A Vista Into A World Of Tomorrow

Tomorrowland is probably Disneyland's most nestaligic land. It has the most interesting history and has changed the most over the years. The only problem is that people don't see Tomorrowland as a historic place, they see it as a crowded, hot and pretty pointless land. This is just not true. Tomorrowland is a collection of rides and attractions that make up a whole. Now, I'll admit there is a couple things I dont like about Tomorrowland, but those small things are made up for when the land veiwed as a bigger picture. But I'm getting ahead of myself, lets start at the beginning...

"A vista into a world of wondrous ideas, signifying Man's achievements... A step into the future, with predictions of constructed things to come. Tomorrow offers new frontiers in science, adventure and ideals. The Atomic Age, the challenge of Outer Space and the hope for a peaceful, unified world.

— Walter E. Disney, July 17, 1955"

This is what Walt Disney said when he dedicated Tomorrowland. This wasn't the Tomorrowland we know today, this was the tomorrowland of 1955. Man hadn't set foot on the Moon yet, and we were still discovering new man-made elements such as plastic and the many uses and forms of it. The rides and attraction weren't as thrilling as the attractions we have in 2015. Tomorrowland of 1955 represented what life would be like in the far future of 1986. It also demonstrated the advances of science and what they would be like in 1986. They themed attractions and rides to show said progress in many differant ways.

When the land was built it was on a tight budget so it wasn't the most well-built land in Disneyland. For example, to build the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction, they used peices of the movie set. The Disneyland Veiwliner many years later was made partly from the end of an old Cadilac. You get the idea, Tomorrowland was Disneyland's most improvised land. But when it underwent a huge expansion and later a complete overhaul. The frist and biggest redo in the 1959 expantion was the Matterhorn and the Submarines. The other attraction was the Disneyland Alweg Monorail System. The Autopia was altered due to the addition of the Submarines, but not by much.

Then came the Tomorrowland "On The Move" the Tomorrowland that mostly still exists today. In this newer tomorrowland there was a theme of being on the move in the futre, there was the sleek Monorail over head, the Highway in the sky. There was the Autopia which was still an original and classic ride. And there was the Peoplemover, witch is mostly still there today. The track itself makes a loop of all of Tomorrowland and is still pretty much intact. The submarines witch were, still there. And the few other attractions that signified the future and the world of tomorrow.

Now we come to the mix between both worlds. The new Tomorrowland we know today and the tomorrowland of 1955, 1969, 1970, 1980 and 2000 are smashed together at an attempmt to create what was originally intended for the great land. This mashup mostly worked but some of the past still remains. The original Peoplemover track is still looming above all the visiters that come to Tomorrowland. The Innoventions building still has traces of the old Carosel Of Progress, even though the recent updates have tried to cover up the last of the paint. The Autopia witch shows the remants of the Peoplemover and still has the Monorail above it, like a highway in the sky. The area music that playes has tunes from the old Tomorrowland of 1955. The Tomorrowland we know today isn't quite what it used to be but it has almost figured out who and what it is. Even with the Season Of the Force being put upon it, it knows what it is meant to represent and represents it well.

So, next time you visit Tomorrowland, try to see through the layers of paint and 60 years worth of wear and tear. Try to see the Tomorrowland that once was and try to see the tomorrowland of today and then see them together in their wholeness. This is the Tomorrowland that Walt intended fro us to see, predictions of the future in a new and exciting way. This is Tomorrowland.