BEYOND THE THEME PARKS

ANITA ANSWER
Archives

8/24/09
--Anita's Mini Blog for 8/24/09
--Space Mountain's Seating Configuration: Has It changed?
--Which Direction Was the Wand Set?
--Booking Accommodations for Six Online?

8/17/09
--A Brief History of Castaway Cay
--Name That Restaurant!
--The Morse Code Message in Spaceship Earth
--Answer to the 8/10 Trivia Question

8/10/09
--What Castle Served as the Inspiration for Cinderella Castle?
--The "Hotel" in the Canada Pavilion
--What About the Original Back Lot Tour?
--Anita's Mini Blog for 8/10/09

8/3/09
-- Anita's 8/3/09 Mini Blog
--What Was This Old Ride?
--Backlot Tour Bet
--Base Tickets and Extra Magic Hours
--Answers to Trivia Questions and Doctor Who Challenge

7/27/09
--Anita's 7/27/09 Mini Blog
--What Was the Name of This Ice Cream Shop?
--Square Footage of the New Treehouses
--When Do the Holiday Decorations Come Down?

7/13/09
--2009 Dates for Epcot's Candlelight Processional
--Using Music's Bus Stops When Staying at Movies?
--How Old Is Too Old for the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique?
--Answer to the June 29 Trivia Question

7/6/09
--A European Trip Blog
--The Difference Between B and C Tickets?
--A Lounge with Live Music?
--No Car, No Grocery Stop. Where to Get Alcohol?

6/1/09
--Where is the Randy Pausch Plaque Located?
--What Was This Old Store in the Studios?
--Rod Serling and the Tower of Terror Pre-Show
--Answer to the May 25 Trivia Question

5/25/09
--Is Christmas Really That Crowded?
--Adult or Child Ticket When Child Turns 10 in the Middle of the Trip?
--Which Was the First Disney Vacation Club Resort to Open?
--Answer to the May 18 Trivia Question

5/18/09
--Will Pirates and the Haunted Mansion Be Closed In June?
--Where Would Anita Stay and Dine?
--What Are Those Stone Things at Epcot's Entrance?
--Answer to the May 4 Trivia Question

5/11/09
5/4/09
--The Mural in the Contemporary
--Showers at Old Key West's Pool
--A Flashing Light above the Blue Bayou Restaurant
--The Wasps' "Sting" in Tough to Be a Bug
--Answer to the April 27 Trivia Question

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Anita Answers

Hi! I'm Anita!

Got a question about Walt Disney World? I probably have the answer! Deb's Unofficial Walt Disney World Information Guide is the most comprehensive guide to the World on the Web, but if you still can't find the information you're looking for by using the Search Function, or the Anita Answer Archives, drop me a line and I'll do my best to find the answer for you. Since there are only 24 hours in a day, I can't answer every email I receive - however, I do read every one and try to answer as many as possible.

Check back weekly to see if your answer is waiting! Meanwhile, I'm All Ears!

August 3, 2009

Anita's 8/3/09 Mini Blog
What Was This Old Ride?
Backlot Tour Bet
Base Tickets and Extra Magic Hours
Answers to Trivia Questions and Doctor Who Challenge

Hi everyone!

This week, I'm writing from the Los Angeles area. This is the first time I've ever written my column by the side of the pool, I have to say! I kind of like it, actually. So, apparently more than 20 of you really liked my Doctor Who references hunt in last week's column! I did get one complaint, however, from someone who wants me to stick strictly with Disney in this column. Well, here's the thing. I love Disney, but sometimes I like to shake things up a little and talk about other things I love. I like to inject some personal things now and then -- I think, and I also think most of you agree -- that it makes this column somewhat unique. That's enough about that, however here's a warning because I'm about to talk about the Tenth Doctor again: skip down to the Disney stuff if you're not interested.

As I mentioned, I'm in Los Angeles this weekend, and this very morning (it's Sunday evening as I type this, I had the incredible good fortune to meet the man himself, the lovely David Tennant, who has been out here for a bit over a week now promoting various projects. I'm thrilled to report that he's more handsome in person than he is on TV, and as charming and gracious and as whip-smart as he appears to be. The memories of that meeting this morning will brighten all my days in the OAP home in later days, I'm sure! David Tennant, you are MY Doctor and thank you for being you!

Anita

Wendy writes:

I found a photo of myself as a teen with my grandma from 1975. The photo shows my grandma and myself on an aerial gondola type ride in Magic Kingdom. The ride was dismantled a while ago. Do you know the name of the ride? Thank you for your expertise and memories!

Hi Wendy!

Depending on which direction you were going, it was either the Skyway to Tomorrowland or the Skyway to Fantasyland. The Skyway closed down in November 1999. Wow, I can't believe it's been a decade since it closed! Time sure flies. Since the ride closed, the empty stations have been used for such things as character meet and greets, storage, and I do believe my favorite rumor of all time is the one about the Fantasyland station becoming a fondue restaurant.

A.A.

Kelli writes:

Thank you so much for the thousands of questions you have answered over the years. It is much appreciated. I have a question I am hoping you can answer for me. My friend and I are both so certain that we are right we have placed dinner on it. Years ago at Disney's Hollywood Studios on the Backlot Tour I remember the tour itself being longer and having a tour of a movie set, a water scene set and a view of the Golden Girls set. When we went this past December it was all gone. My friend said that I am thinking of something else and that the Backlot Tour has always been the same. Who is right? And if I am right what happened to the Golden Girls set? Thanks so much.

Hi Kelli!

You are correct. Do I get to come to dinner with you? (Kidding!) The Backlot Tour is but a shadow of its former self. You can still see the water tank show, which has been themed to "Pearl Harbor" and the tram tour still goes to Catastrophe Canyon, but the part that used to go down Residential Street has been gone for quite a while now. The street had facades of several TV homes including that of the Golden Girls, and Alice in Wonderland. It was also the original location of the Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights. In 2003, Residential Street was demolished to make way for the Lights! Motors! Action! Extreme Stunt Show, which opened in May 2005. The Osborne Lights took a year off, and then returned to the Studios on the Streets of America.

Now go collect your bet and enjoy your dinner!

A.A.

Stacy writes:

I am planning a trip to Walt Disney World soon. I just wanted to know if I only buy the Base Tickets, can I stay in the park after hours if it is the park offering Extra Magic Hours that night?

Hi Stacy!

Extra Magic Hours are a perk reserved for guests of the Disney Resorts, Shades of Green, the Swan, the Dolphin, and the Hilton Resort at Downtown Disney. If you are not a guest of one of those resorts, you cannot participate in Extra Magic Hours. If you are a guest of one of those resorts and you are using a Base Ticket (that is, you did not purchase the park-hopping add-on, so you do not have park-hopping privileges) you must be in the park hosting Extra Magic Hours all day, and cannot change to another park. I can hear the collective wheels turning out there, so before anyone asks, no -- you cannot use two days of Base Ticket admissions on the same day in two different parks The ATS will lock and you won't get through the turnstile. If you want to park hop, you'll need a park hopper ticket. For more information about the various WDW ticket media and how it all works, please read AllEars.Net's comprehensive Ticket FAQ.

Have a great trip!

A.A.

ANSWER TO THE JULY 27 TRIVIA QUESTION:

What year, and in what Disney park, was the very first Candlelight Processional performed? Answer in next week's column!

And the answer is: Disneyland in California in 1958. I guess this one was too easy again, because I got 28 correct answers. The Disney Geeks of the Week are: Lisa A, Theresa R, Marc R, Paul S, Shawna and Ainsley P, Thomas H, SSG, Linda M, George Y, Sue V, Lindsay C, Giesela H, Jamie P, Lynn J, Robin, George S, Jeremy R, Anthony L, Mary Beth M, Kelly A, Cathy M, Sherry G, Sabrina, Eric E, Sara E, Trish T, Mary G, and Craig. Congratulations, all, and remember to always wear your Disney geekdom proudly!

ANSWERS TO THE JULY 27 DOCTOR WHO REFERENCE CHALLENGE:

Well, speaking of geekdom, I  just love how many of you share my dual obsessions! Three readers got every one of the six references, and 18 of you got several of them. Actually, I inadvertently mentioned a couple of others from the Classic series that I wasn't even aware of -- really, that's just the crazy way I always talk!

The answers were:

1. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. (The Tenth Doctor is quite fond of saying this. So much so, somebody actually made a video about it and posted it to that site that starts with a Y. Check it out!)

2. The worse it gets, the more I love it. (Planet of the Dead)

3. That's so very me. (Journey's End)

4. I like bananas; bananas are good. You should always take a banana to a party. (Girl in the Fireplace)

5. It's "bigger on the inside" is what the Doctor always says when he shows his ship to people for the first time.

6. That sentence started out well, but it kind of got away from me. (Blink)

The three readers who got all six are: Joanne L, Maureen C and Karen Z. You're brilliant, you are! Readers who caught four are: Chris and Allison, Megan M, Beth C, Jacqueline T (Could this be Jackie Tyler?) and Joe W. Molto bene! Three seemed to be the magic number with Lisa R, Judith B, Erin R, Beth J, Sue V, Sandy M, George S, Sara E, Liz W, Aubrey C, and Julia S, who  each found three references, and Marc R and Maureen B each found two. Hope you had as much fun with this as I did!

Anita

That's it for this edition!

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