One man's observations today about the worlds of Yesterday, Tomorrow, and Fantasy.
WDW:
Yesterday I went on and on about the Disneyland Railroad. Today we complete our journey and take a ride on the Walt Disney World Grand Circle Tour.
The Walt Disney World Railroad in the Magic Kingdom makes a 1.5-mile journey around the park and stops at three stations – the elegant Main Street Station, the rustic Frontierland Station, and the budget “what were they thinking” Toontown Fair station.
The Magic Kingdom had different design considerations than Disneyland. The designers felt they needed more powerful and larger trains. They also didn’t want to repeat building locomotives from scratch like they did with the first two locomotives at Disneyland. As luck would have it, Walt’s passion for trains paid off for the guys building the Magic Kingdom.
I highly recommend the book “Walt Disney’s Railroad Story” for those who want an overload of data. The book tells the story of how the four locomotives share common roots. One day a train enthusiast got in contact with the Disney organization. He mentioned he just happened to own a bunch of railroad equipment in Yucatan, Mexico. Would Disney be interested in buying the entire line?
What they discovered was this guy owned the UdeY – United Railways of Yucatan. The Mexican government was providing incentives for railroads to upgrade to diesel-electric locomotives and this guy had a few steam locomotives looking for a new life.
Just imagine. Once upon a time the Walter E. Disney, Lilly Belle, Roger E. Broggie, and Roy O. Disney pulled hemp through the jungles to the port of Progreso and now they pull 1.5 million people a year around the Magic Kingdom.
The Baldwin narrow gauge locomotives were built between 1916 and 1928 and the passenger cars are “excursion” cars with all of the seats facing forward. So let’s take a trip on the Walt Disney World Railroad. Maybe you can be a “junior” conductor and ride on the rear deck.
The Main Street Station is full of details and it is worth the time to look around. You leave the Main Street station and it seems like forever before you move beyond the backstage areas. You go through Splash Mountain and that song will be with you for the rest of the ride. The wood platform in Frontierland is squeezed between Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. A treat is the ability to really study the flood scene that flashes by while on the rollercoaster.
The train rolls through Florida’s forests with many trees down from various hurricanes. For some reason Pochohantas is paying a visit with the nearby “friendly” Indians. Talk about synergy. There is not a lot of magic floating in the flood control stream to the left. And very few quality views to the right.
As you pull up to the very lame Toontown Fair station, you have a chance to visit one of the great spots in the Magic Kingdom. There is a little path between Toontown Fair and Tomorrowland that winds along the railroad tracks. You can get a terrific view of the trains as they puff and pull up the 2% grade and pass by Space Mountain. This hidden treasure is the path less traveled and well worth it.
Past Space Mountain you get a glimpse of the two towers at the Contemporary resort. Back to the Main Street station. I am left wondering, is that it? Where is the payoff? What happened to the climax like the Grand Canyon or Primeavl World? It is just a transportation device with a few props tossed out to keep you looking.
I love the steam trains but the winner is easy.
DISNEYLAND:
In my opinion, a principle reason why Walt built Disneyland in the first place was he wanted a bigger train.
Some say it all started when Walt attended a party hosted by Ward Kimball. Ward was a brilliant animator and one of Walt’s famous Nine Old Men. Well he just happened to own and operated the Grizzly Flats narrow gauge steam train and ran it in his backyard in San Gabriel.
Ward was brilliant. From what I have read he seemed like one of the smartest guys at the Walt Disney Company. He is best known for his animation of Jiminy Cricket, the Mad Hatter, and the Cheshire Cat among others. His Man in Space segments for the Disneyland TV show were so compelling President Eisenhower used them to build support for the American space program. One of my favorites is his band, the Firehouse Five Plus Two, and their version of the Mineburg Joys is what you hear as you exit the Mark Twain.
The party was an opportunity for Ward to fire up the boiler and run it along the 800’ of track. Walt had always loved trains since childhood. Once Walt started to play with Ward’s train he was hooked. Ward was the guy who got Walt hooked on trains. When Walt and Ward went to the 1948 Chicago Railroad Fair they had access to everything and they took full advantage. After the fair, they visited the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. Walt bought and installed a 1/8th scale live steamer called the Carolwood Pacific Railroad in his backyard in Holmby Hills. This got Walt thinking.
Back to Disneyland.
For Walt, the Disneyland Railroad was the starting point for everything. It was the first attraction that was a must on the list. The park would be defined within its boundaries. In every scheme he considered the train was a central part. He loved the Disneyland trains so much he owned them outright and operated them through his own company called Retlaw.
Every Magic Kingdom around the world has a steam locomotive.
Disneyland features five bio-diesel powered locomotives. They are scaled to 5/8th of standard gauge. The effect is to make the trains small enough to be friendly and approachable but powerful enough to do the job. The Walt Disney World trains and the steam locomotive at Knott’s Berry Farm are much larger.
The C.K. Holiday (Engine 1) and the E.P. Ripley (Engine 2) were built specifically for the park. Both are just super-sized versions of Walt’s backyard train, The Lilly Belle. Roger Broggie, considered to be the first Imagineer, took Walt’s blueprints and changed the scale from 1/8th to 5/8th. Want to show off? Since the trains are identical, you can tell the difference by looking at the smokestacks. The Holiday is typical of a wood burning locomotive and has a big round smokestack. The Ripley is the city version and the coal burning smokestack is just a cylinder.
Over the years, Disneyland added three more locomotives: the Fred Gurley (Engine 3 built in 1895), Ernest S. Marsh (Engine 4 built in 1925), and the Ward Kimball (Engine 5 built in 1902).
Disneyland features two styles of passenger cars. The forward facing “excursion” cars can suck up huge crowds. The right-facing “holidays” cars are my preference because everything is to the right.
This introduction makes me nostalgic for a ride. Let’s take the 1.5-mile round-trip okay?
Wave goodbye to the people you don’t know as you cross the tunnel and leave the Main Street station. As you enter Adventureland you might see an antelope from the Jungle Cruise high up on the berm. It is fun to spot the same critter while taking the Jungle Cruise.
When the train is stopped at the New Orleans Square station there are a couple of little gems. Listen for the loud party in the hotel toward the end of the train. At the train station you can hear the Disneyland dedication speech being tapped out on the landline. This is also the location where they change crews, fill the water tank, and blow down the boiler. The best train geek viewing spot is the Haunted Mansion Fastpass area.
Here is a good trick if you have to wait at the New Orleans Square Station. Look for a signal across the tracks toward the tunnel. When the arm moves the train will have just left the Main Street station. You can turn to your guests and say, “here comes the train” and by the time you are finished the announcement will have been made and the train will appear. Freaks ‘em out every time.
Past the people eating at the Hungry Bear Restaurant and watch out for the Mark Twain. When the train is running along side the Mark Twain the two sing along with each other. Be sure to nod to Chief Waves-a-lot. Okay movie trivia question. Once past the River, look along the ground and you will spot a doghouse with the name Indiana stamped on it. What is this in reference to? One other odd fact is the original roundhouse used to connect right about here.
The Toontown Station is a copy of the old Frontierland station (across the tracks in New Orleans Square) but “toon” style. As you roll past Rolly Crump’s beautiful “it’s a small world building” façade you might spot the Roundhouse on the left. This is where they park and service the trains and monorails.
Most people miss the “Agra-Future” sign at the entrance of Tomorrowland. It is there to remind you that most of the plants in Tomorrowland are edible. The Tomorrowland station is one of the most historic buildings in the park. It is original. Oh sure it has been repainted and different signs installed out front. But it is the same structure since 1958. That was the same year the Grand Canyon Diorama opened.
The Grand Canyon Diorama was really an excuse to hide the administration building backstage. Just beyond the Grand Canyon we get to see survivors of the 1964-1965 New York Worlds Fair. The dinosaurs were part of the Ford Magic Skyway pavilion. The other refugees include Mr. Lincoln; it’s a small world and the Carousel of Progress. The dinos have been repainted according to the latest theories. The one-two punch of the Grand Canyon and the Primeval World is an appropriate finale for the Grand Circle tour.
Once out of the tunnel, listen carefully and you may hear dogs barking. Just below is the kennel.
Long segment I know, Come back tomorrow and I will take you on a tour of the Walt Disney World Railroad.
DISNEYLAND: Once upon a time, Disneyland's Tomorrowland was a whir of vehicles in motion with purpose through a gleaming white optimistic vision of the future. High above all of this, the Rocket Jets gracefully floated on their circular ballet.
Then we got the Astro-Orbitor in 1998.
Somebody got all hopped up with the look of Discoveryland in Disneyland Paris that they decided this would be cool here in Anaheim.
All this kinetic motion stuff spinning everywhere. Until it broke and doesn’t spin. But that is the least of the sins. They moved it from on top of the PeopleMover (and got rid of that wonderful ride – even better than the TTA the way it wound in and out of the Monorail path – how sad – another story). They plunked in down right in front of the Tomorrowland entrance and then made that area even less functional but a bunch of Devil’s Postpile rocks lay on their sides constricting the area. And then they tossed in the overflow line for Buzz and those *$)DKS pixies in a teacup. What replaced the Astro Orbitor/Rocket Jets/Astro Jets? A bunch of used satellite antennas, which dance to music from Space Mountain in Paris and Rocketman every fifteen minutes when they are working.
WDW: First, it is called the Astro Orbiter. Since it came before the one in California, I guess Disneyland has it wrong. Or is it than darn park in Paris making a difference again?
It is on top of the TTA platform. It is only accessible by waiting forever only to be stuffed into a gantry with a dozen or so new friends. Then you wait in a queue that a cow would recognize. Your turn. Buckle up. Pull the lever back. Up you go. 70’. Wonderful. This is where this attraction should be.
Last week I got a comment from St. Chris who made a great suggestion. I mention Dumbo during the fireworks. St. Chris suggest riding the Astro Orbitor during the fireworks. I think that is an excellent idea and I will be putting that on the list of things to do. Thanks.
WINNER: WDW – Magic Kingdom
SHRUNKEN NED’S RULES FOR GOOD HEALTH
A) Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head.
B) Get Plenty of Sleep, Especially At Work.
For me, urban design is the process of creating places and policies that lead to environments that are alive, respect people, and have meaning. This series is where my interest in the Disney parks collides with my professional curiosity as an urban planner. Last week our trip to the Magic Kingdom began in the Transportation and Ticket Center parking lot and ended up in the plaza in front of the Train Depot. In this article we will venture under the tracks and walk right up to Cinderella Castle. Notice how wide and deep the tunnels are on both sides of the giant Mickey planting. Their purpose is to add to the cinematic experience by acting like movie theater curtains. They provide a clever physical transition from the point the lights are on (the courtyard) to the main show (Main Street USA). Your reward, once you have to passed through the portal, is the full impact of an immersive environment unlike any other. You have made it through the tunnel. Welcome to Town Square. Be sure you take a moment and say hello and thank you to Roy Disney. He is sitting with Minnie. This would not have happened without him. Walt Disney World's Main Street is a bit fancier than Disneyland's. It feels like a much wealthier city and has a lot more east coast influences as would be appropriate. The overall scale is larger as well. If both were model train sets the Magic Kingdom would be HO scale and Disneyland would feel like a N scale. Town Square functions as the civic center. To the left is the City Hall and nearby is a fire station and a real functioning barbershop. Like every other Disney theme park, Guest Services is on the left hand side. One thing I love about the Magic Kingdom’s Main Street USA is the real barbershop. Okay, quick story. I was visiting a few years back and waiting along the wall for the rope drop. I bumped into a local man who visits every six weeks to get his haircut. That is his regular barber. I asked if he felt guilty bumping some kid from his first haircut and he suggested if the kid couldn’t run fast enough it wasn’t his problem. In addition to the Civic functions you have stores. The Emporium dominates the west side corner. Stores and restaurants plus the full-scale Exposition Hall fill out the east side. The scale of Exposition Hall was determined because they needed to block the view of the Contemporary Hotel off in the distance. Touring tip. Inside Exposition Hall is a wonderful air-conditioned theater with Mickey shorts, a history of cameras, other left over kind of stuff that I love. Plus there is a terrific camera shot opportunity area with props. As we walk down Main Street, I will highlight three of the design tricks that enhance the experience – the “wienie”, the hub-and-spoke, and the use of scale. One design pattern that is used throughout the Disney theme parks is what urban designers call the view terminus. This pattern at the end of major streets has been used in Chicago with the Board of Trade Building, New York with the Met Life Building, and in nature in Yosemite with Half Dome. In Disneyspeak this is better known as the “wienie”. A wienie is a feature placed on a distant spot to add character or to provide a memorable element as a tool for orientation. The Train Depot and the castle spires during the entry experience are good examples. Walt came up with term wienie because he needed a “beckoning hand” to draw people through the park. John Hench wrote that this “beckoning hand” suggests, “Come this way. You’ll have a good time”. Being a big fan of corn dogs himself, Walt new that a wienie could not be resisted. The most significant wienie in the Magic Kingdom is Cinderella Castle. Its spires are the first thing you see when coming to the park and it is the one design element that is visible virtually throughout the park. The height works as a wayfinding tool. Wherever you are you can find the middle and the exit. The castle draws the viewer toward the next marvelous organizing element – the hub and spoke. In front of the castle is a large circular open space called the Hub. At the north edge of the Hub is the castle. The benefit of having such a strong center element was Walt’s way of dealing with a problem he called “museum feet”. He described the feeling when “the ache of having walked too much just to get through the place” made the visit unpleasant. To avoid “museum feet” he laid the park out like a bicycle wheel. This pattern is called a “hub-and-spoke” and is meant to always bring people back to a familiar common point. At the Magic Kingdom, the hub is the Central Plaza right in front of the castle. The paths to the different lands radiate out from this center like the spokes of the wheel. Each land has its own visible wienie, which draws you deeper into the park and helps the operators spread out the crowds. I will talk about each land unique "wienie" when we get there. I will also highlight other design details that enhance and embellish the stories the Imagineers are trying to tell. The third cinematic trick is the use of forced perspective. John Hench defines forced perspective as “a form of one-point linear perspective in which receding space is compressed by exaggerating the proximity of the implied vanishing point to the viewer”. Force perspective is the design pattern that gives the buildings the appearance of greater height. This design pattern is even more prominent throughout Disneyland because of the park's smaller size. Remember when I mentioned how the Magic Kingdoms was a blend of a movie going experience and a scale model train set? Virtually all of the buildings in the Magic Kingdom are not built to actual scale. On Main Street USA the Exposition Hall and the Train Depot are the only exceptions. I mentioned the reason for Exposition Hall. The Train Depot convinces your brain that the exit isn't all that far away at the end of the day. The designers had the flexibility to use the scale that best helps advance the story. For example, the first-floor facades are built approximately 90% of full size. The second floor is 80% of full size and the upper floors are even smaller. The storefront windows are lower than usual so that children have better access viewing the displays. The use of forced perspective is what makes the Main Street USA buildings seem taller than they really are and the Castle seem farther away then it really is. It is used to slow you down on the way home for a bit more shopping since the train station seems closer. These optical illusions trick your mind and your feet. Brilliant. Watch for these design patterns as the reoccur through the Magic Kingdom, Disneyland, and many of the other Disney theme parks. |
