Wednesday March 17

MGM Studios brochure © Disney

Entrance to MGM Studios area, accessable by boat from the Swan Hotel

The making of Armageddon - a must see for us since it contains ‘our song’ in the Movie.
Armageddon theme "I don't want to miss a thing" (Rhonda & Joe - adopted theme) song sheet
 

"The making of Armageddon" brochure reference above, the Studio below

 

Us by an Armadillo unit from the Movie

Tower of Terror - whether you’re a fan of the Twilight Zone or rides that drop you several stories straight down, you’ll not want to pass this one up.

Tower of Terror section from MGM Studios brochure © Disney

MGM Back Lot area:

The MGM archway which lead to the Back Lot area

Water effects Tank - We were the stars of the show, in this one. Disney solicits volunteers before each show to participate in the demonstration of how Water Special Effects are sometimes added to films. In this case Rhonda became the Captain of a Tug, and Joe became a Battleship Captain. Joe was allowed to lead an attack on Rhonda’s Tug and pulled the lever sending 100’s of gallons of water up, over, and onto Rhonda (securely tucked into a Heavy Duty Raincoat). Rhonda watched as her allied forces attacked Joe spitting water up into and onto his Ship’s perch from machine gun fire and ultimately the destruction of his ship by torpedo. These shots were then dubbed into and contrasted against the boat miniatures, including a Battleship miniature (photo below) that burst into flames to simulate the torpedo hit and its eventual destruction. Unfortunately they don’t video the antics for the participants to be able to take a lasting copy home with them, but some people we met on the cruise snapped a few shots for us - we also took a couple of shots with the next group and saw it from the audience perspective. It was very interesting and fun to be allowed to participate.

Above: 1000’s of gallons of water, holding areas to prepare water for use (dumping), fans to simulate wind, sprinklers to simulate rain, Miniature Boat and Battleship, Full size Tug Captains wheel house and Battleship Captains lookout, all help in making a film illusion. (Our photo)
 
Below: Rhonda and Joe (stars of the show) escorted off the set following their brilliant performances. (Acquaintance’s photo)

 

The model Battleship (Our photo)

Indiana Jones stunt spectacular - Lived up to its name, and then some. Set setup and breakdown was demonstrated as well as great Movie action and stunts.

Indiana Jones entrance

 

Several of the Movies scenes were recreated. This one was where Jones fought off the Nazi wing plane mechanic, and destroyed the base.

Star Wars - episodes 4, 5, & 6 anyway. Nothing about the 1999 "Phantom menace" Prequel!

The Star Wars feature building is pictured here. By comparing the people, the building, and the Walker fighter, gives you a wonderful perspective of how massive these machines would be if real.

Muppet Vision - As you can see by the excerpt from the Guide-map (below), this one was a question mark. We had the time, and decided to go in since the line was moving fast, and we were glad we did. This show presented some wonderful visual effects as well as interaction (as did "It’s tough to be a bug" – see Disney World Animal Kingdom) into/with the Theatre and those in it.

Even the mock Movie posters and Lab signs were a delight to view while passing through the line.

Muppet-Vision section from MGM Studios brochure © Disney

Back Lot tour - The regular Back Lot tours were shut down, but we were allowed to walk through the Back Lot and see many things. The Prop warehouse had objects from several famous movies. The Back Lot area is actually where the Armageddon Armadillo actually was located, which a picture appeared earlier.

While this shot of N.Y. (above) appears to go on forever, it actually ended only a block and a half up down this street lined with "Fronts" (Building facades that are not real buildings). The elaborate collage at the end of the street was a wonder to see from afar as well as up close. If you look close, you can certainly see something doesn’t look right off in the distance, but to the naked eye and on film, it looks realistic.