Back in 1990, The Walt Disney Company released this image titled "Hooray for…Disneyland." The accompanying publicity blurb heralded:
The most ambitious Disneyland project in the upcoming "Disney Decade" will be the addition of "Hollywoodland" to the Anaheim theme Park. The new land, inspired by the success of the Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, will include a fantasy version of Hollywood Boulevard, Disneyland's own version of Florida's "Great Movie Ride," Roger Rabbit's Toontown, and "The Adventures of Baby Herman."
Zooming into the art you can see Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, and Edgar Kennedy:
a direct copy of this vintage publicity still:
So what happened to Hollywoodland? Looks like it bit the dust when the idea for Westcot came to be. What's Westcot? It was to be the west coast version of EPCOT. It also bit the dust. Instead, in 1993 Disneyland got Toon Town (without a Baby Herman attraction) and in 2001, Disney California Adventure debuted giving us...Hollywood Pictures Backlot. Just like a backlot, there was absolutely nothing behind the facades.
More DCA photos at my main website.
I remember the "Disney Decade" announcement. What a joke that was. The 1990's were the worst decade for the Disney Parks that I ever saw. Shuttered classic attractions replaced by inferior ones or none at all and worst of all poor maintenance and training plus two unnecessary deaths at the park. That was the decade when I fell out of love with Disneyland.
ReplyDeleteNice publicity photo of Laurel, Hardy and Kennedy. Thanks, Dave.
I never liked the name 'Westcot'.
ReplyDeleteThe implication was that the 'E' in EPCOT stood for 'East'.
I have at least one site plan of Westcot that also included Hollywoodland across the way at Disneyland. Hollywoodland would have been in the space between Main Street and Tomorrowland, and would have included a large amphitheater which would connect to the Esplanade area roughly around where all those bus stops between DL and DCA are now.
ReplyDelete