Magic Kingdom is a theme park Amusement park and theme park are terms for a group of rides and other entertainment attractions assembled for the purpose of entertaining a large group of people. An amusement park is more elaborate than a simple city park or playground, usually providing attractions meant to cater to children, teenagers, and adults at the Walt Disney World Resort Walt Disney World Resort is the world's largest and most visited recreational resort,[citation needed] covering a 47 square mile area and encompassing four theme parks, two water parks, 24 on-site themed hotels, and countless shopping, dining, entertainment and recreation venues. The resort complex is owned and operated by Walt Disney Parks and. The first park built at the resort, it opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises (now known as Walt Disney Imagineering), the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland Disneyland is an American theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. It was dedicated with a press preview on July 17, 1955, and opened to the general public on July 18, 1955. Disneyland holds the distinction of being the only theme park to be designed and in Anaheim, California Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of January 1, 2009, the city population was about 348,467, making it the 10th most-populated city in California and ranked 54th in the United States. The city anticipates that the population will surpass 400,000 by 2014 due to rapid development in its Platinum Triangle area as well as in Anaheim. In 2009, the park saw an estimated 17.2 million visitors, making it the most visited theme park in the world.^[1]

Dedication

While there is no individual dedication to Magic Kingdom Park, the dedication by Roy O. Disney Roy Oliver Disney was, with his younger brother Walt Disney, the co-founder of what is now The Walt Disney Company. After Walt died, Roy became the chairman of the company. Roy served as the company's chief executive officer (CEO) (1929–1971) – though title name was not given until 1968 – president (1945–1971), and chairman (1966–1971) for the entire Walt Disney World Resort was placed within its gates.

History

Construction

The Walt Disney Company began construction on Magic Kingdom and the entire resort in 1967 after the death of Walt Disney Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon and philanthropist. Disney is famous for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. As the co-founder (with his brother Roy O. Disney) of Walt Disney Productions,; however, Walt had been highly involved in planning The Florida Project in the years prior to his death. The park itself was built similar to the existing Disneyland in California, however Magic Kingdom was built in a larger area. Magic Kingdom also improved upon Disneyland's design. There are several anecdotes relating to reasons for some of the features of Walt Disney World, and Magic Kingdom specifically. According to a story, Walt Disney once saw a Frontierland cowboy walking through Tomorrowland at Disneyland, intruding on the futuristic setting, and wanted to avoid situations like this in the new park.^[2]

Therefore, Magic Kingdom was built over a series of tunnels called Utilidors, a portmanteau A portmanteau (pronounced /pɔrtmænˈtoʊ/ , plural: portmanteaus or portmanteaux) or portmanteau word is used to mean a blend of two (or more) words or morphemes and their meanings into one new word. In linguistics, a portmanteau is defined as a single morph which represents two or more morphemes of utility and corridor. With these tunnels cast members are able to move through the park out of sight from guests and not ruin the illusion of the show. Because of Florida's high water table the tunnels could not be put underground, so they were built at the existing grade. This means that the park is actually built on the second story, giving Magic Kingdom an elevation of 107 feet. The area around them was filled in with dirt removed from the Seven Seas Lagoon which was being constructed at the same time. The tunnels are only underground areas built in the initial construction and were not extended with additions to the park. The tunnels are mostly found in Magic Kingdom because of financial constraints, but they were meant to be employed in all subsequent Walt Disney World parks. Epcot Epcot is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. The park is dedicated to international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was named EPCOT Center until 1994's Future World and Pleasure Island each have a smaller network of utilidors.

Opening

Magic Kingdom opened as the first part of Walt Disney's planned Florida Project on October 1, 1971. It was the only theme park on the resort at the time and opened concurrently with two hotels on the property: Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. The park opened with 23 attractions, three unique to the park and 20 copies of attractions at Disneyland Disneyland is an American theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. It was dedicated with a press preview on July 17, 1955, and opened to the general public on July 18, 1955. Disneyland holds the distinction of being the only theme park to be designed and. The Walt Disney Company promised to increase this number with more attractions similar to Disneyland and unique ones. The attractions were split into six themed lands, five copies of those at Disneyland and the unique Liberty Square. Since opening day, Magic Kingdom has only been closed for five incidents: Hurricane Floyd Hurricane Floyd was the sixth named storm, fourth hurricane, and third major hurricane in the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season. Floyd triggered the third largest evacuation in US history when 2.6 million coastal residents of five states were ordered from their homes as it approached. The Cape Verde-type hurricane formed off the coast of Africa and, the September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks were a series of coordinated suicide attacks by al-Qaeda upon the United States on September 11, 2001. On that morning, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing, Hurricane Frances Hurricane Frances was the sixth named storm, the fourth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. The system crossing the open Atlantic during mid to late August, moving to the north of the Lesser Antilles while strengthening. Its outer bands affected Puerto Rico and the British Virgin Islands while passing, Hurricane Charley Hurricane Charley was the third named storm, the second hurricane, and the second major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. Charley lasted from August 9 to August 15, and at its peak intensity it attained 150 mph winds, making it a strong Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. The storm made landfall in, and Hurricane Wilma Hurricane Wilma was the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic basin. Wilma was the twenty-second storm , thirteenth hurricane, sixth major hurricane, and fourth Category 5 hurricane of the record-breaking 2005 season.^[3]

Naming confusions

"Magic kingdom" has often been used as an unofficial nickname for Disneyland Park before the Walt Disney World Resort was built. Disneyland, for example: "Walt Disney's original magic kingdom." However, the official tagline for Disneyland is "The Happiest Place On Earth." The nickname for Magic Kingdom (park) is similar: "The Most Magical Place On Earth." Despite the similarities, the park's tickets have always borne the official name of "The Magic Kingdom." In 1994, in order to differentiate it from Disneyland, the park was officially renamed to "Magic Kingdom Park" but is most often simply called "Magic Kingdom." A common mistake is to add the article "the" in front of the name. However, like all other Disney theme parks, "Magic Kingdom" should not be preceded with "the":

Transportation and Ticket Center

The layout of the resort placed Magic Kingdom more than a mile away from its parking lot, on the opposite side of the manmade Seven Seas Lagoon. Upon arrival, guests are taken by the parking lot trams to the Transportation and Ticket Center. This facility sells tickets to the parks and provides transportation connections throughout the resort complex. It also has a small gift shop, the Magic Kingdom's pet-boarding kennel and the central lost-and-found facility for all four theme parks.

To reach Magic Kingdom, guests can choose between the monorails and the Staten Island-style The Staten Island Ferry is a passenger ferry service operated by the New York City Department of Transportation that runs between Manhattan Island and Staten Island. The ferry departs Manhattan from South Ferry, near Whitehall Circle, at the southernmost tip of Manhattan near Battery Park. On Staten Island, the ferry arrives and departs from St ferryboats. The three ferries are clad in different trim colors and are named for past Disney executives: the General Joe Potter (blue), the Richard F. Irvine (red) and the Admiral Joe Fowler (green).

The main monorail loop has two lanes. The outer lane is a direct nonstop loop between the TTC and the Magic Kingdom. The inner loop has additional stops at Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. Epcot Epcot is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. The park is dedicated to international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was named EPCOT Center until 1994 is accessible by a spur monorail line that was added upon that park's opening in 1982. Buses take guests to the other major destinations within the resort, including Disney's Hollywood Studios Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s. The third park built at the resort, it opened on May 1, 1989 as Disney-MGM Studios and Disney's Animal Kingdom Disney's Animal Kingdom is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. The fourth park built at the resort, it opened on April 22, 1998, and it is the largest single Disney theme park in the world, covering more than 500 acres . It is also the first Disney theme park to be themed entirely around animal conservation, a philosophy once pioneered.

Lands of the Magic Kingdom

The park map lists 46 attractions in seven themed "lands." Designed like a wheel with the hub in front of Cinderella Castle Cinderella Castle is the fairytale castle at the center of two Disney theme parks: the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort, and Tokyo Disneyland at the Tokyo Disney Resort. Both serve as worldwide recognized icons for their respective theme parks, pathways spoke out across the 107 acres of the park and lead to these seven lands. The Walt Disney World Railroad runs along the perimeter of the park and makes stops at Main Street, U.S.A. Main Street, U.S.A. is the first "themed land" inside the entrance of the many Magic Kingdom-style parks run by The Walt Disney Company around the world, Frontierland Frontierland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Magic Kingdom-style parks run by Disney around the world. Themed to the American west in the 1800s, Frontierlands are home to cowboys and pioneers, saloons, red rock buttes and gold rushes. Every instance of Frontierland has a Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and a stretch of riverfront, and Mickey's Toontown Fair.

Main Street, U.S.A.

Instead of being a replica of a small midwestern American town, Main Street at Magic Kingdom features some stylistic influences from around the country, such as New England In one of the earliest European settlements in the New World, Pilgrims from the Kingdom of England first settled in New England in 1620, in the colony of Plymouth. Ten years later, the Puritans settled north of Plymouth Colony in Boston, thus forming Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. In the late 18th century, the New England colonies would be and Missouri Missouri mirrors the demographic, economic and political makeup of the nation with a mix of urban and rural culture. It has long been considered a political bellwether state. With the exceptions of 1956 and 2008, Missouri's results in U.S. presidential elections have accurately predicted the next President of the United States in every election. This is most noticeable in the "four corners" area in the middle of Main Street where each of the four corner buildings represents a different architectural style. There is also no Opera House as there is at Disneyland; instead there is the Exposition Hall. Main Street is lined with shops selling merchandise and food. The decor is early-20th century small-town America, inspired by Walt Disney's childhood and the film Lady and the Tramp Lady and the Tramp is a 1955 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on June 22, 1955, by Buena Vista Distribution. The fifteenth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, it was the first animated feature filmed in the CinemaScope widescreen film process. The story centers on a female American. City Hall contains the Guest Relations lobby, where cast members provide information and assistance. A working barber A barber is usually someone, most often male, whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, give shaves, and trim beards of men shop gives haircuts A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of head hair. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical considerations also influence some hairstyles. Hairstyles are also influenced by various subcultures for a fee. The Emporium Emporium is a term used for a store selling a wide variety of goods, and for marketplaces or trading centres in ancient cities. The term is also used for: carries a wide variety of Disney souvenirs such as plush toys, collectible pins and Mickey-ear hats. Tony’s Town Square and the Plaza Restaurant are sit-down restaurants. Casey's Corner is at the end of Main Street and sells traditional American ballpark A baseball park, also known as a baseball stadium, ball park, or ballpark is the venue where baseball is played. It consists of the playing field and the surrounding spectator seating fare including hot dogs and fries. The Main Street Confectionary Confectionery is the set of food items that are rich in sugar, any one or type of which is called a confection. Modern usage may include substances rich in artificial sweeteners as well. The word candy or sweets (U.K.) is also used for the extensive variety that comprise confectionery. Generally speaking, confections are low in nutritional value sells sweets priced by their weight, such as candied apples, crisped rice treats, chocolates, cookies and fudge.^[4] Most windows on Main Street bear the name of people who were influential at Walt Disney World or other Disney parks. An example of a classic Main Street, U.S.A. attraction is the Walt Disney World Railroad, which transports guest throughout the park, making stops at Frontierland and Mickey's Toontown Fair.

In the distance beyond the end of Main Street stands Cinderella Castle Cinderella Castle is the fairytale castle at the center of two Disney theme parks: the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort, and Tokyo Disneyland at the Tokyo Disney Resort. Both serve as worldwide recognized icons for their respective theme parks. Though only 189 feet (55m) tall, it benefits from a technique known as forced perspective Forced perspective is a technique that employs optical illusion to make an object appear farther away, closer, larger or smaller than it actually is. It is used primarily in photography, filmmaking and architecture. It manipulates human visual perception through the use of scaled objects and the correlation between them and the vantage point of. The (fake) second stories of all the buildings along Main Street are shorter than the first stories, and the third stories are even shorter than the second, and the top windows of the castle are much smaller than they appear. The resulting visual effect is that the buildings appear to be larger and taller than they really are.

Symbolically, Main Street, U.S.A. represents the park's "opening credits". Guests pass under the train station (the opening curtain), then view the names of key personnel along the windows of the buildings' upper floors. Many windows bear the name of a fictional business, such as "Seven Summits Expeditions, Frank G. Wells President", with each representing a tribute to significant people connected to the Disney company and the development of Walt Disney World Resort.

The park contains two additional tributes: the Partners statue of Walt Disney Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon and philanthropist. Disney is famous for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. As the co-founder (with his brother Roy O. Disney) of Walt Disney Productions, and Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character who has become an icon for the Walt Disney Company. Mickey Mouse was created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks and voiced by Walt Disney. The Walt Disney Company celebrates his birth as November 18, 1928 upon the release of Steamboat Willie, although Mickey had already appeared six months earlier in Plane in front of Cinderella Castle Cinderella Castle is the fairytale castle at the center of two Disney theme parks: the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort, and Tokyo Disneyland at the Tokyo Disney Resort. Both serve as worldwide recognized icons for their respective theme parks and the Sharing the Magic statue of Roy O. Disney sitting with Minnie Mouse Minnie Mouse is an animated character created by The Walt Disney Company. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minerva has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress, Russi Taylor. Minnie is a V.I.P character of the Mickey in the Town Square section of Main Street, U.S.A. Both were sculpted by veteran Imagineer Blaine Gibson.

Adventureland

Adventureland represents the mystery of exploring foreign lands. It is themed to resemble the remote jungles in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, South America and the South Pacific, with an extension resembling a Caribbean town square. It contains classic rides such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Jungle Cruise The Jungle Cruise is an attraction at the following Disney theme parks: Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland . It is located in Adventureland. Disneyland Paris is the only Magic Kingdom-style Disney theme park that does not have the Jungle Cruise in its attraction roster, though an indoor jeep ride called Jungle.

Frontierland

Frontierland is where guests can relive the Wild West – from cowboys and Indians, to exploring the mysteries of the Rivers of America. Frontierland contains classic attractions such as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a relatively mild indoor/outdoor mine train roller coaster located in Frontierland at several Magic Kingdom-style Disney theme parks worldwide. The ride exists at Disneyland Park (Anaheim) and the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and at Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park (Paris), Tom Sawyer Island, Splash Mountain Splash Mountain is an elaborately-themed log flume attraction at three out of five of the Disney theme parks, based on the characters, stories and songs from the 1946 Disney film Song of the South. Although there are variations in the story and features between the three locations, each installation of Splash Mountain begins with a peaceful, and the Country Bear Jamboree.

Liberty Square

This area of the park is based on an American Revolutionary town. The Magic Kingdom's Rivers of America hosts the Liberty Belle riverboat. Liberty Square is home to the Haunted Mansion The Haunted Mansion is a complete dark ride attraction located at Disneyland, the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Park in Paris . Each incarnation of the attraction features a ride-through tour of a haunted house in Omnimover vehicles called Doom Buggies, preceded by a walk-through show in the queue. The and the Hall of Presidents.

Fantasyland

In the words of Walt Disney: "Fantasyland is dedicated to the young at heart and to those who believe that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true." Fantasyland is themed in a medieval-faire/carnival style. The section will undergo an expansion over the coming years, with completion scheduled for 2013. Phase one of this project will be finished around 2011, and phase two in 2013. It will feature a ride featuring Ariel, which will also be at Disney's California Adventure Park, the Beasts Castle, Aurora's cottage, and much more. One of the main changes will be the Dumbo ride will have a circus themed waiting area filled with circus games to play while you wait. Toon Town Fair will close because it will be replaced with Pixie Hollow.

Attractions include "it's a small world", Peter Pan's Flight Peter Pan's Flight is a single-bench suspended dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park (Paris) theme parks. Located in Fantasyland, it is one of the few remaining attractions that was operational on Disneyland's opening day in 1955. The ride's story, music, staging and artwork are based on Walt Disney's, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is a dark ride based upon the film The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, itself based on the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. The attraction exists in slightly different forms at the Magic Kingdom in the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland, and Hong Kong Disneyland. Pooh's Hunny Hunt, located in Tokyo, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Snow White's Scary Adventures, Cinderella's Golden Carrousel, and Mad Tea Party Mad Tea Party is a spinning tea cup ride at all five Disneyland-style theme parks around the world. The ride theme is from the Unbirthday Party scene of Disney's Alice In Wonderland. The ride has gained infamy over the years for the amount of guests who get motion sickness as a result of the spinning part of the ride.

Tomorrowland

In the words of Walt Disney: "Tomorrow can be a wonderful age. Our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future."

Tomorrowland is themed to be an intergalactic city. Classic attractions include Space Mountain and the Tomorrowland Speedway.

Mickey's Toontown Fair

An expansion of the land created as Mickey's Birthdayland, and later Mickey's Starland, this area is home to attractions such as Mickey's Country House, Minnie's Country House, Goofy's Barnstormer, and Donald's Boat. This area will soon be demolished to make way for the Fantasyland Expansion to be completed in 2013.

See also

Similar parks

• Disneyland Park Disneyland is an American theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. It was dedicated with a press preview on July 17, 1955, and opened to the general public on July 18, 1955. Disneyland holds the distinction of being the only theme park to be designed and (Anaheim, California Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of January 1, 2009, the city population was about 348,467, making it the 10th most-populated city in California and ranked 54th in the United States. The city anticipates that the population will surpass 400,000 by 2014 due to rapid development in its Platinum Triangle area as well as in Anaheim)
• Tokyo Disneyland
• Disneyland Park (Paris)
• Hong Kong Disneyland

Fiction set in the Magic Kingdom:

• Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom - A 2003 science fiction novel set in and around the Magic Kingdom
• The Kingdom Keepers - A 2005 novel set in the Magic Kingdom
• Pixar's The Incredibles in a Magic Kingdom Adventure - A play formerly set in the Magic Kingdom
• Adventures in the Magic Kingdom- A 1990 Video Game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Although the cover art and title suggest that the game is intended to depict the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, the location of attractions within the in-game overworld map suggests a layout more akin to Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Albums:

• Walt Disney Takes You to Disneyland: A Musical Tour of the Magic Kingdom

References

1. ^ "TEA/ERA Theme Park Attendance Report 2009". www.themeit.com. 2010-04-26. http://teaconnect.org/etea/2009ThemeIndex.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-27.
2. ^ "Fun Facts of Magic Kingdom's Underground Complex". www.hiddenmickeys.org. 1995. http://www.hiddenmickeys.org/WDW/MagicKingdom/Secrets/General/Underground.html. Retrieved 2007-05-03.
3. ^ "Magic Kingdom" Disney Reporter - Where the Magic Lives
4. ^ "Main Street Confectionary, Magic Kingdom". Walt Disney World. http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=469. Retrieved 2010-04-29.

External links

• Official Magic Kingdom section within disneyworld.com

Coordinates: 28°25′07″N 81°34′52″W / 28.41861°N 81.58111°W

Categories: Disney parks and attractions | Magic Kingdom | Walt Disney World Resort | 1971 establishments | Amusement parks in Greater Orlando | Visitor attractions in Greater Orlando

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