Today in Disney history – on April 22, 1964, the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair opened, featuring many popular attractions that eventually moved to Disneyland…
In the early 1960’s Disneyland was embarking on the largest expansion since the park was built. The plans, ideas, and construction for New Orleans Square were well under way when Walt Disney halted work and directed the Imagineers to develop new attractions for the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair.
Some of the attractions that those were (and are):
Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln
Designed for the State of Illinois
Magic Skyway
Designed for the Ford Motor Company – This could be considered the precursor to the People Mover, as guests were loaded into new-model Ford cars which ran along a guide track and took the passengers through an “adventure in time and space”. This also included ‘the prehistoric world’ which included the dinosaurs we see today when riding the Disneyland Railroad. Below, play the original attraction audio, narrated by Walt Disney.
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it’s a small world
Designed for Pepsi / UNICEF – An attraction representing the children of the world, the original soundtrack had the children from each country singing their national anthem in their own language. However, the story didn’t flow well because the music became jumbled and confusing, so the unified song was recorded with all of the children singing “It’s a Small World”. (Also, the “boat and flume” ride system that was designed for Small World ended up being used for Pirates of the Caribbean back at Disneyland.)
Carousel of Progress
Designed for General Electric – While this attraction is no longer at Disneyland, the show building still it. Innoventions replaced “America Sings” – which replaced the Carousel of Progress. You can still see this show sporadically when in Disney World…
More photos…
