March 5 - Journey into Imagination

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On this day, in 1983, Journey into Imagination began delighting guests in Future World at Epcot Center. The Imagination pavilion was not one of the five that opened October 1, 1982 (although the 3D movie Magic Journeys which played on the side of it did) but, less than six months later, was the first new pavilion. The whimsical design of the area highlighted things most guests had never seen before: a ‘waterfall’ that flowed up instead of down, a fountain that jumped across walkways and a weird purple thing (is it a dragon? Can’t be, doesn’t breath fire. Then what is it? I dunno.) beckoning them inside a double pyramid shaped steel and glass building. Once inside, the journey could begin on one of my most favorite Disney rides to ever exist.

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Journey started with a marvelous Sherman Brothers’ song, One Little Spark, which not only had a new character, Dreamfinder, musically describe all the ways that imagination works but defined just what a Figment is. (So it is a dragon. No, it’s a figment of your imagination, weren’t you listening? I’m gonna call it a dragon.) After inspiring riders with rooms based on everything from movies to books to science experiments, Journey ended by letting guests out into the best part of the pavilion: the Imageworks. Filled with pin tables, blue screens, magical orchestras, musical stepping stones and all sorts of other imagination sparkers, the second floor of the pavilion could entertain kids for hours (and with plenty of benches to sit on, parents didn’t mind the rest stop). All was well in Future World, until dark clouds rolled in on October 10, 1998, shutting out the light of Journey into Imagination forever.

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Things rarely ever stay the same forever, I know that, including classic attractions. After all, The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean have changed over the years (even It’s a Small World gets a holiday makeover each November in Disneyland). But it’s pretty easy to argue that the changes in those rides made them even better. The same cannot be said about what happened to Journey. The Magic Journeys movie next door had been replaced with Captain EO which in turn was replaced by the popular 4D movie Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. In an effort to unify the pavilion, the decision was made to change the theme of the ride to be a tour through the Imagination Institute, an element of Audience. Dreamfinder was completely cut out, Figment was relegated to the barest of cameos and the Imageworks was severely truncated and moved to the ground floor. The length of the ride was significantly cut because of budget constraints and, to be frank, I’m pretty sure I could have done rooms of that ride better with only cardboard and poster paint at my disposal (the pitiful upside-down room, anyone?). When the ride re-opened on October 1, 1999, as Journey into YOUR Imagination (if you have to put one of the words in the name in all capital letters, that should be a big red flag for you), it was an instant bomb. Guest reaction was overwhelmingly negative (Is it just me, or did this ride used to not suck? Yeah and what happened to that little dragon guy? Don’t start with that again.) and the new version limped along for two years, finally gasping its last awkward breath on October 8, 2001.

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The current version of the ride, Journey into Imagination with Figment, is an improvement over the last one, but still pales in comparison to what once was, in my opinion. It’s still a tour through the Imagination Institute (although Honey, I Shrunk the Audience doesn’t exist anymore, so that reference is no longer valid) and Figment is in every scene. But the scenes still lack oomph , the ride is still short and Dreamfinder is still missing. And, to top it all off, the grand old Imageworks on the second floor is still gone (well, at least walled over and gathering dust). What used to be a must do attraction on every tour of Epcot has become a ho-hum area that can generally be skipped in favor of other things. So, if everyone could doff your hats (or raise a glass or something else imaginatively appropriate) and sing along with me, in remembrance (and yes, I know a version of this song is still used but it isn’t the same and you know it): One little spark… of inspiration… is at the heart… of all creation…

January 3 - Kitchen Kabaret

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On this day, in 1994, the final notes of the Kitchen Kabaret show, located in the Land Pavilion in Future World at Epcot, drifted into the ether. As part of Epcot's opening day offerings, this 13 minute Audio-Animatronic show centered on teaching guests about the four food groups and the importance of a balanced diet. The main thing anyone remembers from it, however, are the four words "Veggie, Veggie, Fruit, Fruit" (and for those of you who do remember, that will now be in your head for the rest of the day, you're welcome).

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The show was hosted by Bonnie Appetite, a combination of a Fifties housewife and a cabaret singer. She was voiced by Jeanine Brown, a studio musician and member of the country-swing group The Doo-Wah Riders. Bonnie starts out being less than enthused about cooking dinner and sets out on a journey meeting members of each of the food groups for inspiration. The highlights included a trio of grains who parodied the Andrews Sisters with Boogie Woogie Bakery Boy, a vaudeville type act featuring Mr. Hamm and Mr. Eggz and a group of broccoli, bananas and tomatoes chanting the earworm known as Veggie, Veggie, Fruit, Fruit.

The show was sponsored by Kraft Foods, who also sponsored the entire Land Pavilion for the first decade it was open. When the initial sponsorship deal ended in the fall of 1993, Kraft declined to renew. Nestle became the new sponsor and, naturally, wanted a new show that wasn't connected to Kraft. Kitchen Kabaret would survive a few more months while it's replacement was in development.

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The replacement show was called Food Rocks. It was also about 13 minutes long, also featured a cast of Audio-Animatronics, also centered on nutrition and, coincidentally, also closed on January 3, exactly one decade after Kitchen Kabaret. Food Rocks was, in my opinion, less memorable than its predecessor. It was staged as a benefit concert promoting healthy eating that was hosted by Fud Wrapper, voiced by real-life rapper Tone Loc. The show featured several parodies of actual songs and bands (The Peach Boys singing Good Nutrition, that sort of thing). Several of the parodies were voiced by the real performers including Neil Sedaka as Neil Moussaka, Little Richard, the Pointer Sisters and Chubby Checker as Chubby Cheddar.

Food Rocks closed in 2004 to be replaced by Soarin'. Nestle renewed their sponsorship of the Land Pavilion for a while but stopped in 2009. The pavilion has lacked sponsorship since then.

September 15 - Ellen's Energy Adventure

On this day, in 1996, Ellen DeGeneres began having an Energy Crisis in the Universe of Energy pavilion at Epcot.

You heard that right. When the revamped ride reopened that fall, Ellen's energy was in full crisis mode. It didn't last long. Almost immediately, she got her act together and Ellen's Energy Crisis was renamed Ellen's Energy Adventure. No explanation was ever given as to the nature of the crisis, we're just glad it got resolved.

The original Universe of Energy was fairly serious and utilitarian. Educational films informed guests about different kinds of energy and a trip through prehistoric times let everyone know where fossil fuels came from. It even got not one but two songs. Straightforward, not terribly exciting stuff. That all changed in version two, mostly due to a bad wig but I'm getting ahead of myself.

As attraction updates began to focus more on humor and celebrity faces, the Universe of Energy was ripe for an overhaul. And who better to use than folks with current hit projects. Bill Nye, the Science Guy would lend credibility to the presentation and Ellen would provide a perfect comic foil to all the sciency stuff. Add in Alex Trebek and Jamie Lee Curtis for a Jeopardy showdown like no other, and you get the adventure we'd been waiting for. Don't get me wrong, Ellen's Energy Adventure was still quite informative, as Future World pavilions should be.

The ride system itself didn't change from the original. Guests watched a short preshow in which Ellen dreams she's on Jeopardy losing against her old college nemesis and Albert Einstein. That led into a theater with four large ride vehicles. After getting seated, the vehicles rotated for another movie that showed Bill Nye offering to help Ellen learn a few things during the commercial break. The vehicles then moved through the area with dinosaur animatronics, again letting guests know where fossil fuels came from. The experience ended back in the theater it started in with Ellen using all her newfound knowledge to totally kill Final Jeopardy.

It was in the area with the dinosaurs that the real highlight of the attraction was found. No one knows for sure who dressed the Ellen animatronic figure, but it quickly passed into the hall of fame for unintentional guest favorites. Whether it was the absolutely terrible wig or the fact that Ellen was trying to fend off a dinosaur by poking a stick at it, a little part of all of us died when the figure stopped working and was removed from the ride in 2014. The adventure stopped altogether on August 13, 2017 as the Universe of Energy pavilion went dark in anticipation of version three featuring the Guardians of the Galaxy. No word yet if the dinosaurs will still be a part of it, but we can always hope.