WDW Chronicles: Stories of The Great Movie Ride

by Jim Korkis
Disney Historian

Feature Article

This article appeared in the February 3, 2015 Issue #802 of ALL EARS® (ISSN: 1533-0753)

In November, it was announced that Turner Classic Movies would partner with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts to make changes in the Great Movie Ride and partner with Walt Disney Studios to offer a block of vintage Disney programming four to five times a year.

Initially, the changes to the signature attraction at Disney Hollywood Studios will be minor and will appear in early spring. Among the new elements will be a video in the queue featuring movie historian Robert Osborne who has been the "face" of TCM since the channel began in 1994. Also, the film montage that is the finale of the attraction will be redone once again.

The idea is to "inject TCM brand authority" into the ride, said Pola Changnon, vice president for brand creative and on-air promotions at TCM, and "pique the curiosity" of visitors, encouraging them to explore the world of classic film once they are home. TCM branding will be integrated into the attraction's marquee as well as banners, posters and display windows outside the attraction.

"We're looking at this as a strategic alliance that brings together two very strong brands, both with a core in the business of entertainment," said Carlos Castro, vice president for corporate alliances of Disney. The TV initiative "lets us share more classic Disney stories with TCM audiences," he said, and "the refresh of the Great Movie Ride" will "enhance the guest experience by showcasing TCM content and talent."

According to TCM executives, the agreement began with an administrative assistant, Amanda Tymeson, who returned from a visit to Walt Disney World and suggested "that TCM and Disney would be great partners" in revamping The Great Movie Ride. When the deal was finalized, Tymeson was promoted.

There has been some discussion that with the new TCM partnership Disney may eventually re-do or replace scenes in the attraction, but as of now some of the "hidden stories" of the ride will still be available when it reopens.

When it officially opened on May 1, 1989, former CEO Michael Eisner described what was then-called Disney-MGM Studios as "The Hollywood That Never Was But Always Will Be." The park was to be a representation of the Hollywood seen in the movies and on postcards and in fan magazines, not an actual geographical location, but a state of mind. At the time, the actual Hollywood was a fairly dangerous location and had fallen into a state of seediness.

However, in order to achieve that illusion of the Golden Age of Hollywood, there had to be some iconic landmarks that guests associated with that fabled location, including the legendary Grauman's Chinese Theater, a classic movie palace that was famous for its forecourt where movie stars left impressions of their handprints and footprints.

The Chinese Theater (Disney was not allowed to use the word "Grauman's") found at the Disney-MGM Studios was a full-scale reproduction of the original theater located in Hollywood at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard.

The Disney Imagineers used the original blueprints of the 1927 Meyer and Holler building for reference, and the facade was built to full scale, rather than the forced perspective of the other buildings in the park. One of the few adjustments was that the ticket booth that was in front of the original theater was moved to the side for the Disney version in order not to block the entrance.

The 22-ton central roof section was constructed separately and hoisted into place by crane as a finishing touch.

The plaque on the outside of the building says that the original theater opened in 1928. It actually opened in 1927 and some claim it is not a foolish mistake, but an intentional gag by the Imagineers because there is 1,928 feet of track in the attraction.

Of course, since the overall theme of the park was to be about classic movies, it was a natural choice to have the major attraction at the end of Hollywood Boulevard showcase those films.

While there was some contention that Disney knew of Universal Studios' plans to build a movie-themed attraction in Orlando, it is clear that Disney Imagineers already had an idea for a movie attraction before Eisner took the helm.

The Imagineers suggested a movie pavilion for Epcot to be located in the area between The Land and Imagination pavilions. One of the elements of that pavilion would have been a ride called "Great Movie Moments" that would have celebrated scenes from great Hollywood films.

One of the challenges facing Disney was that it had not produced classic live action films in the 1930s and 1940s that it could use to recreate the era. In 1985, Disney signed a contract with MGM/UA (United Artists) to use up to 250 films from its movie library.

Some series were considered so valuable on their own that they had to be negotiated separately, including "Wizard of Oz," "Singing in the Rain," "Gone With the Wind" and the James Bond films. That's why the final film montage has just seconds featuring Sean Connery as Bond and a room devoted to the tornado that carried little Dorothy to the land of Oz had to be redesigned to feature the storm from Disney's "Fantasia." It was too expensive to license these films, and the amount of money was tied to the length of time the material was shown.

In initial discussions, one of the ideas suggested for the attraction was to have live celebrity impersonators inside interacting with the guests. At the time, that was a common practice at some entertainment venues, including Universal Studios Hollywood, which had Mae West, Charlie Chaplin and W.C. Fields at its park. Wisely, it was decided that audio-animatronics figures would not only be more cost-effective, but would provide a more consistent show experience for guests.

However, using the likenesses of movie stars required licenses from the celebrities or their estates. Sometimes celebrities want to see themselves portrayed differently (e.g., taller, more hair, etc.) than they actually are so it makes things difficult.

Imagineers wined and dined Gene Kelly before showing him his doppelganger for the ride, and the result was that Kelly signed off immediately. (When the ride first debuted, Kelly's umbrella was open but the water occasionally splattered off of it and hit the guests.)

Actor James Cagney's family was unhappy with his attire in the gangster scene from his classic film "Public Enemy" (1931) so they gave the Imagineers Cagney's actual tuxedo so he would appear more "classy," they said. Also in the Cagney film, there was a bar named after the movie character bootlegger Patrick J. Ryan that is recreated in the attraction. The prop newspapers scattered around that cannot be seen clearly by the guests are actually copies of the local Florida paper, the Orlando Sentinel. The puddles on the ground are not liquid and often accumulate dust and need to be wiped during maintenance as do the "horse puddles" in the Western scene.

In addition, voices had to be licensed as well so sometimes other voices are used in the attraction.

John Wayne's voice was impersonated by actor Doug McClure. When he was alive, Wayne had heard McClure impersonating him and apparently approved of it. Liza Minnelli, the daughter of actress Judy Garland, supplies the voice for the character of Dorothy in the "Wizard of Oz" scene. Ingrid Bergman does not speak in the "Casablanca" scene because her family would not give permission to use her voice even though Bergman's grandchildren have been brought through the attraction several times to visit their grandmother.

By the way, actor Humphrey Bogart was shorter than Bergman in real life so his figure is taller in the attraction.

Some facts that were once true have changed. When the ride originally opened, the John Wayne figure did wear the real belt buckle that the actor wore in the movie "Red River" (1948). However, as soon as that information became public knowledge, it was stolen and a replica took its place.

The little band that the Wayne figure wears on his right hand was one that Wayne was given for good luck when he visited Vietnam, so the figure does indeed wear something authentic from the actor.

The cards on the floor by the Clint Eastwood figure originally had numbers on them, but during a rehab were changed out to cards with just the suits, which were more authentic to the time period. Eastwood's figure does not represent a specific scene from any of his films. The figure was a next-to-last-minute replacement for actor Lee Marvin, when his family refused to authorize his Oscar winning portrayal of a gunfighter sitting on a tipsy horse from the comedy "Cat Ballou" (1965).

Audio-animatronics figures play major roles in the attraction. The sheriff shooting at the bank robber from the balcony is actually the same figure used for President Thomas Jefferson from The Hall of Presidents.

Actress Maureen O'Sullivan who played Jane in the movie "Tarzan the Ape Man" (1932) did come to Orlando and got a picture taken with her audio animatronics double on the elephant. In the real film, they added larger ears to the elephant so it would appear to be an African elephant.

When her figure was built in California and ready to be shipped to Florida, it was wrapped in clear plastic and completely unclothed (since the clothes would be added when the figure was installed so that they would hang properly) and many people made unnecessary trips to the loading dock just to check it out.

The gangsters hiding to the left of the tram car in the gangster scene are named "Squint and Beans" and were created from the same molds as two buccaneers in the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.

Did it ever bother anyone that the costume on the skeleton in the temple that is burned resembles no costume that any of the Disney cast members wear either as the gangster, cowgirl or guide?

The Great Movie Ride is filled with even more wonderful stories. If TCM and Disney decide to update the scenes in the attraction, I wonder what films they might choose to replace the ones that currently entertain guests, but confuse younger generations who have never seen some of those classics. Do any readers of this column have any suggestions?

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RELATED LINKS
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The Great Movie Ride resource page

Disney Confirms Sorcerer's Hat is History

Sorcerer Hat Fact Page

Dinner with the Stars: Dining Event inside The Great Movie Ride

Other features from the Walt Disney World Chronicles series by Jim Korkis can be found in the AllEars® Archives.

Jim also writes for the AllEars® Guest Blog, contributing entries under the heading of "Jim's Attic."

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Disney Historian and regular AllEars® Columnist Jim Korkis has written hundreds of articles about all things Disney for more than three decades. As a former Walt Disney World cast member, his skills and historical knowledge were utilized by Disney Entertainment, Imagineering, Disney Design Group, Yellow Shoes Marketing, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Feature Animation Florida, Disney Institute, WDW Travel Company, Disney Vacation Club and many other departments.

He is the author of several books, available in both paperback and Kindle versions. You can purchase them via our AllEars.Net Amazon.com store HERE.

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Editor's Note: This story/information was accurate when it was published. Please be sure to confirm all current rates, information and other details before planning your trip.