THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT DISNEY'S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

A DISNEY IMAGINEERS TEAM'S BRAINSTORMING

SESSION (WHO HAD BEEN GIVEN AN ASSIGNMENT

TO CREATE TWO NEW PAVILIONS FOR EPCOT'S

FUTURE WORLD SECTION) GAVE BIRTH TO

DISNEY´S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

HOWEVER, WHEN NEWLY APPOINTED CEO

MICHAEL EISNER SAW THE PLANS FOR THE

PAVILION, HE REQUESTED THAT, INSTEAD

OF PLACING IT IN AN ALREADY EXISTING

PARK, IT SHOULD BECOME A NEW PARK

THEMED WITH HOLLYWOOD, ENTERTAINMENT

AND SHOW BUSINESS

WHEN THE PARK OPENED IN 1989, IT WAS NAMED

DISNEY-MGM STUDIOS AS DISNEY AND

METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER HAD SIGNED A

LICENSING CONTRACT THAT HAD GIVEN DISNEY

WORLDWIDE RIGHTS TO USE THE MGM NAME

AND LOGO FOR THE PARK

STANDING 163 FEET (50 METRES) TALL, THE

EARFELL TOWER WAS THE FIRST ICONIC

STRUCTURE OF THE PARK. IN SEPTEMBER 2001,

THE SORCERER´S HAT WITH A HEIGHT OF 122

FEET (37 METRES) REPLACED THE TOWER

AS THE NEW SYMBOL FOR THE PARK

ORIGINALLY, THE HAT WAS GOING TO BE BUILT

OUTSIDE THE PARK, WITH TWO FERRIS WHEELS

AS EARS AND TWICE AS HIGH AS IT WAS

ACTUALLY CONSTRUCTED. BUT NOT EVEN THIS

CENTREPIECE LASTED LONG – THE SORCERER´S

HAT WAS REMOVED IN FEBRUARY 2015 AND IT HAS

NOT BEEN DECIDED WHAT – IF ANYTHING – WILL

REPLACE IT

SIMILARLY TO OTHER WALT DISNEY WORLD PARKS,

THE HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS ALSO FEATURE MANY

“HIDDEN MICKEYS” BUT IF YOU TAKE A CAREFUL

LOOK AT THE ENTRANCE PLAZA OUTSIDE THE

TICKET BOOTHS, YOU WILL FIND A “HIDDEN PLUTO”.

IT IS EVEN VISIBLE ON THE PARK MAP

THE MOST FAMOUS “HIDDEN MICKEY” WAS TO BE

FOUND AT THE PLAZA OF THE END OF THE

HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD. ONCE CLEARLY

RECOGNIZABLE ON AERIAL PHOTOS, THE PICTURE

HAS BEEN GRADUALLY DISTORTED BY NEW

CONSTRUCTIONS AND OTHER CHANGES TO THE PARK

THE CONSTRUCTION OF DISNEY´S HOLLYWOOD

STUDIOS TOOK THREE YEARS AND IT COST MORE

THAN 500 MILLION DOLLARS. OCCUPYING A TOTAL

AREA OF 135 ACRES (55 HA), IT IS NOW THE THIRD

LARGEST OF THE FOUR WALT DISNEY WORLD

THEME PARKS

THE VOICE OF REX, THE ROBOT TOUR GUIDE ON

STAR TOURS, IS THE VOICE OF PAUL RUBENS,

AKA PEE-WEE HERMAN