Horizons was a suspended
omnimover dark ride
A dark ride—or ghost train when horror themed—is an indoor amusement ride on which passengers aboard guided vehicles travel through specially lit scenes that typically contain Animatronics, animation, sound, music and Special effect#Live spe ...
attraction at
Epcot (then known as EPCOT Center), a
theme park
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...
at
Walt Disney World
The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...
in
Bay Lake, Florida
Bay Lake is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29 at the 2020 census. It is named after a lake that lies east of Magic Kingdom. All four of the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, and one of Walt Disney Worl ...
. Located on the eastern side of the
Future World (now
World Discovery) section of Epcot. The attraction depicted scenes from the then yet to come 21st century showing the possible future of life on land, under the sea, and in outer space. It is believed to be the sequel to
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
's
Carousel of Progress
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress is a rotating theater audio-animatronic stage show attraction in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, just outside of Orlando. Created by W ...
, an attraction in
Tomorrowland Tomorrowland may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Tomorrowland (Disney Parks), a theme land at a number of Disney theme parks around the world
* Tomorrowland (festival), an annual electronic dance music festival in Boom, Belgium
* ''Tom ...
at
Walt Disney World
The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...
's
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is a Amusement park, theme park at the Walt Disney World, Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. It opened on October 1, 1971, and is owned and operated by the Walt Disney Company through its Disney Experiences, Expe ...
. Horizons was the only attraction in Future World to showcase all of Epcot's "Future World" elements: communication, energy, transportation, anatomy, along with humankind's relationship with the sea and the land.
The attraction officially opened on October 1, 1983, as part of Phase II of
Epcot. Horizons originally closed in December 25, 1994, a little more than a year after
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
had ended its sponsorship of the attraction. Horizons re-opened on December 24, 1995 due to the closure of two other attractions that were down for refurbishment in Future World,
Universe of Energy
The Universe of Energy was a pavilion on the eastern side of Epcot#Future World, Future World (now World Discovery) at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. One of Epcot's opening day attractions in 1982, it ex ...
and
World of Motion
World of Motion, presented by General Motors Corporation, General Motors,"GM's World of Motion Exhibit opens in Epcot Center at the Walt Disney World Resort. Before the year is out, the one millionth visitor to the exhibit is recorded." http://ww ...
. The attraction permanently closed on January 9, 1999, after which the attraction was dismantled and its structure demolished to make room for
Mission: Space, a
motion simulator
A motion simulator or motion platform is a mechanism that creates the feelings of being in a real motion environment. In a simulator, the movement is synchronised with a visual display of the outside world (OTW) scene. Motion platforms can provid ...
thrill ride that opened on October 9, 2003.
The attraction, although extinct, still retains a sizable
cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...
, especially among Disney park aficionados.
History
''Horizons'', in its concept phase, was named Century 3 (or Century III), to recognize the third century of American existence (1976–2076). The name was changed to Futureprobe to help appeal the attraction toward international guests who wouldn't understand or appreciate ''Century 3''. In the end, the ''Futureprobe'' name was scrapped due to the medical connotation of the word "probe". After much debate, GE and Disney officials settled on the name Horizons. Prior to the start of construction, the project's budget was slashed by $10 million (USD). The building size was reduced and the length of the ride was shrunk by 35%, shortening the ride length by .
Horizons opened exactly one year after Epcot opened and was located between
World of Motion
World of Motion, presented by General Motors Corporation, General Motors,"GM's World of Motion Exhibit opens in Epcot Center at the Walt Disney World Resort. Before the year is out, the one millionth visitor to the exhibit is recorded." http://ww ...
and the
Universe of Energy
The Universe of Energy was a pavilion on the eastern side of Epcot#Future World, Future World (now World Discovery) at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. One of Epcot's opening day attractions in 1982, it ex ...
. The
Wonders of Life
The Wonders of Life pavilion was an attraction at Epcot at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Located inside a golden colored dome between Mission: SPACE (formerly Horizons) and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (formerly ...
pavilion became Horizons' new neighbor in 1989, and World of Motion closed in 1996. Horizons remained operational until World of Motion's successor,
Test Track
Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride manufactured by Dynamic Attractions located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership ...
, was ready to open to the public in early 1999.
[Company officials say it is likely, but not yet certain, that Horizons will close for good when Test Track opens and will be replaced with a space pavilion. ]
It was proposed that Horizons would be the sequel to the
Carousel of Progress
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress is a rotating theater audio-animatronic stage show attraction in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, just outside of Orlando. Created by W ...
(located in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom), Disney's ride from the
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
Pavilion at the
1964 New York World's Fair
The 1964 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair) was an world's fair, international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, United States. The fair included exhibitions, activ ...
. As the Carousel of Progress followed the changes in lifestyle that faced a family as they lived through the 20th century, Horizons continued their story, showing how they might live in the 21st century. The Carousel's theme song "
There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was part of the Looking Back at Tomorrow portion of Horizons. The version of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" that could be heard in Horizons coming from a television (sung by
Larry Cedar) in the Art Deco scene is the exact version that can still be heard on a radio during the first act of the present
Carousel of Progress
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress is a rotating theater audio-animatronic stage show attraction in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, just outside of Orlando. Created by W ...
.
The original ride concept came from
Reginald Jones (then-CEO of
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
) and
Jack Welch
John Francis Welch Jr. (November 19, 1935 – March 1, 2020) was an American business executive, chemical engineer, and writer. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric (GE) between 1981 and 2001.
His long career at General Electric ( ...
(future CEO of General Electric). The concept was to focus on
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February11, 1847October18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, ...
and his body of work along with the origin of GE; it was changed to focus on the future of America, a theme that changed yet again to respect that EPCOT Center was to appeal to a global audience. The building which housed Horizons was designed to resemble a
spaceship, while accentuating the third dimension and giving the impression of an infinite
horizon
The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...
.
On June 24, 1993, it was announced that GE would not renew sponsorship of Horizons. The sponsorship's expiration occurred on September 30.
Following this, all references to the company were removed. Without a sponsor, Horizons would begin to have technical issues as time went on. Several animatronics were deteriorating and the ride would frequently break down. Ideas were tossed around about the pavilion being turned into a space-themed pavilion. The building would have been upgraded and rethemed. The ride system would be changed drastically, in which the guest would be in an individual space harness while viewing space stations and space in general and would control the pitch and yaw of the vehicle. The attraction would close on Christmas Day, 1994, with no reasoning given. The attraction was left dormant for slightly under a year, before its reopening on Christmas Eve, 1995. This was due to
World of Motion
World of Motion, presented by General Motors Corporation, General Motors,"GM's World of Motion Exhibit opens in Epcot Center at the Walt Disney World Resort. Before the year is out, the one millionth visitor to the exhibit is recorded." http://ww ...
closing the following month for its conversion into
Test Track
Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride manufactured by Dynamic Attractions located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership ...
, and
Universe of Energy
The Universe of Energy was a pavilion on the eastern side of Epcot#Future World, Future World (now World Discovery) at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. One of Epcot's opening day attractions in 1982, it ex ...
's refurbishment into
Ellen's Energy Adventure, leaving no other attractions outside of
Wonders of Life
The Wonders of Life pavilion was an attraction at Epcot at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Located inside a golden colored dome between Mission: SPACE (formerly Horizons) and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (formerly ...
open in the east half of Future World.
The attraction would operate until January 9, 1999, when it would close permanently.
No reason was publicly given, but the lack of corporate sponsorship, which happened around the same time of the financial disaster of
Euro Disneyland is widely accepted as having played the largest part in the decision. Also widely speculated as a reason for the attraction closing was major structural problems, along with rumored problems with the roof.
The building stood unoccupied for well over a year as Disney decided between either relaunching the attraction (which would have required a new storyline and major building renovation and upgrades) or demolishing the building and creating a new attraction in its place. It was decided to build a new cutting-edge
outer space-themed attraction, so the Horizons building was slowly torn down in July of 2000. The demolition of the building marked the first time in Disney history that an entire ride building had to be demolished in preparation for a new attraction. Construction on
Mission: SPACE began in late 2000 and the new attraction opened on August 15, 2003.
Various props from Horizons used to be displayed around Walt Disney World and formerly in
Walt Disney Studios Park
Walt Disney Studios Park ( French: ''Parc Walt Disney Studios'') is the second of two theme parks built at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. The park opened on 16 March 2002, and it is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company t ...
at
Disneyland Resort Paris. A display that featured the butler robot animatronic was set up in ''EPCOT: Creating the World of Tomorrow'' for Epcot's 25th anniversary. At Disney's Hollywood Studios, a few props were found in the warehouse of The Studio Tour. The mould for the desert hovercraft can be found hanging from the ceiling of a restaurant. At
Walt Disney Studios Park
Walt Disney Studios Park ( French: ''Parc Walt Disney Studios'') is the second of two theme parks built at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. The park opened on 16 March 2002, and it is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company t ...
, the desert hovercraft prop and sub pod were on display on the Backlot Tour. However, that attraction has since been replaced and the props are now missing. The McCall mural, ''The Prologue and the Promise'', painted on canvas, was removed prior to demolition and its current whereabouts are unknown. Some artefacts from the attraction are in private collections.
Attraction
Horizons began with a section entitled "Looking Back at Tomorrow," showcasing visions of the future as perceived from the era of
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright.
His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
and
Albert Robida through the 1950s. The ride then moved past two immense
OMNIMAX screens (groundbreaking technology at the time the ride was built), showing modern technologies and ideas that could be used to build the world of tomorrow.
Afterward came the main part of the ride: visions of futuristic life in a section entitled "Tomorrow's Windows". The grandmother and grandfather live in an apartment in the city of Nova Cite. Their daughter supervises irrigation robots at the desert farm of Mesa Verde (depicting
arid-zone agriculture). She then talks with her boyfriend over video chat, who is a marine biologist at the Sea Castle research base (depicting
ocean colonization). At the
space station
A space station (or orbital station) is a spacecraft which remains orbital spaceflight, in orbit and human spaceflight, hosts humans for extended periods of time. It therefore is an artificial satellite featuring space habitat (facility), habitat ...
Brava Centauri (depicting
space colonization
Space colonization (or extraterrestrial colonization) is the human settlement, settlement or colonization of outer space and astronomical bodies. The concept in its broad sense has been applied to any permanent human presence in space, such ...
), everyone sings "Happy Birthday" to the narrators' grandson through holographic teleconferencing.
The only Disney attraction at the time with multiple endings, Horizons then allowed riders to select which path they wanted to take back to the FuturePort: from Brava Centauri, from Mesa Verde, or from the Sea Castle. As the final part of the ride, guests in their "
omnimover" would push a button to select among the three choices and would be presented with a 31-second video sequence. A film would then be displayed to riders in each individual car. The videos showed a simulated flyover of an outdoor scene. To create the effect, scale models were built and a camera swept across the futuristic terrain. The models were some of the largest ever created at the time.
The model for the desert sequence, for example, was long. The visual effects were filmed in a hangar at the Burbank airport. Produced in 1983 by 30 model makers, it took over a year to build and shoot the three segments.
[Choose Your Tomorrow model design http://www.kesigndesign.com/code/horizon1.shtml] The exit corridor of the ride originally featured the mural ''The Prologue and the Promise'' by renowned
space art
Space art, also known as astronomical art, is a genre of art that Visual representation, visually depicts the universe through various Style (visual arts), artistic styles. It may also refer to Work of art, artworks sent into Outer space, space.
...
ist
Robert T. McCall.
Voice cast
*
Corey Burton
Corey Burton is an American voice actor. He is the current voice of Captain Hook, Ludwig Von Drake and others for The Walt Disney Company, Shockwave on '' The Transformers'', Brainiac in the DC Animated Universe, Count Dooku and Cad Bane in ...
– Futureport 'Brava Centauri' Announcer
*
Henry Corden
Henry Corden ( Cohen; January 6, 1920 – May 19, 2005) was a Canadian-born American actor, best known for assuming the voice of Fred Flintstone after the death of Alan Reed in 1977. His official debut as Fred's new voice was in a 1965 Hanna ...
– Neon City: Screen 1 voice
*
B. J. Ward – Mesa Verde Announcer, Tommy's Mother, Undersea Classroom teacher and Horizons 1 Boarding Announcer
*
Dena Dietrich
Deanne Frances Dietrich (December 4, 1928 – November 21, 2020) was an American actress. She was born in Pittsburgh and perhaps best known for her portrayal of Mother Nature in a series of 30-second Chiffon margarine commercials from 1971 to 1 ...
– Grandmother
*Tom Fitzgerald – Tom II ('Beach Boy')
*Corine Cook – Tom's Girlfriend
*
Bob Holt – Grandfather
Tributes in other attractions
Disneyland
Some of the attraction's robots appeared in the entry mural of
Innoventions in Tomorrowland.
Walt Disney World Resort
Mission: SPACE
A number of tributes to Horizons can be found throughout its successor attraction,
Mission: SPACE. The center of the gravity wheel in the queue has the attraction logo, and a stylized version also appears on the front of the checkout counter in the Cargo Bay gift shop at the exit to the attraction. Also, following the 2017 refurbishment, a new mural added to the entrance features the space station Brava Centauri orbiting the Earth.
The concrete planter west of the current attraction is a physical remnant of the previous installation where the main sign for Horizons once stood, and reflects the distinctive shape of the original ride building.
Space Mountain
Space Mountain includes a number of tributes to Horizons in its post-show:
*One of the bags in the post-show for the ride (located on guests' left at the start of the exit walkway) features the words "Mesa Verde" written on it.
*The undersea post-show scene after the desert scene is reminiscent of a scene in Horizons. This scene is the only post-show scene to be completely new in refurbishing Space Mountain. The flatscreen display in the new scene describes it as "20,000 Light Years under the Sea," a pun on "
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
''Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas'' () is a science fiction adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne. It is considered a classic within its genres and world literature. It was originally serialised from March 1869 to June 1870 i ...
," which is a reference to the defunct Magic Kingdom attraction
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage.
*The robot butler and futuristic city skyline, which is the last post-show diorama, are similar to a scene in Horizons.
Walt Disney: One Man's Dream
Some of the props used in Horizons were once on display in the exhibition gallery before the
short film
A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...
presented at
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. It is owned and operated by the Walt Disney Company through its Experiences division. Based on a concept by Marty Sklar, Randy Br ...
, including the famous robot butler.
''Guardians of the Galaxy'': Cosmic Rewind
During a portion of the queue of
''Guardians of the Galaxy'': Cosmic Rewind,
Peter Quill discusses how he visited EPCOT Center as a child and is excited to ride Horizons again (along with other former Epcot attractions), unaware it has closed, as he had not been to Earth since 1987.
Tokyo Disneyland
Star Tours – The Adventures Continue
Located at the exit of
Star Tours - The Adventures Continue at
Tokyo Disneyland
is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Disney park t ...
is a kiosk featuring video of 3 other Star Tours excursions. Each different "Tour" advertised is the full 31-second sequence from the Horizons finale. The Mesa Verde, Brava Centauri Space Colony, and Sea Castle (said to be located on planet "Praya" for the purposes of tying it into the Star Wars universe) ending sequences are unedited and played in their entirety.
Timeline
*1979: early concepts were presented by the show designer George McGinnis
*August 5, 1981: site work begins
*January 1982: construction of the pavilion begins
*October 1, 1983: Horizons opens as part of EPCOT Center's 1st Anniversary celebration.
*June 24, 1993: General Electric declines to renew sponsorship.
*September 30, 1993: General Electric's sponsorship ends after expiration of 10-year contract.
*December 25, 1994: Horizons closes indefinitely. Disney officials give no timetable for reopening.
*December 24, 1995: Horizons re-opens while
Universe of Energy
The Universe of Energy was a pavilion on the eastern side of Epcot#Future World, Future World (now World Discovery) at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. One of Epcot's opening day attractions in 1982, it ex ...
and
World of Motion
World of Motion, presented by General Motors Corporation, General Motors,"GM's World of Motion Exhibit opens in Epcot Center at the Walt Disney World Resort. Before the year is out, the one millionth visitor to the exhibit is recorded." http://ww ...
are being refurbished (both these attractions remained open until January 21 and 22, 1996 respectively).
*December 31, 1998: Disney's internal staff newsletter, ''Eyes and Ears'', announces the permanent closure of Horizons.
*January 9, 1999: Horizons closes permanently.
*September 23, 1999: all signage for Horizons is removed.
*September 30, 1999: Horizons briefly reopens, but only for press groups.
*April 26, 2000: demolition of the Horizons building commences.
*July 25, 2000: demolition is completed.
References
External links
*
Horizons at INTERCOT.comHorizons Tribute SiteHorizons Fan Blog, Mesa Verde Times (with some behind the scenes photos)
* (CGI model of the attraction)
{{General Electric
Amusement rides based on rail transport
Amusement rides introduced in 1983
Amusement rides that closed in 1999
Amusement rides using motion pictures
Audio-Animatronic attractions
Dark rides
Epcot
Former Walt Disney Parks and Resorts attractions
Future World (Epcot)
General Electric sponsorships
Omnimover attractions
1983 establishments in Florida
1999 disestablishments in Florida