Tag Archives: It’s a Small World

A Visit to the New York World’s Fair – Book From Disney History

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1964 World's Fair PlateTime for another post from our friend, Nick.  Regular visitors to this site already know how I’m connected to the 1964 World’s Fair – I was THERE!  Well…sort of.  See, my parents took my brother and sisters to the fair.  I was…under construction, so to speak, and wouldn’t make my debut until November, 1964.  Know what that means?  Yup, you guessed it – I arrived in the same year as legendary Disney classics like Carousel of Progress and It’s a Small World!  That makes this particular treasure in Nick’s collection especially meaningful to me…enjoy!

A Visit to the New York World’s Fair – Book From Disney History

by: Nick

Fans of all things Disney will no doubt know of the importance of the 1964 New York World’s Fair on the Disney Theme Parks. It is at this fair, for which Disney created 4 shows, that the “Audio-Animatronics” and “People Mover” ride systems were designed and perfected.
The fair opened 50 years ago, April 22nd.

When I saw this children’s book at the Flea Market a couple of years ago, I picked it up, curious to see if any of the Disney pavilions would be included.

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By Mary Pillsbury, illustrated by Catherine Barnes. Published by Spertus Publishing Company in 1964.

Lovely illustrations. Still trying to find some Disney.

And there it was, a piece of Disney history illustrated in this great book.

Ford Motors presented “Ford’s Magic Skyway” a WED (now Imagineering) designed pavilion. It included an early prototype of what would become the People Mover ride system. The ride moved the audience through scenes featuring life-sized audio-animatronic Dinosaurs and cavemen.

Indeed, the book even refers to this as “a Walt Disney wonderland of Past, Present and Future”.

These same Dinos can still be seen today in Disneyland’s Railroad Primeval World diorama.

But wait, there’s more!

Next came a look at “Small World”!

At the Pepsi Pavilion, “Pepsi Presents Walt Disney’s It’s a Small World – a Salute to UNICEF and the World’s Children” (whew!) was featured. I think we are all familiar with “It’s a Small World”, but if not, it features animated dolls representing the world’s children and animals, and a song by the Sherman Brothers which, if you’ve started to hum it will be stuck in your head all day now.

“In each country they passed, thanks to Walt Disney, they saw animated figures of children dressed in picturesque costumes-and there were even the right animals for each country!”

And how much did I pay for this little “time machine”? $1.00!

That Time We Got Stuck on It’s a Small World

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RM-Enjoying-Magic-KingdomSometimes I think I’m so cute and clever.  Those are the times I should be most aware of how life can sneak up on you and, well, kick you in the pants.  Not long ago, while Raymond and I were enjoying that blissful week alone at Walt Disney World, I had one of those moments.  In anticipation of our trip, I’d purchased a couple of limited edition Disney tee shirts.  They were the ones commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Carousel of Progress and It’s a Small World – since I was also celebrating being 50 years old in 2014…well, you can see how cute and clever I thought I was being.

On one of the days we’d be spending in the Magic Kingdom, I donned my new It’s a Small World shirt and thought it would be great to ride the ride…you know, wearing the shirt.  How wonderful!  Here’s what happened…

Begin flashback sequence now…..

RM-Main-Street-OctoberWe were having a really terrific day in spite of some bazaar goings-on when we first arrived at the park (an omen, perhaps?).  Main Street was looking gorgeous when we stopped by Starbuck’s for coffee and a bite to eat.RM-Main-Street-StarbucksWe headed over to Adventureland to hit our first attractions of the day.  That’s when we first noticed that Magic Kingdom was experiencing some technical difficulties, as was the My Disney Experience App – many rides were not running and the app actually showed every ride as “closed”.  RM-MDE-GlitchWe’d gone to ride Pirates and it was closed.  PhilharMagic? Closed.  Winnie the Pooh? Nope.  There were a bunch of angry people!  We weren’t among them though.  I have a motto, “When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping!”

We’d had plenty of Magic Kingdom time already the day before and would be coming back again later in the week, so we decided to jump on the monorail and see what was going on along the loop.  We’d hit the shops, see the sights, and make our way back to the Magic Kingdom later for our dinner at Be Our Guest.  Going with the flow was working great for us!

After we checked out everything at the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian, we decided we should go back and see if we could at least ride It’s a Small World before dinner on account of the special shirt I’d worn that day.  RM-Small-World-TeeWhen we got back, things were somewhat better (still no Pirates) so we found we had time to ride Peter Pan, see PhilharMagic, and YAY! ride It’s a Small World.  The line moved quickly and I was feeling pretty cute in my new tee.

That’s probably what did it – my feeling cute and clever.  We were sailing along in the front seat of our little boat while I was happily snapping pictures here and there.  RM-It's-a-small-world3 RM-It's-a-small-world1We got right to the far side of the blue room and the boat stopped.  Not a pause, the boat was dead in the water – along with all the other boats.  RM-Small-World-Carousel We were sitting with the honking geese directly to our right and that balloon that goes up and down with the clown in the basket on our left.  The automatic announcement came on that tells you that everything’s going to be fine in a moment.

I’m not scared of much – at least not the usual stuff.  Lizards, mice, snakes, bugs – those don’t phase me much.  If you hear me holler about a bug, it’s only because I don’t have anything at hand to squash it with and I don’t want it to get away.RM-Big-SnakeGetting stuck on It’s a Small World seems pretty innocuous, doesn’t it?  I don’t know what started freaking me out first.  It might have been the clown in the balloon going up and down and up and down or the geese that would not stop honking.RM-Small-World-Clown-BalloonIt might have been how the people behind us all started singing along with the ride’s well-know song.  I suspect it was the not automated announcements that did me in, but a cast member instead.  I’m sure she was just trying to help.

After the first auto-announcement, this female cast member’s voice came over the loud speaker and basically repeated the information from the first announcement.  At least in the beginning.  In reality, I’m guessing we were stuck on the ride somewhere between 8 and 10 minutes.  It seemed a lot longer because as that cast member made her announcements, she became increasingly frantic in her bid for guests to stay seated.  By the fourth or fifth time she made the announcement, she was sounding actually panicked, “PLEASE!!!  Remain in your boats!!!!”  Of course this made me suspect that we were never going to be rescued.  That, in fact, we would have to swim for our lives.  Perhaps she sounded so desperate because the exodus had already begun in another room?  RM-Small-World-GeeseThose geese were honking a warning…the clown would be climbing out of that balloon basket to commit unspeakable atrocities upon the unsuspecting passengers of the “Happiest cruise that ever sailed” and I’d be first because I was wearing the SHIRT!!!  This is what happens when you feel cute and clever!!!

Yes, you’re right.  Nothing bad happened.  Aside from my momentary clown-paranoia and homicidal thoughts towards both the announcer-girl and the singing people behind me, the boats finally moved on and we were able to enjoy our dinner at Be Our Guest.  Just in case though, I did not ride the Carousel of Progress on the day I wore that particular shirt.

What rides have YOU been stuck on?

 

It’s a Small World, Carousel of Progress, and Me

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1964 World's Fair PlateI’m proud to say that It’s a Small World, the Carousel of Progress and I all made our debuts in 1964.  While, technically speaking, I did not attend the New York World’s Fair – my mom took me there (sort of, I was due to arrive later in the year) along with my dad, brother, and two sisters.  I’m sure the wonder and excitement of the fair exhibits helped distract my folks from the (shocking?) fact that they’d soon be starting over, welcoming a fourth child into the family when their three other children were 9, 10, and 13 – but I digress.

The fair made a big impression on my family.  My mom talked about it from time to time often over the years and my sister still has a gorgeous souvenir plate and clearly remembers experiencing It’s a Small World at the fair.  Walt Disney’s influence was huge!  Four of the fair’s exhibits had a tremendous impact on the future of Disneyland and Walt Disney World.  Today’s Disney vacations would not be the same had Walt Disney’s Imagineering wonders not had the sponsorship and presence in New York in 1964.

 “Pepsi Presents Walt Disney’s ‘It’s a Small World'” – a Salute to UNICEF and the World’s Dolls from It's a Small WorldChildren” – This boat ride around the world to the Sherman Brothers’ famous tune delighted visitors.  All the dolls had the same face and they played and sang as they promoted international unity.

In a ride design that would later become the People Mover, Ford’s Magic Skyway was designed by WED Imagineering.  Motorless Ford convertibles moved along a track and took visitors past displays depicting animatronic dinosaurs and cavemen.  So much of this exhibit would become future attractions!

The future Hall of Presidents was started with the World’s Fair’s “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln” in the Illinois pavilion.  Royal Dano provided the voice for Honest Abe as he recited Mr. Lincoln’s famous speeches.

“There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” – also by the Sherman Brothers, was the theme song for General Electric’s Progressland.  Inside the Carousel of Progress, visitors followed along as the progress of electricity in the family home was demonstrated by animatronic figures.

The marvelous wonders on display at the fair had staying power!  Clearly Walt Disney thought a great deal about what he had seen and learned from the experience – Epcot Center was originally built to showcase much of the same types of attractions and exhibits as the World’s Fair, which focused on the future of technology in daily life.  The fair also had a “World Showcase” of sorts featuring many countries including Spain, Vatican City, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Pakistan, Thailand, Philippines, Austria, Greece, Japan, Mexico and more! The fair’s “Unisphere” looks very much like the globe we see in “Illuminations, Reflections of Earth”.

Recently, the New York Times published a great look back.  Fifty Years After the New York World’s Fair, Recalling a Vision of the Future.

Did you or your family attend the 1964 New York World’s Fair?  What memories or souvenirs do you (or they) have?

Disney World’s It’s a Small World!

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IMG_2544It’s a Small World! If you’ve not had the pleasure (maybe pleasure is the wrong word, depends on your taste in Disney rides) of experiencing It’s a Small World, you really need to add it to your bucket list! Okay, okay!  I’m joking. You might not want to add it to your bucket list, but if you happen to be in the neighborhood (Magic Kingdom, Fantasyland), do drop in for this little 11-minute boat trip around the world

The line moves quickly, the boat-boarding area is detailed and
ornate – lots to look at and, if you happen to be there at the right time, the clock opens up and does this clock thing which is kind of cool. There’s no minimum height requirement, soIMG_2543 anybody, any age can ride. And it’s a classic – opened with the park in 1971 but actually dates back to a 1964 New York World’s Fair exhibit. Originally designed by artist Mary Blair (think mural in the Contemporary lobby and the Five Legged Goat!!), the entire ride exhibits an amazing use of shapes and color. If sugary sweet cuteness is your thing, this is your ride.

Warning: It may actually be possible to overdose on adorable. If you’re not into singing children or if, perhaps, you’re hiding a fear of dolls and/or clowns – try to tough it out. Be brave. You only need to ride it once to IMG_2566experience this one irrefutable, undeniable thing as you drift through It’s a Small World in your little boat: Floor to ceiling, there are thousands of moving parts in this tunnel of toys – and they’re all singing.  You cannot deny that a tremendous amount of craftsmanship and attention to detail was required to produce hundreds of small people, animals, vehicles and buildings to represent all the continents and cultures around the world. And if, after you’re through, you catch yourself singing a certain catchy tune for the rest of the day….an added bonus!
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So, what do you think about It’s a Small World.  Is it really “the happiest cruise that ever sailed”?