That’s right folks, this year marks the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney’s contribution to the 1964 world’s fair – his “little boat ride,” sponsored by Pepsi to benefit Unicef.
“When we completed ‘It’s a Small World’ for presentation at the New York World’s Fair, we felt that we had accomplished what we’d set out to do. We wanted to foster a better understanding among the nations of the world by showing the dress, the customs, the language, the music, and a little of the culture of our neighbors around the world – – and we wanted to show it to be a very happy one. And I think it’s safe to say that having fun has universal appeal.” -Walt Disney
Who would have thought that this delightful little one minute boat ride, complete with animated dolls and a musical ditty in multiple languages would have survived the test of time? Did you know that when Mr. Disney had the ride dismantled and moved to its permanent home in Fantasyland at Disneyland in Anaheim, California he called upon dignitaries from more than 50 different countries to help fill the water canal for his “little boat ride?” That’s right, 50 children from 50 different countries brought water from their native countries to pour into the canal that carries millions of people annually through the magical small world of animated dolls.
Now imagine if Walt wanted to complete this project today and asked 50 little kids to bring water to California. Can you just see them trying to explain to the TSA officers at various airports around the world, “Yes, it is only water that I’m trying to bring on board with me. I’m taking it to Mr. Disney to pour into a canal for a new exhibit that’s opening in Disneyland. No, I’m not going to make explosives with it. It’s sacred water, symbolizing the united bond between all countries around the world.” Yeah right. That’ll work.
But, I digress. It’s A Small World was not Walt’s first exhibit to be featured at a world’s fair. In 1958, in conjunction with General Electric, Walt debuted his “Progressland” attraction; a revolving theater that sent audiences on an historical musical journey through the evolution of electricity. That very same attraction still exists in the form of The Carousel of Progress at the Magic Kingdom park in Disney World Florida.
Also appearing at the 1964 world’s fair were the magic skyway attraction, an aerial ride narrated by Walt himself that toured Earth’s past from the dawn of time through the age of the dinosaurs, culminating in a glimpse of Walt’s vision for a futuristic space city. Does this sound familiar to you Disney buffs? That’s right, a similar time travel attraction exists in the form of Spaceship Earth at Epcot at Disney World. And a similar time-travel experience can be had riding the Disneyland railroad around the park. The skyway ride at Disneyland, however, no longer exists for various reason, all of which are too discouraging for me to mention here. Suffice it to say, the sky buckets were a popular attraction for amorous lovers and bratty “camel-like” kids, if you know what I’m saying.
And last, but not least, one of my all-time favorite attractions also got its start at the 1964 world’s fair; Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln. I love this show and the similar show at Disney World – The Hall of Presidents. Very inspiring narrative and ingenious use of audio-animatronics, the first ever of its kind. If you haven’t seen Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln and have a few minutes to spare, or if you have seen it and just need to see it again, here’s a link:
So that’s my Disney history lesson and tribute to a family-favorite Disney ride (well one of mine, the hubs isn’t so keen on it), It’s A Small Word. I hope you’ve enjoyed the ride.
So, how about you, are you a Disney nut? Do you like to ride It’s A Small World? What’s your favorite Disney attraction? Come on, spill it. I’m dying to know.
Word of the day: Vermeil
Fun fact about me: My favorite Disney ride is the Peter Pan flight.
Original post by Jansen Schmidt January 2014. Photos courtesy Disney Parks blog, Google Images and Wikipedia. Video courtesy YouTube.
Jansen, I’ve been to Disney World once and that was enough for me, maybe not my wife and kids, but enough for me. If I’m in Florida, I’d prefer to go to the Keys and just hang out and relax…… but I do have to agree the rides are amazing especially Spaceship Earth and Splash Mountain… we got there early one morning and rode it for an hour until the crowds came and the wait went from 3 minutes to 15… they do have fun rides, but once is enough.
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Well I’m glad you got to experience it at least once in your life, Clay. It’s not for everyone. Especially if you don’t like crowds, because it can get busy.
Everyone has their thing. Hanging out at the beach sounds pretty special to me too, but my husband would hate it. He can’t sit still and he’s so fair skinned he burns in about 2 minutes. Like I said, there’s something for everyone.
Thanks for swinging by today and sharing your thoughts. Always nice to see smiling faces over here at the edge of eternity.
Patricia
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Now I have the itch to slap on my mouse ears and head to Florida. I’ve been to DW/DL six times and I wouldn’t mind going again. There’s just something…magical there, but I’m not sure that applies to Small World. I’ve pictured the beginning of a horror novel on the Small World ride before, especially when the ride broke down and we were stuck in there for longer than one minute. That song gets old fast, lemme tell ya. My favorite ride: Tower of Terror, although Splash Mountain comes in a close second. Have a great week!
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Road trip! You and me and the mouse ears!
Yeah – being stuck on Small World would not be fun. I suppose you’d just hear those mouths and eyes clicking open and shut in a dark room. That would be weird.
The last time I was at WDW – in October – we got stuck on Splash Mountain and they had to turn all the lights on. It was not the same after that. I guess some punk kid climbed out of his log boat and started walking around down there. Security had to stop the ride to go find him. We sat down there for a good long while. I never did find my laughing place either. At least we were out of the sun.
Tower of Terror is scary fun. I love all the roller coasters, but my fav is still Peter Pan. I love that ride.
Thanks for stopping by, Coleen.
Patricia
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Went to Disney World a couple years ago when the RWA conference was there, so of course my roommate/friend had to visit the park! Neither of us had been since we were kids. We hit all the classics, including Small Word, the Hall of Presidents, the Carousel of Progress, Space Mountain, and my favorite, the Haunted House! Didn’t know all those fun facts about the Small World ride, though I can add one: that song is supposedly the #1 most likely to get stuck in people’s heads!
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Hi Jennette – I was at that conference! We might have passed in the halls.
Yes, that song is one that when it does get stuck in your head, it’s annoying. Haunted Mansion is a fun ride. At Disneyland out here in California, they change it all up for Halloween and Christmas with the characters from the Jack Skellington movie, the Nightmare Before Christmas. It’s like the same ride, only different. Pretty cool.
As always, thanks for stopping by today.
Patricia
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I’ve been to Disney World, but not Disneyland. Are the rides all different? I guess I thought they were the same, just in different states. 🙂
Vermeil confused me. I didn’t know whether to go with gilded silver or bright red!
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I think on vermeil it’s your choice.
Disneyland is basically the same park as the Magic Kingdom park at Disney World; however, there are some differences. For example, Disneyland has the Matterhorn, which is sort of it’s iconic feature (and the castle) but there is a bobsled rollercoaster ride through the mountain (sort of like Expedition Everest at the Animal Kingdom park). There is also an Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, which is similar to the Dinosaur ride at the Animal Kingdom park. And Fantasyland at Disneyland has a lot more rides for the little kids.
But basically the park set up is the same and the lands are all in the same general location at both parks. Magic Kingdom park has Liberty Square, but Disneyland has New Orleans Square (where Princess Tiana hangs out).
So, they are the same, but different. If you’ve never been to Disneyland and you happen to be out in this area, I’d recommend spending the time to visit. It is the original park after all and that’s in and of itself is kind of cool, to walk where Walt walked and all that.
Thanks for stopping by. I hope things are all good with your new cars and such.
Patricia
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Thanks, Patricia! And btw I’m loving my new car. For almost 2 decades I drove a minivan. So nice to have a small, sporty (to me at least) car. 🙂
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Awesome post! I love DisneyWorld and have been there many times. I can go back over and over. My parents live close by in Florida so we hit the parks a lot.
I do have to admit that I do not like the new version of it’s a small worls ride. I liked the old version much better.
Still, I enjoy all the rides there. Epcot too!
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I knew there was a reason I like you beyond being a bar-hopping foodie. Disney World is awesome! We try to get there at least every other year if we can. Being from the west coast, it’s sometimes hard to make it there every year, but we’d sure love to.
Thanks for stopping by, Phil. Look for more Disney posts in the future.
Patricia
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