World of Motion

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World of Motion

Locations, openings and status

Epcot October 1, 1982

General Motors October 1, 1982-January 2, 1996 Closed - January 2, 1996

World of Motion (October 1, 1982–January 2, 1996), sponsored by General Motors ^[1], was the former tenant of the Transportation pavilion at Epcot in Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Florida. It was an opening day attraction at EPCOT Center in 1982 and it closed in 1996 to make way for Test Track, a new thrill ride through a GM testing facility. Visitors would board moving Omnimover vehicles, and would be taken through scenes that were populated with Audio-Animatronic figures and some projection effects. It was a whimsical look at the history and achievements in transportation ranging from cavemen having to use foot power, the invention of the wheel, Leonardo Da Vinci's plans for gliders and flying machines, Christopher Columbus setting sail for America, and the first automobiles. Among the many gags were different attempts at inventing the wheel, a used-chariot sale, and the world's first traffic jam. The grand finale of the attraction featured CenterCore, a sparkling metropolis of the future that seemed to be in perpetual motion. Riders looked into mirrors showing them in a gleaming futuristic car. At the ride's conclusion, visitors disembarked into the exciting TransCenter, an interactive area about tomorrow's vehicular transportation.

Contents 1 History 2 The Ride 3 TransCenter 4 The Closing 5 Facts and Figures 6 Soundtrack 7 References 8 See also 9 External links

[edit] History

The premise of the ride was an intended look into the history of transportation, leading up to the future (aka CenterCore). GM signed a 10 year sponsorship deal for the ride, not to be outdone by Ford again with Disney's World's Fair Pavilion. Construction began along with the Epcot park itself (back then dubbed EPCOT Center). The ride opened along with the park on October 1, 1982. It became an instant hit with the park guests.

[edit] The Ride

The ride began with a modern u-turn up a portico that was situated directly in the entrance into the building. The Omnimovers would than bring you to a simple caveman cave. However, it would head into the first mean of transportation: footpower. The second scene brings you into the earliest means of over water transportation. It shows people traveling on a raft. The next scene shows you the first time animal power was introduced. It shows an Assyrian tableua with a person trying to control animals from camels to zebras. The next scene shows the invention of the wheel at Babylon. A gag shows men holding a square object, a triangle object, and the award-winning circle object. Before exiting, we pass a wheel factory, where everything, including the Trojan Horse, is trying to be sold. The next scenes are the "Age of Flight". It begins with Leonardo da Vinci and his many attempts to fly. Next to him is a clearly upset Mona Lisa. The following scene is a man looking over London in a hot air balloon. The next scenes are the evolution of steam. It starts out with a Mississippi Riverboat with the never ending stream of stagecoaches and such for the Western Expansion. The steam locomotive is the next evolution of steam travel, which in turn shows an authentic steam locomotive...and an authentic railroad robbery. The scene shifts over to one of the most photographed and most remembered scene: the world's first traffic jam. The animosity includes items such as an upset horse, a spilling ice truck, and kids screaming during the 1900's. We than travel past the open road scenes which include a man who crashed a bicycle, a family picnic, and early 40's and 50's cars. The following areas are "speed tunnels" which pay homage to the Magic Kingdom's "If You Had Wings" successful tunnels. The Omnimover travels through these bullet-shaped tunnels while images are played on the screens. Some include crop-dusting, rafting, and traveling down a snowmobile trail. The tunnels let out to the final exhibit: CenterCore, the city of the future. This even includes an image of you in your Omnimover simulated as a car of the future. After the ride vehicles leave CenterCore, you disembark.

[edit] TransCenter

You leave your Omnimover vehicles and go to the TransCenter, which is full of exhibits and shows about transportation and the things surrounding it. It takes an Innoventions-style feel to all of it. You traveled through the center, looking at prototype cars such as the Lean Machine in the Dreamer's Workshop and a show called The Water Powered Engine, which pits nine all-new Disney characters in a debate over which motor design should be used to power cars. There is a replica of America's only ind-tunnel on display. The ever-popular show "The Bird and the Robot", starring a toucan, Bird, and an assembly-line robot, Tiger, entertain people with acts (and Bird's signature bad jokes) about the importance of the GM assembly line. A computer-generated display shows GM's car 'torture' test without actually performing it. Concept 2000 shows the process of creating prototype cars for GM. An exhibit called Areotest educated people about air-flow on auto concepts and fuel economy. Another exhibit featured stylings of clothes with GM's advanced polyester production styles.

[edit] The Closing

Economy slumped with General Motors after the second sponsorship deal ended for WOM, and GM started signing 1-year contracts for the ride. However, a suggested idea to gut the building and turn it into a new attraction stuck with Disney representatives and GM businessmen. It would take World of Motion, close it down, and rehab it into a new ride that focused only on cars. Thus, World of Motion was shut down to the public while a new ride, called Test Track, was taking its place. Scheduled to open 19 months after WOM's closing, this new ride would put you in a test car against vehicle tests that were needed to deem the car safe for road travel. ^[2] However, nothing went as planned, and the new ride opened significantly later than the scheduled opening date.

[edit] Facts and Figures

• Number of Audio-Animatronic figures: 188
• Attraction Opening: October 1, 1982
• Attraction Closed: January 2, 1996
• Ride length: 15 minutes, with 25 scenes
• Ride capacity: 20,000
• Avg. Annual Attendance: 7 million
• Building size: 60 feet high and a 318 feet diameter (circular building)
• Building exterior: The building was clad in stainless steel panels.
• Pavilion Sponsor: General Motors (Which signed a 10-year sponsorship contract in Dec. 1977). When the second contract finished in 1992, and with a slumping economy GM agreed only to one year contracts and wanted Disney Imagineering to work on a new attraction. GM insisted that the new ride would focus only on cars, as opposed to the general concept of transportation. The marketing department wanted to strongly promote their cars.

• The prototype concept cars at the TransCenter were the most photographed spot in Walt Disney World.
• After the ride closed, several of the Audio-Animatronic characters were reused in refurbishing the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Disneyland in 1997. The sea serpent featured in the ride was shipped to Disney's California Adventure, and the horse pulling cart driver animatronic was made into Ellen for "Ellen's Energy Adventure" at the adjacent Universe of Energy pavilion.
• The theme song for this ride was a lively song, called "It's Fun to Be Free," written by X Atencio, writer of "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life for Me)" of Pirates of the Caribbean and "Grim Grinning Ghosts" of The Haunted Mansion, and Buddy Baker, another legendary Disney composer.
• Famous radio disc jockey Gary Owens provided the ride's humorous yet very informative narration.
• Chickens from the ride can now be found in the Magic Kingdom at Mickey's Toontown Fair. They are inside the barn located at Goofy's Wiseacre Farm.
• Ironically, on the final ceremonial ride of World of Motion, on January 2, 1996, it broke down. GM executives who were riding it had to climb out and walk back to the exit.
• The closing of World of Motion forced the reopening of Horizons, another Disney attraction focusing on the future of the family. It was closed 2 years prior to the closing of World of Motion.

[edit] Soundtrack

It's Fun to Be Free The World of Motion theme song (written by Buddy Baker and X. Atencio). The song was played throughout the ride (and queue area) with music changing to reflect the different time periods as the ride progressed through the various scenes.

It's fun to free, to be on the move, to go anywhere, with never a care, to do all there is to be done, it's fun to free! Ah yes!

It's fun to be free, to be on the move, to ride or to hike, wherever you like to, thrill to this beautiful land, ah, is everybody happy? You'll see what living can be, it's fun to be free! Yes sir!

The song can be found on The Official Album of Disneyland and Walt Disney World (1991 CD).

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• List of past Epcot attractions

[edit] External links

• World Of Motion Memorial: A fanpage preserving the attraction's memory.