1.
Disneyland
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Disneyland Park, originally Disneyland, is the first of two theme parks built at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, opened on July 17,1955. It is the theme park designed and built under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. It was originally the attraction on the property, its name was changed to Disneyland Park to distinguish it from the expanding complex in the 1990s. Walt Disney came up with the concept of Disneyland after visiting various amusement parks with his daughters in the 1930s and 1940s. He initially envisioned building a tourist attraction adjacent to his studios in Burbank to entertain fans who wished to visit, however, after hiring a consultant to help him determine an appropriate site for his project, Disney bought a 160-acre site near Anaheim in 1953. Construction began in 1954 and the park was unveiled during a televised press event on the ABC Television Network on July 17,1955. Opened in 2001, Disney California Adventure Park was built on the site of Disneylands original parking lot, Disneyland has a larger cumulative attendance than any other theme park in the world, with over 650 million guests since it opened. In 2013, the park hosted approximately 16.2 million guests, according to a March 2005 Disney report,65,700 jobs are supported by the Disneyland Resort, including about 20,000 direct Disney employees and 3,800 third-party employees. To all who come to this place, Welcome. Here age relives fond memories of the past, and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the facts that have created America, with the hope that it will be a source of joy. The concept for Disneyland began when Walt Disney was visiting Griffith Park in Los Angeles with his daughters Diane and Sharon. While watching them ride the merry-go-round, he came up with the idea of a place where adults and their children could go and have fun together and he may have also been influenced by his fathers memories of the Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago. Another likely influence was Benton Harbor, Michigans nationally famous House of Davids Eden Springs Park, Disney visited the park and ultimately bought one of the older miniature trains originally used there, the colony had the largest miniature railway setup in the world at the time. His ideas evolved to a play park with a boat ride. The initial concept, the Mickey Mouse Park, started with an 8-acre plot across Riverside Drive and his designers began working on concepts, though the project grew much larger than the land could hold. Disney hired Harrison Price from Stanford Research Institute to gauge the proper area to locate the theme based on the areas potential growth. Based on Prices analysis, Disney acquired 160 acres of groves and walnut trees in Anaheim
2.
Tomorrowland
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Tomorrowland is one of the many themed lands featured at all of the Magic Kingdom styled Disney theme parks around the world owned or licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Each version of the land is different and features attractions that depict views of the future. Disneyland Park in Paris includes an area called Discoveryland, which shares some elements with other Tomorrowlands. Walt Disney was known for his futurist views and, through his television programs, Tomorrowland was the realized culmination of his views. In his own words, Tomorrow can be a wonderful age and our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future and it is this movement into the future that has, on occasion, left Tomorrowland mired in the past. Disneylands Tomorrowland is now in its generation, and the Magic Kingdoms Tomorrowland is in its second. The Walt Disney Company has mentioned that it wanted to keep Tomorrowland from becoming Yesterdayland, a vista into a world of wondrous ideas, signifying Mans achievements. A step into the future, with predictions of constructed things to come, Tomorrow offers new frontiers in science, adventure and ideals. The Atomic Age, the challenge of Outer Space and the hope for a peaceful, during the dedication, Walt Disney started speaking, was told that he wasnt yet on air, and then had to restart once the television viewers were watching. The first Tomorrowland opened at Disneyland on July 17,1955, with several of its planned attractions open. The construction of the park was rushed, so Tomorrowland was the last land to be finished and it became something of a corporate showcase, despite Walt Disneys reluctance. Monsanto Company, American Motors, Richfield Oil, and Dutch Boy Paint were some of the companies to open showcases in Tomorrowland in the first few years. Since the park was on a budget, one cost-cutting idea was to reuse the sets of the Nautilus from Disneys 1954 movie 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea as a walkthrough attraction. For the first four years, most of Tomorrowland was generally open space, however, the area gained more attractions as time passed, many of which have since been removed. When Disneyland opened, Tomorrowland represented the future in the year 1986, Tomorrowlands showpiece was the TWA Moonliner, derived from Disneys Man In Space television episodes developed in the 1950s. The Moonliner was the tallest structure in the park at the time, the Moonliner hosted Rocket To The Moon which was a ride to the moon. The entrance showpiece was the clock of the showing the time anywhere on earth
3.
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress
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Walt Disneys Carousel of Progress is an attraction located at the Magic Kingdom park at the Walt Disney World Resort. It was replaced in Disneyland by America Sings in 1974, to keep it up with the times, the attraction has been updated five times and has had two different theme songs, both written by the Sherman Brothers. Various sources say Walt Disney himself proclaimed that the Carousel of Progress was his favorite attraction and this can be somewhat supported by family and friends, who knew of his constant work on the attraction. Of all the attractions he presented at the 1964–1965 New York Worlds Fair, the Carousel of Progress holds the record as the longest-running stage show, with the most performances, in the history of American theater. It is one of the oldest attractions in the whole Walt Disney World Resort and it is also one of the only attractions at Walt Disney World to have been touched by Walt Disney himself. Even though the Carousel of Progress does not typically have long queue, the video talks about the history and development of the attraction, and even includes clips of Walt explaining the attraction on his television show. The video lasts about four minutes, after which guests can enter the theater for the next show. On the stage in the room, is a large Carousel of Progress logo. The attraction’s narrator tells guests more history about the attraction and he focuses in on the fact that the attraction was Walts idea, and that he loved the show. As the scene opens, robins chirp in the background and the music fades, the father of the family, John, is sitting in a wooden rocking chair inside his home. On his right, his dog Rover is happily laying on the floor, John tells guests that it is right around the turn of the century and also that it is Valentine’s Day. He then claims that things could not get any better than they are at time, before giving a list of the new inventions. As John highlights the new pieces of technology, a spotlight shines on them and he then comments that problems such as chopping wood, sour milk and having to get water from a well are all things of the past. After he is showing off the new technology he calls to his wife, Sarah. The two discuss how Thomas Edison is working on an idea for snap on electric lights, which the Sarah says will mean no more kerosene and no more gas. She also shows guests her new wash-day marvel, and comments that now she can do the laundry in five hours instead of two days. As John is explaining that Sarah now has time for other things, Sarah then excuses herself, commenting that she needs to get the laundry off the line before it starts raining cats and dogs. After it begins to rain, the familys son begins to talk from the right room, the sons name is James, and he is scolded for using his father’s Stereoscope without permission
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Innoventions (Disneyland)
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Innoventions was a 2-story museum in Tomorrowland at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It opened on July 3,1998 as part of the New Tomorrowland, the attraction operated for nearly 17 years, closing on March 31,2015. From 2013 until its closure, its focus shifted to character meet-and-greets featuring superheroes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It occupied the Carousel Theater, a round building in which the outer half of the first floor rotates. A similar attraction of the name exists in Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort. From 1967 to 1973, the building housed Walt Disneys Carousel of Progress and this attraction was moved from Disneyland to its current location in Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in 1973, at the request of its sponsor, General Electric. America Sings occupied the building from the year until 1988. Audio-Animatronics from the show were used in Disneylands Splash Mountain, the upper level of the building continued to house the Tron SuperSpeed Tunnel segment of the PeopleMover until that attraction eventually closed in 1995. The attraction closed March 31,2015, the building was redesigned and reopened on November 16,2015 as the Tomorrowland Expo Center. Super Hero HQ closed in April 2016, the first floor hosted the Dream Home in alliance with Microsoft, HP, and Taylor Morrison. Guests who entered the Innoventions building were greeted by Tom Morrow, an Audio-Animatronic and he explained Innoventions in a comedic style and performs an updated version of the Sherman Brothers song Theres a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow from the original Carousel of Progress. He was voiced by Nathan Lane, beginning in 2012, the Tom Morrow Audio-Animatronics were removed from display and are no longer part of the attraction. The building used the rotation mechanism built in 1967 for the Carousel of Progress. In the Super Hero HQ location, guests were able to meet Captain America, Thor, guests were also able to embody Iron Man in The Iron Man Experience, which had guests partake in a simulator that enabled them to fly. Guests were also able to purchase Marvel merchandise, the lower level gives guests the opportunity to meet Darth Vader, Chewbacca, and Boba Fett. The location opened with these characters in the winter of 2015, january 2016 saw the addition of Kylo Ren. Guests are given a variety of exhibits, such as props and costumes used in the films, Super Hero HQ closed in April 2016. Guests can calculate their BMI, learn about exercise on a bike, play virtual sports games
5.
Disney's Hollywood Studios
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Disneys Hollywood Studios, originally Disney-MGM Studios, is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, based on an idea by Marty Sklar, Randy Bright, and Michael Eisner, the park opened on May 1,1989, and was the third of four theme parks built at Walt Disney World. To increase public interest and the variety of representation within the park, Disney entered into a licensing agreement with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The parks current name took effect in 2008, with the removal of the MGM-branding throughout the park, the parks icon was originally the Earffel Tower from the parks opening until 2001 when the Sorcerers Hat—a stylized version of the magical hat from Fantasia—was erected in the parks central hub. It then served as the icon until its removal in January 2015. The tower was removed in April 2016. Currently, the park remains without an official designated icon, although both the Great Movie Ride and the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror are represented as such in marketing materials. In 2015, the park hosted approximately 10.8 million guests, ranking it the fifth most-visited theme park in North America and we welcome you to a Hollywood that never was—and always will be. A team of Walt Disney Imagineers led by Marty Sklar and Randy Bright had been given an assignment to two new pavilions for Epcots Future World section. The brainstorming sessions led to Wonders of Life and Great Movie Ride pavilions, the latter was to look like a soundstage backdrop, with a movie theater-style entrance in the middle and would have sat between the Land and Journey Into Imagination pavilions. In 1988, MGM/UA responded by filing a lawsuit that claimed Disney violated the agreement by operating a working movie, when the park first opened, the only two attractions were the Studio Backlot Tour and The Great Movie Ride. Disney later filed a countersuit, claiming that MGM/UA and MGM Grand, on October 23,1992, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Curtis B. The 33-acre MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park opened in 1993 at the Las Vegas site, on August 9,2007, Walt Disney World President Meg Crofton announced that Disney-MGM Studios would be re-branded as Disneys Hollywood Studios, effective January 7,2008. On March 12,2015, during a shareholders meeting. Disneys Hollywood Studios is divided into six themed areas, the parks original layout featured a large Hidden Mickey, which was visible in aerial photographs of the park and on the parks early guide maps. Construction and other changes have eliminated much of this image. Hollywood Boulevard, inspired by the street in Los Angeles, serves as the main entrance and operates in the same vein as Main Street. It is lined with themed streetscape facades and venues selling Disney merchandise, guests enter through the main entrance gate, which resembles the Pan-Pacific Auditorium
6.
Star Wars
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Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. It depicts the adventures of characters a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. The franchise began in 1977 with the release of the film Star Wars and it was followed by the successful sequels The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, these three films constitute the original Star Wars trilogy. A prequel trilogy was released between 1999 and 2005, which received mixed-to-negative reactions, a sequel trilogy began in 2015 with the release of Star Wars, The Force Awakens. All seven films were nominated for Academy Awards and have been successes, with a combined box office revenue of over $7.5 billion. Spin-off films include Star Wars, The Clone Wars and Rogue One, Star Wars also holds a Guinness World Records title for the Most successful film merchandising franchise. In 2015, the value of the Star Wars franchise was estimated at USD $42 billion. In 2012, The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm for $4.06 billion and earned the rights to all subsequent Star Wars films. Walt Disney Studios owns digital distribution rights to all the Star Wars films, the events depicted in the Star Wars franchise take place in an unnamed fictional galaxy at an undetermined point in the distant past. Many species of creatures are depicted. Robotic droids are also commonplace and are built to serve their owners. Space travel is common, and many planets in the galaxy are members of a single galactic government. In the prequel trilogy, this is depicted in the form of the Galactic Republic, at the end of the trilogy and throughout the original trilogy. Preceding and during the trilogy, this government is the New Republic. One of the prominent elements of Star Wars is the Force and it is described in the first produced film as an energy field created by all living things surrounds us, penetrates us, binds the galaxy together. While the Force can be used for good, known as the side, it also has a dark side that, when pursued, imbues users with hatred, aggression. The sequel trilogy introduces the Knights of Ren, an order of practitioners of the side of the Force aligned with the First Order. The first film in the series, Star Wars, was released on May 25,1977 and this was followed by two sequels, The Empire Strikes Back, released on May 21,1980, and Return of the Jedi, released on May 25,1983
7.
Walt Disney World
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The Walt Disney World Resort is an entertainment complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando and Kissimmee, Florida. The resort is the destination of Disneys worldwide corporate enterprise. Opened on October 1,1971, Walt Disney World is the most visited vacation resort in the world, the resort is owned and operated by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, a division of The Walt Disney Company. It was initially operated by Walt Disney World Company, Magic Kingdom was the first theme park to open in the complex, in 1971, followed by Epcot in 1982, Disneys Hollywood Studios in 1989, and the most recent, Disneys Animal Kingdom in 1998. Designed to supplement Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which had opened in 1955, the Florida Project, as it was known, was intended to present a distinct vision with its own diverse set of rides. Walt Disneys original plans called for the inclusion of an Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. Walt Disney died on December 15,1966, before construction began, without Disney spearheading the construction, the company created a resort similar to Disneyland, abandoning experimental concepts for a planned community. In 1959, Walt Disney Productions began looking for land to house a second resort to supplement Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which had opened in 1955. Market surveys at the revealed that only 5% of Disneylands visitors came from east of the Mississippi River. Additionally, Walt Disney disliked the businesses that had sprung up around Disneyland, Walt Disney flew over a potential site in Orlando, Florida – one of many – in November 1963. To avoid a burst of land speculation, Walt Disney World Company used various dummy corporations to acquire 30,500 acres of land, in May 1965, some of these major land transactions were recorded a few miles southwest of Orlando in Osceola County. In addition, two tracts totaling $1. Some are now memorialized on a window above Main Street, U. S. A. in Magic Kingdom, the smaller parcels of land acquired were called outs. They were 5-acre lots platted in 1912 by the Munger Land Company, most of the owners in the 1960s were happy to get rid of the land, which was mostly swamp at the time. Another issue was the rights to the land, which were owned by Tufts University. Without the transfer of rights, Tufts could come in at any time. Eventually, Disneys team negotiated a deal with Tufts to buy the rights for $15,000. Working strictly in secrecy, real estate agents unaware of their clients identity began making offers to landowners in April 1964 in parts of southwest Orange and northwest Osceola counties
8.
D23 (Disney)
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D23 is the official fan club for The Walt Disney Company. Founded in 2009, the organization is mainly for its biennial exposition event. The name D23 refers to D for Disney and 23 for 1923—the year Walt Disney founded the company, membership includes Disney twenty-three, yearly gifts, events, exclusive merchandise offers, and discount and early access to the D23 Expo fan convention. D23 was introduced on March 10,2009 by Robert Iger during the annual meeting. D23 had a booth at San Diego Comic-Con in 2009 followed by the first D23 Expo on September 10–13,2009, in March 2010, D23 announced that the expo would be biannual instead of annual with a Destination D event in the off year. In February 2013, the Walt Disney Company Japan announced the first D23 Expo Japan on October 12–14,2013, events include, D23 Expo biennial Destination D a smaller biennial event alternating with the Expo. Events were held in the D23 Arena, Stage 23, Storytellers Theatre, the D23 Expo returned for its second time at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on August 19–21,2011. The Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives has expanded by 12,000 square feet since the Inaugural D23 Expo, shopping opportunities include the D23 Expo Dream Store returning from the Inaugural Expo. Other stores include A Small World Village and a Disney Store in the Disney Living Pavilion. Events took place at the D23 Arena, Stage 23, Stage 28, the red carpet at the Talent Round-Up area, Storytellers Stage at the Disney Living pavilion, and at the Disney Channel/Radio Disney stage. The Disney Channel stage held performances from Coco Jones, China Anne McClain, a first look for Radio Disneys N. B. T. and a karate exhibition from Leo Howard. Guests also had the chance to meet and greet the cast of Good Luck Charlie, Jake, phineas and Ferb, Kickin It, Fish Hooks, A. N. T. Farm, Handy Manny, Special Agent Oso, Pair of Kings, nice, and the celebration for the 25th Anniversary of Pixar Animation Studios. The first rounds of the UDTT were held on August 18,2011 which narrowed from thousands to one hundred and it was hosted by Dan Roebuck who narrowed down the final round from 20 people to 3. After two full days of trivia questions, John Kurowski was declared the winner of the inaugural Ultimate Disney Fan Trivia Tournament and his name was engraved on a Ludwig Von Drake trophy which was preserved in the Walt Disney Archives. Kurowski also won a cruise on the Disney Cruise Lines Disney Fantasy ship which set sail to the public in 2012. The D23 Arena hosted many milestone events only at the D23 Expo and this is the second time that the Disney Legends Ceremony has taken place in front of guests at the D23 Expo. This tradition started in 1987 and since then,287 people have been awarded, at the expo, the company honored 12 people who contributed to the The Walt Disney Company
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