While trolling through the archives, I came upon a treasure trove of press releases from April 1969. It was an important time. The passing of Walt Disney in late 1966 was still in the minds of his minions. But the momentum was there and many of the ideas first hatched during Walt’s lifetime were starting to happen by 1969. Roy O. Disney said that April 30, 1969 would go down as “a big day for our Company.” That was the day that the Company had announced that Walt Disney World would be opening in December 1971.

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Keep in mind that Walt was hesitant to open an East Coast Disneyland for many years. He felt there should only be one Disneyland. However, the combination of the positive New York World’s Fair experience and studies showing that more than 100 million people in the east and midwest would never travel west made it clear to the brothers that the time was right.

Some of the advantages to locating in Central Florida included the ability to operate year round, an existing base of vacationers, and the weather. Another thing appealed to Walt was an abundance of water. Roy said, “Walt especially became enthusiastic about what you could do with water in an entertainment complex.” The “Vacation Kingdom” would be constructed around a man-made lagoon and a natural lake.

Along with Florida Governor Claude Kirk, Jr., the Disney leadership announced the 2,500-acre first phase of the “Vacation Kingdom.” From Roy’s point of view, “this day really began in 1953 when Walt and his creative staff started planning of Disneyland in California.” After serving 79 million visitors in Anaheim, the company was anxious to open a new resort in Florida. Along with the theme park, entrance complex, and five resorts (Contemporary, Polynesian, Asian, Venetian, Persian), golf courses, stables and bridle trails would be 450-acres of waterways and beaches plus a brand new 200-acre lake. More than 3.8 miles of white sand beaches were proposed.

Linking all of this together would be a transportation network consisting of monorails, water craft, buses, and trams. Roy told the press that “the real strength of our Company has been that Walt and the staff he built always seem to be able to reach out and touch the heart of the public.”

The Florida project was based on three “building blocks” that provided a “solid foundation.” The first building block was legislation. With the approval of the Reedy Creek Improvement District by the Florida State Legislature, Disney had virtually unlimited power to do whatever they wanted with the property. The District was authorized “to perform the work of drainage, flood and pest control; to build and maintain roadways, utility and sewer systems; to provide and administer public transportation systems, fire protection, airport and parking facilities; and to regulate and administer land use and planning within the District’s limits.” The plan was to be able to develop up to 18,000-acres within the 27,000-acre property over time.

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Roy also needed to head off any labor problems. The Company negotiated a no-strike agreement with the necessary trade unions through June 1972. After the strike at the Disney animation studio and problems with labor at Disneyland, Roy said, “This very well could be the most important building block of all.” Finally, the Company had raised more than $90 million in convertible bonds to build the resort. An additional $33 million came from the State of Florida in the way of promised highway improvements.

As for the show at the theme park, Roy said, “Walt would like what his creative team is doing, because these are the ideas and plans he began. Everything you will see here today is something that Walt worked on and began in some way.” Some of the new attractions would include the Country Bear Band, Thunder Mesa, the Western River Expedition, and One Nation Under God. This was also the first time that the public would learn about Space Mountain, which would take an additional six years to perfect.

The announcement was accompanied by a 17-minute film detailing many of the elements of the project. At the time, the project was estimated to cost $165 million. It would cost far more than that to bring Walt Disney World to reality.

Let’s take a closer look at some of those ideas announced that day.

The Future of Communication

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The 1969 press release asked, “What shape will electronic information handling take by the year 2000?” The answer for Walt Disney World would be a “dramatic preview of tomorrow’s system technology” created by RCA. The system would be called WEDCOMM (Walter E. Disney Communications Oriented Monitoring and Management System). RCA described the concept as a “System of Systems.” Although details were sketchy at the time one of “the system’s first tasks would be continuous electronic tracking of events throughout the widespread Vacation Kingdom.” Plus, the system would “automatically build ‘guest profiles’ to assist the staff in progressively improving their service to return visitors.” For Disney, the benefit would be able to “insure an adequate staff and sufficient food and supplies at all times.” And you thought MyMagic + was a new idea.

 

The Future of Theme Hotels

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The responsibility to build the two “Theme Hotels” inside of Walt Disney World went to the Realty Development Division of United States Steel. Once completed, the keys would be handed over to the Disney Company to operate the resorts. The hotels would be the first major use of steel framed unitized or modular construction. The first two hotels would be the 10-story Contemporary A-frame designed hotel and the 12-story Polynesian style resort hotel. Architect and Walt’s friend Welton Beckett penned the design for the two hotels.

In keeping with Walt’s desire to demonstrate new technologies, all 1,450 six-ton unitized rooms would be constructed in a factory nearby and slid into place within a steel framework. The 29-foot by 14-foot 4 inch room was “a self-sustained unit that can be stacked three high without additional structural support.” Each room contained furnishings and basic utilities including bathroom and air climate control fixtures. Once the unit was plugged in to the frame, the hallway door would be unlocked. The press release said, “The rooms will be so complete at installation that the first person entering the room after it leaves the ground could really be the maid.” The larger than typical rooms were designed to sleep five. The Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim pioneered the double occupancy concept and Disney was taking it one better in Florida.

The 360-room “tomorrow” hotel would be the smaller of the two. A grand ballroom/convention was proposed as was a monorail running through the center of the lobby. Over at the “South Sea” style hotel, 840 rooms would be placed in the tower while 250 additional rooms would be scattered around the site, many featuring private garden patios. Guests could also enjoy the scuba diving school, the health club, and “the high-ceiling ‘South Sea’ dining room located atop the Polynesian hotel.” A monorail connection was also promised.

 

The Future of Attractions

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Another company making an announcement in April 1969 was Monsanto. The chemical giant told the press that they had signed on to develop an exhibit for Walt Disney World. Monsanto had been a sponsor at Disneyland from the very beginning. Their Hall of Chemistry, House of the Future, and Adventures Thru Inner Space attractions were some of the most memorable in the park’s history. “The late Walt Disney was a man who always recognized the constant emergence of exciting ideas and products from American industry,” Monsanto president and CEO Edward Bock said. “He knew, also, that when such ideas and products were introduced in an appropriate environment, new elements of a better life for millions of people would be the inevitable outcome.” As it turned out, Monsanto did not open an attraction at the Magic Kingdom after all.

 

The Future of Waste Management

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“This new type of refuse collection can have a major impact on construction of future buildings or entire community,” said Thomas O’Neil, chairman of the General Tire and Rubber Company. Those were words that launch a million trash bags at high speed through pneumatic tubes aiding Cast Members in keeping the Magic Kingdom spotless.

Sounds like everything happened just as planned, right?  😉

Sam’s collection of theme park books continues to grow. His newest book, diving into the history of Universal Studios, will release in December.

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Sam Gennawey
Sam Gennawey is an urban planner who has collaborated with communities throughout California over the course of more than 100 projects to create a great, big, beautiful tomorrow. Sam is a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Regional Planning History Group, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving municipal, county, and private sector planning documents from throughout Los Angeles County. Sam is the author of Walt and the Promise of Progress City which you can find on Amazon.