The Disney Frontier Blog

Description: Haunted Mansion at Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World after it's refurbishment. It is shot with an HD camera in September 2007.

Description: This is a night vision ride-thru of the Pirates of the Caribbean at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando, Florida on April 10, 2006. This video is mid-refurbishment and pre Jack Sparrow being added to the attraction.

Description: Subscribe for CONSTANT updates! Ride Space Mountain as it would have appeared before the major rehab for the 50th celebration. Ride shot with night vision. Space Mountain opened in 1977, invigorating a decade-old Tomorrowland as Disneyland's second roller coaster. The idea for Anaheim's ride originated in the mid 1960s, during Walt Disney's lifetime, as a way to energize the aging Tomorrowland. The project was shelved until the success of Space Mountain in Florida. After two years of construction, the $20 million complex opened May 27 including the roller coaster, 1,100-seat Space Stage, 670-seat Space Place (fast food restaurant) and Starcade.[2] Six Mercury astronauts attended Space Mountain's opening — Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, Sen. John Glenn, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Deke Slayton.[1] Largely due in part to the opening of Space Mountain, the Memorial Day day attendance record was set, with 185,500 guests over the three-day period.[2] Space Mountain at Disneyland was designed by Bill Watkins of Walt Disney Imagineering. It was different from the WDW design because of space limitations. The attraction continued operating without much change: sponsors would come and go, and various minor changes, including the addition of a "Speedramp" (moving sidewalk) in the entrance, happened without fanfare. In 1995, FedEx became the official sponsor for the ride, sparking a number of significant alterations. The queue area was revamped with television monitors looping safety videos, the loading station had a new Audio-Animatronic robot FedEx worker, and other scenic areas were modeled to include FedEx trademarks.[2] In 1996, composer Aarin Richard and show producer Eddie Sotto teamed up to create the first on-board music track for a Disney roller coaster. The creative vision was to fuse two iconic musical forms of the 1960's — sci-fi horror music and surf music — into a sensory ride experience. All of the music written for the show is based on "Le Carnival Des Animaux: Aquarium" ( The Carnival of the Animals ), written by Camille Saint-Saëns. The first section of the ride's music is synthesized and entirely devoted to the sci-fi aspect as the rockets leave the station to begin their slow climb to the top. After the vehicles have crested, a rocking surf rendition of the piece kicks in as gravity pulls the vehicles down through the ride's interweaving turns, hills, and dips. (Guitarist Dick Dale was brought into the Disney Imagineering recording studio to play his famous surf guitar riffs for this section of the music.) As the rockets reenter the loading station, a brief musical finale concludes the experience with a soft, synthesized rendition of "Aquarium." In 1997, the exterior of the mountain was painted green and gold to match the recent facelift to Tomorrowland. In 2003, the mountain was painted white again.[2] The ride closed suddenly on April 10, 2003, with an announcement that it would remain closed until Disneyland's 50th anniversary. The ride had become unstable and would need a complete track replacement.[2] On June 25, 2005 Disneyland surprised its guests by announcing that the reopening of Space Mountain would open early on July 15, instead of the projected November date.[3][4] On July 15, 2005 (with "soft openings" starting 1 July), only two days before Disneyland's official 50th Anniversary, Space Mountain reopened from a major refurbishment that started in April, 2003. A re-opening ceremony was held that day which featured a guest speaker, Neil Armstrong, who received a plaque that day which said "Presented to Mr. Neil Armstrong for his courage and adventurous spirit that continues to inspire all mankind to reach for the stars". The plaque also features the Disney quote "It's kinda fun to do the impossible". The new Space Mountain features new rocket sleds, a new queue, new music (composed by Michael Giacchino), new special effects and a storyline. The completely rebuilt track is the exact same layout as originally designed by Walt Disney Imagineer Bill Watdisneyland disneyland disneyland disney's california adventure disney's california adventure adventureland tomorrowland fantasyland toontown magic kingdom animal epcot frontierland vintage retired yesterland old home movies great moments lincoln main street usa cinema star tours space mountain honey i shrunk the audience captain eo peoplemover mission to mars america sings innoventions skyway autopia carousel of progress matterhorn bobsleds alice in wonderland pinocchio's daring journey peter pan's flight snow white's scary adventure disneyland youtube poop circarama american journeys tokyo disneyseas

Description: This is a couple of excerpts from "The Fabulous Fox" made by Bartel - Thomsen in 1988. I cannot find a source to buy this video and have not been successful in finding the creators. If I could get permission, I would post and distribute the entire, emotional documentary. This organ was sold in 1963 to a California state legislator who installed it in his home. After his death it was put in storage. When Disney bought the run down El Capitan Theater in Hollywood, they tracked it down. They spent million on the refurbishment of the theater and the San Francisco Fox Organ lives on. http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/el_capitan/about2.html

Description: A video of the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular at Walt Disney World in the MGM Studios. The video was taken while on vacation from 11/25/06 until 12/2/06. INTERESTING FACTS The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular debuted at Disney-MGM Studios on August 25, 1989. The Indiana Jones amphitheater holds 2000 guests. The small golden idol used in the first act of this show is an exact replica of the idol in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The giant rolling ball is 12 feet in diameter and weighs 440 pounds. The show's sets weigh as much as 100 tons each, which makes them the largest moving sets in history. The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular closed for six months in 2000 to refurbish the sets and prepare it for the addition of Fastpass, but no major changes were made to the format of the show itself. Facts taken from http://allearsnet.com

Description: Haunted Mansion reopened from Refurbishment on 9/13/07 at 7:13am. This was the first day I could see the new changes. And luckily it broke down a moment right at the bride.

Description: Disney World Parks and Rides that are no more. The Enchanted Tiki room opened in 1971 as "Tropical Serenade", closed in 1997 for refurbishment and reopened in 1998 "Under new management"

Description: The Haunted Mansion at the Magic Kingdom recently received a major refurbishment. However, despite being open for over 4 months since the refurbishment, tweaks are still being made inside, the latest of which is a major improvement to the singing busts in the graveyard. No longer do their faces glow, clearly revealing the secret behind the effect. Now, the busts are wonderfully evenly lit and are quite realistic. While this video depicts the busts decently (albeit a bit shaky), you really need to head to the Haunted Mansion to see them for yourselves in person. They look outstanding. A higher-resolution version of this video can be found at http://www.attractionsmagazine.com

Description: Re-released by popular demand! Exclusive footage of the newly refurbished Spaceship Earth at Epcot! Aunt Petunia guest hosts this fascinating journey!

Description: Three women go on a ride at Disneyland Park one day in March. What follows is the account of their harrowing journey through the land of the pirates only days before it's several-month refurbishment leading up to the release of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest".