects that make it look like a machine gun is shooting at the water. The scene ends with two large cannons blowing up right in front of the crowd. We then see the finished footage on the screens and move on to the tram part. Hope this helps.

Thats been part of the show since the park opened I think......

 

[barnum42]

Thats been part of the show since the park opened I think......

They used the same, or similar elements (I've not seen the Pearl Harbour version). Originally it was a captain of a small tug boat on the bridge that gets hit with a huge wave - I was the captain on one occasion. After they dumped the water on me I then got a bucket of water in the face. They stopped using the bucket on my next trip, so I assume someone did not find it funny and they ceased it's use.

The other hapless guest was put on the bridge of a submarine which was under attack by aircraft - bullets riddled the water and bombs explode, then a torpedo which heads to the submarine with and hits with a huge sprey of water.

 

[marni1971]

Thanks for that. I, too, havn`t seen the Pearl Harbour version. I remember the original `Captain Duck` sequence well - my dad was the Sub captain in the conning tower in 1990, and I have it all on video. How I have watched him get soaked to the skin. Again. And again. And again...

After the water tanks the tour used to go into the stages (I think the first one was the chromakey demo with the bee), and I`m sure if memory serves (IF) in 2001 the tram queue was through the prop storage stage. Must dig out the tapes. Sounds like things have changed again!

 

[speck76]

The Original backstage tour was about 2 hours.

The tour began with the Studio Shuttle, which you would board in the area behind the theater used now for One Man's Dream. (The Walt Disney Theater).

The Tour would view the following (in order):

Production Center (Costuming and Scenic Shop)
Residential Street
Catastrophe Canyon
New York Street (which was closed off to visitors, as was most of the park)

The tram would then drop you off for the walking part of the tour. The drop-off area has not changed, and the Studio Catering Co, along with the attached shops, were there in case you would not do the remainder of the tour without a bite to eat.

From there, the walking tour consisted of the following:

Water effects tank (Captain Duck version)
Soundstages (where Millionaire is now)
Post-Production Facilities (audio and blue screen) (where One Man's Dream is now)
Walt Disney Theater (showed previews of upcoming movies)

From the very beginning, the tour was thought to be too long, so in 1991 or 1992, it was split into 2 tours, the Studio Tram Tour, and Backstage Pass.

The other problem with the tour is that it took up a lot of ground, and since the crowds at MGM were much larger than anticipated, new attractions needed to be built, and much of the ground needed to be used. Also, crowds were so heavy, NY Street had to be opened just so the park could hold all of the guests.

 

[marni1971]

Ah - memories! Speck, do you know if Mickey Avenue was always open to guests? I just dug out my 1990 guide (remember when they were booklets with staples!) and its not on the map - not described or highlighted anyway.

 

[speck76]

No, it was not.

When the park opened, it was divided into 2 sections:

1, The "theme park", which was The Hollywood Blvd and Echo Lake areas.

2, The "Studios" which was the tour areas (did you ever wonder why the studio arch is in the middle of the theme park?....this was the entrance to "the studios".

The only place you could wonder at the studios was the Animation Courtyard area, which is where You could either board the Studio Tour or do the Animation Tour. Playhouse Disney was a resturant (Soundstage Restaurant) which was using the sets from the movie Big Business. Upstairs, there was a bar called the Catwalk. The Voyage of the Little Mermaid I think was a ________ Tracy show, then a muppet (live action) show....I dont remember.

The security gates you see throughout the park were actually always manned and down....there is one just past the Backlot Express, another near the exit to the Great Movie Ride.

By late 90, or early 1991, the majority of the park was opened to the guests.....the park was just way too busy, and crowded. MGM went on a major building spree, opening Star Tours, Muppetvision, a bunch of restaurants, and in 1994, Sunset Blvd.

I think 1 reason that MGM has sucj bad flow is that the park is completely different than it was built to be. It was supposed to be a working studio, and it was not supposed to get 10+ million people per year, as it was in the early 90's.

 

[barnum42]

I think Muppets was the first show in the building where Mermaid is. They had a ________ Tracy show at the old outdoor theatre that was next to the Brown Derby. But originally it had a movie themed show with the Disney Characters. I remember Donald Duck trying to perform Shakespeare, Pluto as Velento and such thing. They also used to do Q&A sessions with the guest celebrity of the day. The theatre was demolished to make way for Sunset Blvd.

 

[speck76]

I think Muppets was the first show in the building where Mermaid is. They had a ________ Tracy show at the old outdoor theatre that was next to the Brown Derby. But originally it had a movie themed show with the Disney Characters. I remember Donald Duck trying to perform Shakespeare, Pluto as Velento and such thing. They also used to do Q&A sessions with the guest celebrity of the day. The theatre was demolished to make way for Sunset Blvd.

You are right....the last show to play in the outdoor theater was Beauty and the Beast, before it moved to the larger theater when Sunset Blvd opened.

 

[DarkMeasures]

Another attraction I remember when I was 3, the backlot tour. I went in 1990 then so, the park was a year old. All I remember was Catastrphe canyon...

Of course since I was so long, it could have all been a blur of my imagination and I have never been on it. It could have been just the normal park tram.

What is funny is that I naturally go left when a line splits for an attraction and thus I was always in the back car on the Great Movie ride. I didn't even know of the cowboy scene until a few years ago.

I really enjoyed the Backlot tour in 2000. Then it was split into two separate tours. Those were the Backstage Pass and Backlot Tour.

Backstage pass was cool then. There was the Home Improvement Set, then the Millionaire (or was that in 2001?), then a kids show set and then a set for Sheena Queen of the Jungle on Lifetime that Failed. After that it was the dalmation set (where I believe the set for the lottery commercial used to be).

It was great though because those two tours were constantly changing. Curse Disney MGM studios for being designed badly. If it weren't for bad planning for future expansion and the competition with Universal, I bet the park would have ended up much better designed.

Look at NewYork Street. Just look. Look more. Notice that it is really only facades? Notice how they serve no purpose but to make a large open area of nothing? That is poor planning.

 

[DisneyJill]

Does anyone else remember a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles live show somewhere on NY Street? I think I blocked it from my memory as it was very hot and crowded and you stood up to watch it. I just remember my brother wanting to see it. It was awful. :lol:

 

[barnum42]

Does anyone else remember a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles live show somewhere on NY Street? I think I blocked it from my memory as it was very hot and crowded and you stood up to watch it. I just remember my brother wanting to see it. It was awful. :lol:

Never saw it but, but I recal there being a meet and greet with that area.

 

[askmike1]

Yep, they had a Ninga Turtles show by the old Hunchback Theater. They also had a Goosebumps show in the same location (after the show you could go through the hall of mirrors.

-Michael