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Journey into Imagination

Up the Waterfall – The EPCOT Center Episode – Part 2

6 October 2019 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

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Rainbow Minnie EPCOT Center

We hope you listened to/watched the Up the Waterfall EPCOT Episode Part 1, where we discussed the original Future World east, including Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, World of Motion, and Horizons, along with a bit of Communicore East. In this next episode, Part 2, we share our thoughts and memories of The Land, The Living Seas, and of course Journey into Imagination. We also head back over to the east side and bring up the Wonders of Life pavilion.

 

I really thought I’d fill an entire episode with my thoughts on Journey into Imagination, but I managed to keep it under an hour for that part. What we did realize is that we needed yet another episode to properly cover the entire original EPCOT Center experience. Watch for Part 3, where we will discuss the remainder of Future World, and head into World Showcase. If you have any EPCOT memories you’d like to share, comment below, or on any of our channels below to share your thoughts with us too! Below we’ll include more links and info discussed in the podcast as well as places to subscribe and listen or watch.

 

Whether you are an original EPCOT visitor like us, or a fan, or new to Disney parks, we hope you’ll listen in and get a feel for what it was like Growing Up EPCOT. We thank you for listening in or watching, and hope you enjoy our little corner of the Disney podcasting world. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast wherever you normally listen, rate us (5 stars would be amazing!) and even comment so hopefully more people can discover us too. You can also watch us on YouTube to see all of our silly facial expressions, and the books we reference in this episode. We’d love to hear from you, let us know what you think of the podcast, your favorite EPCOT Center memories, what you want to hear us discuss, just say hi, we welcome all feedback!

 

Dreamfinder and Figment EPCOT Center
Dreamfinder and Figment with me around 1984 when we first moved to Florida. Fun fact, this photo was used in the “Dreamfinders” fan made documentary that came out a few years ago without my permission or credit so…yay? 😛

For these episodes, we wanted to give a guide of sorts to where you can learn more about the original EPCOT Center we describe, if you didn’t get a chance to experience it yourself, or if you’d just like to take a stroll down memory lane.

Zannaland’s Love Letter to EPCOT

Zannaland’s 1983 EPCOT Trip Diary

Martin’s Vids – Martin Smith has been chronicling Disney parks for decades, and compiling incredibly detailed complete history tributes to extinct attractions. We’re linking to his entire EPCOT Future World playlist, where you can experience EPCOT Center as it once was.

Here are some of the books we discussed, since they are out of print, these are all from 3rd party Marketplace sellers on amazon, but still, some good options and prices are out there. I’m just linking one of the Pictorial Souvenirs, but all of the ones from the 80’s are great fun to flip through. We’ll be doing a little EPCOT Books guide soon, so stay tuned for that as well. Click the photos below to get to the amazon* page for these books.

 

EPCOT James Beard BookWDW Pictorial Souvenir

 

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Filed Under: Disney Past, Up the Waterfall Podcast Tagged With: disney podcast, Dreamfinder, EPCOT Center, EPCOT Center podcast, Figment, Journey into Imagination, original Epcot, Original EPCOT Center, retro EPCOT, Retro WDW, Scott Otis, Up the Waterfall, Up the Waterfall podcast, vintage epcot, vintage wdw, Zannaland podcast

Dreamfinders Do Come True-Meeting Ron Schneider

5 October 2011 by Suzannah Otis 41 Comments

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Dreamfinder 1985
Dreamfinder, Figment & me in 1985

Most little girls have a favorite princess, and while I’m pretty sure I grew up being most attached to Princess Aurora, I was never really fanatical about princesses. I was more a Barbie and Strawberry Shortcake girl anyway. Until my 1983 trip to EPCOT Center of course. You’ve heard me wax poetic on that magical trip before. While I cannot find a photo of Dreamfinder and I from that first trip, I can assure you, his impact was felt for decades to come.

Princesses were prim and proper and always said the right thing, while Dreamfinder was a bit of a jokester and would react to the guests around him accordingly. Unlike many rides of the time, where you rode passively through them, Dreamfinder spoke directly to you in Journey into Imagination. “Oh, hello there, so glad you could come along. I am the Dreamfinder!” (I still have that entire spiel memorized in my head.) As an impressionable young child, I felt that Dreamfinder and Figment really were bringing me along for the ride to the Dream Port and that imagination was a powerful force within us all. And just as I cried through my entire last ride through Journey into Imagination on that last day of my first trip, I was all the more excited to see Dreamfinder after we moved to Florida when I was 10.

Dreamfinder 1986
Dreamfinder, Figment and me in 1986

I wouldn’t always stop to take a photo with Dreamfinder and Figment, but any time he was out there, I always said hello – and of course, riding Journey into Imagination multiple times was a given. I consider myself particularly fortunate to have had EPCOT Center as my playground during that time in my life. It wasn’t an easy transition, moving from a small New England town, close to family and surrounded by friends, to a really tiny central Florida town where I had a three cousins but not much else. EPCOT Center and Journey into Imagination (and Horizons) became my happy place, my refuge from the trials and tribulations of a tween existence, before that age group even had a name. And just as the sweet scent of l’oranges signaled Horizons, Dreamfinder was synonymous with Journey into Imagination. In summary; I liked him.

Fast forward 28 years from that first encounter and I am still as in love with Journey into Imagination and Dreamfinder as I ever was. I walk up to the Imagination pavilion and am flooded with happy memories of joking with Figment, getting soaked with the jumping fountains, the scent of roses, the beautiful white room inside the ride and countless hours playing in the Image Works. I am of course saddened by the changes made to Tony Baxter’s masterpiece, but I hold my version of the attraction within my heart. If you did not get the chance to experience the original attraction, check out Martin Smith‘s video tributes: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

Attending D23’s Destination D in Florida back in May, I was brought to tears when Dreamfinder and Figment made a surprise appearance for a sing-a-long with Richard Sherman. My love and appreciation for Disney was renewed that magical night.

Destination D Dreamfinder
Destination D's very special guests

In a random turn of events, I happened to be reading the comments of an old post here. Within the comments, I saw one from a “Ron” that went as follows:

Zanna — It’s a funny thing… Figment & I posed for a million photographs back then but I’ve seen precious few of them. Thanks for posting this one!

I was shocked and amazed that THE Dreamfinder had commented on my silly little blog. Then I realized the comment was a year ago and was disappointed I hadn’t seen it prior to now! I replied to the comment and was filled with such joy and validation, as if little 10 year old me had come full circle in life. Or so I thought.

Enter Lou Mongello, well-known Disney fan, expert, and Podfather who runs the WDW Radio podcast and live news show. Lou writes and records audio guides, trivia books and more, has conducted interviews with amazing Disney legends, and given back through fundraising efforts for the Make a Wish foundation. In addition, he is a great friend. During the past weekend Lou and his WDW Radio team were engaging in a 40-hour LIVE web broadcast to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Walt Disney World and raise funds for Make a Wish. (They raised close to $18,000 that weekend alone!) When, on last week’s live show, Lou announced a “Special Guest” would be appearing on Sunday, October 2, my mind immediately went to Ron Schneider. Before I discovered Ron’s comment on my blog, I never would’ve guessed, but I just had that on the brain and something told me it was a good possibility. After a series of meet-ups on Sunday, I ventured over to the Imagination building, where I heard the WDWRadio crew would be. Sure enough, there was Ron Schneider, in his Imagination symbol shirt (which I almost wore that day!). I stood close and listened to the tales Ron shared of his time as Dreamfinder and with the Disney company. One of the funniest was the story of how Ron had recorded several takes for the exit safety spiel, including his favorite, “Your ride vehicle and the moving platform are traveling at 5000 miles per hour! Good luck!” They never used that take. I can’t imagine why?

Ron Schneider with Lou Mongello
Ron Schneider with Lou Mongello, while Lou's beautiful children look on. Scott Otis holds the laptop broadcasting the show live.

 

I had prepared my phone in hopes of getting a chance to show Ron the photo about which he commented, in person. When Lou asked if there were questions from the audience, I patiently waited for others to ask Ron to describe favorite memories or parts of his work experiences. Then I raised my hand and let him know that I didn’t have a question, but rather a photo to show him, which I did (the photo at the top of this post). He was tickled to see it and remarked again about how rare photos of him as Dreamfinder were. He portrayed the Dreamfinder from 1982 – 1987. I thanked him for the wonderful memories he gave me as a child and how I grew up with EPCOT Center. Tears began to flow as I remembered little 10 year-old me and the lifetime of experiences that has passed between then and now. Hearing my voice break, Ron said, “Oh, come here and give me a hug.” So I did. I hugged the Dreamfinder, without the blue suit and top hat, without that little purple dragon, but the man that gave life to both was all that mattered. It was perfect.

Dreamfinder 2011
Dreamfinder - Ron Schneider and me, 2011 ♥

While storm clouds may gather…and stars may collide, nothing can take those amazing moments that Disney and Dreamfinder provided. I truly had come full circle. It’s not often you can thank your childhood influences in person, much less hug them. I was so very grateful for the special chance to do so. My oldest son was standing behind me as I was speaking (and crying) to Dreamfinder. I think it was a special moment for him as well, to see that his mom is human, and was once a child full of wonder too. Perhaps he has a bit more understanding as to why Disney is so special to me and such a part of my life. So thank you to Mr. Schneider for taking the time out of your weekend to be there last weekend, and for being a part of childhood memories I hold most dear. Also many thanks to Lou Mongello for making this meeting possible and giving back to Disney fans in so many ways.

Imagination is something that belongs to all of us…and every sparkling new idea can lead to even more! – The Dreamfinder

 

 

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Filed Under: Commentary Land, Disney Attractions, Disney Past, Family Memories, Walt Disney World Tagged With: 1980s, childhood memories, Disney memories, EPCOT Center, EPCOT past, Epcot video, Figment, Journey into Imagination, Lou Mongello, retro EPCOT, Ron Schneider, The Dreamfinder, WDW Radio, WDWRadio.com

Throwback Thursday: The Rainbow Corridor

15 September 2011 by Suzannah Otis 8 Comments

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In honor of Walt Disney World’s upcoming 40th anniversary, I thought I’d post a photo each week of me or my family from our past visits. I have posted in the past my earliest photo from around 1979 but here’s one from one of my favorite places ever – the Rainbow Corridor at Image Works upstairs from Journey into Imagination. That attraction, and the Image Works play-area hold my tiny, unicorn-filled childhood heart. I spent hours in there playing with the different colored tables full of ‘pins’, painting Figment on a touch screen, stomping on the colored lights to make music, and Dreamfinder’s School of Drama (green screen at its finest – AND, Dreamfinder was played by none other than Imagineer extraordinaire, Joe Rohde – thanks to Scott Otis [Disney expert and friend extraordinaire] for that tidbit!). I would give just about anything to go there again.

Rainbow Corridor
Me, in my 80's finest - EPCOT Center cap, Esprit shirt, short shorts, my shirt tucked in?!...inside the greatest tunnel ever made. I think this must be around 1984. Special thanks to Scott Otis for reminding me of the Rainbow Corridor's actual name, I'd forgotten the corridor part!
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Filed Under: Disney Attractions, Disney Past, Walt Disney World Tagged With: 1980s, Disney past, Disney photos, EPCOT Center, Image Works, Journey into Imagination, Rainbow Corridor, Rainbow tunnel, retro EPCOT, retro Walt Disney World

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