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Opened:
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October
1, 1982 (Original Attraction) |
| Origins: |
When ECPOT was
being developed as a new theme park, Disney
Imagineers knew that it would require an iconic
landmark similar to Cinderella Castle to represent
it. But while Cinderella Castle symbolized
fantasy and fairy tales, the EPCOT landmark
needed to represent the future and technological
innovation.
Imagineers came up with
the concept of a geodesic sphere, soon to be
named Spaceship Earth and home of a dark ride
that took guests on a tour through the history
(and future) of communication. The attraction
was developed through a collaborative effort
of Disney Imagineers, noted author Ray Bradbury,
the Smithsonian Institute, the Huntington Library
and the Universities of Southern California
and Chicago. |
| Updates: |
Originally, the
attraction featured narration provided by actor
Vic Perrin and a
quiet
orchestral
ending. On May 26, 1986 the narration was rerecorded
by Walter
Cronkite, and a new ending was developed with
a new theme song, "Tomorrow's
Child".
On August 15, 1994 Spaceship Earth closed for
renovations, during which time the current
final scenes were added (dropping the ending
theme "Tomorrow's Child" in the process). Spaceship
Earth reopened on
November 23, 1994 with a new narration provided
by Jeremy Irons. Additionally the new Global
Neighborhood replaced the Earth Station.
On November 24, 1999
Global Neighborhood was updated and renamed
the New Global Neighborhood with new hands-on
exhibits.
During the Millenium Celebration, the large
Mickey Hand was added to the exterior (originally
the hand included the year "2000" in large
numbers, after the Millenium Celebration the
"2000"
was removed and replaced with the current "Epcot").
AT&T ended their sponsorship of Spaceship Earth
on January 1, 2003.
The New Global Neighborhood was removed in
April 2004 (that area remains vacant to this
day).
On November 2005 it was announced that Siemens
AG will sponsor Spaceship Earth for the next
twelve years.
Spaceship Earth closed for a lengthy rehab
at the end of 2007, reopening on February 18th
of 2008. Many of the Animatronic figures were
updated (with stunning results), and a new
interactive video feature was added for the
latter half of the ride. A few scenes were
removed, such as the internet communication
scene between the two kids (one in America
and the other in Japan), and all of the scenes
after the planetarium segment (including the
much beloved City of the Future). New scenes
include the birth of the personal computer
and a retro-futuristic
computer center. The data tunnel near the top
of the attraction was redone as well, and an
updated narration was recorded by Judi Dench
(who recently
played the role of 'M', James Bond's
boss, in the James Bond films, and was the
voice of Mrs. Calloway in the Disney animated
film "Home on the Range") |
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