Hall of Presidents

[Alicia]

Do they need permission to remove Muppet Vision?

From who? Disney owns The Muppets.

They closed it on the west coast years ago.

 

[shiekra38]

From who? Disney owns The Muppets.

They closed it on the west coast years ago.

That's why I was asking "do they need permission?"

The answer of course being, no

 

[SeventyOne]

That would kind of be the point, it would be the more tongue in cheek version of the TAA

You also have to factor in that "classics" like HM, PotC, Peter Pan, etc are some of the highest rated rides in the park. Hall of Presidents, Country Bears, Tiki Room and CoP are some of the lowest. While people on this forum may love animatronic shows, the general public clearly does not anymore, especially with no discernible IP attached.

Humor-based shows/rides don't age well. Horizons-era EPCOT had a few--Kitchen Kabaret/Food Rocks, World of Motion, some throw-away stuff in Communicore. Superstar Limo was the first or second casualty in DCA (along with a tortilla-making exhibit, to show you the level of competition). No one cried when UOR retired the pop culture reference-heavy Sinbad. To the extent CoP still works among hard-core fans, it's despite the humor, not because of it. As Nick points out, none of the humorous shows have aged well with the general public.

Also don't forget that humor is a very cultural-specific thing. Even between the US and UK there are differences, and those are only exacerbated when English isn't your first language. For a park that will eventually rely on a ton of international guests again, I'm not sure jokes about American history are relevant enough to build an attraction around.

Mix in an IP with no relevance to people under 35, and you have an attraction that everyone will be walking past in 5 years.

 

[shiekra38]

Humor-based shows/rides don't age well. Horizons-era EPCOT had a few--Kitchen Kabaret/Food Rocks, World of Motion, some throw-away stuff in Communicore. Superstar Limo was the first or second casualty in DCA (along with a tortilla-making exhibit, to show you the level of competition). No one cried when UOR retired the pop culture reference-heavy Sinbad. To the extent CoP still works among hard-core fans, it's despite the humor, not because of it. As Nick points out, none of the humorous shows have aged well with the general public.

Also don't forget that humor is a very cultural-specific thing. Even between the US and UK there are differences, and those are only exacerbated when English isn't your first language. For a park that will eventually rely on a ton of international guests again, I'm not sure jokes about American history are relevant enough to build an attraction around.

Mix in an IP with no relevance to people under 35, and you have an attraction that everyone will be walking past in 5 years.

World of Motion and Superstar Limo in the same paragraph makes me sad

 

[Parkscope Joe]

For me HoP isn't a classic in the sense the other original MK attractions are. it always felt like a compromised attraction that just never fit. Obviously your milage may very.

 

[OLSinFLA]

I don't mean to be dismissive, but I literally don't care about any of that. I know all of the history on HoP, i've watched Martin's videos and stuff on it. I just kinda don't care if it traces a bit back to some work back then. Sure, it's fun trivia, but (and I feel like I keep saying this), WDW is NOT a living museum. It should be an ever evolving place.

I'd be more upset if they changed the Liberty Square name, tbh.

As they say in the south, Bless Your Heart.

 

[RevFreako]

As they say in the south, Bless Your Heart.

Why would that get a Bless Your Heart? Nick's not wrong at all here.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

They closed it on the west coast years ago.

Yes, along with most everything worth while in Hollywoodland.

 

[shiekra38]

For me HoP isn't a classic in the sense the other original MK attractions are. it always felt like a compromised attraction that just never fit. Obviously your milage may very.

It always felt like a lesser version of American Adventure tbh

 

[Legacy]

It always felt like a lesser version of American Adventure tbh

This isn’t wrong. Which is why I’m all for the Muppets. At the very least, a tonal shift will help the attraction stand out as something distinct from a far better attraction.

And if it gets a song that’s half as memorable as “On Golden Wings,” all the better.

 

[JoeCamel]

It always felt like a lesser version of American Adventure tbh

Not until they built AA. Up to then it was a marvel.

 

[Disneyhead]

Forget the whole Presidents thing and history of what ever. Turn it into Independence Playhouse and have the Muppets do to The Legend of Sleepy Hallow what they did to A Christmas Carol except in an AA heavy "live action" format.

That would pair well with The Haunted Mansion, spooky yet kid friendly.

 

[SeventyOne]

It always felt like a lesser version of American Adventure tbh

I mean, after October 1982 it did ...

In all seriousness, it was more of a showstopper in the 70s, even tho as a child I found it dry. The sheer number of animatronics, most constantly fidgeting so it was clearly not a wax museum, was something to see at the time, I remember even my Dad (not easily impressed by Disney) raving about that and the hair on the one pirate's leg. The 1976 Bicentennial vibe which lasted the decade helped as well. But once AA opened in EPCOT with much better figures, it seemed the writing was on the wall here. Just a decade later they'd let the current President speak to make this interesting again.

 

[shiekra38]

Yes, AA shows were new and hip when Disney was alive

It is now 2021

 

[Alicia]

Yes, AA shows were new and hip when Disney was alive

It is now 2021

RIP Chuck E Cheese shows.

 

[belloq87]

Yes, AA shows were new and hip when Disney was alive

It is now 2021

That's a little dismissive, no?

 

[shiekra38]

RIP Chuck E Cheese shows.

Kid Casinos

 

[OLSinFLA]

Why would that get a Bless Your Heart? Nick's not wrong at all here.

Because immediastely after saying he wasn't being dismissive, he was. I'm just pointed out that the same people who raised hell about an attraction Walt himself created in 1964 have no objection to closing an attraction Walt invisioned in 1956 and by all accounts was closer to Walt's heart and dreams. And every time I have gone to the HOP it's been at least 1/2 full if not more. <Its even worse with COVID now - sometimes its 2 shows full queue>

 

[RevFreako]

Because immediastely after saying he wasn't being dismissive, he was. I'm just pointed out that the same people who raised hell about an attraction Walt himself created in 1964 have no objection to closing an attraction Walt invisioned in 1956 and by all accounts was closer to Walt's heart and dreams. And every time I have gone to the HOP it's been at least 1/2 full if not more. <Its even worse with COVID now - sometimes its 2 shows full queue>

To be fair, I think anyone referencing Walt's "heart and dreams" or "what Walt wanted" needs to recognize the man's been dead over half a century - what he wants truly doesn't matter. With that said, I'm with Nick - time for it to go, aside from my already-stated opinion.

 

[HalfGlass]