Category: Magic Kingdom

It seems the new changes in the look and scripting of The Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor at the Magic Kingdom is finally getting some attention. I first noticed the adapted script and the smoother runiing animation at the Pirate and Princess party on August 15th. The revised show is a vast improvement and now makes the interactive experience something worth seeing more than once, and it is actually quite funny!

Making the Haunts Even Happier

That old, creepy, uninhabited mansion — you know, the one where you sometimes hear mysterious sounds and see eerie apparitions? I think something’s going on up there. Ever since June, I seem to hear weird noises in the dead of night … noises suspiciously like hammering and sawing. But none of the 999 permanent residents seem to be leaving the joint. Is it possible that that place is going to get even SPOOKIER?

That’s right — in case you haven’t heard the news through the ghoulish grapevine, the Magic Kingdom Park’s venerable Haunted Mansion is getting a facelift. New details are being added to reward sharp-eyed spookhunters, and some high-tech magic is being put to use to create old-fashioned thrills. Kathy Rogers, Senior Show Producer for the attraction, told us what to expect if you dare to venture through the doors of this most beloved attraction, which is slated to reopen this month.

“For several months, our team has been “illusioneering,” making the invisible, visible,” explains Kathy. “For example, a previously unseen wing of the Mansion has been revealed for the first time. Observant Guests will see more of the 999 happy haunts cavorting on a seemingly endless staircase leading to secret realms. Watch closely and you’ll see evidence of these residents — their glowing footprints, candles going out — is it the wind or did someone blow them out? It’s for you to decide. Other haunts reveal themselves in the mansion’s infamous Corridor of Doors — don’t blink or you’ll miss the clues!”

The Haunted Mansion is one of the Disney Theme Park attractions that have inspired legions of passionate fans. The last thing anyone wanted to do was to change the experience in a way that would disappoint Guests, and Kathy and her team were acutely aware of the necessity to “strengthen the story, and not change it.” So in many cases they expanded on the lore that already existed — as in Kathy’s own favorite addition: “In the attic the long, sad tale of Constance on her wedding days finally comes to light. For almost 40 years, our Guests have come face to face with Constance the bride. Now it’s time for them to meet her and her grooms face to face — all five of them! They all loved Constance,” she laughs. “In fact, you could say they lost their heads over her.”

In addition to adding to the story, the Imagineers are taking advantage of some technological advances since the Mansion first saw the light of day. You won’t be overwhelmed with high-tech bells and whistles that disturb the eerie atmosphere, but, Kathy promises, “Imagineers constantly look for new ways to combine compelling stories with new technologies. As we’ve worked to enhance Haunted Mansion, we’ve added a few surprises that may make the ghosts seem a little closer than before.”

So whether it’s your first visit to the Mansion or your hundredth, when Guests are allowed to enter that elegant but eerie house again, keep your eyes peeled. You never know when you’ll stumble across the evidence of a haunt you haven’t encountered before! And remember — there’s always room for one more.

Virtual Magic Kingdom central insode the Main Street Cinema at the Magic Kingdom is about to be a thing of the past. Permits have been filed to remove certain pieces of the interior, but it remains unclear just what is leaving. One thing is for sure, the VMK will no longer have a home on Main Street U.S.A.. A rumored replacement is a store specializing in Disney Channel and Disney Movie merchandise. More on this as it becomes available.

Some lucky guests were able to ride the Haunted Mansion last night, here are the now confirmed changes:

-The stretching room has recieved some big upgrades. The Gargoyles in the room now turn their heads, and when the lights go out, it appears that bats are flying around the room. Bursts of air are now blown at guests to really make you feel like bats are flying past your head.

-The portrait hall has indeed recieved the window with the wind, thunder, and lightning effects.

-The new floating crystal ball with Madame Leota has been implemented.

-The attic scene is now identical to the Disneyland version, featuring the murderous ghost bride with a bunch of flowers that turn into an axe as your doombuggy passes by.

– All of the other effects in the Mansion have been restored to their original glory, and the audio has been completely repaired

We will have more on the Haunted Mansion as we come closer to September 13th.

I can now officially tell of four scene changes to the Haunted Mansion at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Here they are:

– The Portrait scene has recieved some minor changes. Some new portraits have been placed in the corridor, as well as what appears to be an open window that will blow wind and flash lightning to guests.

– The other three scene changes are the same as we mentioned before here on the site. The Seance Room now has the floating Madame Leota crystal ball, the attic now has the murderous wife from the Disneyland Version, and the never-ending staircase scene is replacing the giant spiderwebs.

– We will hav more coverage when the Haunted Mansion opens on September 13th.

By Collin Korb            Which is it? Many have their differing opinions.  In order to put this argument into perspective we need to consider a couple of key points.  First, this is one of the “original” Disney rides that debuted in Disneyland and was then transferred to the Disney parks around the world.  Second, Walt himself had a hand in designing this attraction, it was the last he would help design before his death.  Third, the ride has already been altered.The first adaptation of the ride was implemented when it was transferred to WDW.  It was constructed around the new park, which did have more room, but had a different design.  Walt’s vision for his “underground” Disney and his love for railroads changed WDW Pirates.  The ride at WDW differs from its Disneyland counterpart in that it only has one drop- this drop literally takes you just underneath one of the WDW Railroad’s overpasses! Why the fewer drops, Walt’s tunnels are part of that equation?The second adaptation happened in the ‘90’s when the ride was changed to make it more “politically correct”. Those older fans may remember that in the original town scene various pirates were seen chasing the town women around.  With the advent of political correctness, this changed, now the women chase the pirates and one woman was replaced with a pirate and can now be seen carrying a treasure chest with one of his shipmates.

       The third change now involves a few controversial additions.  Davy Jones, Captain Barbossa, and of course Captain Jack Sparrow have joined the crew. The highly successful three movie installments and their ensuing earnings prompted Disney designers to include these new characters.  One new feature is a very unique, very expensive ghostly image of Davy Jones.  Disney was wise to enlist the actors themselves to voice the additions.  They also paid careful attention to Captain Jack’s mannerisms when designing the two animatronics that are now included. The Pirates Trilogy has taken off, but not everyone is happy with the changes and additions.  Many who are Disney Traditionalists and Historians feel it was a serious break from the original design.  Others have the opinion that a portion of Walt’s legacy had been defaced. One aspect to keep in mind though, is the ability of Disney to stay one step ahead of the competition.  Epcot itself is dedicated to the idea of what will happen tomorrow.  Imagineers are always striving to take attractions to the next level and design stat-of-the-art attractions.  Disney has always examined what more they can do to make the experience meaningful and worthwhile.

“Drink up me hearties, Yo Ho!”

Spectromagic has had it’s first wave of changes over at the Magic Kingdom. The Spectromen have lost their light up masks and now sport face-paint and light-up wigs. Some of the floats throughout the parade have been refurbished and are working much like they did back in 1991. More changes are on the way for the parade, but more on that at a later time.

We are proud to present our first piece in a weekly segment from Sparky LD entitled behind the scenes. Sparky LD has worked for a long time at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland and is happy to provide us with some insight into our favorite place on earth. Feel free to discuss today’s article on the forums.

The Degrading Condition of Magic Kingdom

By: Sparky LD

The Magic Kingdom over the years has come to a degree of disrepair. Things have not been maintained, painted, and replaced.

The Magic Kingdom has many things that have not yet been fixed or repaired, or don’t get repaired right away. For instance, the second Stitches Great Escape Theatre was closed for 3 months after the AA blew a hydraulic line and spewed fluid all over guests.  The AA was not fixed right away and the theatre was closed.  The line became very long and the “per guest per hour” ratio dropped a lot. As of right now I have heard rumors of lighting and screen issues in Monsters Inc Laugh Floor Comedy Club,  which I was told they have been going on since about 3 weeks after it opened.  Now, me being in the entertainment business would think that a lighting issue would be pretty big, seeing how many of the shows, rides and attractions depend on theatrical lighting.  The screen issue is horrible because the shows main focus is the screen.

Now let’s move on to the castle.  This issue is horrible.  Ever wonder why the strobes on the castle stage look brighter than on the castle, and why the ones on the castle don’t seem to be all on.  Well is simple.  The ones on the stage are newer and the plastic covers aren’t faded and nasty.  The ones on the castle are faded and not all are working.  They haven’t been replaced due to budget size, and the thought that a few out don’t really make the overall effect look bad.  I for one can tell where the ones that don’t work are. One other major issue over the years was the degrading condition of Haunted Mansion. At least now they are fixing that problem. I mean for years it was slowly decaying into disrepair.  Effects were breaking down, lighting wasn’t all working, and the Doombuggies had horrible squeaking when they would turn.  This most likely was due to the fact that the omnimover device was old.  Thank the lord for this extensive refurbishment currently going on. Another major issue is parades.  I for one think that the units in the day parade should be blown up.  They were fine of the 100 Years of Magic Celebration. But using them over and over is really bad. The Finale Castle unit in “Disney Dreams Come True Parade” has been used for 25 plus years.  Of course over the years it has gotten updated on the outside. SpectroMagic has also lost its luster.  Burnt out bulbs, the NO₂ on the Mickey unit not working, the wings on Chernabog not opening, and the fiber optic Tinkerbelle on the second finale unit not working. A few times the second Fantasia unit has been missing; reports say the spinning hippo on top would spin to fast causing the driver to lose control of the unit.  And the rumor of the villains unit being attached to the back of the Chernabog unit never happened due to budget costs.  Also, some of the lighting on the costumes have not been performing properly.

So over the years Magic Kingdom has been going into disrepair, loosing that magical quality it once had. The Walt Disney Company is a well admired company and should do its best to keep its standards high.