{"id":70329,"date":"2019-04-22T12:00:59","date_gmt":"2019-04-22T16:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=70329"},"modified":"2022-04-08T22:44:21","modified_gmt":"2022-04-09T02:44:21","slug":"fun-facts-carousel-of-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/fun-facts-carousel-of-progress\/","title":{"rendered":"Fun Facts for the Carousel of Progress’ 55th Anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"
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At 55 years young the Carousel of Progress is 7 years older than Walt Disney World<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Let\u2019s have a celebration for Walt Disney World’s Carousel of Progress<\/a> which is turning an amazing 55 years old today!\u00a0 Few visitors to Disney World leave without a firm feeling about the Magic Kingdom\u2019s oldest ride.\u00a0 You either love or can leave Walt Disney\u2019s Carousel of Progress, but you have to admire a ride that is seven years older than the park itself.<\/p>\n

Before you decide for yourself, here\u2019s some fact\u2019s you need to know about the Carousel.<\/p>\n

The Carousel of Progress in one of the few things in Disney World touched by Walt<\/h3>\n

The Carousel of Progress opened on April 22, 1964 at the New York World\u2019s fair. General Electric (GE) hosted the Carousel as part of the Progressland Pavilion.\u00a0\u00a0At the fair there was\u00a0a second floor where GE projected nature pictures as well as pictures of GE energy sources onto the domed roof.<\/p>\n

The Carousel of Progress was featured in a 1964 episode of \u201cThe Magical World of Disney\u201d called Disneyland Goes to the World’s Fair<\/u>. There, Walt Disney himself led the audience through a tour of the Carousel of Progress\u2019s stage show and animatronics. You can see that portion of the show in a video released by Disney Parks<\/a> in 2015 to celebrate the ride\u2019s 40th<\/sup> year at Disney World.<\/p>\n

The Carousel of Progress is Disney World\u2019s most traveled ride<\/h3>\n

You may not travel far on the Carousel of Progress, but the Carousel of Progress traveled far to get you there. Unlike Disney World\u2019s \u201cit\u2019s a small world<\/a>\u201d, which is a copy of the World\u2019s Fair model, The Magic Kingdom<\/a> has the original Carousel of Progress. After New York the Carousel traveled to Disneyland<\/a> for a six year run and then was packed up and shipped to Walt Disney World where it has resided ever since January 15, 1975. So that\u2019s Coast to Coast and back again.<\/p>\n

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The Carousel of Progress was a big hit for Disney and General Electric at the World’s Fair<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The building features two concepts originally presented in the 1964 World\u2019s Fair<\/h3>\n

Walt Disney was involved in four World\u2019s Fair attractions. Besides it\u2019s a small world and the Carousel of Progress, the imagineers were also involved in creating \u201cGreat Moments with Mr. Lincoln\u201d sponsored by the State of Illinois and the \u201cFord’s Magic Skyway\u201d ride. \u201cGreat Moments with Mr. Lincoln\u201d can still be seen at Disneyland. The fourth attraction, \u201cFord’s Magic Skyway\u201d, allowed visitors to ride on a track in new Ford Convertibles (including the debut of the Mustang).\u00a0 The magic Skyway failed to move to Disneyland when Ford and Disney could not work out a sponsorship deal. The concept, however, became the WedWay People Mover<\/a> which drives along the roof of the Carousel of Progress.<\/p>\n

When is a Ride not a Ride?<\/h3>\n

When the ride is classified as a Stage Show. While guests stay in their seats they rotate the four stages to see a short four act play. The focus of the Carousel of Progress is the play, not the ride. As such the Carousel has been judged to be the longest running stage show in America.<\/p>\n

It’s current song hit home runs on\u00a0two pitches<\/h3>\n

Walt Disney was an eternal optimist who lived life believing that the future was brighter. The Academy Award winning Disney duo of Richard and Robert Sherman wrote the Carousel of Progress\u2019 song, \u201cThere’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow\u201d as a tribute to Walt. Fittingly, Walt Disney adopted the song as his theme song. Walt Disney sang the song, along with the Sherman brothers, in the pitch to GE for sponsorship of the 1964 World\u2019s Fair attraction. Later an instrumental version provided the underlying music in the 1966 film Disney narrated to convince Florida legislators and the public about a little place near Orlando.<\/p>\n

Change is not always good<\/h3>\n

The Carousel for Progress went through multiple changes since its debut at the New York World’s Fair.\u00a0 Not all of the changes were good.\u00a0 In 1974 the Sherman brothers produced a new song for use when the attraction moved to the Magic Kingdom.\u00a0 The song, \u201cThe Best Time of Your Life” was not the best song for the ride. (Though some would disagree who heard that version of the song first.) That song lasted until 1994 when the decision was made to return \u201cThere’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow\u201d to the attraction.<\/p>\n

Why the dog doesn’t change his spot<\/h3>\n

Disney legend, Imagineer Bob Gurr was responsible for the design of the dog.\u00a0 For the first three acts the dog lies in the same spot on the floor.\u00a0 It’s not the same dog, he changes color and possibly breeds each act.\u00a0 After all, originally each act is at least 20 years apart.\u00a0 Only in the newest scene does the dog sit in a new location.\u00a0 According to Bob Gurr the idea of the dog staying put came from Walt Disney himself.\u00a0 When the boss says stay the dog stays firmly routed for at least 55 years.<\/p>\n

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The dog stayed in one place in the Carousel of Progress because Walt Disney liked it that way.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The ride is so good it had a sequel<\/h3>\n

As part of Phase 2 of EPCOT<\/a>, GE also sponsored Horizons which opened on October 1, 1983. Here a family was shown living in the 21st<\/sup> century much how like the Carousel of Progress family navigated the 20th<\/sup> century. In one scene a robot cleaning the kitchen of tomorrow is heard singing \u201cIt\u2019s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Carousel of Progress takes the heat<\/h3>\n

While it would be nice to say that the Carousel for Progress gets listed as an overall top attraction, the Carousel does make does make one list consistently; the top places to avoid the heat in sometimes steamy Walt Disney World. You can\u2019t prove it, but the long association this attraction had with GE helped ensure that some very powerful air conditioning units keeps the Carousel of Progress cool for guests year round.<\/p>\n

EPCOT’s public debut was at the Carousel of Progress<\/h3>\n

After the show was over in the Disneyland version of the Carousel of Progress guests were whisked up to the second floor for a four minute show and a viewing of a model of “Progress City.”\u00a0 “Progress City” was based on the prototype for Walt Disney’s Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT).\u00a0 Portions of “Progress City” can still be viewed while riding the People Mover.<\/p>\n

A final note:<\/h3>\n

We both have extensive, personal memories of the Carousel of Progress.\u00a0 Pat fondly remembers reading about the Carousel of Progress in the Weekly Reader.\u00a0 Bob feels incredibly fortunate to have ridden the Carousel of Progress at the New York World’s Fair.<\/p>\n

To get a less biased opinion we asked our millennial son, Stu.\u00a0 Stu started his review by saying he loves the carousel but “Every time I’ve seen it, it has somehow been 25 years out of date.\u00a0 I think it deserves an update or a Viking funeral and I can’t decide which is more fitting.”\u00a0 We are all rooting for an update.<\/p>\n

Special thanks to Kristen Dyer and Cristina Berg from the Mouse for Less Blog for providing photos.\u00a0 Additional thanks go to Cristina Berg for sharing the anecdote from Bob Gurr.<\/p>\n

Do you love riding the Carousel of Progress? What would you like to see the last scene be updated to?<\/em> Let us know in the comments below<\/em>\u00a0or\u00a0on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0Twitter<\/a>!
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Did you like this article? Make sure to share it with your friends! Check below for easy ways to share!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Want to visit the Walt Disney World Resort? Contact The Magic for Less Travel<\/a>\u00a0for more information and a free, no-obligation quote.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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