Extra Secret Stories of Walt Disney World

by Jim Korkis

  Magic Kingdom parades include:

  Character Parade/Cavalcade of Characters (1971–1975, 1977–1978)

  America on Parade (1975–1976)

  Mickey’s 50th Birthday Parade (1978)

  Dumbo’s Circus Parade (1979)

  Walt Disney World’s Tencennial Parade (1981–1982)

  Mickey Mouse Character Parade (1983)

  Donald’s 50th Birthday Parade (1984)

  Mickey’s Street Party (1985–1986)

  Walt Disney World’s 15th Anniversary Parade (1986)

  Spirit of America (1987–1988)

  Mickey’s All American Birthday Parade (1988–1990)

  Disney’s Character Hit Parade/Zip Parade (1989–1991)

  Walt Disney World’s 20th Anniversary “Surprise” Celebration Parade (1991–1994)

  Mickey Mania Parade (1994–1996)

  Walt Disney World’s 25th Anniversary “Remember the Magic” Parade (1996–1997)

  Magical Moments Parade Parade (1998–2001)

  Share A Dream Come True Parade/Dreams Come True Parade/Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade (2001–2014)

  Festival of Fantasy Parade (2014- present)

  Magic Kingdom

  Skipper Canteen

  One of the gags in the Jungle Cruise attraction at Disneyland for decades was guides pointing out that the name of the dramatic waterfall that the boat narrowly misses is Schweitzer Falls named after Dr. Albert Falls rather than the expected Dr. Albert Schweitzer, noted for his humanitarian work in Africa.

  One of the newest Magic Kingdom restaurants is named the Jungle Navigation Company Ltd. Skipper Canteen. It is operated by Alberta Falls, the granddaughter of the fictitious Dr. Albert Falls. This 222-seat restaurant is located in the former Adventureland Veranda area across from the Swiss Family Treehouse and is home to “World Famous Jungle Cuisine.” It opened December 16, 2015.

  The Jungle Navigation Co. Ltd., which operates the Jungle Cruise boats, was started by Dr. Falls on April 8, 1911. His granddaughter Alberta, the third generation owner, repurposed the company’s tropical headquarters into a restaurant in order to generate additional revenue from the hungry cruise passengers.

  Dr. Falls had a son who married a woman from India and they had a daughter whom they named Alberta in honor of her grandfather. When she was eight years old, she was sent to live with him and learn the business. The company was originally a tropical river cargo shipping venture (“and logistics services”) but as business declined, Alberta opened up sight-seeing cruises for passengers. A banner states that the inaugural cruise was October 1, 1931.

  The restaurant includes three dining rooms. The Crew’s Mess Hall (which servers point out is not actually messy at all) is the largest one and includes wall hangings of photos, documents, native musical instruments, and other expedition mementos gathered by the skippers on their travels.

  The Jungle Room, formerly the family parlor, is a more intimate location and features memorabilia culled from the Falls’ family archives. The third dining area is behind a bookcase and was actually the secret meeting place for the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (SEA), an organization for which Falls was a founding member and which features artifacts from the mysterious organization.

  The menu offers cuisine inspired by the rivers of the world locales on the attraction including Asia, South America, and Africa.

  Alberta has even enlisted the skippers to interact with the guests when they are not on a cruise. The servers are encouraged to share the same corny humor, quips, and “groaners” that guests love on the attraction. A waiter will say, “I’d like to point out some of the highlights of the restaurant.” He then points up to the overhead fixtures. “There’s a light. There’s another one. That one is pretty high.” Another waiter might add, “I don’t want to mention the elephant in the room,” and then point at an elephant statue on a shelf.

  In a typewritten letter affixed to the menu, Alberta briefly explains the history of the Jungle Navigation Company and the restaurant. She concludes: “We enjoy having you and we hope you enjoy being had. Please relax, enjoy your meal, then get out.” Her postscript adds: “I’m sorry, that was rude. Please get out.”

  The area was being used as a Pixie Hollow meet-and-greet area for the fairy characters. When the characters moved out, Imagineers considered several options for a themed Adventureland eatery including Tarzan, Aladdin, and pirates.

  As a tribute to some of the Imagineers responsible for the original Jungle Cruise, there are three offices on the upper floor for Skipper Marc (Davis), Skipper Harper (Goff), and Skipper Bill (Evans). Davis was responsible for the visual gags. Goff designed the waterway and the boats. Evans did the landscaping.

  Magic Kingdom

  Books in Skipper Canteen

  Several companies sell books by the foot or the yard to fill book shelves on stage sets for television series, movies, and stage plays. Many sell to interior decorators trying to create a particular look for the room of a house. Collections can be generic or made-to-order including not just content but binding, size, and color.

  The tomes in the book case in the Meridian on the Disney Cruise Line ships are specifically filled with vintage nautical volumes.

  However, sometimes Imagineers get creative, as in the garage of Mickey Mouse’s house at WDW’s Mickey’s Toontown Fair where the shelves had titles like “Repairing Electrical and Bermuda Shorts,” “How to Toon Up Your Car,” “Replace Your Wheels Without Tiring,” and “The Auto-biography of Susie the Blue Coupe” (a reference to a 1952 Disney short cartoon).

  At the Skipper Canteen, the shelves are filled with books that reference Disney parks (“The Eyes of Mara” by Jones, obviously a reference to Indiana Jones and the Disneyland attraction), Imagineers (“Crooning Flowers” by Sherman and Sherman referring to the Disney composers the Sherman brothers and their songs for the Enchanted Tiki Room), in-jokes (“Friends for Dinner” by T. Sam, a reference to Trader Sam the cannibal from the Jungle Cruise), as well as some books that are just silly wordplay (“Spotted Tigers” by G. Rowl) or punny amusement (“Fleas Navidad and Other Winter Insects”). Some books have neither title nor author.

  The secret meeting room of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (SEA) is behind the bookcase and is accessed by pulling on a volume of The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling.

  Here are a handful of the many delightful titles:

  “In Search of the Yeti” by Harrison Hightower III. Hightower is not only a member of SEA but was based on Imagineer Joe Rohde who was responsible for Expedition Everest in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Hightower has several different books on the shelves including “Treasures of the Animal Kingdom.”

  “A Manor of Fact” by Mystic is a reference to Henry Mystic and Mystic Manor in Hong Kong Disneyland. He is also represented by other books including “Treasures from the Manor” and “Primates as Shipmates” referring to his pet mischievous monkey Albert who causes trouble in the attraction.

  Captain Mary Oceaneer wrote “Parrots as Pets” referring to her diving companion parrot, Salty. She also wrote “Charting Course” since she is an ocean traveler.

  “Leaders Throughout History” by Professor G. Kalogridis is George Kalogridis, the president of WDW.

  “Songs of the Tiki Bird” by Professor Boag honors performer Wally Boag who helped write and voiced the parrot Jose in the Enchanted Tiki Room.

  “Universus Arboribus” by B.M. Evans is tribute to Imagineer Morgan “Bill” Evans, who loved putting Latin names on the Disney park horticulture.

  “A Journey to the Stars” by Kimball references Imagineer Ward Kimball who wrote and directed the three Tomorrowland episodes about outer space on the Disneyland television show.

  “Hamlet: A Lion’s Tale” by Shakes Speare acknowledges that Disney’s animated feature film The Lion King was inspired by the Shakespeare classic play.

  “Native Orange Birds of the Southeastern United States” by Dr. Sidd Truss (pronounced Citrus) is a
nod to the Florida Orange Bird of the Florida Citrus Commission that was prominent during the first decade of Walt Disney World.

  “Banjos and Baboons” by Goff is a reference to Imagineer Harper Goff who was a banjo player but also the designer of the Jungle Cruise attraction.

  “Primates of the Caribbean” by Coats is Imagineer Claude Coats, who did set design for the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.

  “A View from Above” by S. W. Buckets (Skyway attraction)

  “Mission to the Red Planet” by Tom Morrow (Mission to Mars attraction)

  Magic Kingdom

  Sunshine Tree Terrace

  Walt Disney Productions entered into negotiations with the Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) for a Florida Citrus Growers-sponsored Magic Kingdom attraction in 1967. A contract was signed on Oct. 22, 1969, formalizing the FCC’s underwriting of a “tropical bird show” at a cost of three million dollars. The following year, 1970, WED Enterprises created the Orange Bird character to serve as the FCC’s official mascot in promotional campaigns.

  The final design of the character was by C. Robert “Bob” Moore who handled many special projects for the Disney company including designing the Walt Disney postage stamp and the eagle mascot for the 1984 Olympic games.

  When the Tropical Serenade show (a duplicate of Disneyland’s Enchanted Tiki Room show) finished, guests exited by the Sunshine Tree Terrace for drinks, slushes, Orange sippers, and the Citrus Orange Swirl. Strangely, only frozen—not fresh—orange juice was used.

  From the back of the terrace was the Florida Sunshine Tree—a large replica of a citrus tree with artificial fruit, blossoms, and leaves—which was the creation of Disney technicians who studied Florida citrus trees a long time before putting the tree together limb by limb in a combination of reality and fantasy. The tree was the icon for the Florida citrus industry and adorned the costumes worn by the cast members who worked at the location in the early days.

  On a lower perch was a small three-dimensional Orange Bird. Above his head was a small screen upon which was shown happy orange thoughts from a projector in the back wall. Since, according to the song about him, the bird was unable to talk, he communicated through these orange thoughts that would appear over his head.

  A fifteen-minute loop of tropical music played at the location. In addition to the little figure in the branches of the tree, there was a walk-around costumed character Orange Bird with a big head and a pajama suit-type body. When the contract ran out, the bird was removed in 1986.

  In April 17, 2012, the Orange Bird returned to Sunshine Tree Terrace signage and a new line of Orange Bird merchandise appeared on the shelves.

  An Orange Bird statue that was on display at Sunshine Tree Terrace in the 1970s was retrieved from the WDI sculpture studio in California where it was found untouched and forgotten in a drawer. After restoration, it was re-installed.

  Over the years there were two distinct orange birds that swung on a little perch at Sunshine Tree Terrace. The first was a static figure on a moving swing that was there when the pavilion first opened in 1971. One of the reasons it still existed and was in good shape was that it was soon replaced with an improved and upgraded version that moved its green leaf wings up and down, as well as its head, as it swung back and forth, giving it more of an illusion of life. That particular figure still seems to be unaccounted for.

  On March 15, 2015, Sunshine Tree Terrace traded locations with Aloha Isle Refreshments but both kept their same menus. The Orange Bird was relocated to the new location on May 29.

  The figureheads of water buffalo on top of the original location were chosen because the building was so tall that it could be seen in Frontierland. It was felt that the long horns on the stylized figures might be mistaken by guests as Wild West long-horn cattle when viewed from that other land.

  Epcot

  Leapfrog Fountain

  Kodak intended the area outside the Imagination pavilion at Epcot to be known as Imagination Gardens and feature interactive items. The only thing ever built as part of that project was the laminar flow fountains, more commonly referred to as the leapfrog fountains.

  They were the creation of Mark Fuller who later went on to found the WET (Water Entertainment Technology) design company with two other ex-Imagineers, Melanie Simon and Alan Robinson. WET was responsible for world-famous water experiences like the Fountains at Bellagio for the hotel and casino in Las Vegas.

  Casino owner Steve Wynn had seen and been impressed by the leapfrog fountains and thought Fuller could produce something on a much larger and more spectacular scale. Fuller himself holds more than fifty patents for water control, air compression, and specialty lighting.

  Fuller’s first job after getting a master’s degree in mechanical engineering at Stanford in 1978 was to create something new and exciting for the opening of Epcot Center. For the Epcot project, Fuller worked with Bill Novey.

  Fuller had spent six years trying to get an interview with Imagineering and eventually succeeded in being interviewed by the Imagineer Wathel Rogers who was impressed by Fuller’s portfolio of work.

  Marty Sklar, former president of Walt Disney Imagineering, recalled:

  The one thing I think we recognized right away was that Mark was willing to take a chance. He wasn’t afraid of trying something nobody else had done before.

  For his studies at Stanford, Fuller had experimented with laminar flow technology, so he was already skilled in making a perfect tube of water. He had already built the world’s first permanent laminar fountain in Salt Lake City as part of his thesis and had won an award for it from the American Institute of Architects.

  Unlike water flowing from a household faucet where molecules bounce haphazardly around in different directions, in laminar flow the molecules are channeled in one direction under equal, steady pressure. The stream of water that is produced by laminar flow can appear stationary or solid, like a clear tube, from a distance.

  Fuller, working with other WDI staff including Tony Baxter, engineered a way to make the water jump and turn on and off, using laminar flow with added valves and programming so it looked like the water was randomly leaping from basin to basin.

  The challenges included making the streams high enough and far enough apart for people to pass underneath them and to control the water splash when the stream landed.

  Ironically, for an attraction that has delighted guests of all ages for over three decades, Disney leadership was not initially impressed with the idea, but show producer Barry Braverman decided to take a chance since Kodak was adamant that they wanted the area to have a whimsical personality.

  Fuller’s approach seemed to transform ordinary water into a living character much like in classic Disney animation.

  Fuller designed other water experiences at Epcot Center including the “upside down” waterfall near the pavilion and the “popjet” fountains that would unexpectedly spout up streams of water from the pavement.

  After working for Imagineering for five years, Fuller left to establish his own company since he felt constrained on what he envisioned he might be able to accomplish with water.

  In March 2010, Fuller was presented with the Themed Entertainment Association Lifetime Achievement Award. While he has not been an Imagineer for decades, his work for Epcot still continues to enchant and amuse with the same sense of wonder as when it first opened.

  Epcot

  The Land Mosaic

  Walt Peregoy was a color stylist and background artist for animated films including Sleeping Beauty, 101 Dalmatians, and the Sword in the Stone. From 1977 to 1983, he worked at WED and did work for The Land pavilion and the original Journey Into Imagination pavilion at Epcot’s Future World.

  Peregoy, who designed the entrance mosaic for The Land pavilion, told me in a 2007 interview:

  It is 3,600 square feet. Every celebrity in the world has gone through Disneyland, I’m sure, but there’s nothing obvious that sticks out as a particular work of art. This does.

&
nbsp; For the Land pavilion, I designed the entranceway and the twenty-seven-foot-tall, 360-degree sky inside. I designed the three solid balloons that would go up and down with different foods. I designed the fountain below the balloons, but I didn’t get my way with the fountain. Jim Sarno sculpted it. Beautiful. He told me he left because the fountain wasn’t finished with the top the way I designed it. I intended that it all be different foods not only sculpted but painted.

  Orlando Ferrante called me one day and said, “This is about the mosaic.” I said, “Oh, I guess you’re not going to do it. I understand that.” He said, “No, we’re going to do it!” 3,600-square-foot mirror image. It’s fantastic! I’ve still got the original study plaque that I made of it.

  They blew it up verbatim. I go over to see this German mosaicist. He lived up above Beverly Drive up in the hills until it finally became a dirt road. He was an ex-S.S. German. I told him, “My wife’s French.” He said to me, “You’ll have to come over to dinner. Bring your wife.” I said, “You’ve gotta be kidding! My wife will kill you. My young brother-in-law was beaten to death over a period of four years.”

  Every time I would leave him, he would come out to the garage with me and I would be in a car backing out, he would say, “See ya!” and he would click his heels! He wasn’t being mean. He was just so German. I thought, “You got to be kidding!” He clicked his heels.

  I have to admit he was good. I would go up to his house to see how the mosaic was coming along periodically, but he would always click his heels when he said goodbye.

  When Disney said to me, “You can’t put your name on it,” I said, “Then his name doesn’t go on it either.” Eventually, Disney said, “Mosaic originally styled and designed by Walt Peregoy.” Even when I’m dead, even when nobody ever knows me, I will still know.