Passamaquoddy

One of our esteemed Quoddesigners has crafted an interesting piece for the excellent “Disney World Trivia” website. Written under the Psuedonym “Glenn Whelan”, the article discusses waiting in line. And waiting. And waiting. You can check it out over at theat website by clicking here or you can just read it here below.

by Glenn Whelan, Special to DWT

Just a few months after Walt Disney World first opened to guests, my family hopped in the wood panel station wagon and took the endless journey down from Connecticut. The trip took many, many hours. I had my ipod and PSP to keep me entertained, except back then they were called “Coloring Book” and “Crayons.” That trip was long and boring, but it was the line of cars from the highway from the Magic Kingdom gate that really tried my patience. After a couple hours we finally passed through the gate into the parking lot. In the family wagon, surrounded by stale sandwiches, a game of “Chutes and Ladders,” as well as quarreling brother and sisters, I had my first experience of waiting in a line at Walt Disney World. I’ve been waiting in those Disney lines ever since.

A few years back, our little town of Passamaquoddy created quite a stir when it closed one of its classic attractions and replaced it with what amounted to be a variation on a Midway game of chance. People complained, not only because they lost an old friend, but also because the ‘theme’ of the new game was sort of gross. For those of you who have not seen the game yet, each contestant is armed with a big plastic ‘scooper’ and you race others to pick up the mess left behind by a big wood cutout of a dog named “Spot”. Over time, the new attraction has garnered some fans, but many of us older folk long for this week – Jules Verne week- because of one wonderful thing. On this week, the towns Quoddesigners pull away the “Spot’s Playful Pooh” game revealing the “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” Ride fully intact underneath… waiting to take riders on its wonderful sea voyage.

Last night, after a showing of the film that inspired the ride, they opened the submarines up and I was in line to experience it again. The line to the nautilus was long as usual and it is slow to board. But hearing “A Whale of a Tale” and other seafaring music in the queue line after such a long time made the wait ever so enjoyable. Finally we got to the submarine. How majestic they look coming into dock. And even though I did fall a bit on the stairs – they seem to get steeper as I get older – it was like old home week inside. I scurried down to my flip down seat, covered with a regal, mahogany pleather, and got my first view outside my porthole. Just out the window the wonderful detail of barnacle crusted metal dock work separated us from another Nautilus a few feet away.

When the ship was underway, Captain Nemo’s voice welcomed us aboard the Nautilus and he chimed in to inform us of what was going on during our long voyage. Starting with some fighting lobster, the creatures grow in size as the ride progresses. Highlights include the first appearance of sharks – which unfortunately involved the creatures being pulled along by a cable which had accidentally caught a lost t-shirt. So much for the magic in that case. As our subs descend deeper under water, you pass through a blanket of bubbles. The effect has been teased for years, but I find it enthralling… In addition to the bubble curtain, the Quoddesigners placed objects to block out the sun at these locations making each descent take you to a darker place. Sure, you can always see the actual water line just a few feet above but it is well hidden in this rider’s opinion.

Other highlights include going under the polar ice caps and viewing a surprisingly Disney looking Sea Serpent entertaining some mermaids. But the Peace Day Resistance (Verne was French after all), was the Giant Squid attack. The attack and electrocution of the squid is well executed and a fitting end to our voyage.

After it was over I saw many Passamaquoddians in line for their second or third ride.

In closing, the ride was not a perfect ride, but I have many, many fond memories of it. But, each person’s fond memories are unique to them and don’t always translate. I heard some guy say that hes had better sea journeys 134 yards west of the 20000 Leagues ride in the Atlantic Ocean. That same person won a golden pooper scooper on “Spot’s Playful Pooh”.

Recently, the town council of Passamaquoddy received this complaint letter. I thought it was worth a gander. (For our youngster readers, a “gander” is a school of geese.) (For our more idiotic readers, a “school” of geese is a grouping of sorts and doesn’t always involve spelling class, recess and pudding cups.) (Speaking of school, the letter was received with bad grammar and spelling problems.)

Attention to the Passmakwoddy town council of Passmakwoddy (sic),

Our town is gone into bad ways if’n it stays going like it is. I gots two big complainings to do. First, I hate the amount of fish guts lining the street over by “O’ Cannedtuna!” It gets on my shoes and stanks up my foyer throw rug. Second complaining is all about change and theming in our little town of Passmakwoddy (sic). Over the passed couple decades we’ve seen some changes that don’t make no sense. In an area that is all about nautical stuff, we’ve seen “Fishing on Mars” which was replaced by “Whaling Encounter”. Both of those attractions fit in well with the environments of a fishing village. But then they close down the “Whaling Encounter” and open up that horrible teen hormonal stimulator. I call for an immediate closure and restoration to what used to have been!

Concerned citizen

Of course, what “Concerned citizen” is talking about is the new attraction in the spot where the “ExtraGASTROnomical Whaling Encounter” to sit. (And the” Fishing on Mars” attraction before that).

Fitch’s Great Escape has been highly controversial from the get go, so much so that Abercrombie backed out of the deal during initial talks. And whether or not the attraction has its place in our little hamlet is a matter for debate. Some say it doesn’t belong, others insist they are taking their own idealism as too valuable and serious.

Indeed, the town is considering the request to shut down the attraction. All they need is a quorum to get the paperwork through. The problem there is that there are eleven women and nine men on the committee and the women have been on a research trip to the attraction since it opened, continuously missing on the meetings.

We’ll keep you informed of any updates.

Let’s face it.   There are hundreds of books about Disney.  The movies… the stage shows… the company…  the management style… recipes… fiction… even an incredible collection of Walt Disney World Trivia (currently in its second edition!).  Occasionally, a book comes through that fills a unique void. 

John Hench was a designer with Disney for over 65 years.  His designs are as identifiably Disney as anything else coming from the mouse house. In around 150 pages, Hench shares some of his design work in artist’s concepts and blueprints.  These are beautiful and rare, but it is his insight into the thought behind the design choices that turn this book from yet another Disney book to a text book worth much study.

Many books discussing Disney magic often push the art of looking around, taking note of details.  This book helps you to know “How” to look around and “What” you are looking for… Hopefully, you’ll never look at it the same way ever again.  Entire sections are devoted to in depth discussion on color, costumes, character, line, layout and most of all, story.  With over half a century working for Disney, Hench’s resume is able to back it all up with beautiful artwork.

If there is one thing that is surprisingly absent from a Disney legend that spent years working directly with Walt, it is a lack of stories that bring you into Walt’s presence.  It lacks that emotional touch, but makes up for it in intellectual stimulation that will affect your thinking about Disney for many years to come.

A little more than 25 years ago, the Passamaquoddy Designers (Quoddesigners) came out with a new attraction.  It opened along with and was located near the “Come Unicorn” attraction.  Of course, I’m talking about the “Kickin’ Krabaret”.  This was a whimsical look at our second favorite crustaceon.  (We honored our favorite with the “Rockin’ Lobster Coaster”)

The Kickin Krabaret was a fifteen minute stage production that was performed in side a small theatre that could hold three (or one comfortably).  The lights would dim and the audience would get introduced to “Sandy Crabs”, a homemaker who cooks up a heck of a crab feast.  But before eating the crabs up she makes them sing a song or two.  Sort of a reverse “sing for your supper”.

Songs included:

• the “Boogie Woogie Beluga Boy” sung by the Andrew Sisters-like trio “Canned Tuna Sisters”…
• A vaudeville act performed by Clam and Eggs (who insisted on being called “Caviar”)
• “Wedgie Wedgie” “Brute Brute” is a song performed by feuding gangs a la West Side Story, the Sharks and the Nets…

Then Sandy Crabs finishes off with the entire cast returning to sing the finale.

The attraction closed a few years later to be replaced by “Coral Rocks” - which in itself fell into the sea when a helicopter knocked into it while filming “Soarin’ over Passamaquoddy”.

But while it lasted, kids loved the attraction, especially the many animatronic crabs performing period music,  And the songs were catchy too, many of them still are heard on KWDY.

From previous posts you may recall that some of the Passamaquoddy behind the scenes people call themselves “Quoddesigners”. And that the Disney folks have a similar name for their creative workers, “Imagineers”. So, I’m always taking note of stuff inneresting to us engineer type peoples.

Over at the Orlando Sentinel, they’ve got some raw video footage of Spaceship Earth getting work done. I thknk its pretty cool. Maybe you’ll think it’s boring, like my sister does. She uses all kinds of tech stuff like the internet and a computer cam… She recently has posted a video of her crying “Leave Britney alone” which makes no sense in town cause we have nobody by that name anywhere nearbye… We’re considering locking her up.

Anyway, check it out here…