Disney's Hollywood Studios, or Disney-MGM Studios as it was originally called, was born from an idea to put The Great Movie Ride in the middle of EPCOT. Another, arguably, was to compete with the planned Universal Studios Florida set to open around the same time in 1989. Universal would open in 1990 after a few delays and incidentally both parks failed to "wow" customers at the beginning. When it opened, MGM had only two attractions: The Great Movie Ride, and the Studio Backlot Tour. While the Backlot Tour was much longer when it first opened compared the the later version, there wasn't much going on in the park. Sure, they had a few shows that people could go to eventually, but MGM wasn't able to keep people in the park very long. Things haven't changed too much since the park opened. While they have increased the amount of rides, shows, and tours, the park has always held that moniker as a "half-day park." Starting in 2008 things really started to change for the park when Disney changed the name to Disney's Hollywood Studios, seeing as they hadn't had a good relationship with MGM from the beginning. In 2010, the park began to shed the "studio" theme they had been going for all those years. The park recently lost The Great Movie Ride, bringing the total amount of rides down to four, with Muppet-Vision 3-D and Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular as two stand-out shows that are currently still present.To say that the park is a shell of its former self is accurate, but there are good times-a-coming, as Galaxy's Edge, the Star Wars themed land, and Toy Story Land are due in the next few years to help revitalize the struggling park. I'm going to go through the history of the park, but just through its attractions. While it doesn't have the same storied history as some of the other Disney Parks, MGM Studios (yes, I will continue to call it that until my dying day) has one of the more interesting histories due to its almost complete re-branding. It was long rumored that Bob Iger would have the park's name changed once more to reflect a broader theme, but it has recently been announced that the park will keep the Hollywood Studios name, at least for the time being.
The Great Movie Ride
1989-2017
The Great Movie Ride was one of the last vestiges of the original MGM Studios. It survived as long as it did thanks to mostly nostalgia. Not only nostalgia for the movies it depicted, but even for the ride itself. The ride itself was housed in a facade of the Grauman's Chinese Theatre, the real theatre being a famous landmark in Hollywood. Together with the "Earffel Tower", the ride's facade became an icon of the park. At least it was until Disney decided to put the sorcerer's hat structure right in front of the theatre to serve as the new official icon of the park in 2001. It wasn't until 2015 that Disney finally took down what many considered an eye-sore. My wife and I were lucky(?) enough to see it in late 2014 when they announced that they were getting rid of it. The ride itself is a dark ride that has you watch a Hollywood homage film beforehand. Once you enter your ride vehicle, you pass under a brightly colored marquee and then swept away into movie land. The ride takes you through all the different genre's of movies, with some standouts being The Wizard of Oz, Alien, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. What gave the ride a little bit of flair was your tour guide. Instead of piping in narration through the ride vehicle the whole time, or having a generic tour guide, you instead have a guide that seemingly gets replaced by a gangster or cowboy mid-ride and then doesn't show back up until near the end. The fact that the ride had two different versions added to the fun. At the time of its opening, most of the movie scenes depicted were owned by MGM. The ride was changed slightly in 2015 when Disney and Turner Classic Movies came to an agreement for Turner to sponser the ride. With the sponsorship came a different intro and outro film starring the late Robert Osborne. The ride unfortunately came to its demise in August 2017 with Disney deciding to focus less on the magic of movie-making and more on their cartoon and movie characters. The ride will become Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway, a dark ride that will star the Disney Channel shorts version of Walt Disney's most well known characters. Incidentally, this happens to be the very first ride that is dedicated to Mickey Mouse, funny enough. While I will miss The Great Movie Ride, I can't help but be excited for this new ride, as I'm a huge fan of the new Mickey Mouse shorts. The Great Movie Ride was never the ride that you had to get in line for right when the park opened, but it was a mainstay and will be sorely missed.
Studio Backlot Tour
1989-2014
The Studio Backlot Tour was another opening day attraction, though as mentioned before, it used to be much longer. Instead of the 35 minute tram ride most people associate with the Studio Backlot Tour, the original lasted 2 hours and had a tram section and a walking section. The attraction was shortened not long after but still retained a short walking section and the tram portion. You began the tour by watching a live-action scene of a battle scene from Pearl Harbor. An unlucky volunteer would attempt to "survive" the deluge of water in a control room on a boat. After this demonstration, you would walk through a large factory filled with movie memorabilia. Depending on when you experienced this ride, the props would change over time to have more recent movies like Chronicles of Narnia or The Santa Claus. I specifically remember one part of the tour in the 90's had a short film starring Bette Midler and her losing a winning lottery ticket. The tram portion of the tour was by far the most exciting. After going through the "boneyard," an area populated by large movie props like the Love Bug and the Bulldog Cafe from The Rocketeer (my favorite prop), you would enter...Catastrophe Canyon!!! The narration told guests that they were going onto a live set, but the cast was on break, or so you are made to believe. Once the tram enters the canyon and a tanker and small water tower comes into view, something starts to happen. The earthquake "scene" starts and water come barreling down onto the tanker and fire erupts. If you were in specific spots of the tram, there was a good chance you were getting wet. The tour ended after taking another swing past the "boneyard". This ride was another casualty of Disney's re-direction from the "studio" theme. The area the tour inhabited is now going to house Toy Story Land.
The Magic of Disney Animation
1989-2015
Another opening day attraction, this one focused on the history of Disney animation throughout the years, functioning as a walk-through tour. It all started with one of my favorite things from MGM Studios, the short film, Back to Neverland. This live-action/animation hybrid starred Walter Cronkite and Robin Williams. Robin Williams was his usual bouncy self in this short, and was a fan favorite for many years. Having a person that acts like a cartoon character anyway, it made sense to have Williams literally turn into one. After the film, you would go through the animation studio and see first-hand how animation is done. Depending on when you went, you may have seen animators working on soon-to-be released movies. I distinctly remember going on this tour and seeing them work on Emperor's New Groove (apparently this wasn't one of the films they worked on at the Orlando studio, so they probably were just showing clips of it with some drawings). You then watched another video that had animators talk at length about the legacy of Disney animation. Later in the tour's existence they had a large showroom where Mushu showed you how animated films are chosen and developed. All in all, this was a great tour if you were at all interested in the animation process, or if you just wanted to get out of the Florida heat for a little while. The space that once housed Magic of Disney Animation is now Star Wars Launch Bay.
The Monster Sound Show
1989-1999
Eventually renamed ABC Sound Studio in 1997, this show allowed guests to act as "Foley Artists". The participating guests would be given a certain sound effect prop and used it when they were prompted. The film in question was a comedic short starring Martin Short and Chevy Chase. Once the attraction became ABC Sound Studio, the same concept was used, but applied to a cartoon instead of a live-action short. This was replaced by Sounds Dangerous!
SuperStar Television
1989-1998
Guest participants would dress up as characters from TV shows and act them out with the SuperStar Television cast in front of a green screen. The audience would see first-hand how green screens work, witnessing the participating guests interacting in shows like I Love Lucy, Cheers, and The Three Stooges. The show was refurbished in 1997 to give it some newer material, but it sadly was closed to make way for Doug: Live!
Star Tours
1989-2010
One of my favorite rides from MGM Studios was Star Tours. Yes, I've ridden the newer version, and its just as fun, but there was something about the classic Star Tours. I even had the ride poster in my room as a child. Star Tours employed a motion simulator ride system, so you never moved outside of the small theater they escorted you into. The motion simulator rides were all the rage in the 90's, with Universal Studios having quite a few rides that used the simpler system (Back to the Future, The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera), which has now morphed into a completely different beast with the Spiderman ride and Escape from Gringotts at Universal. While Star Tours moved you around quite a bit in your seat, it was never a rough ride. In the guise of being on a tour of a rebel base, Rex, a pilot droid voiced by Paul Reubens, accidentally gets everyone involved with a plot to destroy Death Star III. After the prequels were released, the attraction only dealing with the original trilogy started to look a little dated, especially going into the late 2000's. Yes, the prequels are not held to the same quality as the original trilogy, but they are still part of Star Wars. It was at this time that Disney decided to update the ride with footage from all six of the Star Wars films. In 2010, MGM held the "Last Tour to Endor", which took place during the yearly Star Wars celebration. The exclusive party to close the original ride was attended by none other than George Lucas. The ride would not close officially until September 7th, 2010 at the "Final Flight To Endor" event exclusively for D23 members. While I'll always miss the original version of Star Tours, at least it was replaced by something almost identical. Rex, luckily, is still part of the ride, but instead of being an active part, he shows up in the queue, though you have to look for him. Rex has also been confirmed as being part of Galaxy's Edge, acting as a DJ.
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
1989-Present
Another mainstay of MGM Studios is this 25 minute show based around Raiders of the Lost Ark. You sit in a large covered amphitheater, which helps get you out of the sun, even if it's still outside. Members of the audience are picked beforehand to "participate" in the stunts. Scenes from Raiders are acted out in front of the audience, meant to be a in depth look at how stunts are performed in film. It is a pretty thrilling experience, and especially as one of the last vestiges of the "studio" theme, it is a must attend.
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: Movie Set Adventure
1990-2016
This giant playground based on Honey, I Shrunk the Kids was a great place to let your kids run wild for a little bit. This wasn't your average playground, as you are surrounded by giant blades of grass, ants, bees, a giant garden hose, and other larger than normal props that you could interact with. This area was sadly leveled, like most of Streets of America in MGM to make way for Galaxy's Edge.
Muppet*Vision 3D
1991-Present
This show was another must-attend for our family every time we visited the park. Instead of a lined queue, guests stand in a large waiting room that has an intro video featuring the Muppets about proper protocol for the experience. For a short time from 2014-2016, Constantine from Muppets Most Wanted became part of the intro video. After he was removed, the ride reverted back to its original state. I actually got to witness the Constantine version and it actually threw me for a loop because I was so used to the original version. You are then ushered into the theater where you have been instructed to wear your special 3-D glasses. The show combines a short movie with some animatronics to give one of the best shows I think they have at the park, which explains why it's been around for so long. I'm just glad it wasn't sacrificed to Star Wars. The Muppets have attempted to have a larger footprint in the park over the years, having two live shows, "Here Come the Muppets" and "Muppets on Location", but it never seems to last for long. They even changed the restaurant near the Muppet*Vision 3D Theater to PizzaRizzo, a pizzario seemingly run by Rizzo the Rat. That's great theming, guys.
The Great Movie Ride was one of the last vestiges of the original MGM Studios. It survived as long as it did thanks to mostly nostalgia. Not only nostalgia for the movies it depicted, but even for the ride itself. The ride itself was housed in a facade of the Grauman's Chinese Theatre, the real theatre being a famous landmark in Hollywood. Together with the "Earffel Tower", the ride's facade became an icon of the park. At least it was until Disney decided to put the sorcerer's hat structure right in front of the theatre to serve as the new official icon of the park in 2001. It wasn't until 2015 that Disney finally took down what many considered an eye-sore. My wife and I were lucky(?) enough to see it in late 2014 when they announced that they were getting rid of it. The ride itself is a dark ride that has you watch a Hollywood homage film beforehand. Once you enter your ride vehicle, you pass under a brightly colored marquee and then swept away into movie land. The ride takes you through all the different genre's of movies, with some standouts being The Wizard of Oz, Alien, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. What gave the ride a little bit of flair was your tour guide. Instead of piping in narration through the ride vehicle the whole time, or having a generic tour guide, you instead have a guide that seemingly gets replaced by a gangster or cowboy mid-ride and then doesn't show back up until near the end. The fact that the ride had two different versions added to the fun. At the time of its opening, most of the movie scenes depicted were owned by MGM. The ride was changed slightly in 2015 when Disney and Turner Classic Movies came to an agreement for Turner to sponser the ride. With the sponsorship came a different intro and outro film starring the late Robert Osborne. The ride unfortunately came to its demise in August 2017 with Disney deciding to focus less on the magic of movie-making and more on their cartoon and movie characters. The ride will become Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway, a dark ride that will star the Disney Channel shorts version of Walt Disney's most well known characters. Incidentally, this happens to be the very first ride that is dedicated to Mickey Mouse, funny enough. While I will miss The Great Movie Ride, I can't help but be excited for this new ride, as I'm a huge fan of the new Mickey Mouse shorts. The Great Movie Ride was never the ride that you had to get in line for right when the park opened, but it was a mainstay and will be sorely missed.
The Monster Sound Show
SuperStar Television
Another mainstay of MGM Studios is this 25 minute show based around Raiders of the Lost Ark. You sit in a large covered amphitheater, which helps get you out of the sun, even if it's still outside. Members of the audience are picked beforehand to "participate" in the stunts. Scenes from Raiders are acted out in front of the audience, meant to be a in depth look at how stunts are performed in film. It is a pretty thrilling experience, and especially as one of the last vestiges of the "studio" theme, it is a must attend.
This giant playground based on Honey, I Shrunk the Kids was a great place to let your kids run wild for a little bit. This wasn't your average playground, as you are surrounded by giant blades of grass, ants, bees, a giant garden hose, and other larger than normal props that you could interact with. This area was sadly leveled, like most of Streets of America in MGM to make way for Galaxy's Edge.
This show was another must-attend for our family every time we visited the park. Instead of a lined queue, guests stand in a large waiting room that has an intro video featuring the Muppets about proper protocol for the experience. For a short time from 2014-2016, Constantine from Muppets Most Wanted became part of the intro video. After he was removed, the ride reverted back to its original state. I actually got to witness the Constantine version and it actually threw me for a loop because I was so used to the original version. You are then ushered into the theater where you have been instructed to wear your special 3-D glasses. The show combines a short movie with some animatronics to give one of the best shows I think they have at the park, which explains why it's been around for so long. I'm just glad it wasn't sacrificed to Star Wars. The Muppets have attempted to have a larger footprint in the park over the years, having two live shows, "Here Come the Muppets" and "Muppets on Location", but it never seems to last for long. They even changed the restaurant near the Muppet*Vision 3D Theater to PizzaRizzo, a pizzario seemingly run by Rizzo the Rat. That's great theming, guys.
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