June 2016 Walt Disney World Bits and Bites

Feature Article

This article appeared in the May 31, 2016 Issue #871 of ALL EARS® (ISSN: 1533-0753)

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STEP BACK IN TIME
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by Debra Martin Koma
AllEars® Editor

We rummage around in our archives for this featurette, which indulges in a bit of nostalgia, taking you back in history for a glimpse of Walt Disney World and The Walt Disney Company through the ages. This month, we go back 15 years, to 2001, as the World was preparing to celebrate "100 Years of Magic," the 100th anniversary of Walt Disney's birth.

The 100 Years of Magic celebration was set to begin on October 1, 2001, and was to introduce new entertainment at all four theme parks, with the main focus at then-named Disney-MGM Studios. It was at this time that the park adopted the 12-story Sorcerer Mickey hat, installed in front of the Great Movie Ride attraction, as its icon. When the hat first debuted, it housed 100 Years of Magic interactive kiosks that let guests dig through a computerized treasure trove of information. Other additions launched in conjunction with the 100 Years of Magic celebration:

— For the first time ever, cherished memorabilia from the Disney archives and taped interviews with Walt Disney were to be open to the general public in Walt Disney: One Man's Dream, a multi-media tribute to Walt Disney, the man. Included in the display was to be Walt's working office from the Walt Disney Studios and a re-creation of the Project X Florida room where Walt Disney World Resort was first envisioned.

— Three theme parks were to introduce new parades (Share a Dream Come True in Magic Kingdom; Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade in Animal Kingdom; Stars and Motor Cars in the Studios) that incorporated the new Suite of Dreams music written especially for the 100 Years of Magic celebration.

— In the Magic Kingdom, a new Disney live entertainment extravaganza in the Cinderella Castle forecourt, Cinderella's Surprise Celebration, was to premiere.

— At Disney's Animal Kingdom, Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama! "mini-land" adjacent to DinoLand U.S.A. was set to open, featuring Triceratop Spin and Primeval Whirl.

— At the Disney-MGM Studios, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire – Play It! was to re-create the excitement of the hit ABC-TV game show, and Playhouse Disney was about to open with Bear in the Big Blue House, Rolie Polie Olie and other favorites from The Disney Channel.

There was a lot of special merchandise, of course, but one of my favorite things were the Magical Moments Pins. They were so high-tech at the time. There were five designs, one for each theme park and one exclusively for the 100 Years of Magic Celebration. They "magically" illuminated during parades, fireworks shows and select theme park attractions — the precursor to the "Made with Magic" ear hats and other items that are now programmed to light up along with the nighttime shows.

Originally set to last until the end of 2002, the 100 Years of Magic celebration was eventually extended to run through February 2003. Many elements of the celebration have vanished over the years, including the Sorcerer Hat icon, but there are some vestiges still remaining, most notably One Man's Dream and Chester & Hester's Dinorama.

Oh, and I still have my 100 Years of Magic Pin, even though it doesn't twinkle any more.

Do you have any special memories from the 100 Years of Magic celebration?

RELATED LINKS:

Sorcerer Mickey's Hat
Walt Disney: One Man's Dream
Share a Dream Come True Parade
Disney Stars and Motor Cars Parade
Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade
Tapestry of Dreams Parade

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HIDDEN MICKEYS ALERT
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Steve Barrett, author of the Hidden Mickeys books and webmaster of HiddenMickeyGuy.com, points out a few Hidden Images in and around the Walt Disney World Resort Hotels. If you stay on Disney property or visit one of the Disney Resorts, rest assured that Hidden Mickeys are right there in your hotel waiting to be found!

1. Saratoga Springs Resort. Across Disney Vacation Club Way road and opposite the entrance drive to the Treehouse Villas, three bushes on the golf course form a classic Mickey at the side of the golf cart path. (Thanks to Jason Gall.)

2. Caribbean Beach Resort. A group of three logs stuck in the ground forms a classic Mickey. Find the image in a border of logs along the lakeside walkway between Martinique Buildings 24 and 25. The Hidden Mickey is next to a recessed drain that faces and is adjacent to the lakeside walkway. (Thanks to Trisha Johnson.)

3. Contemporary Resort. At the upper middle of the wall mural facing Contempo Cafe, a girl in a blue and white dress is carrying orange and light purple round fruits in a basket on her head. In the basket, a light purple "head" and two smaller orange "ears" form a classic Mickey tilted to the left. (Thanks to John Anthony D'Alotto.)

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You can find a selection of past Hidden Mickey Alerts HERE.

And check out our latest Searching Disney with Steve blog.

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MONTHLY REMIND-EARS
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JUNE EVENTS

Disney's Hollywood Studios

The new Star Wars fireworks show at Disney's Hollywood Studios, "Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular," will debut on June 17.

Epcot

"Frozen Ever After" and the adjacent meet-and-greet Royal Sommerhus will open in Epcot on June 21. FastPass+ for the ride only is available now. (FP+ is not yet available for the meet-and-greet.) The Norway Pavilion will open at 9 a.m., along with the Future World area of Epcot.

Soarin' Around the World — The new show with new projection screens debuts June 17, 2016.

Disney Vacation Club Member Lounge is due to open upstairs in the Imagination pavilion on June 6. Get a sneak preview of the lounge, with photos and video, in Deb Wills' blog.

Magic Kingdom

Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire Castle Show premieres June 17, 2016.

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Check our revamped Events page for a full schedule of upcoming events.

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REHABS AND CLOSINGS

Disney's Hollywood Studios

Pizza Planet is closed for refurbishment until late 2016.

Epcot

House of Whispering Willows in the China Pavilion is closed for refurbishment through June 16, 2016.

Magic Kingdom

The Walt Disney World Resort Monorail System is undergoing refurbishment and may be on modified service and/or routes through June 2016. If you plan to use this form of transportation during your visit, check to be sure of the best option available, as alternative transportation options will be available.

Animal Kingdom Lodge

Jambo House Villas are undergoing a soft goods refurbishment from now through May 20, 2016. (Soft goods typically consist of design materials including bedding, wall, window and floor coverings and upholstery.)

BoardWalk Inn and Villas

BoardWalk Villas rooms are currently undergoing renovations.

The Garden Suites will be unavailable due to refurbishment between June 8 and July 12, 2016.

Flying Fish Cafe is closed through September 30, 2016, for an extensive refurbishment.

Caribbean Beach Resort

Trinidad Pool is closed for refurbishment through June 15, 2016.

Martinique Pool is closed for refurbishment through July 1, 2016.

Contemporary Resort

Bay Lake Tower is undergoing a soft goods refurbishment, which typically consists of replacing bedding, wall, window and floor coverings and upholstery. The refurbishment is expected to be completed by September 24, 2016.

Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground

Construction work is underway on Loop 2100 through July 2016.

Port Orleans Riverside

Routine roof maintenance is ongoing through Summer 2016. During this time guests may see work in progress.

Saratoga Springs

Treehouse Villas — A soft goods rehab runs through June 22, 2016.

The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin is currently undergoing the largest renovation in its 25-year history. The Swan rooms have been completed; the first phase of the Dolphin Hotel room renovations have just begun, with the entire room project currently scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017.

Wilderness Lodge and Villas at Wilderness Lodge

General resort refurbishments and construction work in multiple areas will continue until 2017. Some pathways and the nature trail will be unavailable at certain times.

Hidden Springs leisure pool, resort beach, playground and recreation fire pit are unavailable.

Cub's Den Children's Activity Center is closed now through 2017.

Disney Springs

Fulton's Crab House is closed for refurbishment. It is due to reopen in Fall 2016 with a new concept and name, Paddlefish.

Read HERE for more on Disney Springs.

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A complete list of known rehabs can be found HERE.

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MAGICAL MOMENTS
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Heart-warming Magical Moments brought to us by the amazing Disney cast members!

Nicole P .: My now-fiance and I got engaged on our last trip to Disney in December 2015. While the whole trip was magical, we had a special moment on Star Tours in Disney's Hollywood Studios. Due to an ankle injury, I was in a wheelchair during the trip and during Extra Magic Hours, the cast member instructed us to go through the regular entrance and line. When we arrived at the main part of the ride, a cast member was extremely upset and apologetic that we had to go through that line, and I had to get out of the chair so it could be folded and put through the turnstile. The cast member apologized profusely and then offered us a "private flight" for our troubles. After we rode the ride once, he came and got us, told us some of his favorite facts about the ride and then loaded us into a totally empty car, allowing us to sit right in the middle for our "private flight." We then rode Star Tours alone, he snapped a pic for us and we have one of our favorite Disney memories!

Barbara: My husband Gerald and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary at Walt Disney World in February 2015. One afternoon we went back to our room to rest and found a wonderful gift that my daughter had sent us for our anniversary. But to our surprise, the Polynesian Resort, where we were staying, had sent us a surprise as well. In a box laying on our bed was a circle of red carnations and a strand of banana leaves. The card wished us a Happy Anniversary and explained that the tradition was to intertwine the banana leaves with the circle of carnations as a symbol of love. It was the icing on top of the cake and made our trip even more magical. When I got home, I hung the wreath to dry and it has a special place in our curio cabinet. Disney really knows how to make special events even more special.

Chrissy C. : My hubby and I were in the Magic Kingdom with my 68-year-old mom in early February. We rented a motorized scooter for my mom, since she had just finished up chemo treatments for a recurrence of breast cancer and was still getting tired easily. Mom fell into conversation with Tiffany, the cast member helping her with her scooter. It turns out that Tiffany's aunt was going through chemo treatments herself. After a few minutes, Tiffany said she would be right back and returned with a little ticket book. She wrote out a ticket for us for a FastPass of our choosing and also one for my mom to get some popcorn. Tiffany gave my mom a big hug and we were all in tears! Even though we had been able to get other FastPasses for the day, we hadn't been able to get one for Peter Pan, which is one of my mom's favorites, so the FastPass Tiffany gave us was used for that! It really made the day extra magical!

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We just bet you have a story to tell about an unforgettable moment during your Disney vacation! Please send your favorite memory for inclusion in a future AllEars® to: allearsnet@yahoo.com Thank you all for sharing!

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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.