This is an accepted version of this page
112-538: Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park is a zoological theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida , near Orlando . Owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Experiences division, it is the largest theme park in the world, covering 580 acres (230 ha). The park opened on Earth Day , April 22, 1998, and was the fourth theme park built at the resort. The park
224-715: A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspection of the park, it was revealed that 31 animals died at Animal Kingdom between September 1997 and April 1998 from accidents, poisonings, fights, and other causes. Two Asian small-clawed otters died after ingesting loquat seeds from trees planted in their exhibit; two cheetah cubs died from ethylene glycol poisoning; nine herd animals died from injuries caused by fights, being entangled in fences while trying to escape, and, in one case, being kicked by an ostrich. Two crowned cranes were killed after being run over by safari vehicles in two separate incidents. The USDA ultimately found no violations of animal-welfare regulations. Disney responded to
336-639: A banshee across the Pandoran landscape. Another attraction, the Na'vi River Journey , is a dark boat ride through Pandora's bioluminescent rainforests. The area opened on May 27, 2017. Africa , set in the fictional east African port village of Harambe, resembles the local villages found in Kenya , Tanzania , and Uganda . Some snippets from Africa that were duplicated by the Disney Imagineers included
448-547: A trip through time to the Late Cretaceous . Just outside the institute is "Dino-Sue", a casting of a Tyrannosaurus rex fossil that is the most complete yet found . At the nearby Boneyard, there is a fossil site playground area with a Columbian mammoth fossil and a cast skeleton of a Brachiosaurus . Adjacent to the Institute and its surrounding facilities is Chester and Hester's Dino-Rama, which recalls
560-446: A Bug! will likely by replaced by the new Zootopia 4D film Zootopia: Better Zoogether in the winter of 2025. Pandora – The World of Avatar is themed to the fictional habitable exomoon , Pandora , from James Cameron 's Avatar and devoted to the many extraterrestrial fauna and flora that inhabit it. The land's marquee attraction is Avatar Flight of Passage , a 3D flying thrill simulator that mimics an exhilarating flight on
672-539: A day later. Enchanted aired on November 17, 2022, to promote Disenchanted , which premiered on Disney+ a day later. During the airing of Hocus Pocus , a new title card premiered bookending with the new Disney100 logo to celebrate the Walt Disney Company's 100th anniversary. Avatar aired on December 11, 2022, to promote Avatar: The Way of Water , which premiered in theaters 5 days later. Home Alone aired on December 24, 2022. To kick off 2023,
784-420: A deal with ABC (which had merged with United Paramount Theatres in 1953) on March 29, 1954. The show contained teasers for Walt's park, as well as episodes representing life in one of the park's main sections: Adventureland , Tomorrowland , Fantasyland , and Frontierland , with the opening titles used from its inception until the show's move to NBC in 1961, showing the entrance to Disneyland itself, as well as
896-463: A focus on Disney theatrical films than the English broadcasts at the time. In September 2003, The Wonderful World of Disney moved to Saturdays at 8:00 pm Eastern, with the previous Sunday time slot being ceded to AFV (which moved back to Sundays that season) and drama series in the 8:00 pm hour. Rare exceptions to the program's format occurred during this time; for example, a Little House on
1008-679: A fortress that was found in Zanzibar , and a water-stained, crumbling old building that was found in Kenya. Harambe includes a "hotel”, restaurants, an outdoor bar with live entertainment, and different marketplaces. The village is the namesake of the Harambe Wildlife Preserve , the fictional home of the area's main attraction, Kilimanjaro Safaris . Guests climb aboard an open-sided safari vehicle for an expedition to see African species in several large field enclosures, replicating
1120-520: A half-hour. It also allowed CBS to schedule 60 Minutes at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time starting on December 7; prior to this, 60 Minutes had aired at 6:00 p.m. Eastern and did not begin its seasons until after the National Football League season ended. Disney fell out of the top 30, while 60 Minutes had its ratings rise significantly. In September 1979, the studio agreed to then-NBC president Fred Silverman 's request for changes to
1232-463: A key part of the show's appeal to viewers that the host segment was dropped. The final episode featuring Walt's host segment was the episode "A Salute to Alaska". The series was retitled The Wonderful World of Disney in September 1969, by which time the color distinction was no longer needed as all big three networks were broadcasting in color. It continued to gain solid ratings, often ranking in
SECTION 10
#17327929231421344-512: A new park shortly after the opening of Disney-MGM Studios in 1989. Animal Kingdom was the brainchild of Imagineer Joe Rohde , who had previously designed the Adventurers Club at Pleasure Island . When presenting the idea of the new animal-themed park, Rohde brought a 400-pound (180 kg) Bengal tiger into the meeting with Disney CEO Michael Eisner . Originally slated as Disney's "Wild Animal Kingdom," Disney announced plans for
1456-504: A reboot of Davy Crockett , and the musical Polly , which was based on the book Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter and the Walt Disney's 1960 film adaptation of it . New television animation came in the form of Super DuckTales —a compilation of an arc from Disney's syndicated animated series DuckTales —as an Easter special on March 26, 1989; another DuckTales special, A DuckTales Valentine , aired on February 11, 1990. In
1568-638: A regular program in 2008. At this point, the series began to shift focus toward Disney theatrical films, relying less on original television films; however, the series aired three Disney Channel Original Movies (2002's Cadet Kelly , 2008's Camp Rock and 2011's Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension , currently the only Disney Channel television films to have aired on a non-Disney Channel-branded network domestically) during its ABC run. The second ABC revival also included some family-oriented films produced by studios other than Disney under
1680-402: A regular viewing habit, gave ABC additional films from its library, including Old Yeller , The Apple Dumpling Gang and Candleshoe for the normal rerun mid-year period. The Last Electric Knight movie produced a spin-off series called Sidekicks (originally to be called Karate Kid ) for ABC's 1987 season. Despite improving ABC's numbers, the program's ratings were never strong as
1792-455: A series of theatrical movies from the Disney+ library, which featured an updated title card, which includes Moana , Thor: The Dark World , Up , and Big Hero 6 , for four weeks beginning May 20, 2020. A fifth week was later added, featuring the 2010 Disney/Pixar film, Toy Story 3 , marking ten years since its theatrical release. The program returned on September 23, 2020, featuring
1904-406: A showing of Inside Out and that the program would air weekly on Sunday nights as part of ABC's 2024-25 schedule. The Magical World of Toons was the daily prime time programming block featuring character's key series episodes coinciding with the launch of Disney's new channel, Toon Disney , on April 18, 1998. It continued at least until 2003. In 2012, Disney Junior launched a variant of
2016-579: A topic for such episodes, including clips from the actual film. Topics for "Fantasy Land" would include either actual cartoons, and animated films, or documentaries on "The Making of ..." (such as behind-the-scenes presentation of Peggy Lee singing the duet of the wicked Siamese cats in Lady and the Tramp , or the barbershop quartet of lost dogs in the municipal Dog Pound); excerpts from a True-Life Adventure documentary might also be included (for example, one on
2128-566: A two-hour format in 1975). Walt Disney Productions also began running some of its multiepisode television programs, such as 1962's Sammy The Way-Out Seal , as televised feature films on the anthology series. A slightly edited version of the 1954 Disney film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea made its television debut as a two-hour special on NBC in October 1976. Several other Disney films, some of them not especially successful (such as Superdad , which
2240-411: A zoological park, Disney's Animal Kingdom is engaged in research and conservation efforts involving its animal species. Since the park's opening in 1998, the resident elephant herd has produced seven calves, with births in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2016. In 2008, the park's giraffe herd produced four newborns, raising the total number of giraffe births since opening to eleven. In 1999, one of
2352-675: Is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums , indicating they have met or exceeded the standards in education, conservation, and research. In 2023 the park hosted 8.77 million guests, making it the 16th-most-visited theme park in the world. It is the most-visited zoo in the world as of 2019. The park's icon is the Tree of Life , a 145-foot-tall (44 m), 50-foot-wide (15 m) artificial baobab tree . Disney began planning
SECTION 20
#17327929231422464-413: Is dedicated and themed around natural environment and animal conservation , a philosophy once pioneered by Walt Disney . Disney's Animal Kingdom distinguishes itself from other Walt Disney World theme parks by featuring hundreds of live animal exhibits alongside traditional theme park elements. Special designs and provisions were incorporated throughout the park to protect the animals' welfare. The park
2576-413: Is located on the western edge of the resort and is isolated from the other theme parks and properties to minimize external disruptions to the animals; as a result, the park does not feature nighttime fireworks shows that would otherwise disturb the animals. In efforts to be more eco-friendly, the park uses biodegradable paper straws and prohibits plastic straws, lids, and balloons. Disney's Animal Kingdom
2688-670: Is set in the foothills of the Himalayas . The visual focal point of Asia is Expedition Everest , a steel roller coaster ride through a forbidden Himalayan mountain guarded by the elusive Yeti . Nearby is Kali River Rapids , a river rapids ride . The Maharajah Jungle Trek leads guests through the forests and ruins outside the village, which are home to species such as the Javan banteng , bar-headed goose , Sumatran tiger , Indian blackbuck , Eld's deer , white-handed gibbon , Indian flying fox , Komodo dragon and over 50 bird species. In
2800-553: The True-Life Adventures ). The show's continued ratings success in the post-Walt era came to an end during the 1975–76 season. At this time, Walt Disney Productions was facing a decline in fortunes due to falling box-office revenues, while NBC as a whole was also slipping in the ratings. The anthology series became even more dependent on airings of live-action theatrical features, its True-Life Adventures , reruns of older episodes, and cartoon compilations. Nothing from
2912-484: The Disney Channel . While ratings were a factor, the final decision to end the show came from Walt Disney Productions' then-CEO Card Walker , who felt that having both the show and the new channel active would result in cannibalization of viewership. The new channel would provide a home for the show in reruns for the next two decades, but for the time being, Disney's presence on U.S. network TV would be limited to
3024-572: The Disney animated features canon aired, with the exceptions of Alice in Wonderland and Dumbo , as part of a long-standing policy placed on the program by Disney. Additionally, in 1975, when CBS regained the broadcast rights to the 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film The Wizard of Oz , it was scheduled opposite Disney , as it had been between 1960 and 1968. At that time, telecasts of that film were highly rated annual events, which largely attracted
3136-473: The Disney+ library. The show has had only two hosts, Disney co-founder Walt Disney and former Disney chairman and CEO Michael Eisner . The show is the second longest-running prime-time program on U.S. television, behind Hallmark Hall of Fame . The anthology series was an outgrowth of Walt Disney looking for funding for Disneyland with his brother Roy Disney approaching all the big-three networks with American Broadcasting-Paramount Theatres taking
3248-524: The United States' burgeoning efforts to explore outer space and others, such as "Moochie of the Little League", were set in the then-present day. Some episodes even mixed live-action and animation, showing Mickey Mouse , Donald Duck , Goofy , Chip 'n' Dale , Professor Owl and Jiminy Cricket talking with Walt himself, while one 1959 episode (titled The Adventures of Chip 'n' Dale) turned
3360-467: The Wonderful World banner, such as The Sound of Music from 20th Century Fox ( which is presently owned by Disney, now known as 20th Century Studios ). On December 12, 2015, ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney officially returned to its anthology format with a showing of Mary Poppins for the first time on ABC since 2002, hosted by Dick Van Dyke. Van Dyke took viewers on a tour through
3472-504: The deal for programming for ABC. Although Walt Disney was the first major film producer to venture into television, two established independent film producers successfully ventured into television production before Disney, Hal Roach and Jerry Fairbanks . Disney wanted to produce a television program to finance the development of the Disneyland amusement park. After being turned down by both CBS and NBC , Disney eventually signed
Disney's Animal Kingdom - Misplaced Pages Continue
3584-450: The 1989–1990 season, during which the company was negotiating with Jim Henson to buy The Muppets , they aired two Muppet specials; one of them was The Muppets at Walt Disney World , which turned out to be Henson's last Muppet special. He died May 16, 1990, 10 days after the special aired, and the company only acquired The Muppets more than a decade later. After two seasons experiencing the same lackluster ratings as it had accrued during
3696-593: The 2014 Marvel film, Guardians of the Galaxy , filling a gap in ABC's fall 2020 schedule. On October 9, 2020, ABC announced the program would return on October 14, with the broadcast television premiere of the 2017 Disney/Pixar film, Coco . Captain America: The Winter Soldier aired on January 12, 2021. The 2015 live action film Cinderella aired on January 19, 2021. On April 28, 2021, it
3808-471: The African savannas, rivers and rocky hills. The safari features the okapi , greater kudu , saddle-billed stork , bongo , black and white rhinoceros , hippopotamus , pink-backed pelican , Nile crocodile , Masai giraffe , blue wildebeest , springbok , Ankole cattle , common eland , sable antelope , and African bush elephant . On the adjacent Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail , visitors trek into
3920-606: The Anandapur Theatre, Feathered Friends in Flight is a live bird show featuring birds such as the black crowned crane and bald eagle . DinoLand U.S.A. is themed around dinosaurs and other extinct prehistoric life . The area is anchored by the Dino Institute, a fictitious palaeontological facility which is home to Dinosaur , a dark thrill ride loosely inspired by the film of the same name , featuring
4032-573: The Beast was canceled but was instead replaced with the 2019 film The Lion King . In May 2023, it was announced the program would air on Sunday nights for 3 weeks in June (when the NBA Finals were not being played) in a 2-hour block, it would also air on Sunday nights in the fall of that year with a three-hour block. In May 2024, it was announced that the program would return the following month with
4144-527: The Disney Archives, as they explored props and costumes from the production of Mary Poppins and discussed the film's history and context within the Disney legacy. It was then shown on February 21, 2016, with the special Disneyland 60 , which honored Disneyland's 60th anniversary; on November 24, 2016, for their Magical Holiday Celebration, filmed at Walt Disney World; and on December 11, 2016, for
4256-497: The Disney Movie Club), with the possibility of additional future releases. From 2014 to 2019, live-action Disney films from the 1950s to the 1980s including special episodes from Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color aired on Turner Classic Movies , without commercial interruption, and presented uncut and with letterboxing on the network's standard-definition feed. All of the episodes and existing material used on
4368-557: The Lion King , a live stage show based on Disney's 1994 animated feature film, The Lion King . Rafiki's Planet Watch is the only section of the park not connected to Discovery Island; it connects only to Africa. Guests board the 3 ft ( 914 mm ) narrow-gauge Wildlife Express Train for the short trip to and from the area, which consists of three sub-areas. Guests first encounter Habitat Habit! , where there are cotton-top tamarins . Conservation Station showcases
4480-531: The Moon , which aired December 28, 1955. This format remained basically unchanged through the 1980s, though new material was scarce in later years. Other episodes were segments from Disney films such as Seal Island and Alice in Wonderland , or cartoons of Donald Duck and other Disney standbys. The program spawned the Davy Crockett craze of 1955 with the airing of a three-episode series (not shown over
4592-466: The Oasis sits a Rainforest Cafe , which can be entered from both inside and outside the ticketed area. Discovery Island is located at the center of the park and is an island within the park's Discovery River waterway. It serves as the "central hub" connecting the other sections of the park by bridges, with the exception of Rafiki's Planet Watch. It was originally called Safari Village, as Discovery Island
Disney's Animal Kingdom - Misplaced Pages Continue
4704-546: The Prairie miniseries ran for several weeks in 2004 under the Wonderful World of Disney banner. For most of its second run on ABC, the program aired throughout the television season, with the exception of the 2005–06 season (when it aired during the midseason only), and in 2007 and 2008 (when it was relegated to the summer months), with a broader array of films occupying the network's Saturday primetime slot at other times, when sports programming did not air. The series ended as
4816-442: The animal rights group In Defense of Animals listed the park at number 10 on its 2014 "list of worst zoos for elephants." In October 2014, a snake dropped out of a tree and bit a boy, precipitating the death of his great-grandmother who suffered a cardiac arrest as a reaction to the incident. The park confirmed that the snake that bit the boy was a non-venomous indigenous snake and that it did not escape from an enclosure. A lawsuit
4928-400: The anthology series premiered. While the broadcast that aired three days after his death featured a memorial tribute from Huntley-Brinkley Report anchor Chet Huntley with film and television star Dick Van Dyke , the introductions that Walt already filmed prior to his death continued to air for the remainder of the season. After that, the studio decided that Walt's persona as host was such
5040-665: The area opened to the public on May 27, 2017. The park was closed from March 16 to July 11, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Florida . On September 9, 2023, it was announced at Destination D23 that DinoLand U.S.A. could potentially be replaced with a new area inspired by the American tropics, and It's Tough to Be a Bug! could possibly be succeeded by a Zootopia -themed film in the Tree of Life Theater. On August 10, 2024, it
5152-409: The audience enjoyed their show. Although the basic format remained the same, the series moved to NBC on September 24, 1961, to take advantage of that network's ability to broadcast programming in color . In addition, Walt Disney's relationship with ABC had soured as the network resisted selling its stake in the theme park before doing so in 1960. In a display of foresight, Disney had filmed many of
5264-429: The beginning of 1983, it went on hiatus on February 15 while the aforementioned Gun Shy took up the second half of its time slot. When it came back for summer reruns on May 3, it was still on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m.; its final network broadcast was on September 24, bringing an uninterrupted 29-year run on all three networks to a close. The end of the show coincided with the launch of the studio's cable television network,
5376-535: The broadcast. Art Linkletter was assisted by Bob Cummings and Ronald Reagan , and the program featured various other guests, including various appearances of Walt himself as he dedicated the various lands of Disneyland. In 1958, the series was retitled Walt Disney Presents and moved to a Friday-night timeslot; by 1960, ABC had switched it to Sunday nights, where it remained for 21 years. During this iteration, The Peter Tchaikovsky Story , an episode made to promote Walt's latest animated feature, Sleeping Beauty ,
5488-414: The broadcast. Walt apparently wanted people to see Sleeping Beauty in 70 mm, so, in the introduction, he explained the difference between 35 mm and 70 mm and held up a card with both sizes on it. In addition to episodes devoted to the latest additions at Disneyland, many episodes during this period were Westerns such as " Texas John Slaughter " and " Elfego Baca ", while others talked about
5600-437: The construction of the park in 1995 at an estimated cost of $ 600-$ 800 million. To design the theme park, Disney Imagineers traveled to Africa and Asia to study the landscapes and wildlife. In July 1996, construction was underway on the animal holding facilities, the installation of trees, shrubs, and grasses to shape the park's African Savanna -inspired landscape. Disney Imagineers collected seeds from 37 countries to be used for
5712-411: The course of consecutive weeks) about the historical American frontiersman, starring Fess Parker in the title role. Millions of dollars of merchandise relating to the title character were sold, and the theme song, " The Ballad of Davy Crockett ", became a hit record that year. Three historically based hour-long programs aired during late 1954/early 1955, and were followed up by two dramatized installments
SECTION 50
#17327929231425824-409: The earlier shows in color, allowing them to easily be repeated on NBC; since all but three of Disney's feature-length films were also made in color (the three black-and-white exceptions were The Shaggy Dog , The Absent-Minded Professor , and Son of Flubber , all family comedies starring Fred MacMurray ), they could now also be telecast in that format. To emphasize the new feature, the series
5936-490: The end of its initial NBC run and its subsequent runs on CBS and ABC, Disney elected to end the broadcast television run of The Magical World of Disney and began airing the anthology on the Disney Channel – in the same time slot it had been airing for the past decade – starting in September 1990, expanding back to a two-hour format. Since the Disney Channel operated as a premium channel at the time, films presented on
6048-696: The episode An Adventure in Art, four different artists were given the task of drawing the same tree, with each artist using his own preferred ways of drawing and imagining a tree; this led to cartoon examples of differently animated trees, as in some of the early Silly Symphonies shorts, and later full-length animated films. "Tomorrow Land" was an opportunity for the Disney studio staff to present cutting-edge science and technology, and to predict possible futures, such as futuristic automobiles and highways, and featured Wernher von Braun as an on-air technical consultant in Man and
6160-400: The established 60 Minutes and scripted mystery series Murder, She Wrote on CBS , both of which Disney was competing with for viewers, remained the leading primetime programs on Sunday nights. In 1987, ABC reduced The Disney Sunday Movie from two hours to one. The move did not help drive ratings, and the network decided not to renew its contract with Disney or pick up a fourth season of
6272-503: The fictional kingdom of Anandapur, evokes the traits of Cambodia , India , Indonesia , Mongolia , Nepal , Thailand and Tibet . The first expansion area added to Disney's Animal Kingdom in 1999, Anandapur translates to "place of many delights" in Sanskrit . According to the park's fictional history, Anandapur was established as a royal hunting preserve in 1544. Asia contains both the riverside village of Anandapur and Serka Zong, which
6384-514: The film and the Tony Award-nominated Broadway stage version and was performed in front of a live audience with giant projection surface. The title was used again on November 28, 2019, for a two-hour music special, The Wonderful World of Disney: Magical Holiday Celebration , hosted by Emma Bunton and Matthew Morrison . On May 7, 2020, it was announced that The Wonderful World of Disney would bring back its banner for
6496-473: The following year. The TV episodes were later edited into two theatrical films. On July 17, 1955, the opening of Disneyland was covered on a live television special, Dateline: Disneyland , which is not technically considered to be part of the series. It was hosted by Art Linkletter , with whom Walt Disney had worked out a deal prior to the opening to allow Linkletter to lease a shop on Main Street in return for
6608-626: The forest to see animals such as the Western lowland gorilla , black-and-white colobus monkey, okapi , gerenuk , yellow-backed duiker , pygmy hippopotamus , Grévy's zebra , South African meerkat , Kenyan sand boa , kori bustard , naked mole-rat , tarantulas , and, as well as an aviary . On the western side of the Africa area is the Harambe Theater, which is home to the Festival of
6720-472: The four aforementioned lands, one of which was then identified as the main feature of that evening's program. Consequently, Davy Crockett and other pioneers of the Old West , and American history in general, appeared in "Frontier Land". Similarly, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea might be the focus of an evening spent in "Adventure Land", although a documentary on the film could also be possibly presented as
6832-466: The higher cost of the upkeep and care of the animals at the park. DinoLand U.S.A. was chosen first mostly because of its lower budget. In 2000, Rohde said: "We had a vision and now it's become a placeholder. We have all kinds of ideas and not all of them fit with the theme of Beastly Kingdom. I'm not even convinced there will be a Beastly Kingdom." The park contains four table service restaurants: There are seven quick-service restaurants located throughout
SECTION 60
#17327929231426944-416: The historical title The Wonderful World of Disney for the first few years, while other networks broadcast the show with another title, A Disney Special ). During this time, one of the telefilms shown under the banner was spun off into its own series -- The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage , a collaboration with Stephen J. Cannell Productions. In 1997, with Disney acquiring ABC the previous year, ABC gave
7056-406: The hosting job. Eisner hired Michael Kay, a director of political commercials for then- U.S. Senator Bill Bradley , to help him improve his on-camera performance. The Disney Sunday Movie initially aired as ABC's lead-off program on Sundays, running from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. By this point, the format was similar to a movie-of-the-week. Gary Barton, a Disney senior vice president,
7168-409: The life and works of beavers and their dam-building) or those using stroboscopic stop-action photography (such as investigating what really happened when a rain-drop fell in a puddle, as part of a "Fantasy Land" episode), explaining the techniques of cartoon animation. The multiplane camera used to create the three-dimensional effects of Bambi was also a topic for a "Fantasy Land"-set telecast. In
7280-642: The many roadside attractions that were once scattered throughout the United States. The area features the TriceraTop Spin aerial carousel ride, carnival games and gift shops. At the eastern edge of DinoLand U.S.A. is the Theater in the Wild, which hosts Finding Nemo: The Big Blue...and Beyond! , a musical stage show based on the story of the 2003 Disney·Pixar animated film Finding Nemo . Like
7392-489: The movie night anthology as The Magical World of Disney Junior on its new 24/7 channel. The channel also premiered its first Disney Junior Original Movie, Lucky Duck during Magical World on June 20, 2014. Prior to the launch of the Disney Channel, several of the films and specials made for the anthology series were licensed to pay-TV networks such as HBO ; in HBO's case, the kaleidoscopic-pattern titles that preceded them in
7504-426: The network television premiere of Frozen . On August 5, 2019, it was announced that The Wonderful World of Disney would present The Little Mermaid Live! on November 5 of that year with Auliʻi Cravalho , Queen Latifah and Shaggy starring as Ariel, Ursula and Sebastian, respectively. The cast also included John Stamos as Chef Louis and Graham Phillips as Prince Eric. The special featured music from both
7616-504: The network television premiere of Toy Story . On October 5, 1997, Disney Telefilms' first production, Toothless , debuted on the series. In addition to the planned 16 original Disney telemovies, ABC and Disney added a few direct-to-video movies and films from other sources. In 2001, a Spanish-language version of the program premiered on Telemundo (which, incidentally, was acquired by the English version's former home, NBC, that same year) as El Maravilloso Mundo de Disney , with more of
7728-515: The occasional holiday special, theme park anniversary, or cartoon compilation. The CBS version of the shows' intro would also be featured on Disney Channel. After the studio – which was rechristened as the Walt Disney Company in 1986 – underwent a change in management, Disney sought to bring back some sort of programming to broadcast television. Their efforts led to the premiere of The Disney Sunday Movie , which debuted on February 2, 1986, on ABC . Many names were considered to serve as presenter for
7840-429: The original run were retained. Around the same time that the 1980s incarnations aired on ABC and NBC, reruns of older episodes of the Disney anthology series, airing under the Wonderful World of Disney banner, were syndicated to broadcast television stations throughout the United States as well as in various international markets. In Australia, the program aired on Network Seven on Saturdays at 6:30 pm, before it
7952-403: The other lands. The park is home to approximately 2000 animals representing around 200 species. The Oasis is the park's logistic equivalent to Main Street U.S.A. and provides the transition from the park's entrance to the world of animals. The main paths feature animal exhibits and dense vegetation and trees lead deeper into the park and then onto Discovery Island. Between the parking lot and
8064-542: The other sections of Disney's Animal Kingdom, there are animals on display. The animals, such as the American crocodile , red legged seriemas , Abdim's stork and Asian brown tortoise , have evolutionary links to the age of the dinosaurs. They are animal species that have survived since the dinosaur era and can be found along the Cretaceous Trail along with a collection of Mesozoic plants. Camp Minnie-Mickey
8176-407: The park on April 22. In 2011, Disney announced a major expansion to the park, Pandora - The World of Avatar , a joint venture with director James Cameron and his production company, Lightstorm Entertainment , with the intention of transforming Animal Kingdom into a full-day operation with added attraction capacity and nighttime experiences. Construction on the area began on January 10, 2014, and
8288-404: The park were designed to have an aged appearance, with artificial potholes in the safari roads and boats peppered with dents and rust. Most of the park's animals were acquired in 1997 during the fall; they were held at a rented holding facility in northern Florida for quarantine and observation. Disney hired staff from 69 zoos around the United States to care for the animals. The park opened to
8400-547: The park's white rhinoceros gave birth to a female calf named Nande. In 2006, Nande and Hasani, another of the park's rhinos, were transferred to Uganda's Ziwa animal sanctuary, in the first attempt to re-introduce white rhinos to the country. Civil strife had caused the white rhinoceros to be eradicated from the area. In June 2009, Nande gave birth to a male calf, the first such birth in Uganda in over 25 years. By January 2010, eight white rhinos had been born at Animal Kingdom since
8512-639: The park's opening; the most recent was born to another Animal Kingdom-born mother. Several Florida-based animal rights groups and PETA voiced concerns when the park originally opened, citing Walt Disney World's previous missteps in handling animals at the defunct Discovery Island . The groups protested, and PETA tried to convince travel agents not to book trips to the park. On opening day, the Orange County Sheriff's office sent about 150 deputies; about two dozen protesters showed up. The protest lasted two hours, and there were no arrests. Following
8624-477: The park: As with other Walt Disney World theme parks, Disney's Animal Kingdom has other locations and carts that offer snacks and beverages. The park typically closes earlier in the day than other parks in the Walt Disney World Resort; Animal Kingdom began to stay open through the evening on May 27, 2016. Disney does not allow plastic straws, lids, or balloons to be used in the park, unlike
8736-599: The plants and grasses in the park. The landscaping efforts included spreading four million cubic yards of dirt, planting 40,000 mature trees (a mix of real Savanna species and artificial Baobab trees), constructing 60 miles (97 km) of underground utilities, and construction of various waterways, and structures built by over 2,600 construction workers. Many buildings contained thatched roofs assembled by Zulu workers from South Africa . About 1,500 hand-painted wooden horses were crafted in Bali under Disney supervision. Parts of
8848-516: The practice of keeping animals as trained show performers in theme parks was heavily criticized when a trainer was killed by an orca whale at SeaWorld Orlando in Florida. Most zoos have a carousel and/or Safari Train , but some zoos have more amusement attractions than that. Disney anthology television series The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, The Wonderful World of Disney ,
8960-458: The program did not present any film made by Disney's Touchstone subsidiary , as such films were not considered appropriate for children. However, Splash, Too , a sequel to the 1984 film , aired on the series over two weeks in May 1988. The series had increased Disney park attendance and ABC's Sunday night ratings for the evening by an average 27% for the rest of the season. Disney, wanting to make it
9072-412: The program had done during its last season as The Disney Sunday Movie , The Magical World of Disney ran for one hour, airing at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time; Michael Eisner also returned as its host. During this period, the show attempted to reintroduce the rotating format the show started out with in 1954. It also introduced new versions of Walt-era movies and TV shows such as The Absent-Minded Professor ,
9184-484: The program returned for five weeks with a series of theatrical movies from the Disney+ library, which includes the 2019 CGI film The Lion King and Finding Nemo , as well as the broadcast television premiere of Iron Man and The Avengers . Due to the death of Barbara Walters on December 30, 2022, the schedule would be moved by a week and the broadcast television premiere of the 2017 live action film Beauty and
9296-496: The program. The show shortened its title to Disney's Wonderful World , and updated the opening sequence with a computer-generated logo and disco -styled theme song, but largely kept the same format. The problems for the show continued. As a result of the ratings strength of 60 Minutes , compounded by low ratings, increasingly less original material, and frequent pre-emptions (primarily due to sporting events such as NFL game telecasts ), NBC cancelled Disney in 1981. One factor that
9408-589: The public on April 22, 1998. Several marketing events surrounded the day. ABC aired a two-hour prime time special about the making of Animal Kingdom, as part of its The Wonderful World of Disney anthology series. Eisner and Disney Vice Chairman Roy Disney hosted an opening day party for 14,000 corporate partners, travel agents, and media figures, which included celebrities such as Michael J. Fox , Drew Carey , Stevie Wonder , David Copperfield , and Jane Goodall . Broadcasts of Good Morning America , Today and Live with Regis and Kathie Lee aired live from
9520-416: The realm of fantasy such as unicorns and dragons. The original design for Animal Kingdom included a themed section called Beastly Kingdom, devoted to creatures of legend and mythology. During the final stages of planning of development, Eisner decided that either Beastly Kingdom or DinoLand U.S.A. would be built first because of budget cuts after the failure of Euro Disney (known today as Disneyland Paris ) and
9632-456: The report by hiring additional security to prevent animals from fighting, relocating the crowned cranes to walking paths, as well as adding mirrors to the safari vehicles. One year after the park opened, Animal Rights Foundation of Florida complained that a New Year's Eve fireworks show could upset the animals. A USDA inspector came to the park and found no problems with launching low-noise fireworks one-half mile (800 m) away. In January 2015,
9744-400: The rest of the Disney parks. This is so that plastic does not inadvertently enter an animal's habitat and hurt them. Instead, the park uses biodegradable paper straws and offers lids for hot drinks only. The restrooms at Disney's Animal Kingdom all have doors at their entrances. This practice is in place so that, in the event of an animal escaping, guests are able to shelter safely inside. As
9856-475: The revived show, including Julie Andrews , Dick Van Dyke , Cary Grant , Tom Hanks , Walter Cronkite , Roy E. Disney (who closely resembled his uncle), and even Mickey Mouse . The studio finally decided to have Michael Eisner , the company's recently hired CEO, host the series. Although he was not a performer, after filming a test video with his wife Jane and a member of his executive team (which required multiple takes), studio management believed he could do
9968-576: The same family audience as the Disney series. From 1968 to 1975, when NBC held the television rights to Oz (which it had acquired from CBS in 1967), it usually pre-empted Disney to show it. However, the show's stiffest weekly competition came from CBS's newsmagazine 60 Minutes . In 1975, an amendment to the Prime Time Access Rule gave the Sunday 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time slot back to the networks, allowing NBC to move Disney back by
10080-406: The same function that the anthology series served in the days before cable. The original opening titles were restored to the episodes in 1997. Reruns of the anthology series were discontinued when the channel exclude all vintage material with the removal of its Vault Disney late-night block on September 8, 2002. However, a few select episodes are available on VHS or DVD (some of which are exclusive to
10192-415: The second iteration of the anthology series. The Disney Sunday Movie was also being run on the Disney Channel , also hosted by Eisner. In early 1988, NBC decided to renew its association with the company after it cut ties to the anthology series seven years earlier; the network brought the series, now named The Magical World of Disney , to serve as the lead-in of its Sunday lineup in September 1988. As
10304-451: The series a regular slot in the schedule. Disney CEO Eisner formed Disney Telefilms by 1995 to supply original films to the series and program together with ABC. It led ABC's Sunday night lineup at the 7:00 p.m. Eastern time slot, resulting in the displacement of Sunday mainstay America's Funniest Home Videos , which had occupied the slot since 1992. On September 28, 1997, the all-new The Wonderful World of Disney premiered with
10416-409: The series aired infrequently. The program resumed a regular schedule in 1997 on the ABC fall schedule, coinciding with Disney's purchase of ABC in 1996. From 1997 to 2008, the program aired regularly on ABC. Since then, ABC has continued the series as an occasional special presentation from 2008 onward, the most recent being a holiday music special in 2019. In 2020, the series returned with movies from
10528-821: The series were presented without commercial interruption. The Magical World of Disney originally aired on the cable channel as a weekly Sunday-only program for its first 5½ years; but in December 1996, as part of the first phase of a programming revamp that culminated in its formal conversion into a commercial-free basic cable channel in April 1997, the Disney Channel expanded the Magical World brand to encompass its Monday through Saturday primetime film block, maintaining its 7:00 p.m. Eastern time slot. The Wonderful World of Disney returned in 1991 as an umbrella title for Disney specials airing on major networks (CBS airings used
10640-420: The series' format remained unchanged. During the 1981–1982 season, the series had a full season's worth of material again, but little of it was new. Among the little that actually was new were a handful of pilots based on Pollyanna , Escape to Witch Mountain , and The Apple Dumpling Gang , but only the last of the three pilots was sold and became the half-hour sitcom Gun Shy the following season, one of
10752-405: The spotlight on Chip 'n' Dale, combining their theatrical cartoons with mixed media wrap-around footage including the chipmunks' own theme song. The episode's genre is a live action/animated musical comedy, and as the title suggests, it stars the titular chipmunks. At the end of the episode, Chip 'n' Dale say (singing) their goodbyes to the audience and return to their nut home on the counter hoping
10864-490: The studio's first entries in that genre but only lasted six episodes. The 1982–1983 season had enough material to fill the time slot, but almost all of it was pre-existing material, the lone exception being the celebrity-laden opening ceremony of Epcot on October 23. It also did not help matters that NBC slotted the family-friendly sitcoms Diff'rent Strokes and Silver Spoons at 8:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. up against it to draw children away from CBS. After moving to Tuesday at
10976-400: The top 20, until the mid-1970s. In 1976, Disney showed its hit 1961 film The Parent Trap on television for the first time, as a 2½-hour special. This marked a major step in broadcasting for the studio, which had never shown one of its more popular films on television in a time slot longer than an hour (although it had shown Now You See Him, Now You Don't and Napoleon and Samantha in
11088-528: The various conservation efforts supported by the Walt Disney Company. It also gives a behind-the-scenes glimpse into Disney's Animal Kingdom's animal care facilities, including a veterinary examination room complete with a two-way communications system so the veterinary staff can answer guest questions. Outside, Affection Section is a petting zoo featuring goats , sheep , cattle , domestic pigs , donkeys , and alpacas . The area also includes The Animation Experience at Conservation Station . Asia , set in
11200-540: Was an outright flop in its initial theatrical release) were also aired on the program in the form of two-hour broadcasts that year. However, the multiepisode format for feature films had not been discontinued; as late as 1981, films such as Pollyanna were still being shown on the Disney program in several installments running a week apart. During the early 1970s, the show began to increasingly concentrate less on animated cartoons and dramatic or comedy films, and began to place an emphasis on nature-oriented programs (such as
11312-579: Was announced that the program would return on May 3, 2021, for five weeks with a series of theatrical movies from the Disney+ library, which includes the broadcast television premieres of Incredibles 2 and Finding Dory , Monsters, Inc. , Tangled and The Princess and the Frog . On October 28, 2021, the program returned with the broadcast television premiere of the 2019 Disney/Pixar film Toy Story 4 . Hocus Pocus aired on September 29, 2022, to promote Hocus Pocus 2 , which premiered on Disney+
11424-522: Was beyond the control of either Disney or NBC was a 94-day strike by the Screen Actors' Guild that cut the number of shows for the 1980–1981 season, but the damage was done nonetheless. Following NBC's announcement that it would drop the anthology series, CBS picked up the program and began airing it on Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, in September 1981. Despite a more elaborate credit sequence and another title change, to simply Walt Disney ,
11536-401: Was confirmed that It's Tough to Be a Bug! show would be replaced by the new show Zootopia: Better Zoogether in the Tree of Life Theater, likely opening in the winter of 2025, and DinoLand U.S.A. would be replaced by the new Tropical Americas-themed land Pueblo Esperanza , featuring Encanto and Indiana Jones -themed attractions with completion expected by 2027. On October 14, 2024, it
11648-400: Was confirmed that the closing date of DinoLand, U.S.A. has been delayed in 2025, and it was announced that the first phase of DinoLand, U.S.A. will be permanently closed on January 13, 2025 at Disney's Animal Kingdom Park, including TriceraTops Spin, Fossil Fun Games, and more. Disney's Animal Kingdom is divided into seven themed areas. The park's Discovery River separates Discovery Island from
11760-478: Was dropped in 1994 due to Optus Vision (later Foxtel )'s launch of a domestic version of the Disney Channel , with Saturday Disney replacing it as the channel's main block of Disney films. Reruns of the shows were a staple of the Disney Channel for several years under the title Walt Disney Presents (which used the same title sequence as the 1980s CBS incarnation), when it was an outlet for vintage Disney cartoons, television series, and films, basically serving
11872-707: Was in charge of the program. Help Wanted: Kids was the first episode's film. Other first revival year films were, Young Again , The Richest Cat in the World , I-Man (starring Scott Bakula), and My Town . Sometimes the slot would feature a special instead of dramatic material, such as "Disney Goes to the Oscars" featuring the studio's Academy Award winners, and "The Greatest Moments in Disney Animation". A handful of Disney Channel original films made their network television debuts during these iteration as well, but
11984-471: Was one of the first stereo simulcasts on TV; in this case it was 3 channel stereo. FM radio stations across the country carried the left channel at the same time as ABC broadcast the TV show in mono, which served as a center channel, and AM radio stations broadcast the right channel. In the second half of the show, a lengthy clip of Sleeping Beauty was shown, with its 6 channels (70mm version) mixed down into 3 for
12096-445: Was retitled Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color when NBC began airing it. The first NBC episode even dealt with the principles of color, as explained by a new character named Ludwig Von Drake (voiced by Paul Frees ), a bumbling professor with a thick German accent, who was the uncle of Donald Duck . Von Drake was the first Disney character created specifically for television. Walt Disney died on December 15, 1966, 12 years after
12208-601: Was the name for the small zoological park located in Walt Disney World's Bay Lake but was renamed after that area, which closed in 1999. The Tree of Life , the park's sculpted, man-made baobab tree, is located in this section and is surrounded by trails and animal enclosures. Inside the Tree of Life theater is It's Tough to Be a Bug! , a 4D film inspired by the 1998 Disney· Pixar animated film, A Bug's Life . The park's largest gift shops and two of its major restaurants are on Discovery Island. It's Tough to Be
12320-446: Was themed as a rustic summer camp, built as a placeholder on the location where Beastly Kingdom was intended to be built. The area closed on January 5, 2014, and was replaced by Pandora – The World of Avatar . When originally conceived, Disney's Animal Kingdom was to focus on three broad classifications of animals: those that exist in today's reality; those that did exist but are now extinct (i.e., dinosaurs); and those that only exist in
12432-1615: Was threatened because of the incident. The lawsuit was never filed. As of 2019, Disney's Animal Kingdom is the sixth-most-visited theme park in the world. Animal theme park An animal theme park , also known as a zoological theme park , is a combination of an amusement park and a zoo , mainly for entertainment, amusement, and commercial purposes. Many animal theme parks combine classic theme park elements, such as themed entertainment and amusement rides , with classic zoo elements such as live animals confined within enclosures for display. Many times, live animals are utilized and featured as part of amusement rides and attractions found at animal theme parks. Two examples of animal theme parks are Disney's Animal Kingdom in Orlando, Florida (580 acres or 2.3 square kilometres) and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida (335 acres or 1.36 square kilometres). These commercial parks are similar to open-range zoos and safari parks according to size, but different in intention and appearance, containing more entertainment and amusement elements (stage shows, amusement rides, etc.). The term "animal theme park" can also be used to describe certain marine mammal parks , oceanariums , and more elaborate dolphinariums , such as SeaWorld , which offers amusement rides and additional entertainment attractions, and are also where marine animals such as whales are kept, contained, put on display, and are sometimes trained to perform in shows. In 2010
12544-473: Was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 onward. The program moved among the Big Three television networks in its first four decades, but has aired on ABC since 1997. The original version of the series premiered on ABC in 1954. The show was broadcast weekly on one of the Big Three television networks until 1983. After a two-year hiatus it resumed, running regularly until 1991. From 1991 until 1997,
#141858