You ever notice that sometimes theme parks have buildings that are just giant… things? A big traffic cone that sells food, a camera shop with a giant camera on the front, a hat shop in the shape of a hat, and an ice cream stand inside of a big dinosaur. It’s a style called Programmatic Architecture, and today we’re going to talk about where it came from, why it exists, and why you can find it in very specific parts of theme parks.
Did you know that the song behind the Main Street Electrical Parade, perhaps one of the most famous Disney parks songs ever, wasn’t made by Disney, had nothing to do with Disney when it was made and that the person who did make it didn’t even know Disney was using it for nearly a decade?
Loyalty rewards programs and free gifts are not really anything new when it comes to business. You order nine burritos and the tenth is free, you open a bank account and you get a toaster. They come in all types and sizes for all sorts of businesses, and as it turned out that included a gas station chain in Florida in the 1950s that had their very own amusement park. This is the story of the Super-Test Amusement Park
My favorite Christmas film, by far, has always been ‘A Christmas Story’. Growing up, I always wondered… why a leg? Why was Ralphie’s dad winning a leg lamp? Who was making and giving away leg lamps? As it turns out, there is a reason behind it.
In the late 1960s, years before Disney would make its way to Florida, Pirates World would open in the city of Dania. It was a promising park that borrowed from the ideals of Disneyland,. However, a Rock and Roll turn would ultimately spell its downfall.
Sure, when we think of Disney World and water we usually think about Splash Mountain or a day at the pool, but beyond those Disney World is covered in ponds, lakes, canals, and more. Just how many bodies of water are at Walt Disney World, and what are they for?
In the summer of 1975, the Land of Oz amusement park was doing pretty well for itself. The Wizard of Oz themed attraction turned a nice little profit while entertaining over 120,000 guests. Yet just a few months later the park would be forced to closed before being ransacked and set on fire. It wasn’t a tornado, but it was still a pretty rough time for Oz.
A few weeks back we looked at all the bodies of water at Walt Disney World and how much space it took up. But did you notice that around all of those retention ponds and canals and lakes were well-manicured lawns? Disney has a LOT of grass to keep trimmed. But how much, and how long would it take for YOU to mow it?
In 1967 Disney hired a group named Economic Research Associates to research the economic impact that Disney World might have on Central Florida. That initial report reflected what they thought Disney World would do to the state during its first ten years of operation. The report, as it would turn out, would also be way off.
Last year, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Disney closed Walt Disney World in the middle of March and remained closed to the public until the middle of July. Today we’re going to look at how the 2020 shut-down of Disney World impacted their utilities.
One of the more breathtaking moments of Disney's "Rise of the Resistance" attraction at Galaxy's Edge is stepping into a First Order Star Destroyer hangar bay. If that's full scale, then how big is the rest of the Star Destroyer in relation to Walt Disney World and Disneyland? Thanks to Panod for the video suggestion!
Disney owns a whole lot of land in Florida, a state that’s known as the sunshine state. It’s almost a perfect setup for solar power, and it’s why Disney has two solar farms. Today, let’s take a look at just how much solar energy they’re using, and where they can go from there.
It’s no surprise that Main Street USA also features a baseball-themed hot dog restaurant, called Casey's Corner. But it’s not just any baseball-themed hot dog restaurant. Casey's Corner is inspired by a famous 133-year-old poem.
The Tower of Terror is one of the most iconic attractions at Walt Disney World, and like many Disney attractions, it's inspired by real historical structures. So today we're looking at the real Tower of Terrors behind The Tower of Terror!
Disney World’s version of Pirates of the Caribbean isn’t the first version of the ride, and it certainly isn’t the best version either. But it is unique in that it is inspired, in part, by a very real fort in the real Caribbean. Today let's look at that fort!