Speaking of doing new things, I'm not going to post this continually for each section, but considering this is done as a tool for you all in order to help give background info on the time period of 1980s EPCOT Center...I wanted to offer this up for feedback.
Originally I gathered a ton of info but after putting it all together...I realized, nobody is going to have time to read all that. Nor is it really necessary, that can be a pet project somewhere down the line. All you need is info that maybe you could find elsewhere, but is summed up in a way that is easy to read/understand. A nice summary basically.
So any feedback would help -- is there anything more you'd want to know? Anything you think could be cut? Again the goal here is background info so you know a) what type of attractions existed during this time b) the imagineering thought process that went into them and c) stats and figures.
SPACESHIP EARTH
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Throughout the conception of EPCOT Center, one of the core themes the imagineers wanted to convey was the importance of communication in shaping mankind's quest for knowledge and pursuit of innovation. Communication for some time in the design phase had been thought of as the 'centerpiece' for the park, and from that idea, Spaceship Earth was born.
"Communications is the beginning of understanding and thus fitting of the park's marquee attraction"
- Card Walker, 1982
The attraction's story was written by Ray Bradbury who consulted with scholars at the University of Chicago, University of Southern California, and the Huntington Library, to create a narrative that remains true to the historical timeline. The attraction's premise was to journey back through time to the dawn of recorded history, and see how the evolution of communication has helped us grow and prosper over the years and into the future.
As the icon of the park, Spaceship Earth's design is of a geodesic sphere, comprised of 11,324 triangular facets that are meticulously crafted with gaps to allow for a gutter system to catch rainfall and redirect the flow to the World Showcase Lagoon. Someone viewing the 18 story geosphere might be wondering how the imagineers crafted this architectural sphere, yet it's not really a complete sphere. At 52 feet, there is a table-top in which the upper portions of the facade sits on, and the bottom half of the facade suspends from this table-top.
For this slow-moving trip through time, the attraction utilized an Omnimover system whose path begins with an ascent portion to the 52 ft table-top mark, where it travels through 3 rising sets of spiraled floors containing show-scenes before peaking at 115 ft. At this point, guest vehicles rotate on an axis 180 degrees, and descend 63 ft, level off, and then proceed to descend another 48 ft to the unload ramp which takes the guests into the Earth Station Post-Show exhibit.
Spaceship Earth: Scene by Scene
Smoke in the ascent tunnel pans into...
Scene 1 - The Dawn of Time
Projections of wooly mammoths and man's quest to survive transitions into a cave scene where our ancient ancestors are viewed drawing on cave walls to communicate.
Scene 2 - Egypt
The invention of papyrus allowed for better record keeping of information and communication.
Scene 3 - Phoenician
Merchants for sea trades created a common alphabet to unite different cultures together.
Scene 4 - Greek
Sharing of information becomes an art form of debate, theater, and mathematics.
Scene 5 - Roman
A vast system of roads in the mighty Roman Empire allowed for an organized transit of information, east, west, north, and south.
Scene 6 - Islam
After the sack of Rome, Jewish and Islamic scholars aided in better record keeping with libraries and monks copying ancient texts by hand, leading to...
Scene 7 - Gutenberg
The Gutenberg press being invented, and thus a new age of communication is upon us.
Scene 8 - Renaissance
Knowledge and communication transcends into an age of painters, sculptors, and musicians, as one can see Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel.
Scene 9 - Age of Invention
Skipping hundreds of years in our historical timeline, we arrive a new dawn of innovation. A paper boy announces that the Civil War is over, a rapid series of vignettes including the Telegraph, Telephone, Radio, and Cinema are shown to us.
Scene 10 - Communication Center
A data flow tunnel depicting the acceleration of knowledge and wisdom into the future leading to...
Scene 11/12 - Outer Space/Return to Earth
A large planetarium at the top of the geosphere, rising from 115 ft to the peak dome of 180 ft, stars are projected on the walls and guests see the Earth in the distance. The vehicles rotate backwards for the return to earth, traveling down the through infinite stars.
Ride-Through Video
Credit: martinsvids
Earth Station
Walking down the exit ramp into Earth Station Post-Show, the major exhibit to be found were WorldKey information kiosks, which were touch screen (yes, touch screen in 1982) directories of EPCOT Center. They also allowed guests to video conference with a cast member to make dining arrangements, ask questions, and more. 10 of the 20 WorldKey kiosks were located in Earth Station.
The narrator of the original incarnation of Spaceship Earth was Vic Perrin. Some have claimed, including Marty Sklar, that Lawrence Dobkin was the original narrator, however the consensus is that he was mistaken.
While the ambition of the set pieces and story-line were praised (and still hold up to this day) the narration was a bit dry, and the finale descent a bit underwhelming. In 1984, Bell System left as the sponsor for Spaceship Earth, and AT&T moved in. In May of 1986, Spaceship Earth re-opened after being down four days to accommodate a new attraction experience, with Walter Cronkite as the narrator, articulating a more dramatic depiction of the scenes, and a new theme song 'Tomorrow's Child', among other cosmetic changes and alterations (smoke removal, addition of computer scenes, etc). Tomorrow's Child was a song written by Ron Ovadia and Peter Stougaard, sung by Sally Stevens. It reinvigorated a sense of uplifting hope and optimism about the future being the children of today - and how they will lead us into tomorrow.
Summary
--Spaceship Earth--
Theme: Communication
Sponsor: The Bell System (1982-1984), AT&T (1984-)
Opening Date: October 1, 1982
Theme Song: None (1982-1986); Tomorrow's Child (1986)
Narrator: Vic Perrin (1982-1986); Walter Cronkite (1986)
Ride-System: Omnimover
Number of Ride Vehicles: 151
Guests per Ride Vehicle: 4
Attraction Hourly Capacity: 2,400 guests
Track Length: 1,525 feet
Attraction Duration: 15 minutes
It made me feel like my problems didn't matter, especially because frankly I've seen a lot of stories shared on that groups that certainly had the potential to escalate into legal action, INCLUDING the one I was alluding to earlier which seemed to be a big focal point of bringing the community together. I felt shunned, betrayed, and worst of all VALIDATED in my depression, anxiety, and self destructive thought process.
This is most likely going to be my last competition as a host for a while...I want to see other people have the opportunity to host comps in the future. At the same time, ironically this is the one that I have the most influence over that I've ever done thanks to 
. (also now you know to blame me when things go wrong haha) 
