The Disney Look... to the Past! (September 17-23)
Here you are our weekly feature, where we take a glimpse of the past of the Walt Disney Company:
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This Week in Disney History: September 17-23
Sept. 23, 1980 — Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opens at Magic Kingdom Park
Take a close look at the trains that race, chug and roar through the tall buttes and gold mines of Tumbleweed. You notice there’s not an engineer aboard any of those locomotives, right? So surely the proper thing to do is to jump aboard for a three-minute ride of dizzying turns, narrow clearances, rumbling earthquakes, boulder avalanches, screeching bats and goats chomping on sticks of dynamite. Keep an eye out for Cousin Ed — the town’s been flooded lately, and he took the bathtub out for a spin… in his pajamas. Unlike the geology of Zion National Park which influenced the Disneyland Park original, Imagineers modeled the look of this Frontierland classic — and the two versions that followed in Tokyo and Paris — after the scenery of Monument Valley in Arizona. Each member of the six-strong locomotive fleet bears an appropriately punny name, including “U.B. Bold” and “I.M. Fearless.”
Take a close look at the trains that race, chug and roar through the tall buttes and gold mines of Tumbleweed. You notice there’s not an engineer aboard any of those locomotives, right? So surely the proper thing to do is to jump aboard for a three-minute ride of dizzying turns, narrow clearances, rumbling earthquakes, boulder avalanches, screeching bats and goats chomping on sticks of dynamite. Keep an eye out for Cousin Ed — the town’s been flooded lately, and he took the bathtub out for a spin… in his pajamas. Unlike the geology of Zion National Park which influenced the Disneyland Park original, Imagineers modeled the look of this Frontierland classic — and the two versions that followed in Tokyo and Paris — after the scenery of Monument Valley in Arizona. Each member of the six-strong locomotive fleet bears an appropriately punny name, including “U.B. Bold” and “I.M. Fearless.”
Sept. 18, 1986 — “Captain EO” opens at Disneyland
Park
At the height of his career, Michael Jackson collaborated with “Star Wars” producer George Lucas and “The Godfather”director Francis Ford Coppola on a 3-D space epic for Disney. Opening on this date at Disneyland Park (earlier in the month at Epcot), Jackson stars as the leader of an intergalactic brigade who is captured after crash landing on a strange planet and forced to confront an evil spider-like queen (played by Anjelica Huston.) EO uses the power of music to subdue her subjects and change their world for the better. Jackson contributed two songs for the feature, “We Are Here to Change the World” and “Another Part of Me,” while composer James Horner wrote the score. The film closed at Disneyland Park in 1997 to make way for “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,” but in February 2010, “Captain EO” returned to Tomorrowland, giving Disney fans another chance to watch the “King of Pop” light up the screen.
At the height of his career, Michael Jackson collaborated with “Star Wars” producer George Lucas and “The Godfather”director Francis Ford Coppola on a 3-D space epic for Disney. Opening on this date at Disneyland Park (earlier in the month at Epcot), Jackson stars as the leader of an intergalactic brigade who is captured after crash landing on a strange planet and forced to confront an evil spider-like queen (played by Anjelica Huston.) EO uses the power of music to subdue her subjects and change their world for the better. Jackson contributed two songs for the feature, “We Are Here to Change the World” and “Another Part of Me,” while composer James Horner wrote the score. The film closed at Disneyland Park in 1997 to make way for “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,” but in February 2010, “Captain EO” returned to Tomorrowland, giving Disney fans another chance to watch the “King of Pop” light up the screen.
Also this week in Disney history:
Sept. 171932 — The Mickey Mouse cartoon short “The Whoopee Party” debuts
1991 — “Home Improvement” debuts on ABC
2006 — Former Cast Member Kevin Broady wins the first Disneyland Half Marathon
Sept. 18
1986 — “Siskel & Ebert at the Movies” debuts on television
1989 — “Chip ‘n’ Dale Rescue Rangers” debuts on television
Sept. 19
1952 — The cartoon short “Pluto’s Party” debuts
1989 — “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”is selected for preservation by the National Film Registry
2001 — “Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream” opens for Guest previews at the Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney’s Hollywood Studios)
Sept. 20
1940 — The Donald Duck cartoon short “Window Cleaners” debuts
1999 — Mouse Gear, the largest in-park merchandise shop at the Walt Disney World Resort, opens at Epcot
Sept. 21
1951 — The Pluto cartoon short “Cold Turkey” debuts
1987 — “Ducktales” debuts in television syndication
2001 — The “Share a Dream Come True” parade soft-opens at Magic Kingdom Park
Sept. 22
1965 — The animated short “Goofy’s Freeway Trouble” debuts
1984 — The Walt Disney Company board of directors elects Michael Eisner chairman of the board and chief executive officer; Frank Wells is elected president
1999 — “IllumiNations 2000: Reflections of Earth” soft-opens at Epcot
2004 — The television series “Lost” debuts on ABC
Sept. 23
1938 — The Mickey Mouse cartoon short “The Brave Little Tailor” debuts
1990 — “The Magical World of Disney” moves to Disney Channel
2001 — “Tapestry of Dreams,” “Disney Stars and Motor Cars” and “Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade” soft-open at Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom (respectively)
2004 — Castle-topping ceremony takes place at Hong Kong Disneyland Park
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Thanks for reading!
All pictures and info here reported are subject to the copyright of the Walt Disney Company. All rights reserved.
All pictures and info here reported are subject to the copyright of the Walt Disney Company. All rights reserved.
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