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The Great Movie Ride

The Great Movie Ride is an attraction located in Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Attraction History

The attraction that would one day be known as The Great Movie Ride actually began as an idea for EPCOT Center . In the early 1980’s a team of Imagineers, led by Randy Bright and WDI president Marty Sklar were tasked with creating two new pavilions for Future World . The team came up with two ideas, the Wonders of Life pavilion and the Great Moments at the Movies pavilion. While the Wonders of Life was green lit for inclusion in EPCOT Center, the Great Moments and the Movies attraction was set aside by Disney CEO Michael Eisner.

The original plans for the Great Moments at the Movies, called for the pavilion to be placed in between The Land and the Journey Into Imagination pavilions. The basic plot for the attraction which was to be housed within the pavilion would not only have given guest an inside look into how films were made, but it would have also allowed them to enter the films themselves. The façade for the new pavilion was to feature a movie set backdrop with a ticket booth for an entrance. The façade was intentionally designed to look fake as a commentary on Hollywood itself. After seeing the Great Moments at the Movies concept, Michael Eisner decided that the attraction was strong enough to build a whole new park around. Eventually, Disney decided to create the Disney MGM Studios, with the Great Moments and the Movies attraction as the new park’s centerpiece.

Since The Great Movie Ride (as it was now called) was now going to be the focus of a new park, Disney Imagineers decided that they needed to create a new façade for the attraction. Because the Disney MGM Studios were set in the golden age of Hollywood (the 1920s-1930s), Imagineers decided to house the attraction inside one of Hollywood’s landmarks, Grumman’s Chinese Theater. Furthermore, since the attraction was no longer going to be housed in Epcot, Imagineers also decided that The Great Movie Ride’s plot would focus less on education, instead taking guests on a journey through various classic films. When talking about their preperation for the attraction, Show Designer Eric Jacobson noted:

Concept art for the unbuilt "comedy" scene that was originally designed for The Great Movie Ride

During the development of the attraction there were a few changes to the ride's plot. Early on in the attraction's development there were plans for a "comedy scene" that would have featured Audio-Animatronic versions of:the Keystone Kops, W.C. Fields, Mae West, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin. . In this version of the attraction, the finale would have been a dramatically lit room that surrounded guests with some of cinema's greatest characters. In this room guests would have seen- - R2D2 & C3PO (Star Wars), Rhett Butler & Scarlet O'Hara (Gone with the Wind), Rock Balboa (the Rocky film series), the Ghostbusters, Mary Poppins, Indiana Jones, George C. Scott as Patton, Liza Minnelli as Sally Bowles (Cabaret), Gene Kelly as Donald Lockwood (Singing in the Rain), John Wayne, Shirley Temple, and Mickey Mouse .

As the attraction continued to evolve, the room that eventually became the Fantasia scene was going to house the Tornado scene from the Wizard of Oz . Likewise, the final scene in the attraction was also going to be an extension of the Wizard of Oz scene . In this scene, guests would have come face to face with the Wizard, who would say his famous line “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain”. Following this, the curtain would open showing that the bandit (or gangster) who had hijacked the ride earlier was still alive. Finally, guests would approach a large platform where models of all of the Audio Animatronic characters seen earlier in the ride would reappear and take a bow. Eventually however, Imagineers learned that they did not have the rights to use more of the Wizard of Oz then had already been used . MGM had originally agreed to let Disney use audio from the film's munchkin scene, the Wicked Witch of the West's dialog, and a small amount of Dorothea's dialog when she finds the Emerald City . With MGM unwilling to give up more rights for free, and Disney unwilling to pay, the ideas were eventually scrapped. Instead, a suspiciously windy Fantasia scene replaced the Wizard of Oz's tornado, and the montage of films replaced the Wizard finale.

Other changes during the Great Movie Ride's development were a result of Disney's attempt to get the rights to use the likeness of various celebrities . In order to do this, either the celebrity themselves or their estate had to sign off. The following changes were made to the attraction as a result of these negotiations:

• James Cagney's estate was unhappy with the outfit that the actor's Animatronic wore in the gangster scene. In order to make the figure more "classy", the family actually gave Imagineers Cagney's actual tuxedo.

• Ingrid Bergman's family would not give Disney the right to use the actresses voice, thus her Animatronic does not speak.

• Lee Marvin's character from the 1965 western, Cat Ballou was originally going to be included in The Great Movie Ride's western scene. When Marvin's children refused to sign the waiver however, Clint Eastwood was added to the scene instead .

Construction on The Great Movie Ride began in 1986 . When creating the replica of the Chinese Theater that would house the attraction, Imagineers used the original blueprints of the 1927 Meyer and Holler building for reference . Furthermore, when building the theater Imagineers chose to create the building to scale and not use forced perspective . When the building was being constructed, the 22 ton central roof was built separately and then placed atop the structure . Finally, The Great Movie Ride opened with the Disney MGM Studios on May 1, 1989 .

Since its opening, The Great Movie Ride has only seen a few major changes. The first change to the attraction came less then a year after it opened. The Footlight Parade scene that originally featured a rotating cake and attached water pumps (as seen in the movie), was significantly toned down . The cake in the scene was constantly breaking down and the water pumps would fail, causing the ride path to flood. Disney Imagineers eventually decided to leave the cake stationary, and use lighting effects instead of water pumps . More recently, bubbles have descended on guests in this scene.

The next major change to The Great Movie ride came in 1998, when Coca Cola ended its sponsorship of the attraction. Next, in 2001 the theater's spires were removed . This was done at the time that the large Sorcerer's Hat was constructed in front of the theater . in 2008 when the Wicked Witch of the West Audio Animatronic was replaced with a newer model.

On November 25 2014, Disney and Turner Classic Movies announced that TCM would become the new sponsor of The Great Movie Ride . As part of the agreement on May 30, 2015 the attraction’s preshow and closing montage were updated . Following the update TCM host Robert Osborne introduces the film clips seen in the attraction’s preshow and the closing montage. Furthermore, Osborne was added as the attraction’s narrator . Following these changes, the live cast member is still featured in the interactive parts of the ride; however Robert Osborne is the one who narrates The Great Movie Ride’s scenes .

On July 15, 2017 Disney announced that The Great Movie Ride would be closing on August 13, 2017 to make way for a new Mickey Mouse attraction titled "Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway" .

Attraction Plot

On The Great Movie Ride, there are two different experiences. One experience involves a 1920’s gangster hijacking the ride, while the other features an old west outlaw.

Gangster Version

Mary Poppins flying on her umbrella.

The Great Movie Ride begins with guests boarding their ride vehicles and being introduced to their live tour guide. After asking if everybody is ready, the guide tells guests that its show time, before telling C.B. (famous Hollywood director Cécile B. Demile) that everyone is ready to go. As C.B. yells “Action!” the ride vehicles begin to move and the song “Hooray for Hollywood” begins to play. As the tour begins the tour guide introduces his co-narrator for the attraction, Turner Classic Movie’s host Robert Osborne. As guests enter the attraction’s first scene Osborne says:

The first movie that guests enter is Footlight Parade. Guests pass by a pyramid of chorus girls as bubbles float down from above. Robert Osborne then tells guests that, "One of Hollywood's significant contributions to the world of film were musicals. This scene is from one of my favorites, the 1933 Busby Berkeley spectacular Footlight Parade”. As the vehicles continue forward, the vehicles pass by Gene Kelly performing “Singing In the Rain”. As guests pass by Kelly, Robert Osborne informs them that:

The next scene that guests come upon is from Disney’s 1964 film Mary Poppins. Guests pass by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke as the duo sings “Chim Chim Cheree”. Here Osborne comments:

As the ride continues, the tour guide warns guests that they better hold onto their purses and wallets, as they are entering a bad neighborhood. As the cars enter a dirty alley, guests can see a fight going on in an apartment. As the ride vehicles enter the underworld, Robert Osborne observes:

At this point James Cagney appears on the right where he yells for someone to “open up in their”. On the left of the cars two men are hiding behind some boxes, apparently expecting trouble. One of the men, named Beans, tells his partner Squid to get down because somebody is coming. As the vehicles pass the two thugs, the stoplight up the street turns red and the ride vehicles stop. As the tour guide waits at the light, a gangster emerges from the shadows and hijacks the ride vehicle. She then tells the tour guide:

The gangster who eventually hijacks The Great Movie Ride.

After the gangster (whose name is reveled to be Mugsy) gets rid of the tour guide, a 1930’s car come screeching into the scene. The gangsters in the car begin to shoot at Beans and Squid, who are still hiding behind the boxes. During the gun fight, Mugsy makes her escape, leaving her accomplices behind. The gangster tells guests that “Runnin’ a red light’s against the law, and I never break the law”; Mugsy then shoots out the red light and the vehicles move onto the next scene.

The next scene that cars enter is an old western town. Here, guests can see Clint Eastwood on their left, and John Wayne (who warns guests about the dangers ahead) on their right. As guests pass by, Robert Osborne narrates:

Ignoring John Wayne’s warning, Mugsy decides that she is going to collect the guest’s valuables. Just as she starts the process however, the voice of the town’s sheriff can be heard telling the townsfolk that Mugsy is “the bank robber”. As gunfire begins from either side of the vehicle, Mugsy tells guests that she is getting out of there and guests proceed into the next room. As guests enter the next scene, Robert Osborne tells them:

As warning sirens go off, guests are informed that the spaceship they are on will detonate in 10 minutes. At this point the alien (from Alien) can be seen overhead, as it begins to try an attack the ship. After the first attack, the alien attacks again from the top, and then from the side. Mugsy decides that she has finally had enough, and guests leave the Alien scene.

The next room that guests enter holds the Indiana Jones scene. As the movie’s theme song plays, Indiana and his assistant are shown carrying the Ark of the Covenant. Here, Robert Osborne says:

As the vehicle continues forward, guests pass by hieroglyphics on the walls. On the right, a set of stairs leads to a glowing red jewel. The ride announcer then informs guests that they are in an ancient burial chamber, where the priceless jewel is held. Mugsy cannot believe what she sees, and she goes to get the stone, telling guests to stay put. After she exits the vehicle, Robert Osborne warns her:

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca. Photo by Theme Park Tourist

Just as Mugsy is about to reach the jewel, the Temple Guardian puts his hand up, and tells her that if she disturbs the treasure of the god’s she will die. Mugsy is not discouraged however, and she attempts to grab the jewel anyway. After touching the stone Mugsy goes up in smoke, and guests learn that the temple guardian was actually their tour guide. Leaving Mugsy’s skeleton behind, the tour guide returns to the ride vehicle. After the return of the tour guide Robert Osborne exclaims:

Following the return of their tour guide, guests enter a dark area filled with skeletons. Here, guests are informed by their guide that horror has always been a part of movies. I

Welcome to The Mickey Wiki - Your Walt Disney World Encyclopedia! To start exploring, select a park below! The Great Movie Ride The Great Movie Ride The Great Movie Ride is held within a replica of Grumman’s Chinese Theater. Attraction type Dark Ride Theme Movies Opening date May 1, 1989 Closing date August 13, 2017 Ride duration 20:00 minutes Audio-Animatronics 59 Sponsored by Turner Classic Movies (2015-Present) Coca-Cola (1989-1998) The Great Movie Ride is an attraction located in Disney's Hollywood Studios. Attraction History The attraction that would one day be known as The Great Movie Ride actually began as an idea for EPCOT Center . In the early 1980’s a team of Imagineers, led by Randy Bright and WDI president Marty Sklar were tasked with creating two new pavilions for Future World . The team came up with two ideas, the Wonders of Life pavilion and the Great Moments at the Movies pavilion. While the Wonders of Life was green lit for inclusion in EPCOT Center, the Great Moments and the Movies attraction was set aside by Disney CEO Michael Eisner. The original plans for the Great Moments at the Movies, called for the pavilion to be placed in between The Land and the Journey Into Imagination pavilions. The basic plot for the attraction which was to be housed within the pavilion would not only have given guest an inside look into how films were made, but it would have also allowed them to enter the films themselves. The façade for the new pavilion was to feature a movie set backdrop with a ticket booth for an entrance. The façade was intentionally designed to look fake as a commentary on Hollywood itself. After seeing the Great Moments at the Movies concept, Michael Eisner decided that the attraction was strong enough to build a whole new park around. Eventually, Disney decided to create the Disney MGM Studios, with the Great Moments and the Movies attraction as the new park’s centerpiece. Since The Great Movie Ride (as it was now called) was now going to be the focus of a new park, Disney Imagineers decided that they needed to create a new façade for the attraction. Because the Disney MGM Studios were set in the golden age of Hollywood (the 1920s-1930s), Imagineers decided to house the attraction inside one of Hollywood’s landmarks, Grumman’s Chinese Theater. Furthermore, since the attraction was no longer going to be housed in Epcot, Imagineers also decided that The Great Movie Ride’s plot would focus less on education, instead taking guests on a journey through various classic films. When talking about their preperation for the attraction, Show Designer Eric Jacobson noted: "Our team researched all those movies that we included in the ride, over and over again. We read books and watched them on video. Back in the 1980s the equipment that we had to work with wasn't as sophisticated as it is now, but we printed out black and white frames from a lot of movies so that we could really slow it down and look to see, for example, exactly what the Wicked Witch of the West's costumes looked like" Concept art for the unbuilt "comedy" scene that was originally designed for The Great Movie Ride During the development of the attraction there were a few changes to the ride's plot. Early on in the attraction's development there were plans for a "comedy scene" that would have featured Audio-Animatronic versions of:the Keystone Kops, W.C. Fields, Mae West, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin. . In this version of the attraction, the finale would have been a dramatically lit room that surrounded guests with some of cinema's greatest characters. In this room guests would have seen- - R2D2 & C3PO (Star Wars), Rhett Butler & Scarlet O'Hara (Gone with the Wind), Rock Balboa (the Rocky film series), the Ghostbusters, Mary Poppins, Indiana Jones, George C. Scott as Patton, Liza Minnelli as Sally Bowles (Cabaret), Gene Kelly as Donald Lockwood (Singing in the Rain), John Wayne, Shirley Temple, and Mickey Mouse . As the attraction continued to evolve, the room that eventually became the Fantasia scene was going to house the Tornado scene from the Wizard of Oz . Likewise, the final scene in the attraction was also going to be an extension of the Wizard of Oz scene . In this scene, guests would have come face to face with the Wizard, who would say his famous line “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain”. Following this, the curtain would open showing that the bandit (or gangster) who had hijacked the ride earlier was still alive. Finally, guests would approach a large platform where models of all of the Audio Animatronic characters seen earlier in the ride would reappear and take a bow. Eventually however, Imagineers learned that they did not have the rights to use more of the Wizard of Oz then had already been used . MGM had originally agreed to let Disney use audio from the film's munchkin scene, the Wicked Witch of the West's dialog, and a small amount of Dorothea's dialog when she finds the Emerald City . With MGM unwilling to give up more rights for free, and Disney unwilling to pay, the ideas were eventually scrapped. Instead, a suspiciously windy Fantasia scene replaced the Wizard of Oz's tornado, and the montage of films replaced the Wizard finale. Other changes during the Great Movie Ride's development were a result of Disney's attempt to get the rights to use the likeness of various celebrities . In order to do this, either the celebrity themselves or their estate had to sign off. The following changes were made to the attraction as a result of these negotiations: James Cagney's estate was unhappy with the outfit that the actor's Animatronic wore in the gangster scene. In order to make the figure more "classy", the family actually gave Imagineers Cagney's actual tuxedo. Ingrid Bergman's family would not give Disney the right to use the actresses voice, thus her Animatronic does not speak. Lee Marvin's character from the 1965 western, Cat Ballou was originally going to be included in The Great Movie Ride's western scene. When Marvin's children refused to sign the waiver however, Clint Eastwood was added to the scene instead . Construction on The Great Movie Ride began in 1986 . When creating the replica of the Chinese Theater that would house the attraction, Imagineers used the original blueprints of the 1927 Meyer and Holler building for reference . Furthermore, when building the theater Imagineers chose to create the building to scale and not use forced perspective . When the building was being constructed, the 22 ton central roof was built separately and then placed atop the structure . Finally, The Great Movie Ride opened with the Disney MGM Studios on May 1, 1989 . Since its opening, The Great Movie Ride has only seen a few major changes. The first change to the attraction came less then a year after it opened. The Footlight Parade scene that originally featured a rotating cake and attached water pumps (as seen in the movie), was significantly toned down . The cake in the scene was constantly breaking down and the water pumps would fail, causing the ride path to flood. Disney Imagineers eventually decided to leave the cake stationary, and use lighting effects instead of water pumps . More recently, bubbles have descended on guests in this scene. The next major change to The Great Movie ride came in 1998, when Coca Cola ended its sponsorship of the attraction. Next, in 2001 the theater's spires were removed . This was done at the time that the large Sorcerer's Hat was constructed in front of the theater . in 2008 when the Wicked Witch of the West Audio Animatronic was replaced with a newer model. On November 25 2014, Disney and Turner Classic Movies announced that TCM would become the new sponsor of The Great Movie Ride . As part of the agreement on May 30, 2015 the attraction’s preshow and closing montage were updated . Following the update TCM host Robert Osborne introduces the film clips seen in the attraction’s preshow and the closing montage. Furthermore, Osborne was added as the attraction’s narrator . Following these changes, the live cast member is still featured in the interactive parts of the ride; however Robert Osborne is the one who narrates The Great Movie Ride’s scenes . On July 15, 2017 Disney announced that The Great Movie Ride would be closing on August 13, 2017 to make way for a new Mickey Mouse attraction titled "Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway" . Attraction Plot On The Great Movie Ride, there are two different experiences. One experience involves a 1920’s gangster hijacking the ride, while the other features an old west outlaw. Gangster Version Mary Poppins flying on her umbrella. The Great Movie Ride begins with guests boarding their ride vehicles and being introduced to their live tour guide. After asking if everybody is ready, the guide tells guests that its show time, before telling C.B. (famous Hollywood director Cécile B. Demile) that everyone is ready to go. As C.B. yells “Action!” the ride vehicles begin to move and the song “Hooray for Hollywood” begins to play. As the tour begins the tour guide introduces his co-narrator for the attraction, Turner Classic Movie’s host Robert Osborne. As guests enter the attraction’s first scene Osborne says: "Thank you, and hooray for Hollywood indeed. What better way to start our journey? From the old west to the rooftops of London, and along the Yellow Brick Road, there really is no place like the movies". The first movie that guests enter is Footlight Parade. Guests pass by a pyramid of chorus girls as bubbles float down from above. Robert Osborne then tells guests that, "One of Hollywood's significant contributions to the world of film were musicals. This scene is from one of my favorites, the 1933 Busby Berkeley spectacular Footlight Parade”. As the vehicles continue forward, the vehicles pass by Gene Kelly performing “Singing In the Rain”. As guests pass by Kelly, Robert Osborne informs them that: "Here’s one of the most famous of all dance sequences, it's from the 1952 classic Singing In the Rain" The next scene that guests come upon is from Disney’s 1964 film Mary Poppins. Guests pass by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke as the duo sings “Chim Chim Cheree”. Here Osborne comments: "Ah, here’s one of the quintessential Disney musicals, Mary Poppins. Starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke this classic earned 13 Academy Award nominations." As the ride continues, the tour guide warns guests that they better hold onto their purses and wallets, as they are entering a bad neighborhood. As the cars enter a dirty alley, guests can see a fight going on in an apartment. As the ride vehicles enter the underworld, Robert Osborne observes: "Here's the birthplace of the gangster film, the seedy underbelly of Chicago from The Public Enemy starring James Cagney. Released in 1931 before strict censorship rules were enforced, The Public Enemy is a gritty, realistic, and violent look at the world of gangsters of the Depression Era." At this point James Cagney appears on the right where he yells for someone to “open up in their”. On the left of the cars two men are hiding behind some boxes, apparently expecting trouble. One of the men, named Beans, tells his partner Squid to get down because somebody is coming. As the vehicles pass the two thugs, the stoplight up the street turns red and the ride vehicles stop. As the tour guide waits at the light, a gangster emerges from the shadows and hijacks the ride vehicle. She then tells the tour guide: The gangster who eventually hijacks The Great Movie Ride. The heats on, see? And your fancy car’s my ticket outta here. So beat it! After the gangster (whose name is reveled to be Mugsy) gets rid of the tour guide, a 1930’s car come screeching into the scene. The gangsters in the car begin to shoot at Beans and Squid, who are still hiding behind the boxes. During the gun fight, Mugsy makes her escape, leaving her accomplices behind. The gangster tells guests that “Runnin’ a red light’s against the law, and I never break the law”; Mugsy then shoots out the red light and the vehicles move onto the next scene. The next scene that cars enter is an old western town. Here, guests can see Clint Eastwood on their left, and John Wayne (who warns guests about the dangers ahead) on their right. As guests pass by, Robert Osborne narrates: "Western films depict a legendary American wild frontier where cowboys and their loyal steeds maintain order in town against the untamable wilderness. John Wayne and Clint Eastwood are two of the iconic stars who epitomize this ideal of the stoic gunslinger." Ignoring John Wayne’s warning, Mugsy This Day in Walt Disney World History On this day in 2009, Space Mountain closed for major renovations. <wikitwidget-alt-feed>