| Horizons (epcot Attraction) |
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For other uses of horizon, see Horizon (disambiguation) . Horizons was a . Its corporate sponsor, financing the ride in turn for advertising opportunities, was General Electric . In 1993, the company withdrew its sponsorship. THE RIDE Horizons began with a section titled Looking Back at Tomorrow, showcasing visions of the future as perceived from the era of Jules Verne through the 1950s . The ride then moved past two immense OMNIMAX screens (groundbreaking technology at the time the ride was built), showing modern technologies and ideas that will build the world of tomorrow. The only Disney attraction with multiple endings, Horizons then allowed riders to select which path they wanted to take back to the FuturePort: from the Space Station Brava Centauri (depicting Space Colonization ), from the desert farm of Mesa Verde (depicting Arid-zone Agriculture ), or from the Sea Castle research base (depicting Ocean Colonization ). HISTORY ''Horizons'', in its concept phase, was named Century 3 (or '''Century III'''), to recognize the third century of American existence (1976-2076). The name was changed to '''Futureprobe''' to help appeal the attraction toward international guests who wouldn't understand or appreciate ''Century 3''. In the end, the ''Futureprobe'' name was scrapped due to the medical connotation of the word "probe". After much debate, GE and Disney officials settled on the name '''Horizons'''. Horizons opened exactly one year after EPCOT Center opened, and was located between World Of Motion and Universe Of Energy . Wonders Of Life became Horizons' new neighbor in 1989 , and World of Motion closed in 1996 . Horizons remained operational until World of Motion's successor, Test Track , was ready to open to the public in early 1999 . The Carousel Of Progress (located in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom ) followed the changes in lifestyle that faced a family as they lived through the 1900s . Horizons continued their story to show how they live in the future. The Carousel's theme song " There's A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow " was part of the Looking Back at Tomorrow portion of Horizons. The original ride concept came from Reginald Jones (then CEO of GE) and Jack Welch (future CEO of GE). The concept was to focus on Thomas Edison and his body of work along with the origin of General Electric; it was changed to focus on the future of America, a theme that changed yet again to respect that Epcot was to appeal to a global audience. The building which housed Horizons was designed to resemble a Spaceship , while accentuating the third dimension and giving the impression of an infinite Horizon . During the early 90s, after GE had dropped sponsorship, some ideas were tossed around about the pavilion being turned into a space-themed pavilion. The building would have been upgraded and rethemed. The ride system would be changed drastically, in which, the guest would be in an individual space harness while viewing space stations and space in general and would control the pitch and yaw of the vehicle. On began in late 2000 and the new attraction opened in 2003. ATTRACTION FACTS
TIMELINE ; August 5th , 1981 : site work begins ;January 1982: Pavilion construction begins ; October 1 , 1983 : Horizons opens as part of EPCOT Center's 1st Anniversary celebration. ;'s sponsorship ends after expiration of 10-year contract. ;1994: Horizons closes indefinitely. Disney officials give no timetable for reopening. ;December 1995: Horizons reopens while other attractions are renovated. ; January 9 , 1999 : Horizons closes permanently. ; September 30 , 1999 : Horizons briefly reopens but only for press groups. ;July 2000: Horizons demolished. ;Winter 2000/2001: Construction begins on on former site of Horizons ; August 15 , 2003 : Mission: SPACE opens to the public. ; 2005 : Walt Disney World issues a Horizons pin commemorating the attraction. On the pin is Mickey Mouse, a drawing of the ride's building, and the years 1983 and 1999 to signify the years between which the ride operated. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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