Retro Disney World Podcast

Welcome to Episode 59 of the RetroWDW Podcast: “Tickets & Ephemera” – We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows!  While you are listening, please browse through our entire album of ephemera. We have tons in there and if you click this link, be ready for an adventure that could take up an entire evening. Also, let us know if you have any images you would like to add to this collection, as we are working to make it very comprehensive.  Comments & Corrections Last month we had the great food and menu episode and the response was great. Thanks for all the feedback and items shared relating to food stories, menus, and anything else. It sure was fun to sift through and see how much everybody enjoyed it! Zach wrote in about the breakfast at the Top of the World. His mother chimed in on this memory and confirmed this as well. Thanks so much for the help Zach! Brian also discusses the champagne brunch up there, which was

Welcome to Episode 58 of the RetroWDW Podcast: “Retro Menus” – We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Listener Mail Right to the mailbag this month! The bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write to us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Mark is our first listener who wrote in, saying he found our podcast and is slowly working to catch up. His question is all about the WedWay Peoplemover and where it is stored. We kick you off with a super deep dive on this and give you our thoughts. Holly writes us next from Missouri – She just found us and listens to us while sewing masks for a local hospital. Holly is a former Disneyland employee and her first visit to WDW was in 2007. William Walker wants to know about Mickey’s Retreat on Little Lake Bryan. Brian & How get into this one to discuss and explain what this is.  Art has been contacting us about Teen Magazine from 1972

Welcome to Episode 57 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "El Rio del Tiempo" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Listener Mail Right to the mailbag this month! The bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write to us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Cory wrote in thanking us for doing the show and he has been binging the show. We love these - thank you so much Cory and we hope you enjoy our latest and greatest. Our next letter is from Steve and he wanted to discuss all things Sea World in California. This mini-history lesson was appreciated and we hope you get to Orlando soon. Scott has a question about film and movies. We get this question often, regarding 'do you want my footage?' - We always are interested in footage so please let us know what you have and we can discuss options.  The next letter we received is from Abby. She shared with us the 2002 GE commercial that has t

Typical Pylons We know many of you are at home for the next few weeks and we wanted to get a few new episodes and films out as quickly as possible to keep you busy. In this mini-episode, the team interviews Gene Brignola and gets the inside scoop on the original Pylon Fountain at EPCOT Center. From how was conceptualized, designed, manufactured to installation! You'll never believe what the pylons actually represent and the time that went into creating it. 2020: The Year of Film To make sure you are the first to know when items are released, subscribe to us on YouTube. Be sure to click the notification bell too, that way you are alerted when we post.  Finally, be sure to check out Vimeo if that is your thing, as we will post there as well. This past month we have posted a great resort tour from The Disney Channel, The original DVC Resort Tour, and a great Innoventions commercial from the mid-90s. As a bonus, to accompany this episode we have released a great new video from 1980 Sea World. This was shot on

Welcome to Episode 56 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Good Neighbors" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Comments & Corrections Jake Nelson wrote in about a possible hidden skeleton somewhere inside Catastrophe Canyon. We give our take on this one from the old days of MGM. Reuben wrote us asking about the old shop to the left right inside the entrance to the Disney-MGM Studios. He is referring to Sid Cahuenga's of course! We discuss this store and the various items we have seen there over the years. Joe Barlow wrote in about some backlot vehicles, mainly the Hardcastle and McCormick car. We misidentified it as a Lamborghini, but Joe tells us it really is a kit car from back then. Listener Mail The mailbag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write to us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Tom Potter is our first letter and it is all about time capsules. Tom brings up the

Welcome to Episode 55 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Backstage Tour - MGM" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Comments & Corrections Take a listen to our latest mini-episode, Bringing The World Closer To You - this was a quick one but ended up being very good. Enjoy! Listener Mail The mailbag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write to us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Rob wrote in, asking about the VIP Lounges at EPCOT. Rob is mainly interested in the Kodak lounge at Journey into Imagination. Brian gives us his take on it. As I was putting this write-up together, I realized Rob is the owner of the site we reference. Check out his collection of VIP lounge pictures and information: Future World's Hidden VIP Lounges Next letter we discuss purchasing fog machines at Innoventions. Was this actually a thing? We discuss... Dane writes in, regarding ephemera. Do we have

Welcome to Episode 54.5 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Bringing the World Closer to You" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows!  Main Topic Back in Episode 42 (Communicore West) we interviewed Lisa Bastoni, granddaughter of Walter Einsel, the designer of the Age of Information Exhibit at Futurecom in Communicore West. Through her grandfather's notes and a correct search of the song, we were able to locate the author and lyricist of the song, Tom Tierney! In this episode we speak with Tom about the creation of the song, how he developed the melody and lyrics and his interaction with Walter and Naiad Einsel. We top it off with a special version of Bringing the World Closer to you performed at RetroMagic by Lisa Bastoni! Tom's other works currently in production: NARNIA (based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) is at the Serenbe Playhouse in Atlanta, GA through January 12, 2020. It's an "immersive" production - her

Welcome to Episode 54 of the RetroWDW Podcast: “A Very ’90s Christmas” – We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Corrections & Comments Carrie wrote us regarding a jade carving in the China pavilion, connecting back to when we discussed the overly expensive items throughout EPCOT Center. Please, we are looking for any information regarding the rare, expensive and unique items sprinkled throughout World Showcase.  Thanks Carrie! Listener Mail The mail bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Richard wrote in regarding the STOL Port; he wants to run there during some half marathon training. We give him some top tips regarding seeing the airport and also running around WDW. Bryan is up next, asking us about the early days of calling Walt Disney World. When did hold music first appear? Was it an ‘opening day’ thing for Disney?  We g

Welcome to Episode 53 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Cute Stories With Rolly" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows! Listener Mail The mail bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write us at podcast@retrowdw.com. Jason Burley wrote in about the EPCOT Center Book we reference often. Jason wants a Magic Kingdom book... Which we recommend a few, including "Walt Disney World: 20 Magical Years". Matthew Driftmier wrote us about some various rocket names in the parks. The X-1 & X-2; these are all classic names within the theme parks and How gives us some history on these various names. Joe Barlow is up next - telling us a great story about how they would trick people at River Country to shorten the line.... Clever story Joe! Kyle wrote in about the Asian & Persian; simply asking why these themes haven't been used since the idea was abandoned in the 70s. Our next

Welcome to Episode 52 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Twenty Questions" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows and also look into Twin Pines Chalet! Corrections / Notes Our first set of corrections/notes comes from an anonymous source - after they listened to some of our previous episodes they had a few notes: From Episode #2 Amongst the Plexiglass Trees – The Contemporary - the third floor of the Contemporary Resort actually houses the restrooms for Chef Mickey's and is accessed from the fourth floor. How explains the details. In our episode #39 – Preview Center and Hotel Plaza Boulevard - We forgot to mention that the Reedy Creek Improvement was housed in the preview center before they got their own building. We we were talking about touchscreens in our Communicore episodes (#38 – Communicore East &  #42 – Communicore West) How gives us more info on where in WDW that specific early touchscreen technology is still

Welcome to Episode 51 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Horizons - Part 3: The Legacy" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. Listen to Horizons Part 1 - The Prologue Listen to Horizons Part 2 - The Promise Corrections We had a correction about The Living Seas from @Futureport on Twitter, the name we were looking for was 'Moon Pool'. Last month, we discussed Mizner's - We had @DisneyFiedAsh tweet us about a Mizner's tour and his pet monkey! The people in the Mesa Verde scene from Horizons are brought up and their ages...interesting topic. Joe is up next, telling us that the Seal is connected to Carousel of Progress with the name, Rover. Listener Mail The mail bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write us! Jimmy wrote in to discuss some old souvenir items you would find in Tomorrowland. The bulb spinner and Spacewarp Toy Coaster were somewhat rare, but available pl

Corrections Rick wrote in, regarding The Timekeeper. At one point in the film, The Timekeeper mentions something about “If you had wings”. We find out if that was intentional or not from the director himself. Connor wrote in discussing “Century 3” and “Future Probe”. The vintage book called Horizons is discussed and some World’s Fair snippets as well. We discuss the possible connections to WDW, EPCOT Center and more. Read the Horizons Book by Norman Bel Geddes via Archives.org Listener Mail The mail bag is full and we love that! Every month, you can possibly get on the show, so be sure to write us! Park wrote in asking about Mizner’s and where the name came from. How discusses who it was actually named after and why… Adam asked us about the old Teacher Center brochures we mentioned some episodes back. They are here and here and are very snazzy – enjoy! If you have any of the Teacher Center materials, please contact us as we’d love to add them to the galleries and JT would really appreciate it! Ryan wr

The Lake Buena Vista Historical Society cordially invites you to our 5th Anniversary Celebration: Tickets Tickets will go on sale May 18th at 1pm EST at this link: Event Details EPCOT Forever VIP Reception and Viewing* (Saturday October 12th) – Approx 8:30p-10:30p – Enjoy a beverage and selection of snacks on the shore of the World Showcase Lagoon for a once in a lifetime chance to watch the new nightime show alongside all of our RetroMagic VIPs! (Includes admission RetroMagic Celebration on 10/13) RetroMagic Celebration and Luncheon (Sunday October 13th) – 10a-5p, Contemporary Resort – Join us in the historic Ballroom of the Americas at the Contemporary resort for a day filled with stories and never before seen photos and artifacts from Disney legends, Cast Members, music and more! RetroMagic VIPs Disney Legend Bob Gurr Disney Legend Rolly Crump** Disney Legend Ron Logan Disney Legend Tom Nabbe Disney Imagineer Tom K. Morris Ron Schneider Disney Imagineer Jim Sarno Ali Olmo Michael Campbel

Welcome to Episode 49 of the RetroWDW Podcast: “Horizons – Part 1: The Prologue” – We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. For this episode, one of our top donors Ted Linhart got to sit in because of his generous donation and also because of his amazing archive. Take a look at what he has going on, over at DisneyDocs.net – If you would be interested in joining us to get a behind the scenes listen, be sure to check out our Donation Page. Thank you Anthony! Corrections   Lucy wrote us to discuss The Timekeeper, regarding a scene filmed for the movie. We reached out to the director to get the facts for Lucy.  Thanks for writing! Another Timekeeper question came in, asking about the years on the Timekeeper’s display, stopping at 2000. We discuss this and also confirm some video evidence. How helps us out with this last question, from John Kitty. He was asking about the EPCOT name, with the word ‘Center’ being used. Dan

Welcome to Episode 48.5 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "A Chat With Jeff Blyth" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. Main Topic A Chat With Jeff Blyth Jeff Blyth joins us on this bonus episode, which is a follow-up to Episode 48, which is all about The Timekeeper. Jeff has been a film director for many years, getting his start in Circlevision with the original China film at EPCOT Center. We take a massively deep dive into what it takes to make these types of films. As you listen, your mind is going to be blown and you are in for a few surprises. Jeff has so many personal experiences with this type of film making and some of the techniques, skills and even issues all come up. We move into what it took to actually make the film for The Timekeeper. This took Circlevision to a whole new level and we learn why, as some of the techniques seem basic when you compare it to a drone shot of today. Jeff is an amazing guest that

Welcome to Episode 48 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "The Timekeeper" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. Tonight we have a special guest joining us, Anthony got to sit in because of his generous donation. If you would be interested in joining us to get a behind the scenes listen, be sure to check out our Donation Page. Thank you Anthony! Corrections Andy Hudson wrote in regarding the current state of the old Penny Arcade games. We discuss this a bit and give some insight into his question / concern. Next up, we got a message from Mike Skinner, regarding a 1979 episode of Charlie's Angels. During the opening sequence, you see The Eastern Winds, just moored out in the bay.  Click Here to check this super quick view, don't blink! Listener Mail We're getting quite a bit of listener mail and we love to hear from ya! Keep the emails, tweet and calls comin' in! Amy wrote in, asking us what the average stay was back in t

Welcome to Episode 47 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "A Room Full Of Fun" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. Corrections Our first correction is in regard to our last episode, all about Snow White's Scary Adventure. A great memory shared and we feel you! How has a minor correction about the figures from Snow White's Scary Adventure, Disneyland Paris, duplicate figures and some other tidbits. Brian & How recently rode Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and How walks us through the repurposed figures, which you can go see right now. We also hear about a recent loss Brian experienced... Which relates very well to an old Eric Boardman Disney Channel video.  Listener Mail Kicking things off, Tom wrote us from New Hampshire - asking what our own personal Holy Grail item would be from Walt Disney World. This could include merchandise, ride pieces and anything else.  Great question! Jake Nelson wrote in about Dreamflight and b

Welcome to Episode 46 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Snow White's Scary Adventures" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows. Corrections Paul wrote in about his big prize pot victory and to discuss some of the old Birnbaum's guides. We got some updates on Pleasure Island from Mike, discussing the rivers, lakes and Mr. Pleasure. Mike also brings up Church Street in Orlando and how it was competition. Listener Mail Our first message is from Megan - she wants to know about an old window in the PeopleMover. What did this window once overlook? Plant Sitting... We discuss this service that was once offered up at WDW. This unique aspect of the Vacation Kingdom covered your own ferns and also new purchases. Let us know if you have any extra information about this service... Dave wrote in about just discovering us. He is curious about The Fiesta Fun Center, which we go into detail on - this topic though, is going to require a