Pop Culture Retrospective # 42 - Walt Disney World's 50th Anniversary Part 3 : 31 Things You May Not Know About Walt Disney World!

On the last 2 episodes of the PCRP you heard my personal account about working at Walt Disney World in 2001 when I participated in the Walt Disney World College program.  It was truly a life changing experience and I can’t think of a better way to have started my adulthood - doing something I was passionate about and had wanted to do for so long.  I have gotten a lot of positive feedback on those episodes including a very sweet message I received on instagram.  A listener named Brews and Boards said:  “I just completed the 2nd part of your time working at Walt Disney World and I must say it was brilliant!  You did an amazing job capturing your time as an employee and time spent with friends.  Thank you for sharing your journey.”  That comment meant a lot to me.  This is a small, indie show, dedicated to the memory of my sister and to know that there are people out there listening who maybe have a good laugh on their way to work, or who learn something or who maybe find comfort in what is discussed is truly invaluable.  And I think I’ve said this before but in times when we see so much negativity on the internet, I greatly appreciate people taking the time to do something positive with platforms like Instagram or Twitter.  That’s something I would encourage everyone to do more of.  I try to do that as well - I follow a lot of photographers on Instagram and watch a lot of Disney and Photography videos on YouTube and I try to make an effort to leave positive comments, so people know I appreciate their work.  If I don’t like something, I just don’t watch it or don’t follow that person anymore.  Simple as that. 

But anyways, let’s get to this week’s show.  Today, we will be discussing 31 things you may not have known about Walt Disney World.  This will be the final installment of my 3-part series about the Happiest Place on Earth. I’m sure there will be future episodes on WDW but there are just so many topics to explore!  So with that being said, grab some bottled water, some sunscreen and your favorite Mickey shirt, here we go! 

Hello and thank you so very much for tuning in to the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast, a show inspired by, and in memory of, my big sister Rebecca and her love for all things pop-culture, especially the people, places and things of the 80s, 90s and early 00s.  My name is Amy Lewis and I am your captain aboard this pop culture time machine. You are tuning in to episode # 42 - Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary Part 3 - 31 things you may not know about Walt Disney World.  What follows is a list, in no particular order, covering various aspects of Walt Disney World.  We’ll jump around between all of the parks and other locations and activities around the property.  The information is all taken from books I have in my extensive WDW book collection including: Since the World Began by Jeff Kurti, Disney:  the first 100 years by Dave Smith and Steve Clark, the Ultimate Disney Trivia Book volume 3 by Kevin Neary and Dave Smith and the Hidden Magic of WDW by Susan Veness.  I think most of these books are probably out of print at this point, but each are great sources of information about my favorite place in the world.  Let’s get started with our list of 31 fascinating facts! 

1.  In June of 1965 the Orlando Evening Star wrote a story describing the end of Phase 1 for a mystery project.  Just over 27,000 acres were purchased for about 5 million dollars.  In later months it would be disclosed that Disney had purchased the property.  

1.  You may remember this if you listened to either one of the past 2 episodes of the podcast, but beneath the Magic Kingdom there is a system of interconnected tunnels called the Utilidor - a combination of the words Utility and Corridor. 

It contains a multitude of departments that helps the MK run on a daily basis.  Cast member locker rooms, costuming and wigs can all be found here, as well as the cafeteria, maintenance and many others.  Technically speaking, the Utilidor is on the 1st floor and the Magic Kingdom park is on the 2nd floor.  

1. Walt Disney really wanted to distinguish WDW from DL by creating a more closed off version since DL was surrounded by kitschy, tacky, loud and busy tourist areas and neon-lit hotels.  He wanted WDW to feel isolated and didn’t want the outside world visible like it was at DL.  
2. WDW property is about the size of San Francisco and it’s about twice the size of Manhattan.  
3. At one time, WDW had the world’s largest working costuming department, which may still be the case today.  As I mentioned in the previous 2 episodes, during my time at WDW I worked at the Magic Kingdom park and we had to check out costumes each day when we had a shift.  We would go to the costuming window, tell them our size and they would come back with the costume.  The costuming cast member would then scan our ID tag, and the costume and then we could head to the locker room to put it on.  They kept track of who had costumes to ensure nothing went missing.  My roommates and friends who worked at other parks and resorts did not have to check out their costumes, I was always so jealous of them! 
4. The centerpiece of Epcot is Spaceship Earth -a geodesic dome.  There is 2 million feet of interior space and the diameter of the structure is 164 feet.  Further, it took 26 months to construct it.  The dome is held up by 6 legs, each are 18 feet long.  If I am remembering correctly, in an episode of Walt Disney World Inside Out, which aired on the Disney channel in the 90s, shared an interesting fact about Spaceship Earth.  They said that in order for someone to actually use SE as a golf ball, they would need to be about 1.2 miles tall.  I sent the television program some fan mail and I got back a signed autograph of all 3 of the hosts.  
5. Some of the original Future World attractions at Epcot which all opened within the first 5 years of the park include:
   1. The Land, Journey Into Imagination, Universe of Energy, Horizons, World of Motion, Communicore and the Living Seas.  
6. The Contemporary Resort utilized a unique method of construction to build it.  It started with the construction of an A frame built with steel and followed with individual guest rooms being manufactured off site.  The rooms were then slid into the A-frame sort of like a chest of drawers.  Further, the monorail runs right through the resort.  Even if you’ve been to WDW a bunch of times, it never fails to impress.  
7. 6200 employees or cast members were needed to operate the parks, resorts and other amenities when WDW opened in 1971.  Roughly 1800 people walked into the employment office each month prior to opening.  Further, 8,000 applications arrived by mail each month.
8.  WDW was the largest privately funded construction project in the world at the time it opened.  More than 9,000 people aided in its construction.  
9. WDW and subsequently the Magic Kingdom were dedicated on October 25, 1971 by Roy O. Disney who had come out of retirement to see his brother’s dream become a reality.  

He said during his dedication speech quote:  “Walt Disney World is a tribute to the philosophy and life of Walter Elias Disney … and to the talents, the dedication and the loyalty of the entire Disney organization that made Walt Disney’s dream come true. May Walt Disney World bring joy and inspiration and New Knowledge to all who come to this happy place … a Magic Kingdom where the young at heart of all ages can laugh and play and learn – together.”

1. WDW property did not have any telephone lines (in case you didn’t know, all that was there before was pretty much farmland and orange groves).  So, WDW productions collaborated with the Florida Telephone Company to create a progressive, future-thinking and state of the art telephone system before it opened.  This new system became the first all electronic phone system that used underground wiring and fiber optics.  
2. Cinderella Castle is 189 feet high, tall enough to be seen from outside the park.  It is more than 100 feet taller than it’s DL counterpart, Sleeping Beauty Castle.  
3. From 1973-1983 you could ride a swan boat in the waterways surrounding Cinderella Castle.  They were called the Plaza Swan Boats.  
4. Norway is the most recent addition to the World Showcase in Epcot, opening in 1988.  
5. At one point in time there were 3 water parks at WDW- Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon and River Country.  Most people are familiar with Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, but River Country was the original water park at WDW.  It was often referred to as an “old fashioned swimming hole” in both print and video marketing materials.  In 2001 it closed for refurbishment and year after year it didn’t reopen.  Finally, in 2005 it was officially announced that it was not going to ever reopen, lack of attendance has been cited as its reason for closing. 
6. From 1971-1974 visitors to WDW could take a boat to Blackbeard Island on WDW property, an isolated recreation area located on Bay Lake.  The area had been purchased by the WDW Company in 1965, previously it was a hunting retreat.  During flyovers of the WDW property, Walt Disney became quite intrigued by this parcel of land and he wanted it to be developed quickly.  In 1974 it was re-named Treasure Island and was themed around a pirate’s hideaway.  In 1976, it was re-opened at Discovery Island.  It featured exotic birds and plants, later adding tortoises and alligators.  The island was committed to the preservation of wildlife and plant life.  In April of 1999 the island closed perhaps due to high maintenance costs and competition from Animal Kingdom, which opened in 1998 and also focuses on conservation.  Further, a lot of the island’s buildings have been damaged due to hurricanes in Central Florida.  There are a few YouTube videos you can find which show you the rough shape the island is in.  
7. The inside of Cinderella Castle is covered in 15 by 10 panels of mosaic tile depicting the story of Cinderella.  
8. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in Disney’s Hollywood Studios stands at an impressive 199 feet tall.  If it were any taller, it would have needed a flashing red light at the top.  
9. In 1989, both the MGM Studios (now HS) as well as Pleasure Island (a nighttime dancing and drinking entertainment area) opened.  Pleasure Island closed in 2008 and transitioned into an area now known as Disney Springs.  
10. Each month about 30,000 pounds of unserved food from WDW is donated to local food banks. 
11. Construction for Epcot started in 1979.  Originally, the budget was set for roughly 600 million but eventually that ballooned to somewhere between 800 million to 1.2 billion. More than 10,000 construction workers helped bring this unique theme park to life.  
12. MGM Studios opened in May of 1989 and was an immediate success.  The park hours were extended and plans for an expansion were quickly put into action.  
13. At one point, visitors to MGM could be filmed while recreating scenes from classic TV shows like I Love Lucy, Home Improvement and Cheers.  
14. The Tree of Life, the icon of the Animal Kingdom Theme Park, has 325 animals carved into it, artists only had about 6-10 hours to finish each one as the plaster became too hard to sculpt after a certain period of time.  
15. The Animal Kingdom park does not sell balloons or provide lids so as to keep it’s animal occupants safe.  
16. Rock N Rollercoaster begins at an incredibly fast speed- going from 0-60 mph in 2.8 seconds and at nearly 5G’s it’s comparable to a space shuttle launch.
17. There are 13 lanterns hanging from the Liberty Tree in Liberty Square at the MK.  Each one represents one of the 13 original colonies.  
18. Cinderella Castle is known simply as that, not Cinderella’s Castle.
19. There are hidden mickeys all over the WDW parks and resorts.  For example, the 3 iconic circles are created by dishes in the dining and dancing scene in the Haunted Mansion.  There are also 3 infamous circles present in the mural at the beginning of the Living with the Land boat ride attraction.  
20. Many of the benches at Disney’s Animal Kingdom are made out of recycled milk jugs.  

This list could go on and on but I hope you learned something new about WDW!  

I hope you have enjoyed learning more about Walt Disney World, I know I had a lot of fun putting together this list.  I have been collecting books about WDW since I was in middle school so it was fun to dust those off and find interesting information to share on the show.  

I hope you will join me for my next show where we will be discussing the 1980s toy collection that spawned several incarnations of a television show and several movies, My Little Pony.  Until then, BKBSAHOTYM.