I wish additional info was available on this topic, but I will do my best to summarize what I know. Most of the online sources (like https://d23.com/the-hall-of-presidents-story/) seem to draw from each other. Disneyland opened in 1955. Around 1956, Walt looked at adding a couple of mini-lands in 1957 off of Main Street USA—Liberty Street and Edison Square. In fact, at least one of the early maps shows this expansion. One of the attractions planned for Liberty Street was to focus on the presidents, starting with George Washington. They would be seen talking in silhouette form prior to a video about the nation’s capital. Another idea was something along the lines of a wax museum of the presidents. But the more Walt toyed with the idea, the more he wanted something that was rather dynamic. It seems like the working title of this project was “One Nation Under God,” although that title could have come in a later phase. Obviously, it’s a line from the Pledge of Allegiance (specifically the 1954 version), but it captures the spirit that the United States was founded upon.
The Liberty Street of Disneyland was eventually scrapped, but Walt still wanted to have an attraction focused on the presidents of the United States. Disney found his opportunity to bring presidents to life through a pitch in 1961 for the 1964 World’s Fair. WED (Walt’s Imagineering group) refreshed the earlier plans of “One Nation Under God” and presented it to an organizing committee and some representatives from some major companies. The reviews were mixed. Walt decided that building a life-size animatronic of Abraham Lincoln would help win an investor over. In the end, only the Abraham Lincoln Audio Animatronic was built for the 1964 World’s Fair in a show that was titled “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.” The success of that work brought the show to Disneyland’s Main Street USA, where the show continues to this day. When the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World was being constructed, they went back to Walt’s “One Nation Under God” idea of having all of the presidents. It was renamed “The Hall of Presidents” and was put in a land called Liberty Square. With every change in the presidency, a new Audio Animatronic is designed and the president’s voice is recorded.
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Replacing The Hall of Presidents, The Hall of Prophets will be a great new audio animatronics show at Miracle Kingdom at Bible World. The show building will be updated to reflect more of an ancient auditorium that fits in well with the nearby The Haunted Palace. Prophets are messengers of God. God has called these people throughout history—both in the New Testament and the Old Testament. This show will focus on the Old Testament prophets. The prophets are grouped into two sets—the 4 major prophets and the 12 minor prophets. The distinction is based primarily on how long their book is in the Old Testament. The 4 Major Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. They will be the main speakers in the show, and also the ones with the most personality. A lot of the show writes itself with quotes from their writings. The show will progress from warnings of Israel to prophecies that get fulfilled by Jesus to prophecies of the Holy Spirit. Warnings of Israel Jonah: “‘Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,’ when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small put on sackcloth…When God saw by their actions how they turned by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out” (3:4b-5, 10). Amos: “‘Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the Lord” (8:11). Baruch: “Israel…you have forsaken the fountain of wisdom! Had you walked in the way of God, you would have dwelt in enduring peace. Learn where prudence is, where strength, where understanding; that you may know also where are length of days, and life, where light of the eyes, and peace” (3:12-14). Hosea: “Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God; you have collapsed through your guilt…Straight are the paths of the LORD, in them the just walk, but sinners stumble in them” (14:2, 10). Obadiah: “On Mount Zion there shall be a portion saved; the mountains shall be holy, and the house of Jacob shall take possession of those that dispossessed them” (v. 17). Nahum: “See, upon the mountains there advances the bearer of good news, announcing peace! Celebrate your feasts, O Judah, fulfill your vows!…The LORD will restore the vine of Jacob, the pride of Israel” (2:1a, 3a). Prophecies of Jesus Haggai: “Greater will be the future glory of this house than the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place I will give peace, says the LORD of hosts” (2:9). Micah: “But you Bethlehem-Ephrathah, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel; whose origin is from of old, from ancient times” (5:1). Zephaniah: “Show for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!…The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior” (3:14, 17a) Zechariah: “Rejoice heartily, O daughter Zion, shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem! See, your king shall come to you; a just savior is he, meek and riding on [a donkey], on a colt, the foal of [a donkey]…His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth” (9:9-10). Isaiah: “See, my servant shall prosper, he shall be raised high and greatly exalted. Even as many were amazed at him—so marred were his features, beyond that of mortals his appearance, beyond that of human beings...He had no majestic bearing to catch our eye, no beauty to draw us to him. He was spurned and avoided by men, a man of suffering, knowing pain, Like one from whom you turn your face, spurned, and we held him in no esteem. Yet it was our pain that he bore, our sufferings he endured. We thought of him as stricken, struck down by God and afflicted, But he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity. He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed. We had all gone astray like sheep, all following our own way; But the LORD laid upon him the guilt of us all. Though harshly treated, he submitted and did not open his mouth; Like a lamb led to slaughter or a sheep silent before shearers, he did not open his mouth. Seized and condemned, he was taken away. Who would have thought any more of his destiny? For he was cut off from the land of the living, struck for the sins of his people. He was given a grave among the wicked, a burial place with evildoers, Though he had done no wrong, nor was deceit found in his mouth. But it was the LORD’s will to crush him with pain...My servant, the just one, shall justify the many, their iniquity he shall bear. Therefore I will give him his portion among the many, and he shall divide the spoils with the mighty, Because he surrendered himself to death, was counted among the transgressors, Bore the sins of many, and interceded for the transgressors” (52:13-14; 53:2b-10a; 53:11b-12). Malachi: “There will arise the sun of justice with its healing with its healing rays” (3:20b). Habbakkuk: “The just man, because of his faith shall live” (2:4). Prophecies of the Holy Spirit Joel: “I will pour out my spirit on all mankind” (3:1). Ezekiel: “I will take you away from among the nations, gather you from all the foreign lands, and bring you back to your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you to cleanse you from all your impurities, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you, taking from your stony hearts and giving you natural hearts. I will put my spirit within you and make you live by my statutes, careful to observe my decrees. You shall live in the land I gave your fathers; you shall be my people, and I will be your God” (37:24-28). Daniel: “The wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament. And those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever” (12:3). Jeremiah: “The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt…But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people…All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD” (31:31-34a).
You might be surprised to hear that a priest vacationed in Las Vegas. I went for the shows (Sting and America’s Got Talent Live Show), but I also planned to ride rides.
The Rides at the Strat At the Strat in Las Vegas…I got SkyPod access (it’s the name of the tower) plus 3 thrill rides for $39. I rode Insanity first since I came across it’s entrance before Big Shot. This was the one that I heard was the most thrilling…and it lived up to it! I was the only one on it, which added to the thrill. First the gates on the tower come down and then the ride is brought out over the edge of the tower with nothing between my feet and the ground way below. It was probably the most nervous I’ve been for a ride since riding Superman at Magic Mountain for the first time. If it hadn’t been 1000 feet up, it wouldn’t be a major thrill, but it was somewhat dizzying as the arm spun me around (with some other forces, too). I next rode Big Shot, which is essentially a launch tower (and not a huge one at that), but starting at about 1100 feet! I wasn’t as nervous for this one. The best part wasn’t the very top but shortly after when I came out of my chair. It was a short ride but a good experience. Once again, I was the only one on it. I was debating whether to ride X-Scream (a 36-foot long coaster track that sends the trains off the edge of the tower 4 times) or to re-ride Insanity. As I was hearing some people say that X-Scream was pretty intense, I decided for it. I rode this one with the two people I taken the elevator with up the tower. With only the warning of “bye” from the staff person, we were off on the first slide! I should have probably taken the front seat since it wasn’t as intense not seeing where I was going (and because the women I was with didn’t really know what they were getting themselves into), but it was still thrilling as the coaster came to a quick stop. I rode these all during the day, so it would be neat to try them at night. But overall not a bad deal for some rides that you can’t really do anywhere else! AdventureDome at Circus Circus When I decided I was going to Las Vegas (to see Sting and AGT Live), I thought this might be the opportunity to experience the AdventureDome at Circus Circus Casino/Hotel. It’s sort of known as the most family-friendly resort on the Las Vegas Strip (and according to Screamscape, it sounds like they might be going all-in on that going forward). As you enter the Casino, up on the second floor are free circus acts (I didn’t look at the schedule closely enough to make it work with my schedule) and a bunch of arcade canes. At the back of the complex is the AdventureDome, which has a reddish/pink glass bubble as it’s ceiling. The daily wristband costs $40 and covers the rides but does not include laser tag (although the Lazer Blast was included, I believe), the Midway carnival games, arcade games, Pirate’s Bounty mini golf, rock climbing, and bungee jumping. The park reminds me a bit of Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America, although it looks more aged. Most of the rides in the park are flat rides. Inverter was closed down. The other ones were pretty good (and some like Nebulaz rotating orbital sphere was unique for me), although I only rode them once. There are other family style and kid rides. There used to be a water ride (you can see the abandoned track from Canyon Blaster). There are also two theaters. The 4-D Special FX Theater rotates between Scoob and Ice Age; both were good. The Extreme Ride Theater housed Angry Birds, which was alright. The two main rides are the coasters, which I rode each 4 times. Canyon Blaster is the original one. It features a double loop and a double corkscrew plus a couple of tunnels. Overall it was quite fun and pretty smooth (a little rough near the end). El Loco is the newer one (4 person trains), and it is quite intense! It features a 90 degree drop and two dive loops. These coasters are probably better than the one at New York New York (although I have not ridden that one in about 20 years). So if you’re looking to ride rides in Las Vegas, the AdventureDome will fit the bill. I think you’ll find the coasters quite enjoyable. Plus the wait was so short—I kept just getting back in line! Pinball Hall of Fame Although not technically rides, pinball machines are the closest I’ll get to gambling! The Pinball Hall of Fame is a new building that is on Las Vegas Boulevard but a little south of the main casinos (it’s not far from Mandalay Bay). It’s a little bit of a misnomer—it’s basically a giant arcade of pinball machines (old and new) as well as other arcade games. The machines cost whatever they did when they came out. So for about $6, I was able to play a lot of machines, including a lot of the old ones. Other Sites The Conservatory at the Bellagio is beautifully themed. The Mirage puts on a 5-minute volcano show on the hour during the evening. I went to the Flamingo Habitat at the Flamingo twice (once to pray) during my trip. |
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