The Sorcerer’s Hat has a negative connotation for a lot of theme park fans, but other than perhaps the Hollywood Studios structure it has a wonderful, fascinating history.
Here’s are 6 things you may not know about the Sorcerer’s Hat, from its birth in Fantasia to its death at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
1. The first appearance of the Sorcerer’s Hat
As most Disney fans know, the iconic Sorcerer Hat was first seen in the short film The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in the 1940 animated feature Fantasia. It’s the source of Mickey Mouse and his teacher Yen Sid’s magical powers. It’s a very powerful magical item, with the potential to cause great harm in the wrong hands.
Since Fantasia was released, the Sorcerer Hat has become a popular and frequently-seen Disney icon. If you haven’t seen Fantasia it’s well worth a watch, in this blogger’s opinion.
2. The original owner of the hat
Before Mickey Mouse got his hands on it, the Sorcerer’s Hat was the possession of his teacher, sorcerer Yen Sid. According to the filmmakers, he was modeled after Walt Disney himself. Yen Sid’s name was never spoken in the silent film Fantasia, but was given to him by the animators. Eagle-eyed readers might recognize that it is Disney spelled backwards. He’s a very mysterious character. All we really know is that he’s wise, practical and often very serious based on how he reprimands Mickey in the movie.
According to his Disney Wiki page, “Most who encounter Yen Sid often can be bound to be intimidated by his appearance but underneath his fierce look lies a heart of gold. Surprisingly, he is very forgiving and actually has a sense of humor. He is more than aware of Mickey’s mischief and willing to deal with this; putting it aside to teach his apprentice. Underneath his harsh exterior is a man who strongly believes in his apprentices, no matter what mischief they may get into. His past is never looked upon with the exception of the Kingdom Hearts continuity. Years before Sora, the sorcerer was a keyblade wielder but eventually retired or as he puts it ‘doffed that mantle.’”
For a long time Yen Sid was an obscure character, but in recent years he’s popped up in a number of places. You can find him in other movies, comics and especially video games. You can even find him (all of him, not just his hat) at the Disney parks. He’s a statue at the Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course at Walt Disney World Resort, featured in hole 6 controlling water like he does in the film. Yen Sid has a spell card known as “Yen Sid’s Sorcerer Hat” in the attraction Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. He’s also mentioned during the Fantasia segment of The Great Movie Ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. He’s even the primary host of the live show Mickey and the Magical Map that premiered at Disneyland in summer 2013.
3. Appearances of the Sorcerer’s Hat
The Sorcerer’s Hat has popped in a lot of places over the years. Here’s a pretty extensive list of them.
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Fantasia: Discussed above
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House of Mouse: In “Mickey and Minnie’s Big Vacation”, Mickey puts on the hat to wash the flooded club. In “Mickey’s House of Villains,” Mickey battles Jafar using the Sorcerer Hat, with a little help from Aladdin.
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Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: The hat’s design was put in the form of a party hat in the episode “The Friendship Team.”
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Mickey’s Philharmagic:Donald Duck loses the Sorcerer Hat and goes on an adventure to get it back.
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Mickey’s 60th Birthday: The hat makes a cameo.
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The Sorcerer’s Apprentice live-action film: After the credits, the hat can be seen in the room Horvath picks up his own hat.
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The Hunchback of Notre Dame: In the end credits you can see the Sorcerer Hat between the credits for “Scene Planning” and “Producing Coordinators.”
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Once Upon a Time: In the episode “Skin Deep” Rumpelstiltskin’s castle holds many objects, such as a candelabra paired with a clock, Gepetto’s parents in puppet form and (ta da) the Sorcerer Hat. In the opening episode of Season 4 of OUAT Mr. Gold finds the Sorcerer Hat in an ominous container.
4. The Sorcerer’s Hat at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Image: disney
The Sorcerer’s Hat readers of Theme Park Tourist are likely most familiar with is the 122-foot-tall one at Hollywood Studios. It’s been maligned by many since 2001 when it was introduced, because it both blocked the view of the Chinese Theatre and negatively affected the ambience of the part of Hollywood Studios dedicated to Hollywood’s golden age from the 1920s, 30s and 40s.
It was finally confirmed recently that the Sorcerer Hat will come down in 2015. Even though the hat has been a fixture for 13 years and has appeared in a whole lot of tourist photos, many members of the theme park community will be more than happy to see it go.
5. Post-Sorcerer’s Hat
The Sorcerer’s Hat isn’t the only thing being removed from Disney’s Hollywood Studios. American Idol Experience and the Studio Backlot Tour were already put out to pasture and The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow will close in early November. This Theme Park Tourist article has more detail on what that might mean. To sum it up, the big rumor that’s been circulating for awhile is that Walt Disney World will make a major push to incorporate more attractions and entertainment from Star Wars, a relatively recent Disney acquisition. Nothing’s official yet, but a lot of signs point to something from long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…
So, the removal of the Sorcerer’s Hat may be symbolic, as well as practical. It marks the end of an era for Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and its replacement – if it has one – will likely point the way to the park’s future.
6. The Legacy of the Sorcerer’s Hat
Even though the most prominent version is being taken down, the Sorcerer’s Hat is of course still an iconic symbol of Disney. It probably always will be, which is a good thing. It has a rich history and swells up happy memories of one of the greatest periods in the history of Disney, when Fantasia and other early animated features were being released. Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing that hat for a long time to com. What about you?
