In 1954 Walt Disney started producing a weekly TV show called Disneyland that promoted his upcoming theme park. The idea of the show was that each week, and different "land" in the park would be featured to generate interest with the public. For Fantasyland, they could use bits of their movie catalog. For Frontierland they made great shows such as Davy Crocket (which touched off a national craze). For Adventureland they used Disney's Tru-Life Adventures movies . However, Tomorrowland was a bit of a problem.
You see, Tomorrowland was the last "land" to be built at the park, and it suffered from a lack of money and focus. Walt Disney was not interested in the Space Operas of the 50's. His mind was more focused on what could actually be. Therefore he termed the idea "Science-Factual" entertainment. The Tomorrowland he wanted (and never got exactly) was one that showed the real future, filled with hope and promise.
If he never quite got it at the park, he DID get it on his TV show. In 1955 he produced three programs; Man in Space, Man and the Moon, and Mars and Beyond. In order to make sure that the shows were as accurate as possible he enlisted Werner Von Braun, Willy Ley, and Heinz Haber. In order to make it entertaining he enlisted his favorite animator, Ward Kimball. Mr. Kimball was best known for giving life to Jimminy Cricket, but he was actually a true renaissance man with interests in music, railroading and (of all things) U.F.O.s. He was actually a natural choice to direct the programs.
The shows were a smash hit and had far reaching consequences. It is public record that President Eisenhower had them shown at the White House to inspire the government's involvement with space exploration (perhaps the current administration needs to see them).
A couple of years ago I found that the Disney company had rereleased these shows (plus two more) on a DVD called Walt Disney Treasures- Tomorrowland. They have these shows, plus special features that include original art and interviews. The DVD was produced in 2003, but is still available through Amazon or the Disney Store online for about 30 bucks.
So, if you want to have a great piece of rocketry history, I can't recommend it enough.
Until next time, fly 'em fast and high!
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| The DVD, plus a model of Von Braun's Space Ferry |
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| Walt Disney poses with a model of Project Bumper, a V2 and Von Braun's other creations. |
This is FANTASTIC! After seeing the blog post, I ordered the DVDs. We have watched the first two episodes. Great, great stuff. Too bad our space program slowed down after the Russians gave up. Von Braun would have had a space station up there in the 60's! Anyway, great program, and thanks for letting us know about it.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you are enjoying it! Even after watching it several times, it's still a favorite.
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ReplyDeleteAnother model I have sitting in a box on a shelf...waiting...waiting...waiting to fulfill its purpose.
ReplyDeleteI actually just pieced this one together to take the picture. It was a while later that I glued and painted it!
DeleteI actually just pieced this one together to take the picture. It was a while later that I glued and painted it!
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