Forgotten Disney

Carousel of Progress

Originally published in August-1-2015

Carousel of Progress

Lost DisneyWorld Attraction

There's a great, big, beautiful tomorrow. And tomorrow's just a dream away

The attraction debuted at the New York World's Fair as Progressland on April 22, 1964. After the fair, it was moved to Disneyland, where it opened in 1967 as the Carousel of Progress. It closed in 1973 and was relocated to Walt Disney World Resort, where it opened in 1975. The theater that it had been in at Disneyland became the location for "America Sings" (1974-1988). In 1988, that same building became "Innoventions", which used the theme "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" used in the updated version of the attraction. In 1993, it was renamed Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress, in honor of Walt.
The 50th anniversary of the attraction was on April 22, 2014. Portions of the feature film Tomorrowland were filmed here; the attraction was closed for one day so filming could begin there.

In the late 1950s, after Disneyland Park's initial success, Walt Disney planned to expand the Main Street, U.S.A. area with two districts: "International Street" and "Edison Square". In Edison Square, guests would be treated to a show hosted by an "electro-mechanical" man named "Wilbur K. Watt". The show would chronicle the evolution of electricity in the home, from the late 19th century to the present and beyond — showing how many electrical appliances, specifically GE appliances, have benefited American life. After each time period, or "act", was over, the audience would get up and walk to the next one.

However, the Main Street expansion idea fell by the wayside. One of the reasons for this was that the technology necessary to put on the show just was not up to par with what Walt Disney wanted. The idea, however, stayed in Disney's mind for the next few years. GE still wanted to work with Disney, but a better outlet was needed.

The attraction was reopened at Disneyland Park on July 2, 1967, as part of the New Tomorrowland. Due to the success of the attractions Disney created for the Fair, General Electric agreed to sponsor the Carousel of Progress at Disneyland. However, the Carousel of Progress was to be a permanent fixture at Disneyland, and it is unknown how many years General Electric would have sponsored the ride had it stayed there (presumably, 10–12 years, as many other sponsors throughout Disneyland Park have historically done).

The actual attraction was located on the ground level, and a new nearly identical theater system was constructed. The sets and "performers" all came right from the Fair itself and remained nearly original. There were some slight changes: a new voice was recorded for Mother, "Christmas in the Home of the 1960s" was slightly updated in set design and technology, all references to General Electric's passé "Medallion Home" campaign were dropped, and Father from "The Home of the 1940s" now sat on a bar stool, rather than on the kitchen nook bench.

After the show, guests boarded a speed ramp that would take them to the second level of the building. On the upper level, a 4-minute post-show, narrated by Mother and Father, with a few barks and growls from their dog, coincided with guests gazing at an enormous model of Progress City. Progress City was based on Walt Disney's original concept for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow or EPCOT and the Walt Disney World property.

As the 1970s rolled in, the attraction saw dwindling audiences. GE thought they were not getting the most for their advertising dollars, surmising that 80% of the people that saw the attraction were Californians, and had seen the same show over and over again. GE asked Disney to move the show to their new Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. The Disneyland show closed on September 9, 1973, and was packed up for Florida. The Progress City model was disassembled, but only portions of the center of it were re-assembled in Florida. These can be viewed from the People Mover as it travels through Stitch's Great Escape.

Disneyland soon incorporated The Carousel Theater into its plans to celebrate America's Bicentennial. The theater was filled with a new show in 1974 called "America Sings", a salute to American music. That closed in 1988, not to be replaced for ten years. The Disneyland version of Epcot's popular Innoventions exhibit opened with the New Tomorrowland in 1998, using a stylized rendition of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" as its theme song

The attraction was one of two that opened in the Magic Kingdom's Tomorrowland on January 15, 1975, the other attraction being Space Mountain. General Electric signed a 10-year contract to sponsor it at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. Unlike the small changes that had occurred when it moved from the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair to Disneyland, extensive changes were made when the attraction moved to Walt Disney World. While guests are still told to stay seated during the show, the reasons why are different now; while the reason was to prevent deaths (due to the Deborah Gail Stone incident with America Sings), it is now implemented to prevent injuries sustained from losing balance and falling. Also, eating and drinking are prohibited for similar reasons (as the platform's motion could cause a drink to spill or food to fly out of your hand), smoking is not permitted either (due to someone probably breathing in the smoke and coughing), and flash photography isn't permitted either (due to some people having sensitivity to intense flashes of light).

A new carousel theater building was designed to house the attraction: a one-story pavilion, with a loft above instead of a speed ramp and post-show areas. The loft was created so the Tomorrowland Transit Authority could pass above it. The interior and exterior of the building received new color schemes with blue and white stripes that grew smaller and larger as the building turned. Also, the theaters now rotated counterclockwise, rather than clockwise, like the two former theater systems.

The load and unload theaters no longer featured the stunning "Kaleidophonic Screens" that had dazzled guests as they boarded and exited their respective theater. The old screens had stretched from one wall to the other, with the giant GE logo in the center. They lit up in various colors and patterns like a kaleidoscope as the orchestral version of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" played. Various problems plagued the screens after 1973, so silver curtains with the GE logo in the center took their place in both the load and unload theaters with different colored lights shining on them.

The Florida version was planned with no post-show. Guests would load and unload on the first floor. The Progress City/EPCOT model was significantly sized down so it could fit in a window display that could be seen from the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover. This display is located on the left-hand side of the TTA track inside the north show building.

Because of the changing times, a new theme song, written by the Sherman Brothers, was created for the Florida show. GE asked them to write a new song because they did not want their customers to wait for a "great big beautiful tomorrow;" GE wanted them to buy appliances today, so a song titled "The Best Time Of Your Life," better known as "Now is the Time," was created. Although the song was still very peppy and positive, they still felt that "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was a better fit.

A new cast of voices and "performers" were showcased in the 1975 version, including actor Andrew Duggan as Father. The first three "acts" had some cosmetic and set design changes. The finale was changed to "New Years in the Home of the 1970s," and the dog also changed breed.

In 1981, the finale was updated to showcase "New Years in the Home of the 1980s." A new script was written for this scene change, but the rest of the show remained the same. The attraction closed briefly so that the changes could be implemented.

In 2016, the entire building received a cosmetic update. Gone are the gears and cogs painted on the walls, now the building has a streamlined look in the colors orange, blue, and magenta. The attraction also received a new entry sign and logo, or in this case old logo. The blueprint design made for "The Best Time Of Your Life" version of the show has been utilized as the new logo for the attraction. However, the gears in the first and sixth theaters of the attraction are still intact but are expected to be removed soon.

In 2017, a Tomorrowland cast member announced, via Twitter, that the attraction will receive a new script as well as new actors, with an unknown refurbishment date. However, the tweet has since been deleted so it is currently unknown if the revamped show is still under development.

Source: DisneyWiki

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September-26-2020 Update: Updated and changed chapter with added information.