Spring Break
It's a Small World of understanding
Scott Dennis
Issue date: 5/9/08 Section: Forum
Walt Disney's "It's a Small World" attraction is currently shuttered for a nine-month refurbishment.
The reason for this downtime, according to journalist Al Lutz, is that the 1964 flume ride wasn't designed to handle today's heftier population. Boats have reportedly been bottoming out in particular sections of the ride, causing substantial backups.
Since there are no security cameras inside, trapped guests have nothing to do but learn the attraction's catchy theme song until the backup reaches outside the entrance, in view of the ride operators.
In order to fix this little problem, Disney is going to deepen the flume and construct lighter boats to replace the 1964 originals, on top of restoring the look of the tired ride to its original luster.
The attraction's appearance, designed by Disney artist Mary Blair, will shine once more.
Fans of the ride (yes, there are a few) were thrilled to hear that their ride would be looking better than ever when it comes out of refurbishment in late 2008. But a recent revelation has sent the entire Disney fan community into a firestorm of controversy.
The ever-investigative Lutz recently revealed that Disney designers have been going through the ride with temporary cutouts of Disney characters, placing them in scenes throughout the ride in order to see where they'd look best in each setting.
First applied in Hong Kong Disneyland's version of the ride, the concept of adding Disney characters to Small World is now being prepped for inclusion in the Anaheim original.
Since then, Disney has defended the changes by stating that the characters would all fit the look and feel of the classic. The reason for the additions, Disney has said, is to make the ride "even more relevant to our guests."
Okay - my turn.
Relevant? When in the hell did children and world peace become not-relevant?
For those of you who've been to Disneyland, have you ever come off the ride saying to yourself, "Hmm, I really didn't get what that was all about."
The reason for this downtime, according to journalist Al Lutz, is that the 1964 flume ride wasn't designed to handle today's heftier population. Boats have reportedly been bottoming out in particular sections of the ride, causing substantial backups.
Since there are no security cameras inside, trapped guests have nothing to do but learn the attraction's catchy theme song until the backup reaches outside the entrance, in view of the ride operators.
In order to fix this little problem, Disney is going to deepen the flume and construct lighter boats to replace the 1964 originals, on top of restoring the look of the tired ride to its original luster.
The attraction's appearance, designed by Disney artist Mary Blair, will shine once more.
Fans of the ride (yes, there are a few) were thrilled to hear that their ride would be looking better than ever when it comes out of refurbishment in late 2008. But a recent revelation has sent the entire Disney fan community into a firestorm of controversy.
The ever-investigative Lutz recently revealed that Disney designers have been going through the ride with temporary cutouts of Disney characters, placing them in scenes throughout the ride in order to see where they'd look best in each setting.
First applied in Hong Kong Disneyland's version of the ride, the concept of adding Disney characters to Small World is now being prepped for inclusion in the Anaheim original.
Since then, Disney has defended the changes by stating that the characters would all fit the look and feel of the classic. The reason for the additions, Disney has said, is to make the ride "even more relevant to our guests."
Okay - my turn.
Relevant? When in the hell did children and world peace become not-relevant?
For those of you who've been to Disneyland, have you ever come off the ride saying to yourself, "Hmm, I really didn't get what that was all about."
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Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Sam
posted 5/18/08 @ 7:53 AM PST
OK, I admit it, I'm one of those fans! I am looking forward to seeing the end result with the Disney characters integrated. I've seen photos of the Hong Kong ride and I like how the characters have been included in the ride. (Continued…)
SamE
Sam
posted 5/18/08 @ 8:50 AM PST
I'm happy to admit that I'm one of those people that likes Small World!
I'm looking forward to seeing the new changes. Having seen photos of the new Hong Kong version I think the Disney characters look great, and bring in the Disney theme to an otherwise non-Disney themed ride. (Continued…)
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