Horizons (Epcot attraction) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

For other uses of horizon, see Horizon (disambiguation)
Horizon (disambiguation)
Horizon is the line at which the sky and the Earth's surface appear to meet.Horizon or horizons may also refer to:-Business:* Horizon Global, a corporation specializing in media-compression technology, peer to peer video telephony, and video on demand* Horizon Global Electronics, an electronics...

.

Horizons was the name of a dark ride attraction

Attraction

In general, an attraction draws one object towards another one. The term may have the following specific meanings.* In physics, attraction may refer to gravity or to the electromagnetic force* Attractiveness...

at Epcot

Epcot

Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named...

(then known as EPCOT Center), a theme park at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Lake Buena Vista is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is mostly known for being home to the Walt Disney World Resort. It is one of two Florida municipalities controlled by The Walt Disney Company, the other being Bay Lake....

USA. Located on the eastern side of the "Future World" section of Epcot, the attraction used Disney's Omnimover

Omnimover

The Omnimover is an amusement ride system used for Disney theme park attractions. Roger Broggie and Bert Brundage developed the system for WED Enterprises, which patented Omnimover in April 1968...

conveyance system, which took guests past show scenes depicting visions of the future. It is believed to be the sequel to Walt Disney

Walt Disney

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...

's Carousel of Progress

Carousel of Progress

The Carousel of Progress is an attraction located at the Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort, currently operating under the name Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress...

, an attraction in Tomorrowland

Tomorrowland

- Tomorrowland 1955–1967 :The first Tomorrowland opened at Disneyland on July 18, 1955, with only several of its planned attractions open, due to budget cuts. The construction of the park was rushed, so Tomorrowland was the last land to be finished. It became something of a corporate showcase,...

at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...

. Horizons was the only attraction in "Future World" to showcase all of Epcot's "Future World" elements: communication, community interaction, energy, transportation, anatomy, physiology, along with man's relationship to the sea, land, air, and space. The attraction officially opened on October 1, 1983, as part of Phase II of Epcot

Epcot

. Horizons originally closed in 1994 after General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

ended sponsorship of the attraction. It was temporarily reopened in 1995 due to the closure of other attractions for refurbishment in "Future World." The attraction permanently closed on January 9, 1999, after which the attraction was dismantled and its structure demolished to make room for Mission: SPACE

Mission: SPACE

Mission: SPACE is a motion simulator thrill ride at Epcot. It simulates what an astronaut might experience aboard a spacecraft on a mission to Mars, from the higher g-force of blastoff to the speculative hypersleep....

, a motion simulator

Motion simulator

A motion simulator or motion platform is a mechanism that encapsulates occupants and creates the effect/feelings of being in a moving vehicle...

thrill ride that officially opened on October 9, 2003.

The attraction

Horizons began with a section entitled "Looking Back at Tomorrow," showcasing visions of the future as perceived from the era of Jules Verne

Jules Verne

Jules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...

through the 1950s. The ride then moved past two immense OMNIMAX

IMAX

IMAX is a motion picture film format and a set of proprietary cinema projection standards created by the Canadian company IMAX Corporation. IMAX has the capacity to record and display images of far greater size and resolution than conventional film systems...

screens (groundbreaking technology at the time the ride was built), showing modern technologies and ideas that could be used to build the world of tomorrow. Afterward came the main part of the ride: visions of futuristic life in cities, deserts, undersea, and even in space. The only Disney attraction at the time with multiple endings, Horizons then allowed riders to select which path they wanted to take back to the FuturePort: from the space station

Space station

A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...

Brava Centauri (depicting space colonization

Space colonization

Space colonization is the concept of permanent human habitation outside of Earth. Although hypothetical at the present time, there are many proposals and speculations about the first space colony...

), from the desert farm of Mesa Verde (depicting arid-zone agriculture

Arid-zone agriculture

As an area of research and development, arid-zone agriculture, or desert agriculture, includes studies of how to increase the agricultural productivity of lands dominated by lack of freshwater, an abundance of heat and sunlight, and usually one or more of extreme winter cold, short rainy season,...

), or from the Sea Castle research base (depicting ocean colonization

Ocean colonization

Ocean colonization is the theory and practice of permanent human settlement of oceans. Such settlements may float on the surface of the water, or be secured to the ocean floor, or exist in an intermediate position....

).

As the final part of the ride, guests in their 'omnimover' would push a button to select amongst the three choices and would be presented with a 31-second video sequence. A film would then be displayed to riders in each individual car. The videos showed a simulated flyover of an outdoor scene. To create the effect, scale models were built and a camera swept across the futuristic terrain. The models were some of the largest ever created at the time.

The model for the desert sequence, for example, was 32 feet (9.8 m) by 75 feet (22.9 m) long. The visual effects were filmed in a hangar at the Burbank airport. Produced in 1983 by 30 model makers, it took over a year to build and shoot the three segments. The exit corridor of the ride originally featured the mural The Prologue and the Promise by renowned space artist Robert T. McCall

Robert McCall (artist)

Robert McCall was a conceptual artist, known particularly for his works of space art. McCall was an illustrator for Life magazine in the 1960s, created promotional artwork for Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey and Richard Fleischer's production Tora! Tora! Tora! and worked as an artist...

History

Horizons, in its concept phase, was named Century 3 (or Century III), to recognize the third century of American existence (1776–2076). The name was changed to Futureprobe to help appeal the attraction toward international guests who wouldn't understand or appreciate Century 3. In the end, the Futureprobe name was scrapped due to the medical connotation of the word "probe". After much debate, GE and Disney officials settled on the name Horizons. Prior to the start of construction, the project's budget was slashed by $10 million (USD). The building size was reduced and the length of the ride was shrunk by 35%, shortening the ride length by 600 feet (182.9 m).

Horizons opened exactly one year after Epcot opened and was located between World of Motion

World of Motion

World of Motion , sponsored by General Motors, was the former tenant of the Transportation pavilion at Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort...

and the Universe of Energy

Universe of Energy

The Universe of Energy is a pavilion located in the eastern half of Future World at Epcot. The pavilion contains one attraction, its second since its 1982 opening, entitled Ellen's Energy Adventure, starring Ellen DeGeneres and Bill Nye the Science Guy...

. The Wonders of Life

Wonders of Life

The Wonders of Life pavilion was an attraction at Epcot at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The pavilion was devoted to health and body related attractions. It is located inside a golden colored dome between Mission: SPACE and the Universe of Energy...

pavilion became Horizons' new neighbor in 1989, and World of Motion closed in 1996. Horizons remained operational until World of Motion's successor, Test Track

Test Track

Test Track is an attraction at Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, sponsored by General Motors The ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Motors uses to evaluate its vehicles, culminating in a high-speed drive around the...

, was ready to open to the public in early 1999.

It was proposed that Horizons would be the sequel to the Carousel of Progress

Carousel of Progress

The Carousel of Progress is an attraction located at the Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort, currently operating under the name Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress...

(located in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom), Disney's ride from the General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair

1964 New York World's Fair

The 1964/1965 New York World's Fair was the third major world's fair to be held in New York City. Hailing itself as a "universal and international" exposition, the fair's theme was "Peace Through Understanding," dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe";...

. As the Carousel of Progress followed the changes in lifestyle that faced a family as they lived through the 20th century, Horizons continued their story, showing how they might live in the 21st century. The Carousel's theme song "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

"There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" is the theme song to two Disney attractions, Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress at the Magic Kingdom of Walt Disney World and Innoventions at Disneyland...

" was part of the Looking Back at Tomorrow portion of Horizons. The version of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" that could be heard in Horizons coming from a television in the Art Deco scene is the exact version that can still be heard on a radio during the first act of the present Carousel of Progress

Carousel of Progress

The Carousel of Progress is an attraction located at the Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort, currently operating under the name Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress...

.

The original ride concept came from Reginald Jones (then CEO of GE) and Jack Welch

Jack Welch

John Francis "Jack" Welch, Jr. is an American chemical engineer, business executive, and author. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric between 1981 and 2001...

(future CEO of GE). The concept was to focus on Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison

Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...

and his body of work along with the origin of General Electric; it was changed to focus on the future of America, a theme that changed yet again to respect that Epcot was to appeal to a global audience. The building which housed Horizons was designed to resemble a spaceship

Spacecraft

A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....

, while accentuating the third dimension and giving the impression of an infinite horizon

Horizon

The horizon is the apparent line that separates earth from sky, the line that divides all visible directions into two categories: those that intersect the Earth's surface, and those that do not. At many locations, the true horizon is obscured by trees, buildings, mountains, etc., and the resulting...

.

During the early 90s, after GE

Gê

Gê are the people who spoke Ge languages of the northern South American Caribbean coast and Brazil. In Brazil the Gê were found in Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Piaui, Mato Grosso, Goias, Tocantins, Maranhão, and as far south as Paraguay....

had dropped sponsorship, some ideas were tossed around about the pavilion being turned into a space-themed pavilion. The building would have been upgraded and rethemed. The ride system would be changed drastically, in which the guest would be in an individual space harness while viewing space stations and space in general and would control the pitch and yaw of the vehicle.

On January 9, 1999, Horizons closed permanently.

No reason was publicly given, but the lack of corporate sponsorship probably played a large part in the decision. It is also claimed that one of the reasons for the attraction closing was major structural problems (that being a large sink-hole underneath the structure which emerged in 1998), along with problems with the roof. The building was claimed to have been close to collapsing under its own weight.

The building stood unoccupied for well over a year as Disney decided between either relaunching the attraction (which would have required a new storyline and major building renovation and upgrades) or demolishing the building and creating a new attraction in its place. It was decided to build a new cutting-edge outer space

Outer space

Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....

-themed attraction, so the Horizons building was slowly torn down in July 2000. The demolition of the building marked the first time in Disney history that an entire ride building had to be demolished in preparation for a new attraction. Construction on Mission: SPACE

Mission: SPACE

began in late 2000 and the new attraction opened in 2003.

Various props from Horizons have been displayed around Walt Disney World and even in Walt Disney Studios Park

Walt Disney Studios Park

Walt Disney Studios Park is the second theme park to open at Disneyland Paris, owned and operated by Euro Disney S.C.A.. It is located to the west of the hub, next door to Disneyland Park at the heart of the resort in Marne-la-Vallée....

at Disneyland Resort Paris

Disneyland Resort Paris

Disneyland Paris is a holiday and recreation resort in Marne-la-Vallée, a new town in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. The complex is located from the centre of Paris and lies for the most part within the commune of Chessy, Seine-et-Marne....

. A display that features the butler robot animatronic was set up in EPCOT: Creating the World of Tomorrow for Epcot's 25th anniversary. At Disney's Hollywood Studios, a few of the props from the underwater city scene are displayed in one of the studio warehouses. And one of the Desert ships has made its way to Disney's Hollywood Studios, hanging from the ceiling of a restaurant. The McCall mural, The Prologue and the Promise, painted on canvas, was removed prior to demolition and is on display in Disney offices (inaccessible to the public and most “cast” members).

Disneyland

Some of the attraction's robots appear in the entry mural of Innoventions

Innoventions

Innoventions is the name of two technology-oriented Disney attractions:* Innoventions , at Walt Disney World in Florida* Innoventions , in California...

in Tomorrowland.

Walt Disney World Resort

Despite being gone for 11 years, references to Horizons can be found in both Space Mountain

Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom)

Space Mountain is an indoor outer space-themed steel roller coaster at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. It opened on January 15, 1975 and is the original version of the iconic attraction that is included in all five of the Disney theme parks...

and in Mission: SPACE

Mission: SPACE

A number of tributes to Horizons can be found throughout Mission: SPACE

Mission: SPACE

, the attraction which replaced it. The center of the gravity wheel in the queue line has the attraction logo, and a stylized version also appears on the front of the checkout counter in the Cargo Bay gift shop at the exit to the attraction.

Space Mountain

When it was refurbished in 2009, Space Mountain

Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom)

received a number of tributes to Horizons in its post-show:

One of the bags in the post-show for the ride (located on guests' left at the start of the exit moving sidewalk) features the words "Mesa Verde
Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. It was created in 1906 to protect some of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in the world...

" written on it.
The undersea post-show scene after the desert scene is reminiscent of a scene in Horizons. This scene is the only post-show scene to be completely new in refurbishing Space Mountain. The flatscreen display in the new scene describes it as "20,000 Light Years under the Sea," a pun on "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage was an attraction at the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World Resort from 1971 through 1994.- The Submarine Voyage :...

," which is a reference to the defunct Magic Kingdom attraction 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage was an attraction at the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World Resort from 1971 through 1994.- The Submarine Voyage :...

.
The robot butler and futuristic city skyline, which is the last post-show diorama, are similar to a scene in Horizons.

Star Tours

Located at the exit of the Star Tours

Star Tours

Star Tours is a motion simulator attraction currently operating at Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park at Disneyland Paris. The ride is based on the successful Star Wars film series created by George Lucas, making it the first Disney attraction based on a non-Disney produced film.The first...

at Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland

is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...

is a kiosk featuring video of 3 other Star Tours excursions. Each different "Tour" advertised is the full 31 second sequence from the Horizons finale. The Mesa Verde, Brava Centauri Space Colony, and Sea Castle ending sequences are unedited and played in their entirety.

In television

A 2003 episode of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

, "Special Edna

Special Edna

"Special Edna" is the seventh episode of The Simpsons fourteenth season. The episode aired on January 5, 2003. The episode's title is a play on Special Ed. The plot would continue in the episode "My Big Fat Geek Wedding".-Plot:Mrs. Krabappel assigns a paper on World War I, due in three weeks...

" features the Horizons building, and heavily parodies Epcot as the fictional "EFCOT Center".

Timeline

1979, Early concepts were presented by the show designer George McGinnis
August 5, 1981, Site work begins
January 1982, Pavilion construction begins
October 1, 1983, Horizons opens as part of EPCOT Center's 1st Anniversary celebration.
September 30, 1993, General Electric's sponsorship ends after expiration of 10-year contract.
1994, Horizons closes indefinitely. Disney officials give no timetable for reopening.
December 1995, Horizons re-opens while Universe of Energy
Universe of Energy
The Universe of Energy is a pavilion located in the eastern half of Future World at Epcot. The pavilion contains one attraction, its second since its 1982 opening, entitled Ellen's Energy Adventure, starring Ellen DeGeneres and Bill Nye the Science Guy...

and World of Motion
World of Motion
World of Motion , sponsored by General Motors, was the former tenant of the Transportation pavilion at Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort...

are being refurbished, (both these attractions remained open until January 21 and January 2, 1996 respectively).
December 31, 1998, Disney internal staff newsletter (Eyes and Ears) announces that Horizons will close for good.
January 9, 1999, Horizons closes permanently.
September 23, 1999, All Horizons signs are removed.
September 30, 1999, Horizons briefly reopens, but only for press groups.
July 7, 2000, Horizons pavilion building is in the process of demolition.
September 10, 2000, Construction begins for Mission: SPACE on the former site of Horizons.
August 15, 2003, Mission: SPACE opens to the public.
September 19, 2003, Walt Disney World issues a Horizons pin commemorating the attraction. Shown on the pin is Mickey Mouse, the ride's building, and the years 1983 and 1999 to signify the years between which the ride operated.
September 9, 2005, Walt Disney World issues a license plate pin, part of their lanyard series, commemorating Horizons.
August 17, 2007, Walt Disney World releases another commemorative pin as part of its White Glove Remember When series.
July 1, 2008, Walt Disney World releases yet another commemorative pin as part of its White Glove Retro Epcot series.
February 11, 2010, Walt Disney World releases a 4th pin dedicated to Horizons and Mission: Space as part of its Then and Now series.

External links

Horizons at Intercot
Horizons Audio Listing at Brava Centauri
Horizons Tribute Site
Horizons Pins and Buttons
Horizons Fan Blog, Mesa Verde Times (with some behind the scenes photos)
Horizons Remote Access Terminal
Horizons Resurrected (CGI model of the attraction)
WEDCon Horizons tribute (Unofficial convention hosting a tribute to the attraction)

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.