Tidbits March 2007

[Figment!]

Tidbits
March 2007

Meet (and Greet) The Robinsons

3/27/07 As Carol reported in the Characters forum, the "Robinsons" Meet & Greet officially debuted a little later than originally planned. The location started normal operation March 23, 2007 at the Magic of Disney Animation. Despite their movie launching March 30th, the Meet & Greet's tenure in this location will likely end prior to the Summer Season kicking into gear . Character Cast are already reporting that the "Robinsons" Meet & Greet is slated to be replaced by a "Ratatouille" Meet & Greet in the Late May to Mid June time frame. It is currently unknown if Lewis, Wilbur Robinson and Bowler Hat Guy will be displaced to another location or if their appearances will end for the near term due to the replacement.

3/3/07 Character Cast are reporting that the “Robinsons” Meet & Greet is tentatively scheduled to begin March 11, 2007 at the Disney-MGM Studios park. Bowler Hat Guy, Lewis, and Wilbur Robinson will reportedly greet Guests daily at the Magic of Disney Animation. It is still reported that the Incredibles Meet and Greet will continue to operate at the Magic of Disney Animation along with this new addition

12/20/06 Characters from Disney Feature Animation's next film “Meet the Robinsons” will reportedly be descending upon the Studios next year. According to Character Cast, lead characters from “Meet the Robinsons” will start regular Meet ‘n Greets at the Magic of Disney Animation in Early 2007. The addition of these characters will reportedly not replace the current Incredibles Meet ‘n Greet and rather be in-addition-to.

Rehab Round-Up [info Central's rehabs ]

3/26/07 A "new" exhibit opened in the former Turtle Talk theater on March 22, 2007. The exhibit features cylindrical tanks that were reportedly transposed from the exhibit formerly occupying the space of the new Turtle Talk theater. The old Turtle Talk screen has been left on the back wall of the exhibit. The screen is still operational, but now only runs through a cycle of a sea scene and some occasional fish.

The Port Orleans Riverside Resort's Riverside Mill Food court finished its renovations about 2 weeks ahead of schedule. The location scheduled to re-open "Mid-April", surprised Guests of the resort by returning to full operation March 23, 2007.

A less unexpected re-opening on March 23, 2007 was that of the Electric Umbrella, which was scheduled to open that day. Despite opening from the rehab for normal operation, the full rehab has not been finished. While the new condiment bar is complete, the new self-serve beverage station is still reportedly behind rehab walls.

3/21/07 If you haven't checked the rehab section lately, you'll find that a few restaurant and pool related rehabs have been announced for the remainder of the year.

Due to elevator renovations April 15 - 18, 2007, Guests of Cinderella's Royal Table will need to be capable of climbing stairs in order to dine at the restaurant during this time. If Guests with mobility issues have reservations at the restaurant during this time period they should contact Walt Disney World Dining to see if alternate arrangements can be made.

Gulliver's Grill at the Garden Grove will be closed for refurbishment April 16 - June 7, 2007. The Pluto/Goofy and Timon/Rafiki Character Dinners will be held at the FRESH Mediterranean Market during this time period. It is unknown how this renovation will affect the Garden Grove, considering they are essentially the same location. At this time, there has been no announcement regarding an effect on the "Garden Grove" location or its meals.

The All-Star resorts will be undergoing pool refurbishments from late April through Mid September, 2007. The Calypso Pool and Kiddie Pool at Disney's All-Star Music resort will closed for refurbishment from April 24 - May 10, 2007; The Duck Pond Pool at Disney's All-Star Movies resort will be closed for refurbishment from May 14 - 31, 2007; and The Surfboard Pool and Kiddie Pool at Disney's All-Star Sports resort will be closed for refurbishment from August 27 - September 13, 2007. During the rehabs, Guests of the effected resort can use the pools of the other two All-Star Resorts if the additional pools at the resort do not suffice.

3/5/07 The Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse will be closed for refurbishment April 30 - May 18, 2007.

The conversion of the Main Street Market House to a glass shop was reportedly completed February 25, 2007. The new seating area of the Main Street Bakery is scheduled to be complete March 16, 2007.

Dinosaur Gertie's Ice Cream of Extinction is scheduled to be closed for refurbishment March 12 – 13, 2007. Also at the Studios, the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular will be dark March 10 - 11, 2007

Double Mania

3/12/07Potential details have leaked regarding the ride layout of the forthcoming Disney-MGM Studios attraction--Toy Story Mania. Reports from those close to the project hold that the ride is planned to be in 4 sections. After the initial "practice area" the ride path reportedly will split into a "space" path and a "farm" path, each with separately themed games. The two paths will reportedly re-join prior to entering a single finale section. At the time of the report, it was not indicated how cars would be designated to each path (ie if Guests or the ride would designate which car goes where).

A Sign of Innovation

3/21/07 Guests of Epcot's Future World, may find the landscape a bit different and its central technology exhibit a bit harder to find. Over the last several weeks crews have dismantled and removed the Marquee Towers that have stood outside Innoventions's entrances since it opened. The Towers have been replaced by smaller, less ornate marquee signs mounted on the wall above each of the entrances.

Tee Shirt Time Warp

3/12/07After an approximate 3 year hiatus, Epcot has revived its “retro” line of merchandise. This incarnation is comprised of tee-shirts paying homage to the park’s EPCOT Center past.

The line is comprised of two men’s tees priced at $20.00 each and two ladies’ tees priced at $22.00 each. The men’s tees feature World Showcases and EPCOT Center designs, while the ladies tees feature EPCOT and EPCOT ’82 designs.

The first men’s tee is dark grey and features an artistic rending of a fleet of ships on the sea at night. Each of the ships feature Mickey shaped sails representative of each country in World Showcase. The sails are in full color while the rest image is in a light grey. The scene is completed with a Spaceship Earth melded moon and the “Epcot” moniker (circa 1996) below the scene.

The second men’s tee is black and features a patterned “EPCOT Center” moniker in front of the original EPCOT Center logo.

The first ladies’ tee is black and features a sketch spaceship earth in its original form. The sketch of the icon is prismatic (shades of blue to red, bottom to top) and features the “EPCOT” moniker below the sketch.

The second ladies’ tee is lavender and features an “82” shaped painted image of Spaceship Earth in its original form at twilight. The painted image is in full color and the “EPCOT” moniker appears above the image.

For those in the parks in the near future, this line can currently be found at MouseGears. For those not traveling to Epcot any time soon, these items can be ordered through Walt Disney World Merchandising via 407-363-6200 or [email protected]. For those using the latter method the sku numbers for the four shirts are as follows:

Men’s Grey: #19980068, Men’s Black: #19980074, Ladies’ Black: #19980059 and Ladies’ Lavender: #19980063.

More Power to the Rangers

3/12/07 According to Character Cast, the “Operation Overdrive” Yellow Power Ranger is scheduled to start appearances with the rest of the Power Ranger character troupe this week. At this time, all reports indicate that this is an addition to the group and not a replacement of an existing Power Ranger. Currently, the Power Ranger character troupe is appearing at the Disney-MGM Studios’ Streets of America six times daily.

[Figment!]

More Party Time?

3/5/07 Magic Kingdom Cast Members have reported that plans are in motion to hold a second set of Pirate & Princess Party events sometime in the second half of this calendar year. Little appears to be known about these events at this time and it has yet to be announced internally. These initial reports have suggested that this second set would have fewer parties than the set conducted earlier this year. If plans go through, it is expected that the second set of dates will be released prior to the end of this month.

Spring Into More Dining

3/3/07 During the height of the 2007 “Peak Spring” season several of Walt Disney World’s most popular dining locations will be extending their hours.

From April 1st through the 7th, Chef Mickey’s will end its Breakfast service a ½ hour later (Noon) and will start its Dinner service 1 hour earlier (4:00 pm). On April 8th, Chef Mickey’s will end its Breakfast service 1 ½ hours later (1:00 pm) and will start its Dinner service 1 hour earlier (4:00 pm).

On April 3rd, Mickey’s Backyard BBQ will add an additional showing at 6:30 pm.

From April 1st through the 7th, ‘Ohana will start its Dinner service 1 hour earlier (4:00 pm). On April 8th, ‘Ohana will end its Breakfast service 1 hour later (Noon) and will start its Dinner service 1 hour earlier (4:00 pm).

From April 1st through the 8th, Whispering Canyon Cafe will start its Dinner service 1 hour earlier (4:00 pm).

Shedding Light on Siemens

3/3/07 Siemens has officially recognized their on-going refurbishment of the Spaceship Earth post show and also announced a new Epcot VIP Center for their customers through an update to the Siemens-Disney Alliance section of their website. The following is the updated portion of the section:

Florida Attractions

~Spaceship Earth, the centerpiece of Epcot®, as well as a Siemens-branded post-show experience, which will include several interactive exhibits related to Siemens technologies in areas such as healthcare, transportation and energy.

~ IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth, the nightly fireworks and laser light display at Epcot, sponsored by Sylvania, A Siemens Company.

~ The Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights at MGM Studios, a holiday light exhibit that is on display from November through mid-January is also sponsored by Sylvania.

~Nexus 21, a VIP center at Epcot for the exclusive use of Siemens employees and customers. The center serves as a hospitality and briefing center showcasing the company’s story of innovation and technology.

An Autumn Attenuation
3/3/07 The Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue at Disney’s Fort Wilderness is planned to scale back its schedule during the “Low Fall” season of 2007. From August 30 - October 29, 2007, the dinner show is scheduled to perform Thursday through Monday only. A formal reason has yet to be cited for the planned operational change.

[PecosBill]

~Spaceship Earth, the centerpiece of Epcot®, as well as a Siemens-branded post-show experience, which will include several interactive exhibits related to Siemens technologies in areas such as healthcare, transportation and energy.

Does anyone know when this will be finished? Something is so badly needed.

[DizneyFreak2002]

Is the end near for Hoop Dee Doo? I hope not.... As popular as Hoop Dee Doo is, cutting down shows is never a good sign...

[pdrlkr]

Thanks Jason!

[DisneyorBust]

Thanks for the updates! Spaceship Earth is one of our favorites and we have been hoping that the vacant space would be filled soon.

[Crow]

Thanks. ill be checking out the SE space in May...its needed something for a while.

[Figment!]

Does anyone know when this will be finished?

Early Spring 2007, according to Epcot's VP.

Is the end near for Hoop Dee Doo? I hope not.... As popular as Hoop Dee Doo is, cutting down shows is never a good sign...

Reducing a schedule from 7 to 5 days a week during a slow attendance period is doubtfully a sign of imminent demise.

[Jeff]

Thanks Jason!

[Colson39]

I agree, the Hoop Dee Doo is still one of their most popular shows. It's just that their is no reason to run the show during times when the entire place is during a slow period, it's just a waste of money.

Hoop Dee Doo half full can't be nearly as much fun as Hoop Dee Doo full

Plus they cut out Tuesday and Wednesday, which are really slow times in Fort Wilderness anyways, since most people leave on Monday and arrive on Thursdays. Makes perfect sense to me.

Now if they cut it down to 3 days only during Thanksgiving week, that might be another story

[PECOS BILL]

Benn to the Hoop Dee Doo I think 6 or 7 times.
We love it! I really don't think it's going anywhere. Just a little slow period.

[rsumrall]

thanks for the updates!

[Bethanymouse]

Thanks for all the info!

[Caroleh]

Thanks, Jason, for the updates!!!

[Figment!]

**Updated**

[AndrewJackson]

After an approximate 3 year hiatus, Epcot has revived its “retro” line of merchandise. This incarnation is comprised of tee-shirts paying homage to the park’s EPCOT Center past.

The line is comprised of two men’s tees priced at $20.00 each and two ladies’ tees priced at $22.00 each. The men’s tees feature World Showcases and EPCOT Center designs, while the ladies tees feature EPCOT and EPCOT ’82 designs.

The first men’s tee is dark grey and features an artistic rending of a fleet of ships on the sea at night. Each of the ships feature Mickey shaped sails representative of each country in World Showcase. The sails are in full color while the rest image is in a light grey. The scene is completed with a Spaceship Earth melded moon and the “Epcot” moniker (circa 1996) below the scene.

The second men’s tee is black and features a patterned “EPCOT Center” moniker in front of the original EPCOT Center logo.

The first ladies’ tee is black and features a sketch spaceship earth in its original form. The sketch of the icon is prismatic (shades of blue to red, bottom to top) and features the “EPCOT” moniker below the sketch.

The second ladies’ tee is lavender and features an “82” shaped painted image of Spaceship Earth in its original form at twilight. The painted image is in full color and the “EPCOT” moniker appears above the image.

For those in the parks in the near future, this line can currently be found at MouseGears. For those not traveling to Epcot any time soon, these items can be ordered through Walt Disney World Merchandising via 407-363-6200 or [email protected]. For those using the latter method the sku numbers for the four shirts are as follows:

Cool. I think I had a shirt like this when I was 12 yrs old.

[DizneyFreak2002]

I have seen pictures of these shirts... I like the look of them... When I am in there in May, I will be buying one of them...

[joelkfla]

3/5/07 Magic Kingdom Cast Members have reported that plans are in motion to hold a second set of Pirate & Princess Party events sometime in the second half of this calendar year. Little appears to be known about these events at this time and it has yet to be announced internally. These initial reports have suggested that this second set would have fewer parties than the set conducted earlier this year. If plans go through, it is expected that the second set of dates will be released prior to the end of this month.

The official website says "Returning Select Nights this August!"

[markb]

The new t-shirts sound really cool. I can see me buying both

[melabelle]

I like the idea of retro shirts. Unfortunately, they don't seem to be making one that looks like my authentic vintage Epcot shirt (here). It's 2 years older than me, which is pretty cool.

I inherited it from my dad when he no longer fit into it. He and my mom went to Epcot in '82, a few years after getting married. That started our "let's happen to take a trip to Disney whenever a new park opens" pattern. We went every 2-4 years and somehow managed to visit (without specifically planning it) during the years that both MGM and Animal Kingdom opened ('89 and '98).