Once upon a time, a little girl made a special holiday wish, asking her father to cover their home in lights. Year after year, the light display grew more and more elaborate, until it grew too big for one neighborhood to handle! So the family took the magic to the happiest place on Earth!
The Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights dazzled guests to Disney’s Hollywood Studios from 1995 to 2015, bringing two decades of holiday joy to the (Disney) World. Today, we salute the history of Disney’s most iconic Holiday display!
If you’re not a die-hard Disneyphile, you’re probably wondering who this Osborne Family is. Surely the lead vocalist of Black Sabbath doesn’t like Christmas that much. That’s so off brand. Well (spoiler alert to 12-year old me), that’s the wrong Osborne family.
The Osborne family in question refers to Jennings Osborne, a Little Rock businessman who began decorating his house for the holidays in 1986. Over the ensuing years, the display grew more and more elaborate, until it incorporated millions of lights!
You can read his whole story (and our 2002 interview with him) here!
Known as the Spectacle of Dancing Lights, Osborne’s fantastic display would go on to cover the bulk of the Streets of America, transforming it into a fantasia of color and sound.
Periodically, the lights would “dance” to holiday songs played over a fictional radio station, while Disney characters would drop in during the breaks.
Over all, the display included…
- Five million lights.
- 32 miles of extension cables.
- 66 snow machines
- 100 gallons of snow fluid a night.
- 43 Hidden Mickeys
- Plenty of other Disney surprises!
Alas, when plans for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge placed Black Spire Outpost square in the heart of the Streets of America, the display’s nights were numbered. Since then, Sunset Seasons Greetings has replaced the Spectacle of Lights as Hollywood Studios’s evening display… but that doesn’t mean we haven’t given up hope. Perhaps, someday in the future, the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights will return in a new form, bringing joy and wonder to a new generation. Until then, like the ephemeral joy of a Christmas snowfall, we’ll have to be content with the memories.
Do you have a magical memory involving the Spectacle of Lights? Let us know in the comments!
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The Osborne lights were a must see favorite if our family as we have only done Disney during Christmas time. However, Silver Dollar City in Branson has a very similar looking newish display in their Christmas in Midtown area. I’ve heard they are the real deal Osborne Lights. We’ve seen them the last 3 years there!
They were a great thing to see and I also miss them. I still have some of the glasses they gave us to view them and see the angels.
Wow it’s been 5 years since it closed down. Great show. Unbelievable display. Sad it’s gone. Studios really has transformed. Haven’t been to Epcot with the new changes. Hope they didn’t make to many changes from the original layout
Makes me so sad, that we cannot be there during this most beautiful time of the year, enjoying The Osborne Spectaular Lights! Come back for everything to enjoy. There has to be some place they can be enjoyed!
Do you have any footage of the holiday lights before the Osborne lights? Back when they had that residential like neighborhood? Before the car show?