The Rise and Fall of Disney's Skyway
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.ย. 2024
- A complete history of all three of Disney's Skyways.
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Your channel is criminally under subbed …another great video sir and I learned a lot, I’m old enough to have ridden the skyway as a kid in the early 90s. Lots of great memories and photos from that skyway, I wish Disneyland would bring ‘em back 🤷🏼♂️
Thanks for the compliments! I have a lot of good memories riding it myself as a kid. So glad you enjoyed the episode. Thanks for watching!
hear hear
Disneyland has never paid minimum wage,... especially in the Attractions department!
Back in the 1990's, Disneyland paid extremely well and had almost impossibly high standards when casting roles.
Over the last few years, the compensation Disneyland has offered has steadily decreased along with its selection criteria. Disneyland's personnel are now being paid a fraction of what they used to receive, and this fact is repeatedly and rightly asserted by the various unions that represent Disney's employees.
The standards for Disneyland's personnel are not at all like they used to be. Disneyland used to be a prestigious organization that had cachet, and the compensation packages allowed Disney to select the best from the largest pool of applicants possible.
Now, Disneyland can hardly keep the place staffed with people who are barely competent, and that situation is a direct result of Disney continually offering the unions deals that privilege existing personnel over new hires.
Early 80s here! 😅. Though I rode the same thing locally at Opryland much more often. Went from front of park to the back. Best way to go to the other side first thing in the day to hit those rides with less people around.
I loved the Skyway, so much fun to get around the park. Much like the Peoplemover it was a must go when I was a child at Disneyland. I'm just glad I was able to experience them both.
Wow! You are so lucky! I never got to go on either of those at Disneyland. Thank you so much for sharing!
Absolutely terrifying death trap that my brothers had me convinced would fall off the line! I do miss it now though!
Yeah, I agree on both counts. The single cable system made it nearly impossible NOT to think about it snapping and falling. And I too miss it. It was an awesome attraction.
Here's the dark secret of why the skyway at Disneyland was closed. It was because of kids like my little brother and his friends. They would spit, throw popcorn, cups, ice, and anything else that they could find from the skyway onto unsuspecting guests below. It was a sport for the "regular kids of Disney" at the time. The new Skyliner cabs used in Florida are totally enclosed by design. No mischief can be caused by the riders. I dare say that the original skyway from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland could be resurrected if the new Skyliner cars were used because the problems caused by kids on the original version would be eliminated.
Seeing as how the Skyliner is as popular as it is, I doubt they'd be willing to add it as an attraction again. But at least we have something akin to it, right? And I have to admit that I had to resist the urge to toss things over the side when I was a teen, myself. Thanks so much for sharing and, of course, also watching!
I missed this video!!!
Thank you! This ride is cemented in my childhood!!
I'm so glad you enjoyed it. It's a big part of my childhood too. Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
Great Work! Very well done video.@@disfarers
Love these fun series of videos. You don't realize what you had, until it's gone. Like the people mover and the astro jets at Disneyland, these attractions allowed guest to have a bird's eye view of the park and a brief escape for the busy park below. Loved how it went through the Matterhorn.
I figured the Skyway's demise was a combination of multiple factors, which you had mentioned.
But a few years back, I discovered a scale model of the original skybuckets in a backyard railroad exhibit.
What?!! That's so crazy it was in a backyard railroad exhibit. I recently saw a video where a Disney Monorail was out behind some commerical area building. Just....sitting there for anyone to look at or jump in. They're supposedly refurbishing it but it's still out in the open to the elements.
The Skyway was such an awesome ride though. Whenever I get to thinking about it I get an itch to create an episode about the Skyliner. Thanks again for watching and commenting!
I loved the Skyway. It was a lot like the people mover. A nice refreshing ride for a change of pace. Oh well, as they say, it is long gone.
It was so great though. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Excellent video! Well researched and well made! Great job and it brings back a lot of memories for me! AFAIK, the reason for the placement of the Matterhorn and Skyway -- next to the Autotopia and submarine -- was to reflect the contemporary world. Disneyland is set up like an enormous clock. You enter and begin to go back in time up Main Street, go left, the continue clockwise forward in time. Several of the rides -- Train, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, Mansion, etc. -- are set in the past but give glimpses into the distant past. It's irregular, but you generally move forward in time, toward Tomorrowland. Thus, immediately before you go into the future of Tomorrowland, you go through the contemporary world when transportation was king: toboggan, submarine, autos, and skyway.
I never heard this theory before! So interesting! Where did you first hear this? Oh and thank you so much for the compliment, for watching and especially sharing! I'm going to look further into this one.
Fun 🤩 Fact: during the Fantasyland renovation at Disneyland in the early 1980s the Skyway made only roundtrips from Tomorrowland.
I heard about that, but couldn't find a place to seamlessly fit it into the episode. Thanks for watching!
Your videos always give me some new Disney trivia that I didn't know before, and I know a LOT of Disney facts. I vaguely remember the Skyway as a kid. I loved them. I wish they'd bring them back. Please keep these great videos coming!
Yeah, I miss the skyways too. The skyliner really doesn't capture the same fun relaxing feel as the originals. Always glad to hear you enjoyed the episode and learned some more fun stuff, Gargoyle Stories. I really think you hope you like the rest of the videos I have lined up for 2023. They're all really well known subjects, but the episodes will be filled with little to lesser known facts.
The best point in the Skyway ride was the trip through the Matterhorn.
@@rattiegirl5 I never got to ride that one as a kid, because my family always went to Florida. But I bet that was cool!
Interesting funny story, I was in the Air Force 1968, and buddy and I got busted for smoking pot riding thru the madahorn in one of those gondolas thinking it was a safe place and that the smell of pot would be disapated in the air, duh on us, they probably had look outs in the madahorn. My buddy was faster than me and got away, they took me to some secret room where I was Interagated for a while. The military police picked me up took me to Norton AFB and told me to knock that stuff off, thought for sure I was gonna get busted bit I didn’t, perhaps that’s why they removed the gondolas. Just a thought, I am 75 now but never forgot that night at Disney.
I miss this so bad I literally dream of them constantly.... it feels like I'm mourning a loss of a family member
Other people have commented and told me that there's still a Von Roll in New Jersey at Great Adventure if you live up that way. There's also still the one in Tampa. Another out in San Diego, if I'm recalling properly. I know they're not exactly the same, but ya' know, maybe it helps knowing there are others still out there.
Thank you so much for watching, listening and commenting by the way! I really appreciate it!
Great video, I remember riding this ride with my Mom. It a great Disneyland memory
Thanks so much for sharing that! And for watching, of course, too. I know there's so many memories we all have at the parks, but the few that REALLY stand out, especially with parents, can be so strong!
I miss those!! People Movers too...💚🎸
always love a hitchhikers drop in
Ha! I think you're the only one to have commented on it. Thanks for commenting and watching!
The buckets were infamous for some guests using it to smoke weed in the park. Other locations included Tom Sawyer's Island. This was hard to monitor and was an issue giving the management and security ulcers. It wasn't the primary reason for removal (maintainence) but it made the decision easy for management.
I grew up with Skyway at Disneyland (and rode the WDW one at least once before it closed). I loved going on Skyway from the time I was a child into my twenties when it closed. I was down at WDW last May and got to ride the Skyliner and loved it riding it all the way from Hollywood Studios to EPCOT and back. I hope someday Disneyland brings this attraction back in some form.
Thanks so much for sharing and watching. I love hearing personal stories like this!
Just heard this week from a senior Disney staff member who stated that the skyliner now at Disney World is classified as “Transportation” instead of an “attraction” or ride. The difference is apparently huge in terms of state regulations and requirements! Same with the boats around EPCOT and the ones that take you from the parking lot to the magic kingdom. And of course, the monorail. He said Disneyland changed its monorail from an attraction to transportation!!
Oh this is interesting. I always just assumed it was classified as "Transportation". What you're saying about regulations and requirements is intriguing too! All of the transportation systems are so exciting. You're making me want to dig deeper on my skyliner episode that's not even set for anytime soon. I'm definitely going to research this transportation and attraction/regulation situation. Thank you so much for sharing this. Great stuff!
Love your videos! I hope more people find you.👍
Hey, thanks so much! Glad you enjoy watching them.
I remember riding that with my dad. I'm glad I still have the SD zoo one. I still know where to find the stairs in fantasy land
It's so great to have family memories like that. Thank you for sharing. And there's a certain kind of comfort knowing you can still get on one if you really want to, right?
Criminally undersubbed is my exact thought. Fantastic content and commentary!
Thanks for watching! I'm so glad you've enjoyed the episodes. And thanks for the compliments!
Loving your content. I keep pushing the like buttons. Hope the algorithm start pushing you more. Great stuff.
Hey, thanks so much! It's actually been a great month. The channel has doubled in size, so I can't complain. I appreciate you watching and liking the episodes!
"Hyperion" is a reference to the name of the airship in "The Island at the Top of the World."
That airship was depicted in physical permanence in Discoveryland at Disneyland Paris.
The airship in the film was named after Hyperion Avenue where The Walt Disney Studios had its second plant following the initial storefront on Kingswell Avenue.
I knew of the Top of the World connection to Disneyland Paris' as well as the unbuilt Discovery Bay, but didn't want to veer too far off the topic of the Skyway. And I of course know all about the Hyperion Studio, but again, I felt it was only worth mentioning rather than diving deeply into. You really know your stuff. Thanks so much for watching and commenting.
Something I want to point out. Visit Disneyland and you look to the left of Casey Junior there are still concrete steps going up to a dead end. That is where it led up to the original Skyway in Fantasyland. I'm not sure why they left it but it is cool it's still there
I was there today and checked. Just like you said, there were the steps! Thanks so much for sharing, commenting and watching!
Always smoked a joint on the Skyway in the early 70’s in WDW
Thanks so much for watching!
I miss the skyway at Disney World. I only rode them once or twice as a child. I loved the “Skybuckets” Awesome Disney history lesson! Another awesome film! I thought up into the lesson here that these were called sky-buckets not Gondolas. All my family and friends called these type of rides sky-buckets. I’m not ashamed to say I never heard the word Gondola until the Disney Skyliner at Disney World. 😂
Yeah, Gondola didn't really enter my vocabulary until the new Disney Skyliner was implemented a few years ago too. Until then, I only understood gondolas as the long red boats people rode in Venice. Even when I rode the Skyway as a kid, I think I just saw them as "skyway cars". Thanks for more of the kind words and for watching and commenting. I watch your channel on my television and always hit like, but have to get over to start watching on my laptop so I can start commenting. I really enjoyed the last episode you posted!
@@disfarers Exactly! I was thinking of the red boats too. Thanks we had fun at that camper show. This year as we do trips my videos are going to be more like that. I’ll show my personality and less stiff professionalism. I’m getting much better response that way. I have a new vision how I want them to look. The Camp Gulf part 1 is getting much better response than episode 1 & 2. So I’m keeping that in mind. Thanks for that advice! Thanks for the likes!
It's so great to hear your enthusiasm! I know you're putting out episodes weekly, but it's become my daily morning routine to catch up on your show over coffee. It's a pleasure to watch!
@@disfarers Thanks! I’m glad to entertain, which is what I’m here for! Your videos get me in the disney mood. I really love all the history lessons. I really like the ride history and how they work the best. But I do love it all but my favorite is the ride histories and how they work. We’ll be traveling to Fort Wilderness this year and will do a full review of the campground from our perspective and I will through you a mention about your disney history lessons. Not that you need help getting viewers. Do not feel to do the same for me at all, I would not expect it, nor would i take any offense. Like you mentioning the Mortimer & Company Candles at the end I don’t expect nothing I just feel that your content is worthy of a mention in my videos and no better way to mention it but during a disney resort review.
Thanks for the video, very informative
I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting and watching.
I rode on this at WDW in the 70s as a little girl - and the swan boats lol
I had no idea they used to have them at the Magic Kingdom!!! I already looked into it because of your comment and now have yet another episode I have to one day make. I can't thank you enough for sharing about your experience on the Skyway and the Swan Boat! Thank you so much for watching and commenting.
It makes a lot of sense why they don’t immediately tear down the buildings. They don’t just tear things down because that cost time and money. If they do that they’ll have to reclaim the land and put effort into making it look nice. If they have a themed building and landscaping already there that’s the easiest solution UNTIL they want that space for something else.
Yeah, I definitely agree with you. I think it's to save on time and money while they move forward with other projects.
Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment. I appreciate it.
The main reason was that the manufacturer(s) who produced the products necessary to maintain the skyway no longer produced the products or went out of business. It would require either Disney to start manufacturing products or find a vendor to make legacy products. As such they determined it was less expensive to remove the attraction. Similar to the motor boats and people mover. Thankfully the people mover has a massive following and we may get it to return. Hopefully this will happen in my lifetime.
I read about the product issue but couldn't double verify it. Do you by any chance have any personal information about this or can tell me your source?
Thanks for commenting and watching too, I should add!
Another excellent video, chock-filled with lots of information! I rode the Magic Kingdom’s Sky Way a few times as a kid, and I don’t remember much of it. What I have lots of memories of is from the park formally known as Great Adventure in New Jersey. That park has the skyway from New York’s ‘64 World’s Fair. You can still ride it today. There aren’t too many Von Rolls left in the world!
I joined a couple of Von Roll groups while making this episode. I had no idea Great Adventure used one! I must have totally forgotten. I used to live up around that way and went at least three times. I know if I saw a skyway I definitely would have gone on. Gah! I wish I remembered so I could recall riding the '64 World Fair's Von Roll! Thanks so much for sharing and watching though! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
What's Great Adventure called now?
@@disfarers The Skyway was thought to be a goner this season, but it’s still running. The locals still call it Great Adventure, but corporate loves to refer to it as simply Six Flags. I haven’t been back since they removed Rolling Thunder. That was the big coaster when I was growing up and I credit it and EPCOT as the two reasons why I enjoy parks and coasters.
I recall when I turned 16 and got my drivers license that the first Saturday afterward I took me and friends to Great Adventure...and well...had a great adventure! It was like something out of a 90's teen comedy but in real life. Love. Tragedy. Thrills. And the threat of being found out we were far from home. If I get the chance and i'm back up there I definitely have to revisit now. Thanks so much again for commenting. This was fun!
The front part (ground level) of the chalet at the Magic Kingdom was used for stroller parking for Fantasyland, especially since the Peter Pan queue was right across the street. There were still buckets and machinery up in the enclosure, though guests couldn't see them.
I knew about this and actually had a portion in the original script but I thought it was causing some drag on the episode. Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
The "Skyway" built for the NY World's Fair I believe made its way over to Six Flags Great Adventure in NJ
Did it? That's so amazing. I have to look into that. Great Adventure was the first place I went after getting my license and first car. Thanks so much for sharing. Do you happen to know if the "Skyway" at Great Adventure is still operating?
@@disfarers It is. Been operating since 1977.
That's so neat! I had no idea about this. Thank you so much for sharing and answering. I'm so going to look into this for a future episode!
A little known fact is that located in the Disneyland Swiss chalet was the emergency back-up power for the sky buckets. It was a VW bug engine.
That's amazing! Where did you learn that?!!
Late 60's standing in line and a cover was pulled back revealing a VW engine. I asked one of the loaders what the VW engine was for and he said emergency back-up. I thought that was cool as I had recently bought a Volkswagen. I might have a photo as I took my Minolta SR-T 101 everywhere back then. I'll look.@@disfarers
Your writing is amazing. I enjoy your videos brother. Keep up the good work. What rides are acceptable to people with disabilities? It must be frustrating for those with challenges.
Thanks for watching! And for the compliment! It really depends on the disability involved, but I believe rides like the railroads and it's a small world are exceptionally good. Also, any rides that have room for wheelchairs like Ariel's Undersea Adventure, the Land, Imagination, etc as well as shows are great places to check out. Sometimes, even if the attraction isn't right for someone because of their disability, the post show area of attractions are still cool places to visit.
I was born in 1972 and we always called them the buckets. Not even Sky buckets, just buckets.
I wonder why that is. I mean, if everyone just called them buckets, which makes sense, where did the whole sky bucket thing come from? Anyways, thanks so much for watching and commenting.
I’m pretty sure the Disneyland Fantasyland Station is still there. Galaxys edge is further back.
You made me second guess myself but I went there and checked it out last night. No station. And I hate to be contrary, but I'm gonna have to stick to my research that the station was removed to make way for the Fantasylamd Station. It just makes sense. The actual land may or may not be in Galaxy's Edge but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be needed for anything behind the scenes or viewable to guests. I want to thank you so much for commenting and keeping me on my toes though. Oh and thank you for watching!
Just stumbled across your channel while looking for videos about Milt Kahl. By any chance, are you planning on doing videos about the other 7 of the 9 Old Men?
I am, but I took a detour to make attraction videos to build up my number of subscribers. I already wrote the episode for Ollie Johnston. I believe Milt Kahl would come after him. To be honest, there's so much to Milt Kahl I still haven't figured out how to cram him into just a single episode. I'll figure it out though. So yeah, long story short, I fully intend to make a Milt Kahl episode as well as all of the rest of the 9 Old Men.
Skyliners returned to Disney World in 2019. The current system has six stations and is used to transport visitors to/from several Disney Resorts & Epcot and Hollywood Studios.
The Skyliner stations are at Pop Century, Epcot's International Gateway, the Riviera, Hollywood Studios, Art of Animation, and Caribbean Beach. I have also heard rumors of it extending to the Animal Kingdom as well as the Animal Kingdom Lodge (but please don't quote me on that). Thank you so much for watching and commenting!
An extension to Animal Kingdom would be a game changer for that park!
I know, right? I thought the same thing and it totally makes sense to have AK and the AKL be connected.
Skyliner at WDW makes sense because it’s not a ride. The Skyliner is transportation. WDW has a bus congestion problem, just observing the size of the bus stations at the parks gives an idea of how much of a problem it is. Bus traffic is so bad Disney built bus only lanes around Disney Springs.
The skyliner can move more people per hour with less labor than buses. The skyliner doesn’t get caught in traffic causing guests to miss reservations. And with advancements in technology it is far less dangerous for the operators. No longer does Disney need to employ big burly guys to stop swing and catch the buckets. No longer is there a step up or down, now wheel chairs and strollers are welcome.
I would expect that sometime in the future we might see an expansion of the skyliner to include routes to more hotels and to Animal Kingdom.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting! As much as I agree with most of what you wrote I want to add the small side point that the skyline unfortunately closes down in the event of lightning. Seeing as how storms breeze through so incredibly often, the sky liner's not exactly a completely reliable mode of transportation. It's an awesome supplement to thier transportation system though and absolutely eases congestion. Again, thanks so much for commenting. I'm definitely making a skyliner episode one day.
@@disfarers it also shuts down in winds over 20-25mph.
Ugh, after the Disneyland Peoplemover, this is the next ride I wish I had a time machine to ride. I'd love to see them bring it back with Skyliner cars.
Yeah, I really wish I had the chance to ride Disneyland's PeopleMover too. I mean, I went on it, but I was too young to remember. Thank so much for watching and commenting!
You are forgetting the tornado in Anaheim that damaged the Disney Skyway. Seriously... look it up.
Wow! Taking it back to '83. The articles I found didn't really say anything about the Skyway being damaged, just that it was temporarily shut down. Thanks so much for watching, sharing and commenting! I love to expand my knowledge and understanding!
@@disfarers One of the cables was dislodged off the big pulley somehow and they had to remove everyone using a lift. I remember the news story at the time. I think someone claimed they had minor injuries but I can't remember that for sure.
Day-Byou-Ted…lol
Do you know why the "t" isn't pronounced?
Umm..... I have always heard that the reason why the Disneyland Skyway has closed was due to safety issues after the 94' Northridge earthquake.... Just saying
There's nothing sustainable to back that up and I have to go with verifiable facts. Every time I've run on a rumor or a single unverifiable source I've been blasted in comments and/or burned by untrue material, so I've learned to keep to verified facts.
It's not exactly related to your comment, but you should check out Socrates' "Triple Filter Test" regarding rumors. It's pretty neat!
And ironically after they dumped it, they are now using it for inner park transport in Florida. Go figure.
I felt the same exact way and was really surprised by the introduction to the Skyliner system. After hearing rumors that there are talks of expanding it to connect to the Animal Kingdom I oddly relaxed on the whole issue.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
Test
Ignore the test, mobile doesn't allow me to delete comments
But I was all prepared to write back "All Systems Go, Buster"!
Pat to Sponge. Pat to Sponge. Testing, testing. Testing, testing, testing, testing... TESTING! TEST! TEST! DO YOU READ?!@@disfarers
My friend, debuted sounds like "day viewed" and not like "day butte ed". I noticed you say it in another video too. Okay, carry on!
Yeah, someone else noticed too. I think it's something I picked up from a former accent I once had. The proper way still sounds weird to me. However, I've already recorded the audio for December's episode and I'll have you know that I pronounce it correctly in it. Thanks so much for watching and commenting and letting me know of the mistake though! If no one tells me about my mistakes I'd just keep making them.
I once told my mom that the Fantasyland station was my dream house. I didn't know it used to be a skyway station until I was older.
One day my dad told me that they were taking down my dream home. It was worth it though :)
The Fantasyland station really did have a special kind of quality unto itself. Thank you for sharing that and for watching too.
This is total misinformation. Disneyland has never paid minimum wage,... especially in the Attractions department!
Back in the 1990's, Disneyland paid extremely well and had almost impossibly high standards when casting roles. You are discussing something you really know nothing about.
Over the last few years, the compensation Disneyland has offered has steadily decreased along with its selection criteria. Disneyland's personnel are now being paid a fraction of what they used to receive, and this fact is repeatedly and rightly asserted by the various unions that represent Disney's employees.
The standards for Disneyland's personnel are not at all like they used to be. Disneyland used to be a prestigious organization that had cachet, and the compensation packages allowed Disney to select the best from the largest pool of applicants possible.
Now, Disneyland can hardly keep the place staffed with people who are barely competent, and that situation is a direct result of Disney continually offering the unions deals that privilege existing personnel over new hires.
I'm sorry that what I said made you so upset. And I tried to look it up, but there isn't easily available information on wages paid to Disneyland attraction cast members in the 1990's. I was only going with the information I had from personal exchanges I have had over the decades with cast members from Disney World during the 1990's. I even had one of these conversations with a friend/cast member during the 90's.
If this has soured you completely on the episode then I'm very sorry. But I want to thank you for giving it a chance and for commenting.
Skyway went woke before woke was a word. Worried about lawsuits.