Disney-MGM Studios (now known as Disney’s Hollywood Studios) made its debut in 1989, a year ahead of rival Universal Studios Florida. It featured a mere handful of attractions, and was intentionally designed as a “half-day park”.
Despite its limited roster of attractions, the park quickly proved to be a huge hit. Disney began a rapid expansion program, introducing a host of new rides and shows. Some of these are still in place, while others have long since been replaced.
Let’s take a look back at 14 defunct attractions from Disney’s Hollywood Studios!
14. Let’s Make a Deal!
Opened in: 1990
Closed in: 1991
Disney initally proclaimed that Disney-MGM Studios would be a major production facility, and several soundstages were built alongside the park’s rides and shows. However, the need for increased capacity meant that these were soon doubling as attraction buildings. Early on the park’s lifespan, revived game show Let’s Make a Deal! began to be filmed in its largest soundstage.
However, the NBC show would only tape for two days a week. The rest of the time, tour guides would funnel 600 to 700 people into the studio to play the game for themselves. The cameras would roll, but not for real. While it would add to the park’s limited roster of attractions, Let’s Make a Deal would tie up the studio’s soundstage for around two years.
13. The Spirit of Pocahontas
Opened in: 1995
Closed in: 1996
Replaced by: Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame – A Musical Adventure
In 1993, the 1,500-seat Backlot Theater opened on New York Street. The first production to be hosted in it was The Spirit of Pocahontas, designed to tie in with the 1995 animated movie. It explored the love story between Pocahontas and John Smith, and was the first Broadway-style musical show at the Walt Disney World resort.
12. Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame – A Musical Adventure
Opened in: 1996
Closed in: 2002
Replacing Pocahontas in the Backlot Theater was Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame – A Musical Adventure, which tied in with the release of the movie in 1996. The 30-minute show featured 13 Gypsy players, who brought the story to life via puppetry and props.
11. Superstar Television
Opened in: 1989
Closed in: 1998
Replaced by: Doug Live!
One of Disney-MGM Studios’ opening day attractions, Superstar Television was sponsored by Sony. It saw a handful of guests being cast in roles in shows such as I Love Lucy and The Golden Girls. The magic of bluescreen technology was used to superimpose the guests on the screen, while 1,000 audience members looked on. The show survived until September 1998, and the building now hosts the American Idol Experience.
10. Here Come the Muppets
Opened in: 1990
Closed in: 1991
Replaced by: The Voyage of the Little Mermaid
Opened in 1990, a year ahead of Muppet*Vision 3D, Here Come the Muppets was a live show featuring walk-around versions of the Muppets characters. It closed in 1991, but a second show – Muppets on Location: Days of Swine and Roses – opened elsewhere in the park shortly afterwards (and closed in 1994).
9. The Monster Sound Show
Opened in: 1989
Closed in: 1999
Replaced by: Sounds Dangerous!
Another opening day attraction at Disney-MGM Studios, the Monster Sound Show featured a pre-show hosted by David Letterman. The 270-seat theater saw four guests volunteer to become “sound artists”, adding in the effects for a short comedy movie. They would use props from around the theater to attempt to generate the effects.
8. Disney’s Doug Live!
Opened in: 1999
Closed in: 2001
Replaced by: American Idol Experience
In 1999, Disney’s Doug Live! made its debut in the ABC TV Theater. It starred 12-year-old Doug Funnie, his doug Porkchop, best friend Skeeter crush Patti Mayonnaise and bully Roger. It saw Doug winning tickets to see his favorite band, The Beets, in concert and attempting to muster enough courage to ask Patti to attend with him.
7. Who Wants to Be A Millionairre – Play It!
Opened in: 2001
Closed in: 2006
Replaced by: Toy Story Midway Mania
Who Wants to Be A Millionairre – Play It! was, as the name suggests, an interactive version of the popular game show. Each of the 25-minute sessions saw contestants competing for points, not dollars.
6. Star Tours
Opened in: 1989
Closed in: 2010
Replaced by: Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
Star Tours was the result of a collaboration between Disney’s Imagineers and George Lucas, and was a groundbreaking simulator attraction when it first opened at Disneyland in 1986. It opened six months after the rest of Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, as the sponsor of Body Wars at Epcot (MetLife) did not want the ride to steal its thunder.
The Star Wars-themed simulator proved to be enduringly popular, and was updated in 2011 to become Star Tours: The Adventures Continue. Except, that is, at Disneyland Paris – where it lives on to this day.
5. Journey Into Narnia
Opened in: 2005
Closed in: 2011
Replaced by: The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow
Often derided by fans as little more than a pre-show, the original version of this single-room, “stand and watch” attraction was Journey Into Narnia: Creating The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. It exhibited several props and costumes from the film, and starred the White Witch. Essentially, it was little more than an extended trailer for the movie.
In 2008, an updated version of the attraction – Journey into Narnia: Prince Caspian – made its debut. It was similar in style, featuring behind-the-scenes footage and a recreation of Aslan’s Stone Table Chamber.
4. Sounds Dangerous!
Opened in: 1999
Closed in: 2012
Sounds Dangerous! replaced the Monster Sound Show, and starred comedian Drew Carey. It saw guests witnessing an ABC “pilot” dubbed Undercover Live, with the majority of the show taking place in silence. Guests were equipped with headphones that enabled binaural sound, with each earpiece operating independently of the other. The attraction operated seasonally for a while until 2012, when it was finally shuttered.
3. The American Idol Experience
Opened in: 2009
Closed in: 2014
The American Idol Experience began entertaining guests at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in February 2009. Based on the hit talent show of the same name, it offered budding singers the chance to perform on stage in one of the park’s enormous soundstages. Guests could audition throughout the day, and a select few were then given their chance in front of a live studio audience. At the end of the day, one lucky contestant was awarded a coveted “Golden Ticket” to jump the line when the American Idol auditions hit their home town.
After five years of showcasing Orlando’s latest musical talents, The American Idol Experience hung up its microphone for good on August 30, 2014 (several months earlier than originally announced).
2. The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow
Opened in: 2012
Closed in: 2014
The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow was a walkthrough experience based on the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, rather than the original theme park ride. It offered guests a view of key moments in the films from the perspective of Captain Jack Sparrow.
The attraction’s stay at the park was a short-lived one, perhaps unsurprisingly as it came in for some stinging criticism for its lack of ambition.
1. Studio Backlot Tour
Opened in: 1989
Closed in: 2014
In some ways, the loss of the Studio Backlot Tour marks the final nail in the coffin of the decades-old dream to turn Orlando into “Hollywood East”. The story behind the ride is one of intense rivalry, lofty ambitions and – ultimately – failure to live up to those ambitions.
Universal’s original plans for its Florida studios called for a “front lot” walking tour, as well as a tram tour through the studio’s backlot. One set-piece, designed by Academy Award-winning art director Henry Bumstead, would see an enormous King Kong figure attack the tram as it passed over a New York bridge. Another, the “Hollywood Canyon”, would see a tram rolling onto a bridge in view of the Hollywood Hills. A massive earthquake would then strike, causing a dam to crack and a wall of water to pour down towards the tram, which would escape into an oil field in time for riders to witness a semi-trailer truck explode after crashing into an oil tank.
The initial plans for Disney-MGM Studios, announced in 1985, bore a striking resemblance to those for Universal’s tour. The main attraction would be a tram tour past four working soundstages, an animation building, backlot sets and post-production facilities. One of the set pieces to be included in the tour would be “Catastrophe Canyon”, during which an earthquake would shake the tram, cause fires to ignite, lead to an oil tank explosion and trigger a flash flood. The similarities to Universal’s proposed Hollywood Canyon were undeniable.
Ultimately, the Studio Backlot Tour actually contributed to Disney-MGM Studios’ failure as a working studio. The noise from Catastrophe Canyon made outdoor filming on the park’s backlot streets impractical. Yet the ride outlasted the studio itself, continuing to offer a glimpse at the process of filmmaking for some 25 years before finally being shuttered in 2014.
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