Changes
Inside of Sea Base Alpha, guests could see a "television" system that allowed them to follow various divers’ activities. One camera would be set on the sea floor, the second mounted on a robotic device which followed the diver, and a third would be on the diver’s helmet itself. In the research facility, guests would also be able to see a series of exhibits that showcased not only underwater life, but also the future of underwater science. Unlike its successor, the original plans for The Living Seas pavilion’s architecture called for a two story pavilion, with a glass roof. As designs for the pavilion changed, and the entire Living Seas took on a more serious tone, the glass ceiling was replaced by a conventional one.
Due to this change in tone as well as logistical issues, construction on The Living Seas was pushed back. Before construction began however, the layout of the The Living Seas was altered. This was either due to a change in tone or the unwillingness of of the pavilions sponsor United Technologies to fund the elaborate pavilion <ref name= "Martin"/>. Instead of the extensive dark ride that would have led guests to Sea Base Alpha, a preshow video and short trip through the aquarium were instead installed <ref name= "Martin"/>.. The pavilion was now designed with essentially two parts: the large Coral Reef Aquarium, and Sea Base Alpha, where guests could look at the future of underwater research ref name= "Martin"/>. After a series of setbacks, construction on The Living Seas began in March of 1984, and the pavilion opened to the public on January 15, 1986 <ref name= "Martin"/>.
===The Living Seas Presented By United Technologies (1986-1998)===
Aside from minor changes to Sea Base Alpha, The Living Seas remained essentially unchanged until 1998 when United Technologies ended their sponsorship of the pavilion <ref name= "Martin"/>. With the end of United Technologies sponsorship, all references to the company were removed from the pavilion by the end of 1999 <ref> http://www.intercot.com/EDC/LivingSeas/index.html </ref>. At this time, one of the two preshow theaters was also closed in order to allow returning guests to skip the film altogether and move directly to the Hydrolators <ref name= "Martin"/>. Subsequently, in 2002 the Caribbean Coral Reef Ride portion of the pavilion closed, with guests now walking from the Hydrolators, past the Coral Reef Aquarium, and into Sea Base Alpha (of note is the fact that the SeaCabs remained intact after being discontinued, they were just boarded up) <ref name= "Martin"/>.
With no sponsor and a decreasing in popularity, Disney decided that The Living Seas needed to change. In order to increase the pavilion’s popularity, Disney began to tie the popular 2003 film Finding Nemo into the exhibits in Sea Base Alpha. The integration of Nemo into the living seas The Living Seas was done in four parts <ref name= "Martin"/>.
In December 2003, references to Nemo began to appear through the pavilion, especially in the gift shop <ref name= "Martin"/>. Next, in January 2004 Module 1C and 1D in Sea Base Alpha were closed<ref name= "Martin"/>. When the modules reopened they were replaced by "Bruce’s Shark World" (in Module 1D) and a new attraction [[Turtle Talk with Crush]] (in Module IC) <ref> Epcot Encyclopedia </ref>. Turtle Talk With Crush was an interactive show that featured Disney's newest technology, "digital puppetry"-which allowed guests to talk and interact with Crush the Turtle from Finding Nemo. The new show proved to be so popular that Disney decided to integrate Nemo into the entire Living Seas pavilion. In order to do this, on August 21, 2005 the entire pavilion closed to the public<ref name= "Martin"/>.
On November 23, 2005, the Sea Base Alpha half of the Seas pavilion reopened <ref name= "Martin"/>. During the refurbishment, the exit hydrolators were removed from the pavilion, and guests now (temporarily) entered and exited through large glass doors <ref name= "Martin"/>. The Sea Base, as it was now called, had been completely remodeled. New signs and decor were added, and the previously scientific exhibits were replaced by Finding Nemo themed ones<ref name= "Martin"/>.
Although Sea Base - and thus Turtle Talk with Crush - was operational by November, the front half of the pavilion remained closed.In this area, Imagineers were hard at work creating a new dark ride attraction, "The Seas with Nemo & Friends". The new attraction was constructed in the location that had previously housed one of the pavilion's preshow theaters, the Hydrolators, the holding areas, and the queue for the old Caribbean Coral Reef Ride that took guests through the Coral Reef Aquarium in the SeaCabs <Ref name= "Martin"/>. The Seas with Nemo and Freinds& Friends's queue replaced the Hydrolator portion of the attraction. The removal of the third Hydrolator as well as the preshow theater allowed Imagineers to install 9 new dark ride scenes <Ref name= "Martin"/>. In order to extend the original Caribbean Coral Reef Ride track to include these new scenes, 280 ft of additional track was installed<Ref name= "Martin"/>.The SeaCabs themselves were remodeled into "Clamobiles" that took guests through the story.
The new queue was themed so that guests would travel from the beach, under a pier, and finally underwater. This allowed Disney to eliminate the need for the Hydrolators, but retain the original story that they told.
