Could
Tomorrowland be the most high-maintenance place on earth?
by
Jesyka D'Itri
Keeping
up with the future: a built-in problem
On a website dedicated to the discontinued attractions of Disneyland,
Yesterland.com, the section allocated for Tommowland lists thirty-seven
attractions—double that of any other land. Tomorrowland
said hello to the Monsato House of the Future, Adventure thru
Inner Space, Mission to Mars, and Captain Eo. And then it said
goodbye. Tomorrowland has been completely renovated twice since
its opening in 1955: once in 1967 and again in 1998. Both times
it reopened as "New Tomorrowland." In addition to
these complete overhauls, which included façade changes,
it has seen many small refurbishments and additions. In 1959,
the Matterhorn Bobsleds (now a part of Fantasyland), Submarine
Voyage, and the Monorail were completed. In 1974, America Sings
replaced the Carousel of Progress. And in 1977, the Space Mountain
complex was added. Tomorrowland saw more additions in 1986 and
1987 with Captain Eo and Star Tours, when Michael Eisner and
George Lucas collaborated (they had already established a successful
business relationship as Eisner had championed Raiders of
the Lost Ark when he was an executive at Paramount, no
doubt also paving the way for the addition of the Indiana Jones
Adventure, Temple of the Forbidden Eye to Adventureland in the
mid-nineties).
Why
the constant change concentrated in Tomorrowland? Tomorrowland
has the built-in problem of needing to represent the future,
but the future will always become the present. In order to
keep up with the real world and remain a popular destination,
Tomorrowland has had to undergo (and will continue to have
to undergo) transformations. The changes in the façade
and in the attractions at Tomorrowland directly reflect advances
in technology, the pervasive use of similar construction in
southern California roadside architecture, a shift in public
opinion related to the rejection of 1960s utopian ideals,
and the natural decline in popularity of the 1980s pop icons
around which certain attractions were built.
Tomorrowland was originally designed to portray the year 1986.
It represented a utopian land of the future where families
would live in progress and peace. A few of the original attractions
were 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Rocket to the Moon, Autopia
and the Monsato House of the Future. 20,000 Leagues closed
in 1956, just a year after it opened. The House of the Future
was the model home for generations of families to come. It
was made almost entirely of plastic, right down to the kitchen
sink, and was equipped with such innovations as insulated
glass walls, plastic chairs, picture and speaker phones, a
nonfunctional television that hung on the wall, microwaves,
and electric toothbrushes—all inventions that are now
available and commonplace. Once these inventions became realities
in the average home, however, the House of the Future became
outdated. Rather than continue to update it, they tore it
down. Or, rather, the wrecking ball bounced off the sturdy
plastic side of the house and a crew of several men had to
demolish it by hand. It, as well as several of the other original
attractions, closed to make way for the New Tomorrowland of
1967.
How
can it remain futuristic?
By 1967
it was evident that Disneyland was influencing the architecture
of its surrounding area and the greater Los Angeles area as
a whole. The building housing the Encounter restaurant at
the Los Angeles International Airport, for example, was completed
in 1961. Resembling a flying saucer hovering midair beneath
two crisscrossing parabolic arches, it is the most recognizable
landmark at LAX and a veritable symbol of Los Angeles. (Fittingly,
the interior of the restaurant was actually designed by Disneyland
Imagineers.) The Anaheim Convention Center was built during
the construction flurry that followed the opening of Disneyland,
and also looks like it was inspired by a flying saucer.
An architectural
style, popular during the 1950s and 1960s, known as "Googie,"
which is "loosely classified as a humorous but futuristic
style of vernacular architecture," became extremely popular
in designs for diners, coffee shops, and gas stations (Extensions).
People liked "Googie" because it "was all about
the future, and the future was a theme that people were ripe
to experience in the 50s, as Disneyland has shown" (Extensions).
Tomorrowland's
original façade was not especially innovative. Instead,
it was influenced by a style characterized by "futuristic
and whimsical leanings" that was already becoming increasingly
popular and that would eventually come to dominate California's
roadside architecture (Extensions). According to John M. Findlay,
the park was supposed to be "placeless" when in
all actuality the park "was very much the product of
a particular place and also an influential force in the reshaping
of that place" (qtd. in Extensions).
It is
difficult to completely disentangle the future from the present
because all we have to go off of are our predictions, our
own conceptions of the future, all of which are influenced
by the present. We have no concrete knowledge of the future.
For this reason, it makes sense that this would be a problem
faced by a land that is meant to represent our ideas about
the future. But if the purpose of Tomorrowland is to transport
you to the future and you see the same types of buildings
when you are headed back to the Five on your way home, how
can it remain futuristic? People became accustomed to seeing
"Googie" everywhere they went, and therefore the
architecture of Tomorrowland, as well as some of its attractions,
became outdated.
In addition
to the architecture and the attractions, the utopian ideals
of a future full of promise founded upon the ingenuity of
mankind and the progress of technology embodied by the original
conception of Tomorrowland also came under scrutiny. Public
morale was low as the nation threw itself into the Vietnam
War. Young people of the period "rebelled against their parents'
can-do attitudes and embodied a sense of dark cynicism that
rendered the playfulness of Googie offensive. The auspicious
representations of the future in Tomorrowland now seemed dangerously
naive and unlikely" (Extensions). As the optimism of
the 50's waned, public opinion became more cynical. In light
of this new pessimistic world view, people were less willing
to swallow the sugarcoated pill of the future that Tomorrowland
had to offer. Tomorrowland simply became unbelievable, and
not in the sense that was originally intended.
The
more things change…
The reopening
of Tomorrowland as "New Tomorrowland" in 1967 was an attempt
to regain some of the awe Tomorrowland was once capable of eliciting
from Disneyland-goers. In preparation for the reopening, an
entirely new façade was created and several attractions were
scrapped, added, or reinterpreted.
The entrance from Main Street was revamped; two spectacular
gate-like walls were added, flanking either side of the walkway.
Walt Disney's vision of a transportation system that never stopped
moving was finally realized. Called the People Mover, it took
travelers on a 15-minute journey around Tomorrowland. The wheels
of this functional perpetual motion machine never stopped turning,
even in the queue. Also
added in 1967 were the Adventure thru Inner Space, the Carousel
of Progress, and the Rocket Jets. The Rocket Jets were a reincarnation
of the Astro Jets, but rose far above the ground on a platform
above the People Mover queue. They changed the name of Rocket
to the Moon to Flight to the Moon. Some animatronics (like the
electronically animated robots seen today in the Pirates of
the Caribbean and the Tiki Room) were added and the seats were
made to inflate and deflate to simulate G-forces. Tomorrowland
had been given a whole new look. However, by the time we landed
on the moon two years later, at least one ride was out of date.
Already, the necessity for building yet another "New Tomorrowland"
seemed imminent.
While
the 1970s brought a number of significant changes to Tomorrowland
reflective of both larger technological advances and a response
to the public's growing preference for "thrill rides,"
few of these changes would prove to be permanent. Throughout
the 1970s, more attractions were added and others were retired
or replaced. In 1974 the Carousel of Progress, which featured
a revolving stage and showed how life had improved since the
advent of electricity, was moved to Walt Disney World in Orlando,
Florida in time for its Grand Opening. In 1976, America Sings,
a bicentennial celebration, was built in its place. It featured
animatronic animals who narrated the history of music, from
the cities to the swamps. In 1975 Mission to Mars replaced
Flight to the Moon.
Yet it
still seemed that something was missing. In 1971 Six Flags
Magic Mountain, a theme park which made thrill rides its focus,
opened in Southern California. Disneyland was (and arguably
still is) a park centered around attractions that are fun
and family-friendly as opposed to rides that could be considered
frightening or exhilarating. Nevertheless, pressure to compete
resulted in the development of the Space Mountain complex.
Space Mountain is a thrill ride through (supposedly) pitch-black
space at speeds of up to 70 mph. (Incidentally, Space Mountain
is currently undergoing a complete renovation to reopen anew
for the 50th anniversary of Disneyland in 2005.) A stage was
added, as was an arcade, to cash in on the burgeoning video
game craze. These changes continued into the 1980s with the
arrival of new (and currently embattled) C.E.O. Michael Eisner.
The
more they stay the same
The 1980s
brought two major changes with respect to Tomorrowland, both
of which came directly as a result of Michael Eisner and his
decision to take advantage of the economic pull of two iconic
institutions of eighties pop culture: Michael Jackson and
Star Wars. Eisner invited George Lucas to create
two new attractions at Disneyland. One was Captain Eo. Directed
by Francis Ford Coppola, it premiered in 1986. It was a 3-D
movie with, then state of the art, special effects and it
starred Michael Jackson and Angelica Houston. It was half
music video, half science fiction thriller.
The second
attraction was Star Tours, which was inspired by the tremendously
popular Star Wars trilogy and opened in 1987. Star
Tours is a flight simulation ride that takes you to the moon
of Endor (or so you think). Captain Eo and Star Tours basked
in the reflected glory of Michael Jackson and Star Wars
respectively. Both of these additions came to light because
of the influence these two icons had upon popular culture
at the time and they did manage to succeed in breathing new
life into the park.
Also during
the decade (1988 to be exact), the show that had nothing to
do with the future (and was actually more concerned with the
past), America Sings, closed. The building that had housed
it was subsequently used as office space. By choosing to build
two major attractions around two icons that were so specific
to the 1980s, Eisner was taking a pretty big risk. In order
to pump up attendance in the short-term, he effectively made
the bet that their mainstream popularity and relevance would
be lasting. Unfortunately, he was wrong and thus doomed Tomorrowland
to yet another complete overhaul in order to keep it fresh
and up-to-date.
Because
the last façade change had occurred in 1967, and because the
changes in the 1980s were based more on contemporary popular
culture than an actual vision of the future, Tomorrowland
had become a place of the past by the 1990s. Imagineers recognized
the need for a complete revision of Tomorrowland. Plans were
in the works for Tomorrowland 2055, a spectacular place where
alien life forms lived and worked harmoniously with humans
on Earth (Hill). But Disneyland Paris opened in 1992 and was
hemorrhaging money. (People don't visit France to go to Disneyland.)
Ironically, the most realistic idea for a future that would
most likely not come for a very extended length of time (if
at all) was sacked in favor of a simple, cheap façade
change.
Staying
power: what works, what doesn't
The new New
Tomorrowland, which opened in 1998, represented a change that
Disney hoped would be "timeless." It was inspired
by visionaries like Leonardo DaVinci and Jules Verne. Mission
to Mars closed in 1992, as it had also become outdated, and
the building was left unoccupied for six years until it became
an eatery for the reopening of New Tomorrowland. Additionally,
many rides were removed or reinvented for the reopening. Captain
Eo, which was by this time markedly eighties and thus an attraction
that had become distinctly nostalgic rather than futuristic,
was replaced with Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. The People Mover
was replaced with the Rocket Rods, which occupied the same track
as the original ride, but moved at considerably higher speeds.
Yet because it was too expensive to curve the banks in order
to keep the ride smooth, it was forced to slow down around every
turn. The ride closed in 2001 due to constant breakdowns (good
riddance—I was once stuck on that ride in heavy downpour
and high winds for twenty minutes and was so cold I cried).
After 40 years, the Submarine Voyage was closed permanently
due to high costs. Tomorrowland's Autopia went under its first
renovation since opening day in 1955. It was connected with
Fantasyland's Autopia track and got brand new cars. And the
Rocket Jets got a new look, a new home, and a new name. The
ride became the Astro Orbiter and was located at the entrance
to Tomorrowland. Superficially, the new New Tomorrowland may
have represented big changes, but it also represented a huge
disappointment for fans and also for the Imagineers, who had
had their hearts set on building their own original version
of New Tomorrowland.
Autopia
and the Astro Orbiter are the only two rides that remain from
the original Tomorrowland when it opened almost 50 years ago;
the staying power of these rides can be attributed to their
simple qualities. Additionally, the fact that young children
will never be allowed to drive on their own makes Autopia
an attraction that will always represent the future for people
under 16 (at least in California). Riding in rockets is not
(yet?) a commonplace occurrence, which means that the concept
for the Astro Orbiter will probably not become outdated any
time soon. Its longevity may also reflect the fact that Fantasyland's
Dumbo—which is the same ride as Astro Orbiter but with
a different façade—remains one of Disneyland's
most popular rides. The Astro Orbiter serves as an alternative
to Dumbo's long lines. The survival of these two rides is
due, therefore, to their straightforward concepts and to the
fact that they have never become relics of the past, unlike
the vast majority of the other attractions that have graced
Tomorrowland.
Change
and the future: like peanut butter and jelly
What can
we determine from all of these changes? First and foremost, the future is a difficult thing to both keep up with and to predict. The large number of attractions that have come and
gone from Tomorrowland (not all are mentioned here) proves this.
Second of all, it is apparent that popular culture and public opinion affect which rides will be created and that they help to determine which attractions and aspects of Tomorrowland will be closed, replaced, or revamped. The proliferation of
"Googie" in popular architecture and the public's
eventual rejection of the 1950s ideals it represented necessitated
the first façade change in 1967. And Captain Eo and Star
Tours exploited the popularity of two of the eighties biggest
pop culture cash cows, but the fact that they were so eighties
also meant that it was inevitable that they would become dated.
Autopia is the one attraction in Tomorrowland that has remained relatively unaltered since its birth; the Astro Orbiter has undergone more changes, but is also essentially the same ride. These two attractions have never been closed, just simply rethought.
Thirdly,
technology significantly affects popular conceptions of the
future, and therefore directly affects Tomorrowland, as with
the House of the Future, and the overall theme of Tomorrowland.
Change
is a necessity for the survival of a place meant to represent
the future. A place of the future will therefore never be
able to remain timeless because it is always influenced by
the time in which it is constructed. It is through constant
change that we determine what the future will bring, because
stagnation does not lead to progress, which is what Tomorrowland
is all about.
Jesyka
D'Itri is majoring in Fine Arts and Visual Anthropology. She
knows way too much about Disneyland. It's okay though because
her dream is to become an Imagineer.
