We return to our 25th anniversary review of Disney California Adventure as we explore all the lands of the park. Originally titled Hollywood Pictures Backlot, what is now known today as Hollywood Land opened at first as the symbol of everything wrong with Disney California Adventure. And 25 years of changes hasn’t really fixed this dead-end corner of the park, which was probably one of the most terribly master planned themed lands ever created. Astonishing that while Disney-MGM Studios came out of the gate small but immensely popular, this version of Hollywood took a crash on Hollywood Boulevard. Of its ten most major highlights or attractions, almost all have been changed—and most changed several times—over the last number of decades. As improvements were made to Disney California Adventure, it seemed the original components of this land would only get more and more ignored. Even though it opened as one of only three lands in the park, it still stands as a testament to bargain basement Imagineering. And with Pandora World of Avatar coming sometime in the future, the greater part of it is now on the chopping block.  Join us as we dig through the backstory of the Hollywood Pictures Backlot and look toward what is ahead in the proximate years to come.

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The following is a summary of what we discuss on the podcast. Imagery and additional links will help you to better get a sense of what this land has come to represent.

Hollywood Pictures Backlot

• It’s called Hollywood Land today on the map but it began with the title Hollywood Pictures Backlot
• The gateway sign and iconic elephant-topped studio gates harkened to the D. W. Griffith’s Babylonian set from the film Intolerance.
• Intolerance was a sort of rebuttal of Griffith’s controversial work the year before, The Birth of a Nation. He saw the critics of that film as being “intolerant”
• In short, this is not a great way to start the conversation about movies and Hollywood.
• The gateway and elephants were removed in 2011 and 2012 to transition the area from a “fake studio backlot” into an old-Hollywood neighborhood celebrating the 1930s Golden Age.
• With those and major additions at that time like Buena Vista Street and Radiator Springs, this was renamed as Hollywood Land.
• The removal of those arches and columns also made it possible for the Red Car Trolley to move through, though it has ended its run at this time. So before we enter the land, the very thing approaching it has already been removed.

You can see a montage of the entire Hollywood Land here.

Disney Jr. Mickey Mouse Club House Live

Originally the ABC Soap Opera Bistro which opened with the park. Offered a dine in experience themed to General Hospital, All My Children, One Life to Live and Port Charles. Closed a year and a half later in November 2002. Reopened the next Spring as Disney Jr. Live on Stage. It’s had many variations since, but it has always remained focus since on children’s entertainment.

Sunset Showcase Theater

• MuppetVision 3d opened with the park and with all of the kinds of props and FX
• It was the only thing carried over to Hollywood Land from Disney MGM Studios–though that would change in the Fall
• It was often pre-empted for Previews & Sneak Peeks
• It closed for A First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along from 2015-2016
• It became Mickey’s PhilarMagic after that with Coco. A new marquee was created on Hollywood Boulevard

Stage 17

• This opened in September of 2001 with Who Wants to Be a Millionaire–Play It
• This would be the 2nd attraction brought in from Disney-MGM Studios
• The show was the hottest thing going on ABC television at the time.
• That attraction closed in 2004
• Dancin’ with Disney played in 2012 & 2013–A character dance party–which is now in the old Soap Opera Bistro bldg at night
• It is a big box area which could have been utilized for an actual themed attraction.
• It since served as a retail pop up and for private events.
• It is slated to be removed for Avatar

Sorcerer Mickey Fountain, ElecTRONica and Mad T Party

• The fountain opened with the park
• ElecTRONica opened in Oct 2010 and closed on April 2012
• Mad T Party was May 2012 through Mar 2016
• Through these highly themed night time events, the Fountain was dismantled and the space made into a larger stage for the events.
• The set up looked bizarre during the day and reduced the value of the themed backlot experience
• When it was done, the Studio Store kiosk was added.

Superstar Limo/Monster’s Inc.

• Superstar Limo was the concept of the paparazzi chasing you on the way to signing a big movie contract
• Princess Diana was killed from paparazzi chasing her and the entire attraction needed to be rethought
• The revised version had you finding stars along the way to your Hollywood Premiere. Stars included:
  • Regis Philbin
  • Melanie Griffith
  • Antonio Banderas
  • Cindy Crawford
  • Tim Allen
  • Jackie Chan
  • Drew Carey
  • Cher
  • Woopi Goldberg–Who also starred in Golden Dream
• The attraction was ridiculed by fans and press and did not last a year
• It lay dormant for several years while Monster’s Inc became a big hit
• Monster’s Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! came on board in Jan 2006
• Both utilized the same space, the same graphic 3D entrance and were dark rides
• This attraction is set to close this year, then next, and now it’s uncertain.
• It is not impossible that some of these figures and props will go into the Monstropolis attraction

You can see the entirety of the Monsters Inc. experience here.

Hollywood Lounge & Stage 12: Hollywood & Dine

• Hollywood Lounge seems more like a 50’s drive in than a lounge. It has a Coca Cola theme but largely specializes in alcohol
• Hollywood & Dine takes a similar name to the one at Disney-MGM Studios, but this is a food court, not a character buffet.
• In many ways it is familiar in style to Studio 1 which opened at Walt Disney Studios Paris, and also like Soundstage at Disney-MGM
• Themes included:
  • Don the Beachcomber’s
  • Villa Capri
  • Wirshire Bowl
  • Ciro’s Nightclub
  • Zebra Dining Room
  • Victor Hugo Dining
• Remember that this corner of the park was a sort of dead end. There was no Avengers campus, not even a Tower of Terror or a Bug’s Land. You came to this point and then turned around.
• Note also that the park’s restaurant capacity of 26 eateries held the ability of feeding 6,700 people an hour. And yet attendance in the park hardly justify the capacity.
• Those aforementioned additions turned everyone right instead of left or straight on. Thus it became dead immediately.
• Both along with its Warner Brothers style water tower are expected to be demolished with Pandora

Fairfax Market/Schmoozies/Award Wieners

These three snack eateries have been there since day 1 and surprisingly are nearly the only things that have not changed .

Hyperion Theater

• Like everything else in this land you enter past a facade of Hollywood and then enter a theater with set facades decaorating the sides of the venue.
• This venue holds 2000 guests to include two balconies
• Steps in Time was a “cutting edge” version of a castle stage type show.
• It opened with the park and then closed by the following year, despite a fairly good
• Disney’s Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular opened in Jan 2003 and stayed on until Jan 2016
• This show is similar to the ones you find on the Disney Cruise Line
• Later, Frozen: Live at the Hyperion opened in May of 2016.
• It included a 2200 square feet LED wall
• That show died with Covid
• Rogers the Musical played the summer of 2023.
• Rogers was based on the Disney+ Hawkeye series
• The theater has been empty since.

Hollywood Tower Hotel–Tower of Terror

• Tower of Terror opens in 2004
• Thematically and story wise, it replicates the Florida version. But that’s where the comparison stops
• Guests exit the library and emerge into a boiler room that has two levels of embarkation
• With cost cutting, it utilizes the same 3 elevator shafts to do the lifts and drops as opposed to four rise shafts and 2 drop shafts
• With that it offers no horizontal passage into the Twilight Zone
• This addition with A Bug’s Land in 2002 makes it possible to move in a clockwise form between the main corridor of the park. But with that, it reduces guest attendance on the backlot side of Hollywood Land
• In 2017 it would be re-themed by Joe Rhode into Guardian’s of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout

Disney Animation Building

• There are many activities that happen in this building.
• Animation Academy
• Character Close Up has been an opportunity for a meet ‘n’ greet–specifically Anna & Elsa from Frozen
• Originally guests saw Back to Neverland in the theater. As animation evolved it then showed One Man’s Dream. From there it became Turtle Talk.
• The Sorcerer’s Workshop had interactive animation exhibits themed to include:
  • Magic Mirror Realm
  • Beast’s Library–Seen Below
  • Ursula’s Grotto

• While offerings in this building have changed over the years, this core attraction here has remained popular since day one, and that is the Disney Animation Gallery, which is the centerpiece from where you go to all the remaining exhibits.

You can see the video montage here.

Avatar Attraction Q&A

With the announcements of an Avatar attraction/land coming to this corner of the park, let’s look how it impacts Hollywood Land. We’ll cover a number of questions.

What is the Avatar attraction planned for DCA?

We don’t have all the pieces, but we know the following:

• It is based on the Way of Water film more than other part of the Avatar series.
• It is a boat ride occupying 30 passengers at a time.
• Imagery suggests it will have dark ride elements similar to Na’vi River Journey, but this will be much more sweeping in scale rather than intimate with its 6 person boats

• The boats are similar to those found in Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Sunken Treasure. These boats don’t work so much on a rail as they are tied to magnets that allow them in an omnimover style of way to turn and pivot.

• They will see much of the flora and fauna found in Pandora.

• Imagery also suggests it will have large omnimover screen effects similar to Shanghai’s Pirates.

Why hasn’t construction began on Avatar?

There are many dominos involved in this project. Before the Avatar attraction is built several things must start happening:

• New temporary drop off for the Toy Story Parking drop off
• New parking structure must commence
• New bridge needs to be created over Harbor boulevard
• New security areas need to be established
• New plaza between both parks will likely be refitted
• There needs to be construction offices located to this area
• Announced after D23 was that Tomorrowland and its remodel would be put ahead of Avatar

Has the parking lot plan and arrival changed recently?

Yes and no. The parking lot is pretty much going in as announced. But how we connect to the parks has been modified somewhat. In an earlier display, we saw a large walking corridor going over Harbor Boulevard, landscaped and with trees.

In a newly posted image, we see that the entire corridor over Harbor Boulevard is going to be covered. This suggests the possibility that they will add moving conveyor belts similar to what you experience moving from the parking lot to Universal City Walk in Orlando. And it could also suggest something else that we’ll talk about in the discussion of changing Tomorrowland.

Where will the Avatar Attraction be located?

• Images and models as shown below suggest that the entrance to this area will be Model images suggest that the monorail will sweep in a curve along the front side, with a somewhat deco wall behind it and California tropical landscaping perhaps suggesting where Hollywood Land ends.

• Given that monorail location, I’ve visualized where the monorail might run on this earlier artist’s concept.
• Note that there appears to be more to be announced or shown as part of this area development. Expect retail, F&B, restrooms and more. We see more of this played out in this image. We also see a little more of a glimpse as to how the monorail may play around it or skirt through it.

• The image below suggests another set of rock outcropping that could be hiding what is currently the Sunset Showcase Theater where Mickey’s PhilarMagic resides. That could be an opposite facing waterfall and pond that leads to the larger body of water in the attraction. Note that there is a small bridge in the center foreground where water could run beneath.

• We also haven’t seen or heard how the land ties into a California Adventure.

Why won’t all of Hollywood Land be removed?

Parade routes trump almost everything else in a Disney theme park. A critical part of the parade route in DCA is through Hollywood Boulevard. Can they remove the backlot portion? Yes, but the way you see the experience on Hollywood Boulevard along with its theater at the end, it will not be removed. It has also been said that Sunset Showcase Theater, the location of Mickey’s PhilarMagic Show, will also not go away. It is probably why a new entrance has been put on Hollywood Boulevard instead of back in the backlot portion.

Indeed, could the trolley or parade route exit here around Hollywood and Vine instead of in Avengers Campus?

In short, while much of what was Hollywood Land before is going away, I believe that the new Avatar addition will not only exceed anything that was there before, it may in some way find a way to improve what remains in Hollywood Land.

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Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization

For over a year I’ve been capturing and sharing stories of Disneyland, while creating a new online tool for you to explore all of them in one place. It’s called Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization and it’s an interactive, multimedia experience. This is truly designed for those who are seeking to find new ideas that will guide you to 

1. Provide Individual & Organizational Leadership Excellence
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Click here to order Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization. It’s also available on the show notes page of our podcast. Whether you’re on a comfy sofa at home or on Main Street, U.S.A. this experience allows you to navigate through all nine lands to explore some 100 locations where you can find Disney insights that will be inspire and guide you and your organization. 

Books From Your Host at Disney Insights

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Thanks for joining us for this podcast. Know that as in the title of my organization, Performance Journeys, it’s as much about the journey as it is about performance. Find the second star to the right, and keep going straight on till you reach it. Follow the compass of your heart, and know that with a smile and a song, a little faith, effort and pixie dust, your dreams can come true. After all, if we can dream it, we can do it. Until next time, bright suns, we’ll see you real soon!