Yesterworld: The History of The Carousel of Progress (Disney Attraction Evolution)

this episode of yester world is sponsored by Verve with Verve you can watch all of your favorite Nickelodeon shows of the past and now with boomerang they have all of your favorite classic cartoons of the past - stay tuned after the video to learn more and to start your ad free 30-day trial of Verve premium check out the link in the description or go to vrv co slash yester world in April of 1964 the Kairosoft progress made its debut at the New York World's Fair to relocations in over fifty years later it now stands as technically Magic Kingdom's oldest attraction however much like the show's theme of progress a lot has changed over the years so let's explore the evolution of Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress [Music] [Music] though you might think the evolution of the carousel progress begins with the New York World's Fair it actually goes back a decade earlier with the unbuilt land of Edison Square a while back I explored the subject in detail for a previous episode and since this is already going to be a pretty long video I'm gonna do my best to summarize it and just under a minute much like the unbuilt Liberty Street Edison Square was one of the early planned expansions for Disneyland and within this new land was to be a signature attraction General Electric's harnessing the Lightning the show was to feature a cast of electromechanical personalities telling the story of the advancement of technology through a four act structure the days of pre electricity the early days of electricity the present day in terms of when the attraction was to open and finally 19 blank a as an unspecified future and the show would have ended with an epilogue in the form of a GE product showcase but remember this was still around 1957 in these electromechanical personalities aka human-like animatronics were still a ways off this combined with GES 1960 legal troubles that included 50 million dollars in damages jail sentences for managers and others fleeing the country led to the project being put on indefinite hold however as an effort to restore their reputation with the public around 1963 General Electric approached Walt Disney to collaborate on a pavilion for the New York World's Fair [Music] this really was perfect timing as the Tiki room had recently showcased audio-animatronics and a human version was being developed for Disneyland's ultimately unrealized Hall of president show so taking many of the ideas and concepts for harnessing the Lightning the attraction was reworked into the Carousel of Progress and much like it's a small world which also debuted the fair Walt Disney enlisted the help of the Sherman Brothers for a catchy new theme though karasov progress was just one of the many experiences at Gigi's progress land it was by far the most popular among visitors once inside the theater a beautifully animated kaleidoscope style curtain mesmerized visitors you might even notice the host who was seated next to a control box though as to just how much the show is automated is debated after an introduction the theater evolved in a clockwise direction to Act one and what's interesting is that one test footage from Wed the first duck took place between 1880 and 1900 this was changed by the time it debuted the fair which reflected the edison square proposal is it oh just before the turn of the century after father talked about all the latest innovations scene one showed mother and young daughter washing laundry and while the scene wouldn't change much visually over the years it did have one exception now mother has time for recreations like this like caning and polishing the stove okay mother you just ironed the wrinkles out of my shirt yes dear scene 2 showed at the time the voiceless Sun using a brand new invention the air suction vacuum cleaner scene 3 showed granny listening to what's referred to as a talking box and in scene 4 daughter was seen getting ready for a trolley party the second act took place in 1920 where much like harnessing the lightning the scene featured the many wires for early electronic devices and the first scene of the second act had mother yet again doing the laundry now it's no problem at all to get my collar smooth right mother yes dear for scene to the grand father and son listen to a phonograph with the grandfather using what at the time was called a crystal set radio receiver in the third scene daughter was in a room and was told to go to bed which a voice found odd since it has very little to do with electricity and is absent from all the Edison square and karasov progress concept art but this wasn't the case for the fourth scene in which you met cousin Orville as his presence dates all the way back to the original harness the lightning proposals speaking of Edison square though its third octave place during the present day of the attractions planned opening this one took place in the 1940s it's also really the only act that's completely different from how it appears in both concept art for harnessing the lightning and the carousel progress now we're in the frantic forties and it's amazing how today's household appliances are helping to take over the hard work the first scene in act 2 showed Graham and Grandpa having taken over the den with a combination radio record player unit in scene 2 mother was seen working on the rumpus room with scene 3 showing daughter working out on whatever those things are called the forth scene showed the kids watching a brand new television set and if the kid looks familiar he later appear in space mountains home of the living but I'm getting ahead of myself finally came act 4 which took place during the Christmas season of the 1960s where mother and father sat on a couch talking about all the latest inventions though it's worth noting that while Edison swears version took place in the future the setting of the New York penthouse remained the same but what's really interesting is that it seems for a brief time there was a third character in the scene but he or she was replaced by a cat at some point you're probably wondering what happened to Grandma and Grandpa well they're no longer with us don't worry this was just a joke they have their own home now in a community for senior citizens after the curtains closed visitors were directed to a ramp that took them up to the building 2nd floor here you could find other experiences like the sky dome the first public display of thermal nuclear fission and a showcase of GE products of the present and future as I mentioned earlier the carousel progress was incredibly popular so popular that it was decided to bring the show to Disneyland and GE would stay as its sponsor however this wasn't just a simple addition but part of a major facelift for Tomorrowland you see when Disneyland first opened Tomorrowland was far from the futuristic land Walt Disney had originally envisioned and it was so behind schedule that the iconic rocket was installed only days before opening and while this literally has nothing to do with the story I wanted to point out this really cool footage of Walt Disney riding a bike when smaller land was under construction so alongside other new attractions like the People Mover and adventure through inner space the Carousel of Progress seemed like a perfect fit as far as where to put it it was decided to use the location at the time home to the space bar restaurant in Tomorrowland closed for construction in October of 1966 and while the carousel theater itself would see a few alterations in size and engineering by and large it remained the same this scale model represents more than five acres of new attractions in Tomorrowland inside these buildings are shows and exhibits presented by half a dozen of America's leading companies slated for 1967 visitors eagerly awaited the grand opening of new Tomorrowland and Walt Disney often visited the construction site during the first month or so around the same time he also filmed the introduction to the florida project in which he proposed his experimental prototype community of tomorrow this would take physical form as a large model to be housed in the second floor of the show building for the Carousel of Progress but sadly Walt Disney wouldn't live to see the realization of his new Tomorrowland as he tragically passed away before the end of the year and though his idea for a community of tomorrow is originally envisioned pretty much ended with his passing the team would still finish the model in his honor and it wasn't long before construction on the carousel progress continued and opened alongside new Tomorrowland in July of 1967 one of the hit shows of the New York World's Fair is now in its new home in tomorrow the Carousel of Progress for Disneyland's version the animatronics were given a cosmetic update most notably father in the dog who were repositioned for the various acts of the show as well as a few of the onstage props and Mulder would also receive a new appearance and new voiceover the final scene featured the biggest change as an addition to a redesign set behind mother and father it was now a backdrop of Epcot this is also how you can tell the difference between the World's Fair and Disneyland version another change is a bit of a mystery as well these were taken at the Carousel of Progress I've yet to find a single photo providing any context as to where they might have been Merry Christmas Merry Christmas [Applause] much like the World's Fair version after the show visitors took a ramp up to the second floor only here it was to view the incredible model of Walt Disney's Epcot you can also view this by writing the people mover but it seems the only footage of this was in the Tomorrowland 1967 TV special realistic to the smallest detail this animated model is a living blueprint of new ideas and systems for future cities but now let's fast forward to around 1972 as but this point the Magic Kingdom had recently opened as Disney's second theme park it was also around this time that evidently GE did a study and found that eighty percent of the visitors that saw the Carousel of Progress were Anaheim locals and repeat visitors and for a company whose stake in the attraction was purely a financial one they saw this as a poor return on their investment so they asked his knee to move the attraction to their brand new theme park in Florida to gain exposure to a new audience and in return they'd sign a new 10-year contract interestingly early blueprints for the Magic Kingdom indicate they wanted to build a version of the carousel progress there anyway so 1973 Disneyland carousel progress was closed and was soon replaced by a new show by the name of America sings eagle Sam takes guests on a tour of our nation's musical heritage with stops in four eras the down-home setting of the early South the adventurous life of the Old West the fast living days of the gay 90's and a and renditions of modern times construction on the new carousel began in 1974 and was built alongside Space Mountain in the wet way people mover both of which would open in January of 1975 however as part of GES new contract was the removal of the Sherman Brothers great big beautiful tomorrow as allegedly Gees president wanted visitors to focus on the products of now rather than the products of tomorrow so the musical duo wrote a new theme the best time of your life for this version the script was given a rewrite and all the voice actors were recast including the replacement of Rex Elena's father by Andrew Duggan also while the previously mentioned kaleidoscope curtains may have been a sight to behold for visitors they were a headache for maintenance so in their place were a set of generic silver curtains the theater would also now revolve an ax counter clockwise direction instead of clockwise the first major change could be seen in the first scene of act 1 where the son who previously was vacuuming was now looking at his father stereoscope another change was in act 2 in which mother was promoted from doing father's laundry to embroidery mother now has time to enjoy her embroidery in the cool of the evening right mother yes dear though the rest of X you remain the same visually father and daughter now had a new exchange I'm also getting a little static from my daughter I don't see any harm and my looking for a job daddy it's a man's world out there Jane well it won't always be father oh yeah and for some reason the dog's name was changed from Buster to Queenie along with the scrapping of the original gag in which the dog was constantly interrupting Rover mind your manners cut that out buster report in act 3 father was again repositioned this time behind a table and evidently in this version it was decided that gram and Grandpa would steal the kids television as well they still took over the den and now had their TV set for the second scene mother remodeling for the rumpus room was changed to their son working on a model airplane which was actually based on a piece of original unused concept art scene 3 still had daughter working out on whatever those things are called and in the fourth scene the kids watching TV were replaced by mother working on the rumpus room of course the most drastic visual change from Disneyland's version was the final scene which now featured the entire family celebrating New Year's Eve in the 1970s in this completely new scene father worked on his traditional New Year's chili mother talks about her work as an activist and grandma makes a joke eventually the family turns on the New Year celebration on TV which takes place where else but at the Magic Kingdom the scene also really really beat the audience over the head with the new theme song [Music] when I get the time living through it Vanessa yes this is the best time every day of the year can be the best time of your life [Music] now unlike Disneyland's version this one did not have a second floor with a view of the Epcot model instead the model was relocated to a display aboard the brand new weds way people mover but sadly only a fraction of the original model was kept intact as to where the rest wound up it's a bit of a mystery the Carousel of Progress went mostly unchanged for almost a decade but in the early 80s several of the voice actors were changed and the final scene was given another update the scene was read of the 1970s home design and updated with a more modern look with a flat-screen TV a computer and wardrobe changes for the entire family and a new plug for the Magic Kingdom oh yeah and father's traditional New Year's Eve chili was changed to omelets however by 1985 GES contract expired and they opted not to renew which meant a redesign of the attractions logo and the removal of all the GE references but supposedly they did continue to support the attraction until around 1992 by which time the 1980s references were edited out and the computer in the final scene was updated as well the next big change to the attraction came in 1993 when Magic Kingdom's Tomorrowland was preparing for another makeover now I've already talked plenty about the history controversy and disappointment of Disneyland and Magic Kingdom's new Tomorrowland compared to what was originally planned at least but what I haven't touched on is just how close the Carousel of Progress came to being closed forever looking at early development plan showed a new flying saucers attraction set to replace the carousel show building but allegedly for budgetary reasons yes budgetary reasons this was scrapped as the cheaper option was to just give carousel progress and update however this one by far had the most drastic changes to the attraction since its original debut and was fittingly rebranded as Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress this version also saw the return of its a great big beautiful tomorrow with the best time of your life becoming part of the music for new Tomorrowland now if you're like me this fact is totally blew your mind so here's a quick comparison [Music] [Music] new actors were cast in virtually all of the roles including father who was now voiced by Jean Shepard and while the time periods remain the same act one now took place on Valentine's Day the scenes in the first act didn't change much visually but after 30 years it was now time for father to take on some of the household chores that's right folks now sarah has time for other things like cleaning the oven yes dear act 2 now revolved around the fourth of July and every single scene was given a new overlay with the most noticeable being mother who is now working on costumes rather than father's clothes the other being daughter who is getting ready for a celebration in her costume and interestingly cousin Orville was now uncle Orville act 3 now loosely revolved around Halloween with the son now working on a jack-o'-lantern instead of a model airplane and the addition of a number of props that have come and gone over the years and much like the previous versions the final scene saw the biggest changes this time to Christmas and the house of the 2000s and it now featured technology of the future like voice-activated lighting and electronic devices and virtual reality and you might recognize the voice of the grandfather as the original father from the World's Fair and Disneyland version you know spring cleaning is a lot easier and it used to be not to mention Laser Dish high-def TV now from here you might assume I jump to a 2000 version or even a 2010 version but aside from changes to its exterior the Carousel of Progress has gone virtually unchanged for almost three decades yep the 90s were almost 30 years ago hold on I want a future-proof this episode just in case has gone virtually unchanged for almost four decades yep the 90s were almost 40 years ago while rumors still persist about an update in the near future would I admire most about the attraction in its current state are all the props from the abandoned scenes and elements left over from the original versions so as far as what the future holds for the carousel progress I think it's just like the song when it becomes a reality it'll be a dream come true for you and me but what already is a reality is being able to watch your favorite classic cartoons on Verve as well I've previously mentioned their collection of live-action and animated Nickelodeon shows Verve now offers boomerang now unlike Nickelodeon these shows were a bit before my time but I still grew up with them in the form of reruns so relive cartoons from your childhood or maybe technically your parents childhood like the Jetsons scooby-doo Popeye the Smurfs and even more in stunning quality but Verve has way more to offer than just Nickelodeon and boomerang so whether you're fan of anime documentaries or independent cartoons like the bravest warrior they have something for just about everyone best of all you can download the app on your favorite devices and what your favorite shows on the go anywhere anytime you can even download episodes to your device for offline viewing so to get started just click on the link in the description to start your 30-day ad free trial of Verve premium today or go to vr v co slash yester world as always thank you all so much for watching and make sure to subscribe and hit the notification bell so you don't miss future episodes and I'll see you next time and yester world [Music]

Channel: Yesterworld Entertainment

Views: 553,084

Keywords: yesterworld, disneyland, carousel of progress, the carousel of progress history, the carousel of progress ride, carousel of progress disney, the carousel of progress 1964, walt disney's carousel of progress, carousel of progress new york worlds fair, theme park history, magic kingdom history, great big beautiful tomorrow, theme park history disney, Disney theme park history, carousel of progress song, disney carousel ride

Id: BydaWd_1joQ

Length: 20min 44sec (1244 seconds)

Published: Wed Nov 28 2018